LAS D&D 2011

Another year, another Christmas party but this one was different... this one was amazing. To be honest, I wasn't expecting much from the LUCASFILM SINGAPORE 2011 DINNER & DANCE other than a few cocktails and some well-dressed work mates and I got that, with a whole lot more.

The party took place on the 63rd floor of the Altitude Building in downtown Singapore (much higher than the Marina Bay Sands Hotel/Casino) and on this semi-clear night we were treated to a Lunar Eclipse (awesome)! Everyone looked fantastic, especially Michelle, and an extremely good time was had by all! Thanks for another amazing year LAS and thanks for the great holiday party!!!

Pics of the event can be seen HERE!!!

VICTOR & AMANDA TIE THE KNOT

11/11/11... to some it's Remembrance Day, a time to acknowledge the memories of those brave men and women who fought for our countries, for others it's just a day off of work (if you live in Canada) but for my brother Victor and his blushing bride Amanda, it was their WEDDING DAY. Despite the cool clouds outside, it was all warm smiles inside the Community Center at Olympic Village as the bridge and groom said their "I do's" surrounded by 100+ family and friends. Michelle and I made it out from Singapore and I am glad that we did, so we could be part of this festive event but don't take my word for it, see the pics HERE. Congrats and much love to you both!

NOTE - More pics to be added in December once we download them from Michelle's camera!

HALLOWEEN 2011

One of our most favorite times of year has arrived, HALLOWEEN and this year the work party promised to be a doozy! The theme of the event was "Comic Book Superhero & Villains" and I think that Corsiworld represented well! Michelle went retro as the blue and silver pin-up gal COSMIC GIRL, while I took a popular hero and put him in the seventies with SATURDAY NIGHT THOR. A good time was had by all and some of the costumes were absolutely amazing! Check out the pics HERE!!!

SEPTEMBER 2011

Wow, what a busy month!!! Our Sixth Wedding Anniversary, my Birthday, the Chilli Challenge, Aamir's Fried Chicken, F1 Singapore, Oktoberfest... the list goes on and one but you can see it all for yourself through our pictures HERE!

SIX YEARS STRONG!

September 17th marks our SIX YEAR WEDDING ANNIVERSARY and I am happy to say that life is grand. We are spending the day with a few cool activities: An introductory course in Muay Thai Kickboxing, a 7km+ walk along East Coast Park and dinner tonight at one of our favorite places, Mario Batali's Mozza. Great way to spend this great day with the greatest gal in the world. Happy Anniversary Michelle, I love you!

A MONTH OF VANCITY & SAN FRAN

Well, it's been a while since we've updated the blog and here's the reason why... we've been away for almost five weeks. A little over two weeks in our hometown of VANCOUVER and then two more weeks in SAN FRANCISCO. It was a blend of vacation and work but overall it was a lot of fun. Judge for yourself, Vancouver pics HERE and San Francisco pics HERE!

THE MOTHER OF ALL BRISKETS

I didn't need to go to church to see "the light", I didn't need a near-death experience to see God, no, all I need was a little BBQ and thanks to my buddy Roman, he delivered with THE MOTHER OF ALL BRISKETS!!!

Roman runs a site called THE BIG GREEN ASIAN EGG which is basically a blog of all his attempts at BBQ'ing various things on his Egg BBQ. Last week, I mentioned to him that we should do a Brisket and last night Roman delivered. I wont repeat the amazing, time consuming process he went through to create this taste sensation but you can read about it HERE, it's an epic take of patience, ingredients and meat.

I do love me some BBQ and as most of you know, I am a true carnivore, so I was excited for this brisket. The meat was juicy, sliced like butter, melted in your mouth and the cornucopia of flavors was to die for. Bravo Roman, you hit a home run with the Mother of All Briskets and our stomachs thank you for it!!!

24 HOURS IN MELAKA/MALACCA

Despite over 2 years of living and loving in Singapore, neither of us have ever crossed the closest border to our neighboring country, Malaysia. We rectified that this weekend as just a few hours by car is an oasis called MELAKA (or Malacca depending who you talk to), a mix of Asian, Portuguese and Dutch influences, this tiny little town is a food Mecca.

We arrived just after noon which turns out to be hotter than ever, seriously, I know I complain about the heat in Singapore but imagine it hotter and take away the humidity, man, that's hot! We were staying just off of Jonker Street which seems to be the foody cultural area of town, rows and rows of gift shops, bakeries, food stalls and art houses. There's the odd restaurant, hotel, bar and massage shop as well but the real draw seems to be the "street food" - Chendol (Icy dessert with coconut, palm sugar, pandan & red bean) and Chicken Rice Balls (the best flavors of Haianese Chicken Rice rolled up into a perfect bite sized ball). Wherever both of these are served, there is always a que, all day long. We ate at the famous Nancy's Kitchen for some down home Peranekan food, walked up and down Jonker then I went for a nap while the girls got a foot massage. We met up for a drink in the late afternoon and let me tell you, nothing beats a G&T when you are overheating, take note!

At night, the cars are pulled off the road, tables & chairs come out and an impossibly busy street becomes even busier as Jonker Street is turned into a walking market filled with even more toys, trinkets, flavors and smells. I think the highlight for me was seeing the massive stage which seemed to be reserved for dressed up ladies to sing Karaoke in front of hundreds of people. I knew Karaoke was popular but not that popular! After trying a bunch of new foods (DingDing Candy - named after the sound the chisel makes as the baker breaks it apart, yes, its that hard & sticky too) and juices (thick Honey Lime juice - its good for alcohol... Alcohol what I ask?) we retired to the room.

The next morning we woke early and had a great breakfast at the hotel. I should stop here and throw in a great recommendation for our accommodations, The Hotel Courtyard @ Heeren, friendly staff, beautiful rooms, best shower in any hotel I've ever stayed at in all of Asia, ever and reasonable rates, plus it's a two minute walk to the middle of all the action on Jonker Street! I highly recommend this hotel! Anyway, we took a tour of all the historical sites around the center of Melaka including Christ Church, the ruins of St. Paul's, up the rotating tower for a birds eye view of the city, the riverside and then back to Jonker for some lunch.

Afterwards, we checked out of the hotel, the ladies grabbed another foot massage and I came to a roadside bar to write this blog entry, enjoy a beverage and soak in the last few minutes of Jonker street before heading back to Singapore. Melaka is a cool town, lots to see and lots to eat, it is extremely busy with tourists especially on the weekend but of you can survive that, then Melaka is definitely worth checking out. There are cool sites, cool ruins, great people watching and amazing food, an added plus, everything is way cheaper than it is in Singapore, so huzzah!!! A big thanks to our friend Cheng for taking us out this weekend, it was a great adventure and you can see our pics HERE!

SUMMER PARTY TIME

It's our third summer in Singapore and that means it's time for the annual LAS SUMMER PARTY. Once again we invaded the shores of Sentosa Island for an afternoon of fun at the fabled Cafe Del Mar. The afternoon started with Summer Olympics, which were fun despite the fact that we had the smallest team and came in dead last (it was fixed!!!). Then a few of the staff got DJ'ing, the food was served and what a surprise, virtually everyone was thrown into the pool at some point. A good time was had by all and despite and the sand, sun and libations, we managed to snap a few PICS! Enjoy!

S'FUNNY...

JUNE 2011

Hell of a month! Despite the mightiness of my playoff beard, the Canucks lost to the Bruins in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup, sad. Otherwise there was good times, good friends and good food o' plenty in the month of June. Check out the pics HERE!!!

CANADA DAY SING STYLE

July 1st marks the birthday of our home and native land, so to celebrate CANADA DAY in our adopted home of Singapore, Michelle and I threw a BBQ party! We invited a few Canadians as well as a few of our closest friends and everyone decided to bring some amazing food as well.

Michelle and I stocked up on Clamato so we could start the evening off right with some Bloody Caesars, then will grilled up some Hot Wings on the Q. Brett brought some Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins and Roman made some BBQ Baby Back Ribs. James & Vic showed up with a special little gift for me, a can of Granville Island Honey Lager which I happily downed to show my Canadian pride! Kelly showed up with a Monster Mixed Salad, Chris & Star came with even more Ribs, Singapore Slow Cooked Ribs - yum and we threw some Chorizo Sausages (not really Canadian but they are a crowd pleaser) onto the grill for good measure as well as making a Canada Salad (Red for Tomatoes, White for Feta). Bobby came with a surprise for the entire party, a cooler filled with Canadian Moosehead Beer, now I know what you are thinking, Moosehead? Trust me, it's liquid gold here in Southeast Asia since you cant get any kind of Canadian Beer anywhere, but Bobby found a source and we all reaped the rewards. For Dessert, Cheng made her famous Maple Syrup Pie, Carin made Apple Tartine and Michelle knocked it outta the park with Vanilla Strawberry Cupcakes and her first attempt at Nanaimo Bars. Since the Bars were all gone in under a minute and she didn't even get one, I think they were a hit!

We BBQ'ed for the majority of the night, argued Hockey, drank cold beer and sang the national anthem. It was a multicultural night but for a few hours we were all happily Canadian and that's what it's all about. Happy Canada Day everyone!!!

CROSS ONE OFF THE BUCKET LIST

"Everyday you make an impact on the world, it is your choice what that impact is"

-- Dr Jane. Goodall

Michelle had one of those memorable weekends as she got to see lectures not once, but twice, by one of her long time heroes: DR. JANE GOODALL! Dr. Goodall who many of us would know from National Geographic and her amazing work with Chimpanzees was in Singapore this past weekend for a number of appearances and lectures around town. Michelle managed to see her twice as well as watch a new documentary, Jane's Journey, about her life and career. I tagged along on Sunday to hear her speak and I must admit, she was pretty mesmerizing. The fact that she is 76, travels 300 days a year, is part of a massive volunteer movement that reaches all corners of the globe, that's just the tip of the iceberg. I'm glad we got to see her in person, hear her wisdom and Michelle was able to meet one of her heroes in person. Very cool indeed!!!

RAIDERS OF THE LOST ART STILL RULES!

Last night, we were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to view the classic adventure film, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK on the big screen. I am happy to say that one of my all time favorite films ever, still hods up 30 years later. I wish more people had the chance to see this amazing movie in theaters today because the old saying is true, "they don't make them like they used to". The acting, the story, the stunts, the action - it all holds up and the scene where Indy chases down the Nazi Truck Convey via horseback still remains my all-time favorite action sequence ever! It looks and sounds so awesome on the big screen! Happy 30th Anniversary Indy, you truly are a cinematic Icon even more so today!!!

THE MIGHTY BEARD

Click on the link to view the RISE AND FALL OF MY 2011 NHL PLAYOFF BEARD! Until next season when the beard reappears! Go Canucks Go!

HEARTBREAKER

On the day before the VANCOUVER CANUCKS played Game #7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, I wrote the following on my Facebook page...

For us in Singapore, it's the morning before the big game, the final battle for the Stanley Cup and for me, I've been waiting 17 years for this moment. While I've always followed the Canucks (thanks Dad), I really got into Hockey when the boys made their famous run in the 90's and lost to the Rangers. From that moment on I was hooked and for 17 years, I've been following faithfully - the end of the Bure era, the mess of Messier, the return of Linden, the debacle of Cloutier, the brief appearance of Esa Tikkanen, the maroon jerseys, the disappointing appearance of Mats Sundin, the rise of the Sedins. I've supported it, I've lived it and I've loved it and now we are all 24 hours away from what is sure to be an epic game, win or lose, I am glad I stayed a fan.

Win or lose, I am still a Canuck.

Win or lose I will be there next season!

Win or lose, ah fuck it, win it all boys! WIN IT ALL!!!

Go Canucks go!

Then Game #7 happened and I was heartbroken. An amazing season with broken records, trophies won and sights set high all brought down like a tumbling house of cards in one game... the most important game. It's a tough loss, made even tougher because we were outplayed and out-goaltended from beginning to end, Canucks lost 4-0. It's the most bitter pill to swallow.

It was a fantastic season overall but a disappointing end. I am still a diehard fan and I will follow faithfully next year. You did me proud Canucks, I just wish the result of the final game could have been different. Go Canucks go!

RETURN TO BALI

On a whim, we decided to go back to BALI. This would be our fourth visit to the little Indonesia paradise (see previous visits: HERE, HERE and HERE) and this time we decided to stay in the little artistic mecca of UBUD. One difference, we decided to splurge a bit and stay and a somewhat "nice" place called The Mansion Resort & Spa which was actually just outside of Ubud.

We arrived 90 minutes late due to a delay in our flight (side note: Air Asia does not serve booze and their seats are tight - boo). Luckily our Hotel pickup was still there waiting for us and we took the 60 minute drive to Ubud in good spirits chatting with our Driver. We arrived at the Mansion and it was beautiful, an old mansion retrofitted into a hotel with three pools, villas, restaurants and spanning grounds. Michelle had secretly upgraded us to a Villa (off season promotion - stay 3+ nights, upgrade to a Villa for free) which was awesome but when we got to the room we were greeted with an open air bathroom (minus 1 point for Gryffindor) and a big spider on the wall (minus 2 points - Gryffindor out). Needless to say, while we ate a late dinner in the restaurant, the staff moved us to a different room (again ground floor but enclosed bathrooms and only one massive cockroach that Michelle valiantly fought to the death). With that, we tucked in for the night.

For our first full day, we decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and explore Ubud as I had only seen it once on our first visit to Bali for 45 minutes or so. After breakfast, we took the complimentary shuttle into town and started walking the busy streets of Ubud. Now don't get me wrong, I like Ubud but people call it "the Artistic Capital of Bali" when really it should be called "The Tourist Trap of Bali"! While there are cool temples, bars and restaurants and some unique pieces of arts, 60% of the entire town is all selling the same paintings or sculptures in the same style of storefront, it's still beautiful but its a disappointing observation nonetheless. We walked, drank and ate our way through Ubud until the late afternoon. We then shuttled back to the hotel, had a dip in the pool, Michelle had a foot massage and then we taxied back into town.

It was time to cross off one of my Bucket List goals by eating crispy duck at most famous restaurant in Bali, the DIRTY DUCK DINER. Basically, you get a half duck crisped up and served with a variety of sauces, it's a bit weird having an half carcass on your plate but trust me, it was delicious! A Bucket List Success! Afterwards we headed to the Laughing Buddha Bar to hear some great Salsa Music and chat with some travelers from the Netherlands. A great night!

The next day was for Balinese touring and that meant, we were hooking up with Meta. Now Meta is a tour guide that Michelle met when she went to Bali with Chad. They met up again when Michelle returned to Bali with Michelle Dall and because of all the good times, Meta and Michelle have become friends. She's a sweet Balinese girl whose studying Hospitality and getting in with one of the big hotels on the island but in the meantime she works for her father's tour company. Meta and her dad (who doesn't speak a lick of English) picked us up at 10am and we were off to three big destinations: Coffee Plantation, Lunch at the Volcano and the enormous Mother Temple.

We are both fans of Balinese Coffee and no trip to Bali is complete without a stop at one of the many Coffee Plantations. They are a bit touristy but its still cool to sit down, try a bunch of different coffees and enjoy the scenery. Our favorite is the Ginger Coffee and yes, I have tried Luwak Coffee or as it is commonly known as "the weasel poo coffee"... very earthy. Next stop was Mount Batur, one of two major Volcanoes on Bali. There is a string of restaurants on a hill that overlooks the valley of lava devastation and the Volcano itself, again touristy and the food is only so-so but the scenery is epic.

Final stop was the immense and beautiful Mother Temple, a grand and ornate structure of worship that goes up a hill, meaning there's lots of stairs. You have to wear a sarong to enter (no showing leg skin dont' wanna offend the gods) and its a solid 15 minute walk up various stairs and hills to get to the top. Once there, it's awesome... that is until I saw the friggin' huge spiders that are everywhere. These were honestly the biggest spiders I have ever seen outside of captivity (bodies of small lighters and legs as thick and long as toothpicks). Needless to say I got cold and sweaty right away (I am an arachnophobe) and immediately made my way back down to the bottom but ofcourse all I could see was tons more spiders. After that, it was the long ride back home. Once back at the Mansion, we settled in for a long massage at the spa and a quiet dinner at the hotel.

We woke up, packed, ate breakfast and then Meta picked us up to take us to the airport. All in all, it was the perfect relaxing weekend. We had great weather, we got massages, we ate great food (I tried Tempeh for the first time and loved it) and we got to see an Indonesian Band play amazing Salsa music! On the downside, I finally saw my first real big tropical spider but I wont let that ruin the positives of our trip, Bali was great and you can view our pics HERE!!!

MAY 2011

Not a lot of pictures this month due to hectic work schedules but still managed to snap a few here and there, mainly with the iPhone. John's going away shindig, dinners with friends, work and the playoff beard pretty much sum up the month of MAY. The big focus for us has been the Canucks Playoffs run and prepping for our Bali weekend in early June. Anyways enjoy the goodness HERE!

CANUCKS BEAT SHARKS

THAT MEANS WE ARE GOING TO THE STANLEY CUP FINALS!!! WOO HOO!!! GO CANUCKS GO!

2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY

Today is May 18th... two years ago today I officially started work for Lucasfilm Singapore! That means that we have been in SINGAPORE for just over two years. Wow. Two years. We've met some great people, we've seen some great countries and we are both working at jobs we are being challenged at! Time flies when you are having fun!

I included the picture above as it was taken at one of our first group dinners during our first week in Singapore, wow.... two years.

APRIL 2011

What a whirlwind month! It started with a short trip to San Francisco/Vancouver, then back to Singapore for the groundbreaking of the new LucasFilm Building, Birthday shenanigans for both John & Michelle and finally, departures of our good friends John & Lisa. Check out all the pics that are fit to print HERE!!!

GOODBYE JOHN & LISA

It's a sad, sad start to the month of May for Corsiworld as some of our closest friends here in Singapore, JOHN & LISA, are leaving for good to start a new chapter in New Zealand. For the last two years, John & Lisa have been our "partners in crime" on many an adventure here in Singapore including trips around the region (Macau & Krabi), new restaurants (Mimigar & Em Cafe) and new bars (Coffee Bar K & Orihara Shouten) but that's all coming to an end. Lisa got an amazing job opportunity in her home country so after five years in Singapore, they decided to head out to the land of Kiwis. Lisa is already there as she had to start right away but John left today and it was really sad.

John has been my Video Game buddy as well as one of the few folks in town who would watch bad zombie movies with me and now that's come to an end. This last weekend has been melancholy for all of us, it has been since Lisa left but it really hit home today. Our friends are leaving, they aren't just a call away, they are off on a new adventure and as happy as we are, we are equally sad. Good luck in New Zealand JOHN & LISA, we shall miss you and cannot wait to see you again.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHELLE!!!

'Tis a glorious day today as it is the day of birth of my lovely wife MICHELLE! I've said it before and I'll say it again, she's the greatest part of my world and I love her so very much! I hope she has a fantastic day celebrating. All the best baby, I love you!!!

9 DAYS IN NORTH AMERICA

I came to SAN FRANCISCO for a week of work (which went well by the by) and decided to take the brief opportunity to head to VANCOUVER for the weekend. You see, it's my dad's birthday this coming weekend so I thought it would be a nice surprise to pop in unexpectedly and wish pop an early birthday. It went perfectly, Lesley picked me up at the Airport, Victor had my dad at the pub, I walked in, tapped him on the shoulder and "surprise"!!! It was a great week at work, a fantastic weekend with the Family and a whirlwind of pictures for one of my shortest trips yet for work from Singapore. Check out the pics HERE!!!

CARMINE & LAVERNE

Just had to post this pic of the beasts during my whirlwind visit to Vancouver. Say hello to CARMINE & LAVERNE, they are doing fantastic!!!

MARCH 2011

Another busy, footloose and fancy-free month. We started off with a weekend in Thailand, many many dinners out, a Site Blessing ceremony for the new building, Rango, goodbye events for John & Lisa and ofcourse Earth Hour. Oodles and oodles of PICS to capture these memories as well! What will April bring? Looking forward to finding out!!!

EARTH HOUR 2011

So Michelle took part in her first official WWF event, EARTH HOUR 2011. Singapore did it big by having an event at Marina Bay with bands, booths and a 3.5km walk around the Marina during the actual hour where the lights were off. While the downtown core shut off about 40% of their lights (a little disappointing - especially the Sands Resort that didn't seem to turn off anything), about 3000 supporters took part in the walk. What's extra cool is that the WWF team were expecting about 1500 but one day before the event, the website got hammered with signups, so much so, they had to shut the site down. Michelle was running the Registration Booth with about 12 ass kicking Volunteers and they were busy for the entire night. Overall, it was a successful event, a well run event and a good time was had by all at Earth Hour Singapore.

BLESS THIS GROUND

As a manager for my team, I was lucky enough to be invited to the blessing of the site that will eventually house the new LUCASFILM SINGAPORE building. The small band of rebels, err, managers, gathered for a Feng Shui blessing at 9:28am exactly (if we missed it, we would have to reschedule) as that was an optimum time to bless the ground. We read a blessing, made some offerings and buried a small wooden box, housing the elements and topped with a dragon protector. It was a cool ceremony and I am happy that I was part of it. Next month, we have the official Groundbreaking, so stay tuned for that!

BACK TO KRABI

It's the new year and we decided to visit one of our favourite places from 2010, AO NANG: KRABI but this time we went with our friends John & Lisa. One quick 90-minute flight, a 30-minute taxi to Ao Nang and voila, we were at the hotel and walking through the sunny streets of Thailand. This trip consisted of two major events: A Curry Cooking Course at the Krabi Cookery School & the Hong Island Speedboat Tour.

The cooking course (a fantastic belated Christmas present to us from J&L) was a four hour affair where we learned how to make 4 curries from scratch: Red, Green, Yellow & Panaeng. We also learned Tom Ka Kai Soup, Pad Thai, Morning Glory, Papaya Salad and Stir-fried Peppercorn Chicken. The chef teaching the class, Mrs. Ya, was wonderful and entertaining for the entire afternoon and it was a blast. We learned a lot and more importantly cooked a lot and then ate it all. It was a great memory and we will definitely use some of those recipes we tried.

The next day, we took part in a speedboat tour that took us around a number of the tiny little paradise-like islands around Krabi and it ended with a few hours at the large Hong Island. There we swam, scuba'ed, ate lunch and I fell asleep in the sand - yes it was that relaxing. While it is High Season and there are tons and tons of tourists doing the same type of tour as us making all of the islands a little crowded, it's still cool to see all those limestone formations and walk along the white sandy beaches or swim in that aqua blue water, it's beautiful.

Finally, Michelle crossed off a goal from her "bucket list" by getting an official Thai tattoo done in the traditional bamboo style. She decided to "put a bird on it" by getting five birds flying around her forearm to her wrist but instead of having it done by the gun, she got it done with the sharp bamboo stick. Mr. Tattoo (yes, that's his name), said it wouldn't hurt as much as the gun but he was a charlatan as it hurt more. Luckily it's much faster than the gun, it heals faster as well and bottom line, it looks fantastic.

After all that, we spent the rest of the time sunbathing, swimming, looking at the shops, drinking G&T's, playing pool and ofcourse indulging in that amazing Thai food. I would heartily recommend a great restaurant called The Massaman (located at 382/2-3 Ao Nang Muang 81000: that's on the main road that McDonalds & Starbucks is on a few minutes up from those shops), it's cheap, friendly and the food is fantastic. If you only eat one thing, try the namesake, the Chicken Massaman Curry, it's kind of like a Thai version of mexican mole and well worth a visit.

Overall it was a fantastic weekend and even though it was our second time here, I can totally see us going back for a third visit, yes, it's that good. Check out our pics HERE!!!

FEBRUARY 2011

What a month!!! Chinese New Year! Valentine's Day! Singaporean Basketball! BBQ's! Rock Band Parties! Art Museums! Out-of-Town Guests! Steamboats! It goes on and on!!! For the shortest month of the year we sure packed in a lot of FUN!!!

THE ULTIMATE SLIDER

Last weekend we had a BBQ and came up with THE ULTIMATE SLIDER!!! A Pork & Beef Burger spiced up Mexican Style, covered with cheese, served on a homemade Jalapeno Cornbread muffin with some mustard, lettuce, red onion & tomato.... that's good BBQ!!!

THE 2011 ACADEMY AWARDS

So here's my thoughts on tonight's ACADEMY AWARDS:

BEST PICTURE: The King's Speech

Although I don't agree with the new 10-picture nominee system for Best Picture, I am glad that King's Speech won. It's a great intimate film that focuses on the relationship of two different men amidst the backdrop of royal politics and WWI. See it if you haven't yet, it's magnificent!

BEST DIRECTOR: Tom Hooper for The King's Speech

Great film but not an astounding achievement in direction in my opinion as the acting and writing really make the film for me. In my opinion, Fincher got robbed!!!

BEST ACTRESS: Natalie Portman for Black Swan

Agreed, she was awesome, fragile, violent and haunted all at once!!!

BEST ACTOR: Colin Firth for The King's Speech

Well, well deserved. Firth knocked it out of the park in this role. Fantastic!

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Melissa Leo for The Fighter

Can take or leave this one. Leo was good but not as memorable as Bale and his performance.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Christian Bale for The Fighter

Agreed, Batman was amazing in this part. One of the strongest performances all around this year!

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: David Seidler for The King's Speech

Agreed, this was a fantastic script that focused on the relationship between two very different men from different worlds.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Aaron Sorkin for The Social Network

Well deserved, this is a fantastic film with deep characters and riveting dialogue. I never thought I could enjoy a movie about Facebook but I was wrong plus Sorkin is a proven writer (The West Wing, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, Sports Night)

BEST ANIMATED PICTURE: Toy Story 3

Wow, this must be the political win of the evening as How To Train Your Dragon is clearly the more original and far superior film over this cashgrab threequel!

BEST FX: Inception

Agreed, any awards this film picks up are worth it!

BEST SOUND: Inception

Agreed, any awards this film picks up are worth it!

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Wally Pfister for Inception

Agreed, any awards this film picks up are worth it!

BEST ART DIRECTION: Alice in Wonderland

A beautiful looking film indeed! Rich in color but dark in tone, it's like Tim Burton's mind exploded and the Art Team put back together the pieces to create this world.

BEST COSTUME DESIGN: Alice in Wonderland

See above. Very cool costumes and reimaginings of those classic characters!!!

BEST MAKE-UP: The Wolfman

Say what you will about the overall film, the practical Wolfman make-up were dynamic and frightening. Award well deserved.

There you have it, I can't comment on the job Franco & Hathaway did as co-hosts as my Oscar experience was based on updating IMDb in Singapore from time to time rather than being at Wally & Geo's house in Vancouver for an Oscar Party. Until next year...

DREAM JOB PART 2

While it has been well documented that I am living the dream by working for Lucasfilm, Michelle has finally been given the opportunity to live one of her dreams as well. A few weeks ago Michelle started a full-time 5-month contract with WWF SINGAPORE. No, not the wrestling federation but the World Wildlife Fund. As a Project Coordinator for this International Team she will focus on Outreach on a bunch of different topics including sustainable seafood and saving the Sharks (it's shocking how many are left to die simply for the fins to be part of Shark Fin Soup - yes, sharks are endangered). I'm super happy for Michelle as this new job is challenging and exciting and now it's true when we say "we are living the dream"!!! Congrats Michelle and save those sharks!!!!

SPRING CLEANING

Chinese New Year has come and gone but with that, I've given the Blog a new paint job for the new Lunar Year. Same great CORSIWORLD taste but with an all-new package...

BATALI TIME

I was excited when Singapore opened a Vegas-style Casino with the Marina Bay Sands. I was really excited when word came that some "Celebrity Chefs" would open restaurants at said Casino. Then, I became super excited when I found out that one of those restaurants would be MARIO BATALI'S MOZZA. I've been a fan of this Iron Chef since I tried his eateries in Vegas at the Venetian but I never tried his legendary Pizza. So when Mozza opened, we checked it out, dined like gods and loved every bite of it. Me thinks that the Batali name would be very popular in Singapore!

A few weeks later, we were eating Valentines Dinner at the DB Bistro Moderne (which was great as well) and as we walked out, lo and behold, there's the man himself, Mario Batali, talking on the phone. Turns out, he was in town for the week to check out his new place, he was extremely pleasant, we chatted about Vancouver and Singapore and then I was lucky enough to grab a quick pic. Michelle got to meet him as well but before a second pic could be snapped, he was off! At least we got to meet one one of our favorite chefs in person, a great way to end Valentines Day! Thanks Mario Batali!!!

RUN TO THE HILLS!!!!

Since 1975, the Heavy Metal band known as IRON MAIDEN has been rocking stages all over the world and in 2011, I finally got the chance to see them live! I've been a fan of Maiden ever since I heard their single 2 Minutes to Midnight off their fifth album Powerslave in 1984 (thanks to Michael Arnold for introducing me). I then went on to hear some other works by the crew including their '82 album The Number of the Beast and one of my all-time favorite Maiden tracks, Run to the Hills.

You see, I was a little chubby rocker back in the day as I was a fan of bands like Van Halen (still am), Kiss & Motley Crue and I considered Iron Maiden the last member of my "Metal Fearsome Foursome". I've seen both Kiss and Crue live once, Halen live three times and now I can add Maiden to that list. My fearsome foursome is complete.

So anyway, Maiden is on "The Final Frontier" tour promoting their grammy winning album and they came to the Singapore Indoor Stadium which was completely sold out. Guess what, they were awesome! They kicked ass and the crowd loved them, for 120-minutes of old and new metal. They have definitely aged but they are still rocking out and lead singer Bruce Dickinson can still belt out the hits including 2 minutes to Midnight but not Run to the Hills (I guess he cant hit those high notes anymore).

This little metal head finally got to see some childhood favorites live and I for one am extremely happy I got that chance. They lived up to the hype and they gave it their all and yes, I would gladly see them again!

THE LOVE OF LAGNAA

As you faithful Blog readers are fully aware by now, Michelle and I love good food. We love to read about it, we love to cook it and we love to try out new restaurants in whatever city we are hanging our hat in. But whenever we find a really good one, we make sure to become repeat customers and whenever we find one that we truly love, we make it our second home.

Such is the case with LAGNAA BAREFOOT DINING. Now, this name should not be a mystery to you if you've seen our photos or have come to hang out with us here in Singapore, you've most likely seen pics from our adventures or had the pleasure to dine there. Michelle and our friend Brett stumbled upon this place in 2009, when they were showing my parents around Singapore and we've been going back since! Lagnaa is an Indian restaurant like no other, it's located in the aptly named Little India district on Upper Dickson Road, nestled between a bunch of historic buildings with extremely subtle signage, so blink and you'll miss it. When you walk in, you are greeted by bright yellow walls adorned with the comments of happy customers past singing their praises about the amazing food, the amazing service and the amazing memories they had. The bottom floor is mainly comprised of the kitchen and a handful of tables with a trophy wall of survivors from their monthly "Chili Challenge" (more on that later), while the other wall is decorated with pictures of happy customers and signage promoting all their activities and there are a lot of them. Upstairs is the namesake of the eatery, barefoot dining. Shoes off before going up the stairs and there you will find a relaxing room in muted tones with low tables where everyone sits on cushions on the hardwood floor. It's casual, pleasant and all around relaxing.

What makes this place work is the staff, it's a small core crew of familiar and friendly faces that do all of the hosting, cooking, serving and cleaning (They share all the duties). SHANTI and KUMARI, the two ever-pleasant hostesses and ofcourse the energetic Head Chef and owner of the place KAESAVAN (known as K7). These three not only make each experience at Lagnaa memorable, they have also become friends of ours here in Singapore. They are always open to letting you ask questions, share a joke and sometimes they will even take you into the kitchen to experience the heat of the tandoor oven. They treat their establishment like their home and they treat their friends like family.

Like I said, the family at Lagnaa is more than just about serving food, they offer a whole host of other experiences as well:

• THE FULL MOON PARTY & CHILLI CHALLENGE: A monthly party where K7 cooks up some amazingly spicy Masala and a friendly competition is held to see who can eat the spiciest dish. Put it this way, there are 10 levels of heat, no one has done level ten, only one person has done level nine and only five people have done level eight. I am personally a level seven and don't know if I can go any higher but that doesn't mean I won't give it a shot one day - it tastes that good.
• MENU TASTINGS: Each month, Lagnaa does specials and in an attempt to find out which special dishes are worthy of going on the menu, they hold a tasting night. Regular customers are informed of the date and time and the first 10 people to respond to the call are invited to the tasting. Each chef comes up with a few dishes, the customers taste each one, votes are tallied and the winning dishes make the cut. The chefs love it, the customers love and in the end, our bellies love it.
• SLAVE LABOUR: Volunteer for a few hours of service at the restaurant and be rewarded with a great meal - seems fair to me! Michelle has done this and loved it, she got to hang with the staff, serve some tables and indulge in some tasty food.
• COOKING CLASSES: Every few weeks a cooking class is held where K7 teaches the secrets behind his awesome food. We've done this before and will definitely do it again!

Which brings me to the real reason we frequent Lagnaa so much, the food. Spellbinding!!! The Indian dishes that K7 and his team come up with is just astounding. Traditional delicacies with a hint of flair, modern takes on classics and just some really fresh, really flavourful comfort food. We always try something off of the specials menu but then we always order our favorites as well: Cranberry Naan, Chili Cheese Naan, Dahl Makhani, Prawns Goa, Butter Paneer, Fish Curry, Aloo Gobi, Mutton Masala - the list goes on and on and no matter how many times we dine there, each time we taste it, it tastes absolutely fantastic.

So thanks Lagnaa, thanks for the continued hospitality, thanks for making us welcome, thanks for feeding us with hearty goodness and thanks for the memories old and new. See you again soon!

LAGNAA BAREFOOT DINING

No. 6 Upper Dickson Road

Little India, Singapore, 207466

+65 6296 1215

JANUARY 2011

After our trips to Vancouver and San Francisco, we settled back into life in Singapore with our friends. Good food, good times and ofcourse lots of memories. In January, we found a kick ass BBQ place (finally as it only took 1.8 years) called Smokey's. Brett celebrated a birthday with a visit from his mom and a great homemade Southern-style Breakfast. John & Lisa moved into their new place on the 43rd floor! We tried out Mario Batali's new place Mozza at the Casino! Stuart held a Scotch Tasting and we ended the month with a great night of Rock Band.

All in all, a strong end to the month that started on the other side of the planet! Enjoy the pics HERE!

THAILAND BOOKED!!!

We are going back to KRABI for a weekend in March! Why?

1) Good deals on flights

2) Michelle really wants to go rockclimbing

3) Relaxation

4) The food

There are other countries to explore and other parts of Thailand to see but when you find a good deal, you take it and thus we did! See you in a few weeks Krabi!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LAVERNE!

The Super Potato! The Princess! The baby Girl! The littlest Verny!

Our Boston Terrier (and Carmine's older half-sister) LAVERNE turns 4 today and we miss her so much its palpable. She joined us in Deep Cove and East Van and is now hanging out with my parents and Carmine while we continue our Singaporean adventure which is great! But one day, we will be reunited and we look very forward to that day.

I love hanging out with Laverne, she's probably the best snuggler on the planet, she's got attitude (the Daycare used to call her "the cruise director" as she used to get all the dogs going), she's sensative but also a dirty fighter when she plays tough with Carmine, Baxter (Schwartz's pup) or Bozlee (Chad's boston and Laverne's full brother) as she always goes for the feet or the collar. She smart, knows all her commands, walks without a leash and to me she has the cutest face in the world!

Happiest birthday Laverne, we miss you so and look forward to seeing both you and Carmine again soon!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARMINE!

I can't believe that our little man is three years old already... three!!! I still remember him as a puppy afraid to go down the stairs because they were too big, or chewing a hole in the middle of our couch, not the side, the actual middle of the couch. He's not the smartest dog in the world but his bat ears and googly eyes make up for almost any trouble he causes. We miss him so, so much but know in our hearts that he is well taken care of and well loved by my parents. Still, three years goes by pretty fast, even faster when half of that time has been separated from him. Alas we will see him again soon on our next visit but until then, happy Birthday CARMINE!!!