BACK from the Nuffnang Asia-Pacific Blog Awards 2011 that was held in Kuala Lumpur, Marriot Putrajaya!!!
what a mouthful of words =_=
when the awards were last held in 2009 in Singapore, i was like almost non-existent in the blogosphere or something. this current blog was started sometime in 2009? so yea i wasn’t into the whole blog community thingamy and all that! but things have changed since i joined Nuffnang in 2010, and i got to know a whole bunch of awesome bloggers and friends through events, activities and the likes!
woke up way too early after the late photoshoot the night before and packed frantically like my life depended on it. and YZ dropped me off at the Nuffnang office where we were to meet everyone else to board our coaches to KL! anyway, hate my camera cos the flash died on me and it was like close to impossible to take good pictures in the dim lighting during the dinner and after party. FML. told the Olympus Service Centre that the flash was not working liao, but in the end still like that, wasted my time to make a second trip down to send it for repair AGAIN. plus half my pictures from the awards night turned out like shit =_= so, am gonna insert random instagram-ed pictures. follow my instagram @yinagoh for more pictorial updates on the go!
shades are your best friend on long coach rides cos you know, it gives you some privacy (especially me i sleep with one eye open wtf it’s very unglam) and you can snooze in peace on the long journey π
with my bus buddy Valerie and the two Nuffies behind us are Gabby and Jayne who take care of us (and our blogs)! finally got to meet them in person cos i’ve only been communicating with them via phone and emails for the last couple months. teehee. they are super nice girls!
it was a terribly long ride and it took us like 7 hours to reach the hotel, with pit stops in between and all that! so tiring cos the coach wasn’t the most comfortable lor. luckily, Val and i stocked up with necessary amenities at Mustafa before the ride LOL. well equipped with chocolate digestives and biscuits and chips and all that. we were supposed to reach the hotel at 2 ish or something, and reached at like almost 4PM!
christmas decorations up at Marriot.. snowflakes!!!
waiting to check in to our rooms
actually had an appointment with the hair stylist from 76style at 3PM so we were late late late! rushed off to the special make-up room when we arrived at Marriot, to get our hair done!
my hair stylist was called Steve, and he did this awesome braid into side swept hair do pony tail thingy for me. it’s like damn nice! Wendy aka Xiaxue was also getting her hot pink hair styled into curls as well. omg leh i’m getting my hair styled next to the queen of bloggers! ζη½ε°ηζθ§! #cheapthrill
look at the amount of makeup on the table! we didn’t have time to get our makeup done by the stylists as well, so, hair only.
from the side/back, this is what the braided section look like. cool right! thank you 76style for the hair styling!
checked into the awesome hotel room! i was sharing a room with Bea, but she left the morning after the dinner, so i had it all to myself the next night. one king sized bed all to myself is… η½. hahahaha.
really spacious and very very comfortable accommodations for the two nights we spent at Marriot!
make-up time! some of the stuff i used on my eyes! eyeshadow colors from MAC and Majorlica plus K-palette eyeliner and brow liner and Lancome Virtuose mascara (my new favorite!) falsies were a gift from Ling.. dunno where they’re from, but they’re damn nice can!
anyway, decided to do a gold to turquoise to indigo gradient on my eyes since i was wearing a blue dress.. nice right!
coupled with Virtuose mascara on my lower lashes and some glitter liner on my inner eye corners. plus that awesome falsies from Ling! contact lens from Freshkon. my favorite pair at the moment! they’re quite comfy and look really good.
random outfit picture la. both top and cardi from TVD!
another pic of my hair. is chio!
all changed into my dinner outfit! this HoH necklace is fake one by the way. imitation only hahaha. cos the original one doesn’t have the abalone one for this leather stations design?!
wore a full length maxi dress! the fit is fantastic and it’s vvv nice! i manufactured it for TVD too heehee.
clutch from Kate Spade and i had initially wanted to wear this mad super gorgeous pair of gold glittery bling heels from Newlook… but really cannot la. cos the shoes were way too hard and they were a size too big ): bought insoles but still couldn’t walk about in them comfortably so i gave up the idea!
so i wore another pair in the end. #sadface
went down to the grand ballroom where the NAPBAS was just getting started.. pre-dinner cocktail party!
took a picture with Steve from 76style who did my hair for me! this was while my camera flash was still working. FML stupid flash. i shoulda just brought the DSLR instead =_=
together with Huiwen, Nuffnang Singapore Country Manager! if you look closely at us, you’ll notice something very funny…. i don’t wanna tell you what it is. bleh.
Wendy in this super ultra mad bling dress with low back details! definitely stood out in the crowd!
with the Nuffies! Mel, Jayne, Gabby and Amanda!
with Ben and Randy! they were wearing the same shirt and shoes. so cute please.
dunno how i started talking to these two girls, hahaha. but we ended up pretty good friends by the end of the night, lol. Jean and Lenne, Lenne’s a fashion photographer/blogger and she’s one of the fashion blog finalists and she was dressed really awesome with a vintage glamour touch. i really like Jean’s androgynous outfit and hairstyle too!
told’ya my camera was being a piece of shit. but i thought Gabby looked very cute in this candid shot hahaha. dunno where she’s looking?!
Val was outstanding in her very striking outfit with lots and lots of blingggg! and as usual, she was towering over everyone else. bleh. my proportions look super stubby standing next to her!
with the other girls of more normal height heehee not so left out anymore!
and here’s with my “twin” Fidelis whom everyone says we look alike. ehh i think we look more alike when you don’t put us next to each other hahaha you know, the “feel” more like then the person! probably the chin and dimples though. Fidel has got bigger eyes!
seated next to Ben!
our menu for the night. 7 courses!
the bloggers at our table! Thiang, Peggy, myself, Ben and Randy π
with Peggy π
there were some dance performances, singers, a standup comedian and even a pole dancing performance! quite a line-up. our table was pretty far from the stage though so didn’t really get a good view.
random self portrait with instagram! i like how my eyebrows looked. the K-palette eyeliner very natural!
Medditeranean Seafood Terrine with Wasabi Tobiko Dressing on Cripsy Salad. long fanciful name hahaha.
we all attacked the bread basket. best ever! warm soft and fluffy bread! everyone agreed it was like probably the best course or something. ahahaha. how sad.
Puree of Split Pea Soup with Herb Twist. another fanciful name. i would have called it green pea soup with bread stick thingy LOL.
Grape Sorbet with Fresh Mint! too sweet for my liking.
Pan Fried Dory Fillet with Peach Sauce served with lagsana potatoes and garden green vegetables
Tiramisu in Chocolate Cup. yummy, this one.
by the time this plate of cookies came round, we were too stuffed to eat liao… =_= think none of us touched it! ahaha. plus i would have broken my teeth or more specifically my braces on it.
how d’yall like my nails? did gelish on them, with a gradient and topped off with diamontes. bling bling! awesome thing about gelish is that it’s super lasting! none of the diamontes have dropped off yet! D:
Xiaxue won the Most Influential Blog Award as well as the Region’s Best Blog Award! didn’t really come as a surprise, of course.
i honestly thought Wendy was gonna win the Best Lifestyle Blog, but she didn’t, and after winning the Region’s Best Blog Award, Wendy teared on stage too cos all the Nuffies bluffed her that you can only win this award once (??!) i also kena bluffed cos i was next to Huiwen during the cocktail reception, when Wendy asked Huiwen about it, Huiwen say can only win once so i wasn’t expecting it too! =_= but still, genuinely happy for Xiaxue cos she’s such an inspiration to many bloggers for being one of the pioneer bloggers and being so amazingly influential. even YZ finds her blog funny, and he’s not someone who reads blogs lor!
who would have thought (a few years ago) that blogging could be a profession? but now.. everything’s different. we can actually EARN MONEY FROM BLOGGING. thanks to Nuffnang and all the bloggers who took out that first step in faith to put their heart and soul into blogging!
and if you were curious as to all the other award winners!
Best Parenting Blog – Childhood 101 http://childhood101.com
Best Geek Blog – IPinoyLike http://Ipinoylike.com
Best Photography Blog – Photoblog ζε½±ζθ¨ http://photoblog.hk
Best Food Blog- Lady Iron Chef http://ladyironchef.com
Best Fashion Blog – Cheesie http://cheeserland.com
Best Lifestyle Blog – Jenni Epperson http://jenniepperson.com
Most Original Blog Design – Eat, Show and Tell http://eatshowandtell.com
Best Travel Blog – Just Wandering http://justwandering.org
Best Entertainment Blog – Beautiful Nara http://beautifulnara.com
Best Micro-Blog – @Kennysia http://twitter.com/kennysia
Hidden Gem – Googly Gooeys http://googlygooeys.com
congratulations to all the award winners for awards well deserved!!!
all the award winners on stage! the other award winner from Singapore was Ladyironchef who won the best food blog! yay! congrats, Brad!
red carpet glamour heehee. with Peggy, Fidelis, Clara and Nadia! we are so color co-ordinated. i know, right.
with Nadia who was looking curve-licious in a sexy mermaid-ish gown!
random picture, i don’t even know who’s the two girls on the far left and right? LOL oops. Clara, Silver, myself, Jean and Lenne! edit: ok the girl on the right is called Sochiii.
was quite tired already from the long day, but decided to still go for the after party regardless! changed into a more casual dress, the Razzle Dazzle Gem Dress from last year’s collection. so glad i kept this dress cos i love the bling on it π
and it was time for the after party at Zouk! Silver and I! she was looking really gorgeous!
stupid EP3 (i cannot seem to stop cursing the camera in this entry) flash not working again. can’t even take a proper picture FML. i can’t even recognize who’s in the picture LOL. ok i think it’s Silver, Clara and Nadia. random bouncer guy at the back?
resorted to iPhone again.
the clubbing scene in KL is really quite rocking, it was an eye opening experience for me! music was awesome and everyone was damn high! the male attention was a little too aggressive though. all the girls basically all got hit on and like even the bouncers tried to cope a feel by putting their hands on your backs when you walk past lor =_= if you ever get the chance, go check out the clubs when you’re in KL to know what i mean. oh. be care of pickpockets cos we heard there were people who got their phones/money stolen! heng, nothing happened to my stuff.
it’s also a really bad idea to wear platform heels to club and my feet were killing me by the end of the night! =_= gei kiang lor. we left the club at 2.30AM and when we got back to the hotel, it was 3 something already. i just washed up and crashed into bed at about 4AM.
woke up the next morning late, and all i grabbed for breakfast from the hotel international buffet breakfast (which i was so looking forward to some more!!!) was this:
wtf one half of a grilled tomato, a sausage, a beef slice and some potato wedges FML. damn sad you know???
we then proceed on a tour of KL’s sights, which was frankly speaking, not the most interesting with our tour guide being very very boring =_= and cos the sun was so hot, Brad, Silver and i just stayed on the bus all the way, except to grab ice creams halfway through the tour LOL. luckily, we were dropped off for lunch soon at KLCC, and we came upon a cafe that looked promising, called Ben’s!
menu kind of reminds one of PS Cafe.
they had this cool box of recipes, table topics and suggestions to keep diners entertained while waiting for food to be served!
definitely interesting and kept the conversation going as we discussed various table topics.
Brad’s crabmeat linguine and Silver’s aglio olio in the background
my mexicana tortilla wrap
some mushroom with feta cheese and salad.
posing with the food hohoho
table portrait!
the food was quite good, especially for the prices, it’s like half the price of what you’d pay at PS Cafe. and we were all waiting for the best part to come around.. desserts!!! huge extensive dessert menu, and we picked these two:
apple crumble
toffee date pudding
mad yums! imagine, the desserts only cost about 11RM each. that’s about $5 sing or something! all in all, only paid about 20 sing dollars for our meal. it’s hard to find a restaurant in Singapore serving similar food at this kind of price!
buh-bye to KLCC
the rest of the day passed with a series of unfortunate events (Gabby fell into one of the drains cos the grilles were spoilt!!!) along the way to Sungei Wang and later to Pavilion, and i was too tired to take pictures! so sad that i didn’t get any shopping done too! wanted to stay at KLCC to shop, but someone suggested we go to Sungei Wang for cheap shopping ala Far East Plaza style, but it was totally not for me, and all i did at Sungei Wang was get a 25RM express pedicure.
in the end, all i bought was an Urban Decay palette from Sephora, which retails in Singapore for about the same price too =_=
sianz! never mind, change so much RM, got shop a bit also better than nothing.
grabbed a cab back to hotel instead of going for drinks which was part of our itinerary and had a damn good sleep on the king sized bed all by myself hahahahaha. and i made sure i woke up early enough the next day to enjoy my last breakfast at Marriot!!!
SHIOKAZOIDS. egg omelette, potato wedges, sauteed mushrooms and grilled tomatoes.
and i ate THREE of these things. chocolate croissants!!! really really really very shiok. it was worth it to wake up early π
happy happy.
as you can tell, i gave up taking pictures with EP3 on the last day cos i dulan with the spoilt flash already. also cos i was lazy :X we checked out of the hotel at 1pm and arrived back home to a cold dreary and rainy Singapore in the evening!
i had a wonderful time at the Nuffnang Asia-Pacific Blog Awards 2011 and can’t wait for the next awards to roll around again in two years time! glad to have met so many new friends, as well as renew existing acquaintances! it was really an unforgettable experience π glad i didn’t ask YZ along hohoho. cos if he went, i wouldn’t have the chance to interact with other people so much :X hahaha.
ok. abrupt end. five more days to Christmas only! so fast. don’t have any plans this Christmas yet though. does everyone celebrate Christmas?? meh.
if you need to shop for an outfit for your man this Christmas though, i got a new mens apparel shop to introduce! good quality stuff, YZ has been shopping there already π π π
what YZ got.. checked flannel shirt! melikes the forest green color. vvv smart looking. trying to make YZ dress up more hahahaha. sign up as a member to get 5% discount!