My Hometown: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia!

I've lived in Kuala Lumpur for the last 29 years of my life, and never did I really consider blogging about her. Well, not until I recently realized, I've been going out a lot around town, but never really "documenting" my adventures, so here goes nothing! :D

Kuala Lumpur is the national capital and most populous city in Malaysia. Most people will think it's just all skyscrapers and buildings, but it's surrounded by the best places for live theatre and music. So for most of you, you'll already know that I'm an avid performing arts fan. I love going to catch some musicals, live jazz performances, etc. So for me, in Kuala Lumpur, here are the top 3 locations of my own personal preference to catch some lovely works of art.

(Not ranked in any way, shape or form)

1. Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPAC), Sentul

Around the bustling city, lies this treasure trove. Supporting local and even international performances, the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre has a fair share of talents. If you're looking for a musical, or a ballet, or a theatre performance, this would be the first place to check out. It's serene surroundings provide a wonderful atmosphere for performing arts enthusiasts like me to come and watch a show in peace. Show prices depend on the performing companies themselves. Some may range from as cheap as RM 20 to as expensive as RM 200. Although it was the very first performing arts centre in Kuala Lumpur, it most definitely wasn't the last. 

I've been to KLPAC at least 10 times in the last 7 plus months alone. It's really a culture hub. It doesn't just showcase performances, but also organizes workshops every now and again for individuals who are interested in honing their craft as well. Definitely one of the first places to check out in Kuala Lumpur if you're a performing arts enthusiasts like myself! 

Do visit their link to find out more information about their upcoming schedules! 

2. Damansara Performing Arts Centre (DPAC), Damansara Perdana

Located in the middle of the bustling area of Damansara Perdana, when you walk into DPAC, you automatically know that you are walking into a performing arts area. DPAC has the ultimate box office area, sorta like what you see in movies from New York! What I like about DPAC is the way they have located their multiple stages. For example, the main theatre is located one floor below the black box. That way, they are not too close to each other and sometimes, that annoys me. I also love the fact that DPAC has their own ballet company. No, joining their company was never an option for me as I don't have the skills. However, I have joined workshops in their lovely studio located one floor above the main theatre. 

There are also MANY eateries around the area. So if you're feeling hungry before or after a show, walk around this beautiful location. Sometimes I even go to the area just to have a cup of coffee or eat! That's how much this place rocks! :D 

To know more about DPAC, click this link right here!

3. Alexis, Jalan Ampang

Alexis Bar and Bistro are famous for their live performances almost every weekend. What's interesting about their performances is that they are NEVER the same! From what I understand, performers pitch their ideas to Alexis (which usually includes a theme) and Alexis will give their approval. Now, here's the best part, ALL THEIR SHOWS ARE FREE OF CHARGE! Alexis provides a wonderful array of food and drink choices which you pay for, but you get to watch the shows for free! HOW WONDERFUL IS THAT? 

I've always enjoyed the food at Alexis, so when I have friends performing, it's really a no-brainer for me to just go early, have some dinner (the shows normally start around 9pm or 10pm), get a nice table, chat with some friends, and then of course, enjoy a lovely jazz/live performance show. The quality of the performers have been nothing less than tiptop and it shows a wonderful support for the local jazz acts. You can visit their website to find out more about their shows throughout the month. 

Of course, these are not the ONLY locations in Kuala Lumpur to get some performing arts action. These are just my personal top 3. Since I'm always on the lookout for new things to do and places to go, a great website to help me discover new places is Eventbrite! Eventbrite is a global marketplace for people to find events within YOUR geographical area! It's so cool! Whether it's for me to look for an event around my area, or to look for things to do while I'm traveling, it's perfect!

If you are interested in starting up your own event, first of all, don't forget to invite me (*wink*). Secondly, why not try using Eventbrite's event management and ticket selling pages? They're free event management tools for you to use to help spread the word about your event and track its progress. Click this link to find out more!

Have any of you used Eventbrite before? Any tips that you can offer? :D

Let me know!

Love always,
DancerGal Sheryl!

March 2015 Favorites!

It seemed like only a couple of weeks back I did a February faves! Can't believe it's already April! I contemplated doing a March favorites because I wasn't sure if I had anything to "favorite", but then I realized I did so I decided to blog anyway. Here goes nothing!

Food/Lifestyle/Health:

Frozen fruit smoothies!

FROZEN FRUIT SMOOTHIES have been something I've been really enjoying. I love getting seasoned fruits, chopping them up, putting them in little baggies, then freezing them. Depending on how I feel and what happens to be in the fridge at the time, I'll mix a couple of them in the blender and just go to town with the frozen fruits. They make a refreshing and yummy treat as well as a health booster! I also found frozen fruits sold in supermarkets, but I have yet to try them and because some of them are imported, they could be fresher stuffs. I'm not too sure because I haven't tried it myself. But even with my current supply of like dragonfruits, strawberries, blueberries, kiwis, grapes and others, they already taste pretty yummy. :) I intend to try and keep this up because it's a really nice treat for myself and it feels pretty healthy because there's no sugar of any kind. :)

Coconut Water! 

COCONUT WATER is another thing I've been LOVING! Whether as it is, or mixed into my fruit smoothies, I've been seriously enjoying the hydrating benefits from coconut water in my lifestyle. I don't get the ones that are processed, but the ones from the fruit stalls that the guy cuts and removes the water right in front of me. I just really love the taste, and since I don't really like drinking water, I thought that drinking this would be just as beneficial. However, because they're pretty hard to find, I don't have them very often. If you happen to know a good, reliable coconut vendor around the Klang Valley area, please let me know! This would be especially useful to me once I move out.

Naengmyeon!

NAENGMYEON... This should come as no surprise considering how much I've been loving Korean food and culture. That said, this particular dish, I'm really starting to love and enjoy! This is Korean cold noodles, otherwise known as naengmyeon in Korean. It's basically buckwheat noodles (or any kind of noodles really!) that is cooked then rinsed in ice water, and placed in a icy broth, topped with some pear, apples, cucumbers, and a hard boiled egg. It pairs really well with kimchi and even BBQ meat! The mixture of hot and cold just makes it a very nice treat. I am starting to have it with every Korean meal. Maybe it's about time I try something else? *wink*

Skincare/Makeup/Beauty:

Ombre Nails!

OMBRE NAILS are something I've seen around the internet for a very long time and I've always wanted to do it myself, but was never into the whole painting my own nails thing. Now that I've discovered a joy in doing my own nails, I finally tried the ombre nails and I loved it so so much! It was so much easier than I thought it would be! Only problem was, because I had only 3 colors and they were very similar in color, the ombre effect didn't turn out as well as I hoped. I do intend to get more colors and try them out soon! Will update you on how that looks. Basically, using the same technique as above, I got the following results with the colors I currently have.

Innisfree Camellia Essential Dry Conditioner!

INNISFREE CAMELLIA ESSENTIAL DRY CONDITIONER is one product I've been using pretty consistently throughout March. I try not to wash my hair too often these days. It's simply because I feel like washing my hair every day is just such a chore! It's so long that it takes forever to wash, then takes another forever to dry! Sure it's not as long as Zoella's old hair, but still! So I tend to get lazy (obviously I wash my hair the minute I sweat!!) and use this dry conditioner instead. Especially when I want to leave it down. I just squeeze a handful of foam and rub it into my hair and VOILA! :D 

That's all I have I think for this month. Everything else has been pretty routine over the last month. I am still in the midst of getting used to being someone's fiancee. I just spent a couple of days in Jakarta with my future mom in law and just recently got back. It was a great trip and I'll blog about it soon enough, but I've also been busy with so many things, it's getting a bit hard to keep track of. I'm still figuring out a lot of things, and because I am not married yet, a lot of things are currently in transition. I know not many people notice, but I've also stopped vlogging. Don't really have a good place to vlog (for now!), but when I do, I will vlog. 

Thank you everyone for your support! 

Love always,

DancerGal Sheryl! 

February (2015) Faves!

A vlogger would usually do this in a video format, but to be honest, I don't have the time (and the skills) to really get this done, and it's already well into the first week of March, so I decided that it would be a great idea for me to blog instead. Here are SOME things that I've been really loving in the past month.

Lifestyle: 

Original Bootcamp, Malaysia

Would this even be new? ORIGINAL BOOTCAMP, MALAYSIA! My one true source for everything health and fitness related. I've been going strong (attending most sessions unless I'm sick) and I even made the effort to go on the FIRST day of CNY which really impressed quite a number of people. I am VERY FAR from where I used to be. Getting DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) on an almost daily basis proves that. I can honestly tell you, I haven't lost ANY weight at all, but I have lost size. I hope these two weeks without Bootcamp will not jeopardize that. Sigh. BUT YES! Bootcamp has been such a positive influence in my life and I'm so incredibly happy about it! :)

La Juiceria (Hartamas, BSC, Mid Valley)

COLD-PRESSED JUICES are another thing in my life that I've been LOVING! So far, I've only tried two companies (La Juiceria and LifeJuiceCo.), but there are many more companies out there which provide a great selection of juices. However, I prefer getting them in person, which is pretty much the main reason why I have only tried the mentioned companies. If there are any out there that you suggest I try, please do leave me a comment below on their locations and their names so that I can go try them out!

Spotify

SPOTIFY! For those of you who haven't tried using their service, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you try them out. For paying subscribers like me, it's basically like Youtube for music, with the opportunity to save them offline. It has an amazing list of songs, and like iTunes, you can create playlists, etc. I have been using this in my car, whilst waiting for classes to start, and even using it for some of my classes! Not to mention, when I had trouble syncing my services, they did it for me in less than an hour, despite not having offices in KL. Amazing customer service and I love it! Well done, Spotify! Loving you tons!


Facial and Skin Care:

Innisfree

INNISFREE is a skincare and beauty brand from Jeju Island, Korea. I've heard about this brand several times thanks to other vloggers and bloggers, but when I found out about them appearing in Malaysia, I decided to pay them a visit myself. Been loving their stuff ever since. What I love about their products is that it's not harsh on the skin, lovely smells and as natural as they come. Using some of Jeju Island's famous natural ingredients such as green tea, tangerines, orchids, etc, they create a wonderful range of products. Not only that, they are pretty affordable too!

If and when I have the time, I'll blog about some of my fave stuff from there! Their skincare is definitely a part of my daily skincare routine now, and I've been using quite a few of their make up products as well. I'm just specifying the brand, cos it's hard for me to say which are my faves so far.

Lush's Dirty Springwash Shower Gel

LUSH'S DIRTY SPRINGWASH SHOWER GEL! I got this from America and this is my SECOND bottle! So far, I have used 4 of their body shower gels, but this is my go-to. I love the scent. It's kinda grassy and minty, and it has this wonderful feeling after using it. It doesn't make your body feel like you've washed off a layer of skin, but it feels like you've used moisturizer in your shower. Only quip I have about this is that Lush isn't available in Malaysia, and it costs quite a bit. That's why I don't use it everyday, but it's really tempting me to. I will definitely get more when Sammo goes on his next trip to America! :D 

Fashion (more like comfort wear!): 

Uniqlo's Lounge Pants - Pink

UNIQLO'S LOUNGE PANTS (PINK)! Unfortunately for myself, I only got my hands on one pair of these, but I definitely need more of them. They are INCREDIBLY comfortable and I can choose to wear them up or down. When I wear them down, I'm usually at home, lazing around. When I head out in them, I just color block it with a nice top and VOILA! Chances are, I wear them when I'm too lazy and because I only have one, I don't wear it out often. I definitely need to get more of these soon. 

That's all I have so far! I've been busy working out some stuff since I got engaged and with CNY, it was tough to really get down to the faves. I hope to try and keep this up every month, and hopefully, someday start vlogging about my faves! I hope you enjoyed it! See you very soon! 

Love always,
DancerGal Sheryl!

 

Get Ready with Me - CNY 2015 edition!

I experimented on a simple, natural look last night for the reunion dinner and I loved it so much that I decided to recreate it today for the first day of Chinese New Year as well! 

So I start by prepping my face with the Innisfree Green Tea Mineral Mist. This mist is lovely and leaves my face ready for make up. The best part of this spray is the natural smell that it emits. Loving it! 

This is then followed by the Innisfree Long Wear Cushion BB Cream in True Beige. Apparently by Korean standards, my skin tone is incredibly tan, which is why I had no choice but to pick this shade. I've been loving this BB cream since I started using it and it helps conceal and serves as a base at the same time. It's incredibly convenient as well. Just dab on the cushion then dab onto your face and you're done. Easy peasy! 

I then line my eyes with the Dolly Wink Liquid Eyeliner in Pure Black. This one is one of the few make up products I've splurged on, and although I love it a lot, I may not be able to afford to keep buying it. :( This liner is incredibly fine with a felt tip. I love it for its precision and long-lasting properties. It's also incredibly easy to remove after a long day. 

Then use the Sephora Pencil Eyeliner in Gold to line the inner corner of my eyes and my waterline, making it look like I have bigger, brighter and more importantly, awake eyes. After a tiring morning, I just know I need this! This liner has lasted quite a while and the color payoff is pretty great. Loving it! 

Then I give my cheeks a lovely pink tint using the Benefit Lolli Tint. Just three streaks on each cheek, blend it with the fingers and voila! I got this for free during one of Benefit's giveaway. Again, would I pay for this? I'm not too sure as it's pretty pricey. 

Because I have sickeningly dry lips, I always have to use a balm base on my lips, and I'm using the L'occitane Lip Balm treatment which I got from a Christmas present and came as a set. I'm not too sure if you can get these individually, but I love it because it's a very nice base for whatever I put on top. :) 

Instead of using a lipstick which can be insanely dry, I use the Innisfree Fruit Lip Tint in Tangerine Orange. This gives a lovely dark orangey color, with a citrusy smell of oranges from Jeju Island. I've been using it for quite a bit and I'm loving it! The best thing about it is that the color lasts even after food and drinks! Because it's a tint and not a lipstick, the color doesn't transfer as much as a lipstick or cream color. I highly recommend this to anyone who's interested in fruity smelling products. 

My final look looks something like this! 

Gong Xi Fa Cai to all my readers! Love you all! <3 

Love you, 

DancerGal Sheryl! 

DancerGal's Pre-Reunion Dinner 2015

Prior to the 2015 reunion dinner which will be happening in my grand mother's house, I decided that since I had the time, I'll blog a bit about my pre-dinner care prep. 

As I was preparing to shower, I sorta thought that I would pamper myself. This included lighting a beautiful strawberry scented tealight candle as I got ready. :) 

Then I washed my hair with the Lush Fair Trade Honey shampoo. The smell of this thing is just so amazing. I love that after all that lathering and washing, I smell something like caramel and sweet! Only quip I have about this shampoo is that it's not available in Malaysia. Pfft. 

This was followed by the TRESemmé  Color Revitalise Conditioner. It doesn't have much of a smell, but it does the job that it says it would. I don't have too much colored hair anyway, so there's nothing to lock in, but in terms of conditioning, it does do the job and I kinda like it. 

I then washed my face using the Lush Angels on Bare Skin Facial Scrub. I absolutely adore this scrub! This is the second jar I've been using and I think that maybe I should give other scrubs a shot. Haha. I'm just loving the smell and the texture. The oatmeal and lavender really complement each other and this scrub really gives me a fresh wake up kinda look which I need at this point. Haha. Again, my ONLY quip is that I cannot get this in Malaysia. :( 

Cos I wanna feel like I just jumped out of a citrus farm, out of the 3 shower gels from Lush that I have, I chose to use the Lush Happy Hippy Shower Gel. This really kinda emphasizes the fact that I need to look fresh and awake for the dinner, even though I'm not really. Haha. This shower gel helps with the fact that I need to ration them as I can't get them in Malaysia, so all you need is something like a 50-cent coin sized amount and the amount of bubbles that it creates can reach EVERY bit of your body! Amazing stuff and I smell lovely now! <3 

I have yet to do my make up, and if I have the time, I will do a get ready with me (beauty) post, either tonight or tomorrow. I'll try my best to get it done. 

Thanks for reading this! I hope you have a GREAT reunion dinner and that you usher in the Lunar New Year with a wide smile on your face because that's the BEST accessory you can have. <3 

Love always,

DancerGal Sheryl! 

Our new beginning...

I am relieved and excited :)

So today, my parents and SammoBammo's parents met. We had the inaugural family meeting and it was pretty interesting. There were many many different topics of conversation. Of course the most important one, was about the marriage and the wedding. SB and I have already decided at the very beginning that we were gonna allow our parents (on both ends) to worry about the receptions and the cultural and traditional rituals. We will definitely come along for the ride, but today gave us a very clear picture of what our wedding will be like, which really excites me! :D

We have a long time of planning and moving forward but the most important thing on our minds are managing our ever expanding family, and since that's done, I am incredibly happy and excited.

This is a relatively short post because I need to go to bed now to get up for Bootcamp tomorrow!

Goodnight world! :D

Love,
DancerGal Sheryl!

Change in Life (Lives)...

For those of you who have yet to receive the news, I am now officially engaged :)

SammoBammo got down on one knee and proposed. Obviously I said yes, hence the sentence above. On 30th January when it first happened, I was in a state of shock and awe. To be honest, that feeling of shock still has yet to disappear. However, due to the nature of our relationship, we had to come down from cloud nine pretty quickly as we had to tackle some big personal issues.

We knew that upon the announcement, there were gonna be a bunch of people who were not gonna be happy for us. Not that it's a wrong thing, because they have a right to be unhappy with the decision that the both of us made. That being said, in this new phase of my life, I ask myself, do I really need these negative people in my life? The answer: OF COURSE NOT!

On the other hand, I am eternally grateful for those who are incredibly happy for me. We've been swarmed by congratulatory messages and those mean so much more to me. I have a great team behind me, helping to plan the wedding as well as give us advice on what to/not to do. That we really appreciate. We are honestly taking our time to plan, so PLEASE don't ask when is the big day, because both of us won't be able to answer you as we are not sure ourselves. Let me get to the real reason why I decided to blog about this...

Reality is beginning to sink in. That means, I am starting to accept the fact that I am getting married and is getting a new family. Emotions are enjoying this roller coaster ride. I would really APPRECIATE it if people (other than family and really close friends and people who I choose!) to not ask me questions about religion and culture. The relationship between SammoBammo and I have been going on for 4.5 years. This was the first thing we talked about, have been talking about throughout the relationship, and of course, now. I know those who care for me have opinions of your own, but I would really appreciate it if you gave me constructive advice now, rather than questioning my decision.

This emotional roller coaster is not exactly a bad thing. I know how some people say that I should just be happy and all, but I do believe that downs come along for a reason. It teaches me how to handle crap and friendships and relationships. I know who I want with me along with the ride. And for that, I will be keeping tabs on my planning with a wedding blog. I have yet to come up with it, but when I do, you will know. :) To those of you who really care and mean it, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. That's all I can say.

Thank you.

Stay happy and active!

Future Mrs. DancerGal :)