Camera "ka-put"

No pictures for the past few days, sorry about that.  Camera decided to "retire" (maybe the weather here is too cold for him).  The gear system of the lens is not working.

I am using a PowerShot A480 camera from Canon.  For a normal camera (& an amateur photographer), I must say "no complaints", truly satisfied with the outcome of the pictures.  It is easy use & no professional skill requires to take miro-view of objects.

I think I will try to "dissect" it & see what is the cause.  If cannot repair, have to get a new one & a Canon of coz.  :-)

  

Petrol kiosk where I bought "feast"

Initially walk there to buy my cigarette but end up also buying a "feast" (ice cream).  What better day to have an ice cream on a cool & sunny day. :P

A bald tree

BUT "hair" growing soooooon....

I have Feast !

Two days ago, I have Feast.  An ice cream from Walls.  Its simply awesome especially on a cool & sunny day.

Nice Polish People

Yes, I am refering to the 4 rooms' guest.  7 adults & 1 kid.  Very nice & understanding people.  When told the hot water supply is not working, all they say is "Its alright.  Can understand & today is Sunday.

I have tried to ask them if I can book another hotel for them but they say its OK.  They like the place here.

David has agreed to let them use the BBQ pit.  So they are now enjoying themselves out there, BBQing, drinking beers & smoking.  I was offered BBQ sausage.  Polish sausage.  Taste nice but (personally) find it a little salty.

Oh yes, I understand from one of them that they are from London, working there.

Happy Easter Day!  Thank GOD for helping us to pass thru' the day peacefully. 无惊无险.

PS.  David is cooking pork rib soup tonight.  Well, I will have to postpone my Hainanese Chicken Rice till tomorrow (that I promised Peter & Ivana).  Lucky me, still got time to do some online research before going into action.

Boiler is down again

Argh, last night (or shoud I say early morning) the boiler is down again.

Today is Sunday (moreover, Easter Day).  No Mechanic is going to come all the way here, not to mention that it is raining out there (around 8 degrees), to look at the boiler.  Worst still, we have 4 rooms occupied.

Lucky, the guest are very understanding.  In fact, 4 rooms' guest are going to extend their stay for another day coz they simply love this place (& my "professional" service too ;-P).

Don't ask me when am I going to bath.  Not going to tell you, though. Ha!

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

Today the weather is cold:  drizzling whole day.  At night  I think its about 7 degrees.  Went out to smoke a stick before retiring back to my room.  Wow!  the sky is clear & I can see lots of star.  Beautiful!  You can never get such scene in Singapore (too bad mine is a normal automatic camera, if not would definitely capture this spectacular night view).

Cheers!

Flowers are starting to bloom... (Part 4)

This used to be a pond. 

Dunno what happen. 

Guess nothing survived in the winter. 

Only weeds & wild water plants.

Tree trunk, got chop off (maybe by David). 

Can you see the plants that are growing on it?

Flowers are starting to bloom... (Part 3)

Flowers are starting to bloom... (Part 2)

1 reservation BUT 8 walk-ins

Today we only have 1 room reservation.  Thought it is going to be a quiet day but turns out that I manage to sell 8 rooms (from 10 walk-ins).  Amazing!  Now, only 2 rooms available (rest of rooms not ready yet) and rates is up for today. :-)

4 bookings for dinner (enough to keep us busy).  David is pleased with today performance.

Earlier in the afternoon, we are busy with the minor repair/touch-up work of the hotel.  The boiler is down late last night but the mechanic manages to get it up & running this morning.  Whew!  Lucky us!

Almost 12am.  Think I going to take a quick shower & go to bed.  Cheers!

What is happening?

Well, we have a walk-in today.  Thank GOD again that the boiler is working (Down yesterday).

This morning I have toast bread, with orange marmalade (have not try this for a long time - last time is when I am still a kid, probably 5 years old).  

Dinner tonight wise is Chinese food: yesterday David went to Glasgow & I think he bought some chinese food.  We had fried rice, beef stomach in black pepper stew, po-piah & roast duck.  I must say the roast duck in Scotland is so much tender & soft (so unlike those I tasted in Singapore).  Wonder what they feed the ducks in Scotland.

Had my bath (again) and typing my post on bed, with a can of beer by the side.  Don't be paranoid coz I didn't had any beer during dinner (I am still working).  Beer is strictly after office hours.  Strange that I seems to drink less as compared in Singapore.  What is happening?!?!??? .....

Flowers are starting to bloom..

Wild flowers found on the grass patch infront of the hotel. 

A Very Special Birthday

This year birthday is very special to me.  Why?  Coz I get to celebrate twice!

First, I get to celebrate with my family thru' Skype.  The feeling is awesome (though I don't get to eat the cake).  So, Dear, Sweeties, eat more & enjoy......

Next my colleagues celebrate with me in the hotel. 

Ivana made me a cake, and that really caught me by surprise.  It a fruit cake (czech-style):  biscuit layer base, fresh cream & lots of fruits.  Unique & refreshing (goes well with our liquor drinks). 

Peter as he has promised, cooks a traditional czech food call "brambrovy knedlik a gulas" (a as in AH not er).  Its beef stew (in vegetable gravy & beer) supplement with "rice cake" (make from potato, flour, egg & water).  Taste is awesome. Think I should get him to set up a chez restaurant in Spore. :-) 

Beside the staff, our guest Finley & Louise also join us in the celebration.  Finley buys me a bottle of champagne like wine.  Boy, I have a hard time popping the wine.  Check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyQVXk87l_U

With the cork, Finley makes me a Good-Luck Good-Heath Good-Wealth Cork Charm.  Tradition Scottish Well Wishing.

David then opens a bottle of 12 years old Scottish whiskey.  Smooth & has a good after taste.  Better than any whisky I have tried in Spore. 

(for more pics, please go to my facebook, facebook.com/mobilemaxleo)

Happy Birthday, Max!

Hey! A walk-in today

What a surprise, a walk-in customer. Put them in Room 20 (Dream Corner Suite) & they are happy. Since only 1 room guest, so it will be breakfast in bed (not cost effective to set up the restaurant just for 2 persons).

Tonight is BBQ @ the garden. We have chicken, lamb & beef. The lamb is real good: soft & juicy. The guest, 2 gentlemen join us: not eating but just having whisky.

We had a good time. 

Its a Sunny Day.

The weather is superb! Sunny & warm (around 15 degree). Good day to get external work (outside the hotel) done.

Peter is busy running around testing all the street lamp. Evana is removing the stickers on the windows. Coz last year before winter, David tape up all the windows to prevent moisture from forming in the gust rooms.  David has just gone to Fort William town to get some stuff.

Myself? Since there is no guest, so I think I will just enjoy the sunshine & walk around.....  Cheers!

My room is READY :-)

and.... of course I have completed the Staff Duty Rota.

btw, coming Tuesday is my OFF day.  Why?  Coz it is my birthday.  Happy Birthday to ME.

All Checking Out

Morning is busy coz all are checking out today. By 11.30am, we are free (no guest checking in today). Well must make good use of today to do up my room (get the cabinet in, set up the radio/hifi, etc). Or yes, I must also work out the Staff Duty Rota.

Breakfast @ the Restaurant

Breakfast session is taken care by David but since I wake up early so I guess I will just help him out (at the same time get to try the full scotish breakfast).  I must say, Peter is a good cook. I like the full scotish breakfast: too good, too FULL, guess I am going to skip lunch today.

After breakfast, one room checks out.  Later in the evening we have 2 walk-in. Only 2 tables for dinners. Pace wise will not be as hectic as last night, and can take my own dinner early. :-)

Fine Dinning Experience @ the Restaurant

Lucky me, all 4 rooms guest are having dinner at our restaurant. Schedule the dinning timing (with the guest) so that it is not too rush for the Chef and also not to keep our guests waiting. The earliest timing for tonight is 7pm.

At 6pm, Loreen & I start to prepare the restaurant for dinner: laying out of tables, setting up the plate, napkin, fork & spoon, filling up the jar with ice water (with lemon slice). Peter (Chef for dinner) on the other hand starts to prepare the required sauces, soup of the day (Lentil soup), and potatoes (new & roast). New potatoes are just potatoes cooked in water.

When the guest arrive, we ask them to take a seat in the lounge and serve them the menu. At the same time we ask if they would like to have a drink from the Bar (normally they do). After serving the drinks, we take their orders and pass it to the Chef. So while waiting for dinner, the guest can enjoy their drinks, chat & perhaps play a board game (will elaborate more in my coming post). When dinner is almost ready, we will lead the guest to their table (with awesome loch view). Dinner is then served. Constantly we check the progress (when they finish the starter or if they need another round of drinks) and keep the Chef updated.

Well what can I say. It was a good experience. Basically what we have here is "Fine Dining". So with fine dining, the dinners themselves are dressed appropriately (no shorts or T-shirt) and behaved in a well cultured manner. As for us we ensure that the ambience, the food, abd the service are excellent (good is not good enough); so that they will have a wonderful memoriable dinning experience @ the Restaurant.

The dinner session is finally over by 10.30pm, and it is clearing up time. Clearing up and preparing the restaurant for next day breakfast.

Yes Sir, our restaurant is OPEN for dinner

Our restaurant is officially opened today to serve Dinner & Breakfast.  Got 2 bookings so far for dinner.  Whats on the menu?  Check this out:

For Starter

• Homemade Soup Of The Day With Fresh Baked Bagurette (v)
• Scottish Mussels In Garlic & Butter Sauce
• Noisette Of Scottish Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese
• Smoked Haddock Spinach & Parmesan Fishcake
• Mozzarella Cheese & Tomatoes With Balsamic Dressing (v)

Main Course

• Grilled Fillet Of Local Salmon With Wine & Herbs Sauce
• Breast Of Chicken Stuffed With Haggis & Creamy Herb Sauce
• Highland Venison Casserole With Rich Vegetable Gravy
• Prime Scottish Rump Steak Cooked To Your Liking
• Broccoli Flan With Cheese & Free Range Local Eggs (v)

Desert

• Lemon Passet
• Cheese Cake
• Spiced Pear With Syrup
• Seasonal Fresh Fruits With Cream
• Trio Of Ice Creams

Keep yourself WARM, and not just OK.

Its cold here, temperature ranging around 8 ~ 10 degree, and at times may fall to 5 degree (during the night).  The trick is to keep yourself warm.  Yes warm and not just ok/comfortable (don't be a hero).  Well our body tends to lose moisture at a much faster rate (inorder to keep us warm) in cold weather.

Moisturizing cream & lotion is a MUST, to avoid skin crack/rash and itchyness.  I bought my lotion from "dollar-value"shop (in Singapore). It is good & really value for money: S$1.90 for a 590ml bottle (20% bonus).  It is creamy and yet not oily.  It also has a nice fragrant.  "Ultimate" is the name and it is a product from USA.  The full description is:  Ultimate, Vitamin E lotion, Extra healing, heals & soften dry skin.

Put on a wind breaker (beside your thermal wear) if you need to get out of a building.  But when you come back into a building, take the wind breaker off.  Trust me you will feel much better (the windbreaker seems to trap the coldness in it).

Take alot of water & fibre food/products.  Its really helps when you detox (you know what I mean).  At least it works for me.

The Royal Wedding Fever (29 Apr)

You hear it all the time in the radio, news, TV, internet, even at the pub.

Its the big thing right now in UK. For more info, goto: http://royalwedding.yahoo.com/

Wanna escape from all this maddness, check this out: http://royalwedding.yahoo.com/blogs/ten-ways-to-avoid-the-royal-wedding-2-4210

As for us, hopefully it brings in more business for the hotel. Hey, 3 cheers to Prince William & Kate Middleton. Hip Hip Hurray!

2nd time I am driving the car

Same as previous, I drive to Ballachulish Town this afternoon, to get lunch. 2 packs of beef pies (1-for-1) and 3 packs of mini classic bolognese bake (3 for 4 pound) cost me 5.69 pounds. Not too bad right.

Well you can either put it in the conventional oven or microware oven. We had the beef pies for lunch. Taste wise, not too bad. Think we will keep the bolognese bake for lunch tomorrow then.

Pub in nowhere

Last night we went to a Pub for dinner. This Pub is located in Glencoe. Beautiful mountain scenic view (for more pictures, refer to facebook/mobilemaxleo).

The food serving is HUGE man! I think one serving is good enough for Carine & I.

David says, in LA casino, it is even more exaggerating. A metre long hot dog and a litter of beer is only USD1. The whole idea is to lure customer into the casino.

Singapore Casinos, think about it.

How do I look?

That is a new shirt from Hugh - UK.

The place is REALLY dark (part 2)

A shot I took last night in the car...

B & B

Here, you can choose to stay in Hotel or B&B. So what is B&B? B&B stands for Bed & Breakfast. Basically you get to stay with the owner of the house. Breakfast is provided.

The place is REALLY dark....

Weather is cloudy today with drizzle in the early morning. Temperature should be around 10 degree. Wake up slightly late today coz last night enjoying updating this blog & facebook till 2am.

Last night I have to lock up the place coz David went to bed earlier than me. I have to ensure that 5 doors (in specific) are locked, and got to off all lights too (except for 2 emergency passage light). The place are really dark and all I have is a little torch.

Well, in Scotland, the people are conscious of energy conservation & light pollution. Lights are off all time unless deem unnecessary. There is no streetlight (ie lamp post) along the stretch of road outside the hotel: until you reach a town.

More pictures in Facebook

Be sure to check out my facebook (facebook.com/mobilemaxleo) for more pictures on the interior of the hotel, and 500 million years old rock at the beach in front of the hotel CheerS! Good nite.

Cottage & a strange looking tree

This cottage belongs to the hotel. Currently Peter & Evana are staying there. They will be moving over to the staff accomodation in the hotel on 1 May. A wierd looking tree.

Lunch in the Garden....

Today the weather is superb. Very sunny but cooling: temperature should be 18 ~ 20 degree. David says that we are not going to take walk-in (normally seldom have walk-in on Sunday) and focus on doing some internal work today instead. Lunch was good. We have chezsolvaica food (lamb stew with bread) and left over from last night BBQ. Come to think about it, it is the first time I have BBQ out in the sun. Singapore? no way man! In Scotland you can.

Our first guests (a young couple) come in early today. We are kinda not ready and told them that its too early to check; they can take their lunch and come back later. And GOSH, they ready come back very much later in the evening (around 6pm). At one time, we thought that they will never come back (probably check in another place where they have their lunch). Lucky for us that they had their dinner too, coz we are not prepared to serve dinner. Before that David and I are assembling the portable BBQ pit that he has bought it at a special price of 20 pounds. Well, we are not going to have stirred fried beef & mutton stew for dinner. Its Staff BBQ Time!

We have pork rib, chicken marinated with soya source & chinese wine, fresh salad combo in thousand island dressing, beef in tariyaki source and BEERs of course.

That is our Chef, Peter smiling at you.

Hey Evana (Peter's girl friend) don't be shy.

David, sampling out the food: our guinea pig

1.50 pounds (S$3.00) for a packet of white rice

We are kinda late for diner last night (all restaurants are closed by 9pm), and by the time we reach Fort William it is already 9.30pm. Only option we have is "take-away" from Ocean International, a take-away shop that sells excellent chinese food. YES! Chinese food (wanton noodle, stir fried beef rice, Singapore fried rice, hor fun, hongkong mee, etc).

We have "mixed fried rice": fried rice topped with Hong Kong style vegetable, meat, prawn combo stew. Simply delicious. Makes me feel very much at home..... Guess I am not going to miss Singapore local food that much after all.

In Fort William there are 3 chinese food take-away and 3 chinese restaurants. With the recession still going on, the restaurants (including those that serve western or india cuisine) are not doing well . On the contrary, the take-away business has picked up. Beside take-away, the super marts are also affecting the restaurant as super mart also sell ready-made food (that only needs reheat by microwave or conventional oven).

Pub business has also gone down. To stay alive, pubs are beginning to serve food too. By the way the price of a beer in pub is 2 ~ 3 times that of the supermart. As for food, dinning in restaurant is 4 ~ 5 times that of take-away. See the picture?

PS. we have also ordered black pepper stirred fried beef and mutton (2 packets in total). David is going to cook rice tomorrow and we can have that for dinner. For info, a packet of white rice cost 1.50 pounds (S$3.00). Lucky you, Singaporean.

Oh my Deer

Forget to mention that on the way from airport to the hotel (mid way) we come across a stretch of road known as "deer road". Got to be careful coz you may find a deer suddenly dash across the road (esp. at night). The deer is huge and hitting one will definitely make a big den in the car (sometime the car may sway off the road). Rule of the thumb: don't try to avoid the deer (coz u may get yourself kill as the road is wavey), just hold your steering tight and move on. Oh my DEER, may you rest in peace.....

A nature alarm clock with AWESOME visual effect

What can I say, a nature alarm clock with awesome view. What better way to wake up in the morning. The weather today is cloudy, approximately 10 ~ 11 degree. Wake up at 8am but laze in the bed till 9am. This morning David has an appointment with his lawyer but I am not following him. Peter, the handy-man (responsible for the maintenance of the hotel) cum breakfast chef is in today. He has to get the lobby done up because we are expecting a guest tomorrow. Yes, Lodge on the Loch Hotel is officially open tomorrow for the year of 2011. I introduce myself and help Peter out with the painting job. When David comes back in the afternoon, we go over to ballachulish town for lunch. Sadly the bar (pub cum restaurant) is closed and we have to "ta-bao" from a mini-mart. Had curry chicken (yellow) rice and mesh potato served with beef stew (share with David); tasteful wise not too bad. Can't expect much from microwaveable food. After lunch, steal some time to tried out the Skype. Hey! its working! I am talking to my 3 precious GFG (Gifts from GOD). They are excited to see me and amazed by the scenic view (via webcam) outside the hotel. I am also very happy to see them. Happy to know that everyone, everything is fine. GOD bless! OK, back to the painting job. Should be able to complete it in an hour. Its almost 6pm and nothing much for me to do. So decided to go back to my room and take a short nap before going out for dinner with David (~ 8pm). He He ....

Day 1 (7 Apr) in Scotland

Oh Yes, finally made it to Scotland, after more than 18 hours of flight. Feeling kinda exhausted right now, Wouldn't dare to take a short nap as I want to get rid of the jet lack effect ASAP. There is no direct flight from Singapore to Glasgow: have to transit at Dubai. Didn't sleep well in the plane either. Had a hard time at the Glasgow custom: been grilled with alot of questions (about my work, my financial status, etc).

David is there when I walk out of the airport. Told him that I should have bought my cigarette at Dubai airport if I knew that there is no duty free shop in Glasgow airport. From Glasgow it is going to be another 2+ hour drive to Fort William (where the hotel is located). Halfway, we had something light to eat and I managed to get my cigarette supply. 6.90 pound ($14.00) per pack, it is even more expensive than Singapore ($11.40). Hmm, guess it's time to cut down on my cigarette intake.

Scotland scenic view is awesome: many huge mountains made of rocks. I could still see some snow at some of the mountain tops. Understand from David that 2 weeks ago, the snow has started to melt and there are many heavy downpour. The weather yesterday & today are extremely good: cold (~11 degree) but sunny. The hotel is old but very cosy. I have wonderful seaview from my room. Understand from David that the sun set around 8pm. In Aug the day is even longer: sunrise around 5am and sunset at 10pm. The hotel will start operating this coming Saturday. Only left with a day to finish some maintenance work at the lobby area.

Hmm... time to go for dinner (after 9pm practically no food available) Will write more details about the hotel in the coming days in Scotland.

PS. Have tune the time according to that of Scotland.