The first guy from Jack'd and Melbourne

I had been doubting whether I should do a post like this. Perhaps, trying something new wouldn't hurt. Several weeks ago, my housemate C mentioned Jack'd to me and recommended downloading it. Then soon after, I was chatting to a guy (who turned out to be called C) about life and animals. He invited me for a coffee then it turned out we both got more than just coffee and soon we found ourselves cuddling in bed.

Crucial daily diet

Cuddling is so blissful and it is a great way to recover after some strenuous activities. Often enough I had good conversations and find out more about the person while cuddling. C talked about how he is originally from New South Wales and moved to Melbourne for work several years ago but ended up living here ever since. Melbourne is ranked quite highly again this year in term of livability. The city has a strong coffee culture and cycling community which are a match in heaven for me as a caffeinated cyclist enthusiast. When I think about that, it is definitely one of the cities I would settle down. But sadly everything in Australia is so far away and it takes a long time to travel to other parts of the world.

Happy Valentine's Day

I am back in Thailand for a long holiday at home and hopefully I will have more free time to blog more regular from now on.

Our 1 year anniversary was just a few weeks ago and somehow I booked a flight from Melbourne to Bangkok on that date! I had a lapse of memory and booked with an odd feeling when I looked at the date. From time to time, I made a judgement like this and it's so embarrassing. Boyfriend D still makes a joke about this :D

Lovely deliciousness

Boyfriend D and I have been together just over one year. Last year, I was on a university placement, drove to Sydney and didn't have the chance to spend Valentine's Day with him. Once I got back, I gave him a belated Valentine: a red rose and a box of macarons. Generally, Boyfriend D eats too quickly and devours everything within seconds. He treasured the macarons too much and ate them too slowly that I was concerned they might be spoiled before he finished them.

Things are anti-climatic this year. We are not even not the same continent and there is a 4 hours time different. It makes communication somewhat difficult. There were so many couples acting lovey-dovey everywhere and I wished I could be with Boyfriend D. I texted him a picture below and saying that I miss cuddling him.

Cuddle me please~

How was your Valentine's Day?

Glasgow, Scotland

I have just started to get my head around the Scottish accent. No offence, but people talk funny here, and it requires extra concentration for me to understand. The externship so far has been great, and I managed to do some tourist things on a weekend break.

I got have an office (to share) and my own microscope.

Ahhh.. You will make part of a great breakfast

I don't understand why this is called dumpling. 

Brewery!

Fish & Chips with a pint pre-brewery tour

Beer tasting post-brewery tour

Statue of the Duke of Wellington in front of Gallery of Modern Art, lol

Quite a contrast!

Bagpipes and kilts :)

Glasgow Cathedral

The interior

Haggis, neeps and tatties with Guinness

Wine tasting and meet the family impromptu

My mum and sister are visiting Melbourne soon, and they will be staying with me for a few weeks. My mum is quite a foodie, and she can be a little snobby when it comes to food sometimes. I will be taking them both around Melbourne for gourmet food. It turns out there is a French wine tasting at the wine bar, close to my place. It's free, so we are not missing that for sure.

It will be rather a special night for sure.

At first, I was planning to go with Boyfriend D, but I can't leave my family behind. So I managed to get all of us going to the wine tasting. I have also invited my close friend A since he also enjoys wine. The whole thing would be less like meet-the-family. This would make things less awkward for Boyfriend D, and they both have met when we went out for dinner and drinks. I am somewhat nervous as well, and having A there would help me out. As I'm not out to my family yet, I am a bit scared of slipping out or getting a bit too intimate with Boyfriend D. It is not the right time yet, and I have planned to tell my family after graduation in December this year.

On the bright side, my mum has also decided to cook us dinner that night. She is very accommodating when it comes to my friends, and she loves cooking extra food so I can bring some to share. So we will have a Thai home cooking before we head off for the fine wine. We all enjoy good wine, but we are no wine snobs. Hopefully, we will be able to appreciate what we are drinking. Now I also wonder how much more accommodating my mum would be to D once she realises that D isn't just a friend :)

A date with Boyfriend D

Boyfriend D and I went out to see The Avengers 3D. It is one of the films I highly anticipate for this year. In the cinema, I put my coat in the middle between our seat, so that I could sneakily hold Boyfriend's D hand. Unfortunately, he wasn't very keen since we were sitting right in the middle, and the cinema was packed full with people. In term of coming out, he is still in the closet, so he doesn't feel at ease with public display of affection, as I am yet. Anyway, the film was great, and we were kept was on the edge of our seat.

Jeremy Renner and Chris Evans - quality eye candy x2

After that, we went searching for a place to munch for dinner. Boyfriend D has not had much experience with Asian food, especially Thai food. So we decided to check out Chin Chin, only to find out that we would have to wait an hour for a table. With our soon-to-rumble stomach, we changed our plan and headed to Ajisen Ramen. It was nice to have hot ramen on a cold Melbournian night.

Then we took a tram back to my place. When we got inside, the first thing he did was turned on the heater, and made himself comfy in my bed. It is interesting how we both handle cold weather differently. He hates the cold despite being a Kiwi, while I love it despite growing up in Thailand. I stay warm and get hot easily, and don't seem to handle the heat well nowadays. So it was left to me to cuddle and warm him up, before we made our way to a wine bar as we initially intended. The Valley Cellardoor is just a stroll away from my place. I got a glass of Pinot Noir and Boyfriend D got a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon. Two grown men intimately sitting close to each other, drinking wine - it doesn't get more gay, does it? We relaxed and enjoyed our wine, and talked a fair bit (or more correctly, I talked).

It was a lovely night overall. Perhaps, we can go for a chick flick next time. Then I would have a better chance of getting slightly lovey-dovey, haha.

Boyfriend D

I met D about 2 months ago through Grindr. We chatted and messaged for a week before I invited him for a drink at my place. To be frank, I didn't plan anything other than having a good beer talk and getting to know each other better. It somehow progressed from sitting on a coach watching Aussie Open drinking Fat Yak to some activities and cuddling. We had a midnight snack and he stayed over night.

Spoon me, please

We talked about how did we ended in bed - I blamed him for starting the kiss while he blamed me for seducing him. He said that inviting a gay guy over for a drink is a recipe for something to happen, and how naive I was, lol. A week later, we went cycling along Capital City Trail and had a brunch out at St. Ali. As we got to know each other more, we found that we have a fair number of things in common - coffee, wine, cycling, fine arts, classical music, and Cooking! At first, I thought he is a local, but it turned out he is a Kiwi. So I got him to make some good lamb roast. I have to admit seeing a guy wearing an apron is a big turn-on :) We talked a lot about relationship and how it should be constructed, as he wasn't ready for a relationship and I never dated a guy before.

Then we decided to make it official and made the date that we're actually a couple. So far everything has been great. I still remember there was time when I almost gave up the hope of having a boyfriend, and just date women instead. My mates now start pestering me about when they get to meet the lucky guy. They are a nosy funny bunch, aren't they?

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I don't think I have ever mentioned that my groupmate Z and I have a thing for English and Irish. And we are a big fan of bands like Celtic Thunder and Celtic Woman. We both aim to do further study and specialise in UK in the near future.

Green!

Well, he was busy studying, so I went out with my boyfriend D for an Irish lunch. Oppps, I just realised I haven't done a post dedicated to D yet - that is to be followed soon, I guess :) We decided to pope into The Elephant & Wheelbarrow Pub in the city. Everyone in the pub was wearing green except us, haha. There was a special Irish menu. I had Guiness pork sausages and a pint of Guiness while D went for a steak pie. And I got a Guiness St. Patrick's Day hat. The meal was great and the plates were clean. Then we were contemplating if we should have some sweet bites afterwards.

We heard someone playing a bagpipe as well. It could have gotten more Irish if there were kilts and a bit of folksongs :)

Food and my coming out

One thing I really enjoy is cooking. What could be better than putting classical music on and humming around in the kitchen, while making some yummy munchies, especially on a lazy Sunday. I can't appear more like a domesticated househusband with an apron and cake whisk, lol.

Jamie mentioned on one of his shows about how good food brings people together. It is about sharing the love and joy. I couldn't agree more when I heard him. Watch his show sometimes reminds of my first ever coming out. The drama unfolded on one Friday night when we had a vet student BBQ chill-out. We were drinking and enjoying the night. Then two of my female friends pried me away from the crowd, then they blurbed out an unexpected question.

One bite of the ice cream would have prepared me better :D

Friend B: Anyway, we have something to ask you.....
Friend A: Are you gay?

I was caught off guard, and mumbled awkwardly while they were eager for an answer.

Me: Mmmm...Ummm... I... I'm not sure, but think I'm bi.
Friend A: Aha! That makes a lot of sense now.
Friend B: Right, I knew it. That explains all why you're so good at cooking and fashion.
Friend A: Also you are like our talkable version of Melbourne food guide book. Hey, that means you can let your gay side go wild, and cook more. I'm expecting more good food from you from now on, and more cocktail parties at yours.
Friend A & B: We are getting you drunk tonight!
Me: Oh, right, ok...

Their responses left me speechless. It went too well. I guess if they don't accept my sexuality, they won't get to taste my cooking anymore, haha. Anyway, they then proceeded to drown me with alchohol, and I had no recollection of how I got home the next morning. Later on, I told them that I'm definitely gay once I have gained more confidence.

Eating til death in Japan

As the title has suggested, this post is dedicated to gourmet moments I had during my trip.

Grilled quail

Having a Kirin beer with Tonkatsu at Issen Tonkatsu, Ueno

Tenderloin Tonkatsu set and some Tonkatsu sandwiches

Tenderloin Tonkatsu :)

I think I saw a glimpse of heaven there - syphon coffee

Collagen supplements, veggie capsules, and muscle booster

Ramen at Harajuku

The soup and pork were to die for

Gindago Takoyaki

5,000Yen melon - worth the experience

Sweet tooth time 

Lining for Sushi Dai at 7AM, Tsukiji fish market

After 3.5 hours of waiting, I finally got to the front of the legendary store

My sushi chef for the meal - the Omakase set

The first dish of the set - fresh Tamago (still warm) and ginger

Otoro

Flounder

Red snapper

Uni

Squid

Surfing clam - was moving when served!

Maguro

Maki

Horse mackerel

Ikura

Anago

Sipping some green tea and deciding what to have for the 11th (last) sushi

And I chose Otoro, which concluded the special sushi set - can't have enough of Otoro.

Shabu-shabu

Last but not least, nutto!

My family is a big fan of Japan, and it seems like my mom is planning a conspiracy with my uncle for another trip while I'm externing in Glasgow this June. Gahhh~

Oriental escape

What a change of plan I had for Christmas and New Year! I'm having a last minute family trip to Japan, after I sat a supplementary exam for Horses. My itinerary so far is to eat my way through, and taste all the weird and wonderful food. However, it looks like I won't be able to keep my promise of doing more posts this holiday. I won't be back in Melbourne til after the New Year. So I wish you all for a very Merry Christmas :)

Fushimi Inari-taisha - my brother went to pray for a success in business