And, although, I wasn’t really on the hunt for a new cellphone on my only day at Funan IT Mall in Singapore last week, (much less a Nokia) I made off with a cyan Lumia 800 (click here for full specifications) and following are my initial impressions of the smartphone.

FORM FACTOR

The Lumia 800 is both slick and sleek, nice to the touch, neither heavy nor light and at 116.5 x 61.2 x 12.1mm, can be comfortably held even by small hands like mine for extended periods of time and fits, without difficulty, inside in my zip around wallet, with my cash and cards (photo below).

DISPLAY
The Lumia 800 has a curved 3.7″ AMOLED ClearBlack glass touchscreen display which is seamlessly integrated into a smooth one-piece body. The colors are dazzling and the transition between screens is smooth, even smoother than the Galaxy Note, check back in a few days to view the comparison video my sister and I will making to illustrate this.

CAMERA
The Lumia 800 has an 8 MP, 3264×2448 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, rear camera with dual-LED flash. It doesn’t have a secondary front camera, though, and video quality is a paltry 720p HD compared to the iPhone 4S 1080p HD.

EASE OF USE
Lumia 800′s Windows 7.5 software is both fun and easy to use. It provides effortless integration with social networking sites (such as facebook and twitter) and e-mail synchronization and comes with a portable version of MSOffice. I personally like the Nokia drive Navigation software which allows one to download and view maps when I’m on the road or when abroad. It is best to download all the maps you need while at home, though, as doing so abroad will result in you incurring roaming charges. Once downloaded, the maps will be in your library and available for use anytime.

And while I struggle with my iPhone 4 when typing text, this is not the case with the Lumia 800 as touching the wrong letter accidentally has not been a problem with the latter.

APPS
To download free and paid apps for the Lumia, one only needs to tap the Marketplace option on the phone. The apps are plenty enough but not as many as those for Apple or the Android. While still in Singapore, however, I configured my phone for home and set my location to the Philippines only to find out that, in so doing, I actually disabled all access to Nokia Marketplace as this feature is not yet available in my country. I was, however, able to immediately remedy the situation by performing a hard reset and setting my location back to Singapore. Performing a hard reset will restore factory settings on your phone, so you will lose all user changes. After this, I regained access to the Marketplace and was able to download all the free apps I needed using the hotel’s wi-fi.

Purchasing an app was not possible, however, because payment required a Singapore-issued credit card. On my flight back home, however, I read this article which could solve this apps availability limitation.

MEMORY
The Lumia 800 has a 16 GB storage capacity but there is no slot for memory card expansion.

BATTERY LIFE
I have only used my phone for short conversations and internet browsing and a full charge has, so far, lasted me a little more than a couple of days. I have read, however, that with others a full charge only takes a day to use up, no different from phones of the same type. My iPhone never lasts me no more than a day, even in standby mode.

SIGNAL
Signal is great and I have carried clear and uninterrupted conversation even in weak signal areas.

PRICE
I got my unit for SGD 749 with the following freebies: a matching protective cover and a black leather case. Price quoted is before 7% GST Refund.

AVAILABILITY
The Nokia Lumia is already available in the US, Singapore, India, parts of Europe and will debut in Indonesia this month.

MY RECOMMENDATION
This is, by no means, a technical review, I leave that to the geeks. I’ve only had my Lumia 800 for 4 days now and I am, so far, liking it, despite its limitations. Rumors are rife, however, of Nokia Lumia 910 coming out in the market sometime soon so I will still suggest that one wait for the upgraded model of it’s yet to be launched predecessor, the Nokia Lumia 900, CNET’s Star of CES Awardee for 2012.

Let me start the Chinese New Year with a recipe, one that may neither be Chinese nor Asian but makes use of the bright RED strawberry fruit, red being the perpetual lucky color of the Chinese.

STRAWBERRY CHEESECAKE ICE CREAM

INGREDIENTS

For the Strawberry Sauce:

2 Cups Fresh Strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
1/4 Cup Fresh Orange Juice
2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
pinch of salt

For the Ice Cream

8 oz. Cream Cheese, room temperature
3/4 Cup Whole or Pure Milk
juice from half a lemon
1 Cup Cream, Whipping or All-Purpose
3/4 Cup Sour Cream
1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar, divided
1 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
3 Large Egg Yolks

DIRECTIONS

To Make the Strawberry Sauce
1. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, orange juice, cornstarch and salt, stir well until cornstarch is dissolved.
2. In a saucepan, place strawberries and 1/4 cup water, bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
3. Add the cornstarch mixture and cook for about 3 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally.
4. Remove from heat and let cool.

To Make the Ice Cream
1. In a food processor, process the cream cheese, lemon jiuce and milk until smooth then transfer into a saucepan.
2. Add the cream, 1/4 cup sugar, vanilla extract and salt to the pan, stirring until blended. Bring the mixture to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Do not let boil.
3. Beat egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a mixing bowl using a wire whisk until light and pale yellow in color. Pour the cream mixture onto the egg mixture in a slow, continuous stream.
4. Return the mixture into the saucepan and cook, stirring frequently, until thickened or mixture coats back of spoon. Remove from heat and stir in sour cream.
5. Strain mixture into a medium sized bowl and press a sheet of plastic wrap onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool for 10 minutes before refrigerating for 3-4 hours.
6. Pour cream mixture into ice cream maker and churn for 20-25 minutes.
7. Put in airtight container, alternately by spoonfulls, with the strawberry sauce. Use knife to create swirls. Refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight.

This recipe was adapted from Ellen Brown’s Scoop with modifications.

When we saw that J.Co’s packaging in Malaysia already listed Manila as one of five retail locations (along with Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Shanghai), I was anticipating bringing boxes of these delectable donuts to my eating buddies at home. But, as of post time, this is what you will find on site, at the 3rd level of Greenbelt 3 in Makati, a sign announcing the shop’s impending opening.

J.Co’s first branch in the country, to be located at the Food Strip at SM Megamall in Mandaluyong, is apparently slated to open come February 16 and the Greenbelt branch soon after.

I am what one would call an occasional doughnut eater as I find the present crop of fried bread hoop options in the market unapologetic in its sweetness. And J.Co donuts are a simply a breath of fresh donuts, er.. I mean, air, as they are not overly sweet!

J.Co’s flavors smack of gourmet desserts, with rather inspired names as Al Capone (which is my favorite, a white chocolate and almond topped baby, pictured on the storefront announcement above) and Chocolate Caviar (this one is chocolate crunch topped).

I was trying to get a good angle for my photos (which is hard because of the limited balcony space fronting the store and the fact that I was only using my Blackberry as camera) when a I saw a security guard approaching me with a no-no look. Lest the situation turn into a Dolce Gabanna Hong Kong, I quickly tucked my mobile phone inside my bag and moved on – but not before I returned his glare with a dagger look.

More so if you’re a foodie, no experience can ever be complete if you don’t check out the traditional wet market to see what gratifies the local palate or bring home bits and pieces of that country’s pantry thru stuff one can purchase at the mall super .

On my last visit to Thailand, I came across Spice Story at the Siam Paragon Supermarket. Having handled only the bottled and sprinkle-ready version of spices available in my country’s groceries, it was pretty fascinating to behold these spices in their pre-pulverized state. I bought a couple of, what I term, as spice quadrants, pictured below, each box containing, you guessed it, four different spices.

Star Anise, Cinnamon Sticks, Sichuan Pepper & Coriander Seeds

Bay Leaves, Nutmeg, Cardamon & Cloves

Spice Story is the brainchild of the Nguan Soon Group, one of Thailand’s leading spice and herbs producers and exporters. Aside from spices, also on display at their Siam Paragon shop are other Asian food products such as rice noodles, seasoning and mushrooms, all encased in bright, attractive, contemporary packaging to entice even those who don’t cook to take a look. An example would be these mini bottles of spices which I have here alongside their regular counterparts to show just how cute they are.

On the side, Spice Story also serves ready-to-eat dishes and ice cream spiked with their spices via an equally attractive Asian themed delicatessen.

A lot of them are letting their fingers do the shopping, in the comforts of their own homes, courtesy of the world wide web and their preferred brands’ e-stores and online retailers especially during peak shopping season when finding parking space at the mall is close to impossible and the lines at the counters can get very long and crazy.

It used to be that online shopping was only a privilege enjoyed by someone with a US, Canadian or US territory address. Now, several big US based retailers sell their wares to almost anywhere in the world via the internet and most of them, such as Macy’s and Nordstrom, even allow buyers to shop in their local currency thru e-commerce service providers like FiftyOne.

And as a shopping-inclined female living in Asia, I have listed below my 5 favorite sites, ones that I have tried and liked and can recommend:

5.THE OUTNET

If you’re into Alexander McQueen, Yves Saint Laurent, Velentino, Givenchy and other European labels, head out to Outnet. The clothes I have bought from them fit very nicely as the French and Italians really know fashion. The thing I don’t like about Outnet, though, is you actually need to stare at the product image for a long time to be able to appreciate its details. Item prices are denominated in pound sterling so having a calculator handy to convert list prices to your own currency will save you from, unwittingly, breaking your bank account. They charge a very nominal amount for shipping, though, which is great, and returns are free as your order comes with a DHL return slip, subject, of course, to conditions.

4. SHOPBOP

The best thing about Shopbop is they ship worldwide for free. As any international shopper knows, we do pay customs duties for our purchase and the amount is based on the actual cost of the items being bought plus shipping charges. So if you don’t pay for shipping, you not only get to save on delivery costs but also on customs duties. Shopbop, however, is more of a mid-range brands outlet, you will not find Gucci and its cohorts there. But it is a good source for DVF belts and Tory Burch shoes.

3. BLUEFLY

I bought my current favorite pair of sneakers from Bluefly. They sell a lot of designer stuff here as well, such as Prada, Balenciaga, Dior, Jimmy Choo, Manolo Blahnik, Gucci, Bottega Veneta at reduced prices. They charge a considerable sum for shipping, however, and their customer service is rather lousy. I wrote them a letter inquiring about the status of my order (the link they gave me to track it wasn’t yielding any results) but I never got a reply. Product presentation is also not that enticing. One reason I have Bluefly at number 3 is because I still have not found an alternative cure for my Prada predilection.

2. SAKS FIFTH AVENUE

They have a wide selection of items as they sell not only apparel, shoes and handbags but also beauty and home products. If you’re into designer stuff, their Saks FashionFix promo will grant you access to designer duds and accessories at very low (50% off) prices. Based on experience, luxury goods prices, especially when converted to my local currency, are much cheaper at Saks than in other stores. A pair of designer brand sneakers, for example, being sold at Bloomingdales for 15,311.00 Philippine currency only retails for 11,795.60 at Saks.

The big BUT, however, is that there are specific luxury brands which export to other countries or outside the US are restricted by the vendors themselves, Burbuerry being one. On the bright side, however, Saks offers a flat rate shipping rate of $32 to several countries. I have them at number 2 because of FashionFix and because it’s the place to go to for the latest in cosmetics, with prices much cheaper than Bloomingdales or Nordstrom.

Saks’ product catalogs are beautifully laid out, the images are beautiful and accurate except for the cosmetic palettes as these are way off. If you are buying the latest shade of Dolce & Gabbana lipstick, I suggest that you check out the D & G official site for a better representation of the color swatches. The product zoom feature also takes a while to load.

1. GILT GROUPE

Gilt Groupe is a private sales website which allows members access to luxury brands at 50%-70% off. I first learned of Gilt Groupe about a month ago while reading old articles at Forbes.com and have been hooked on it since. What makes Gilt different from the other four sites is that shopping here is time-bound. Certain brands hold sales for two days and the shopper is only allowed 10 minutes to “reserve” an item before this is released for purchase by other members. One may also only load no more than 5 items (in quantities based on availability) in his or her cart.

Gilt, however, sells a host of different stuff other than apparel and accessories. Home products, food, furniture, electronics, interior design services, luxury watches, fine jewelry, vintage stuff and even vacations can be bought off Gilt’s virtual shelves. This site is well-curated and the selections are vast and varied that it’s pretty hard NOT to find something you actually end up buying. The only beef people on my side of the world may possibly have against Gilt is that it is very hard to get first crack at sales being launched unless one is ready to forego with sleep because of time zone differences.

Gilt charges a nominal fee for shipping, around $20 per parcel for non-bulky items and your order arrives well-packed in a sturdy box. Customer service is topnotch as well. I was actually sent a different item than the one I ordered and when I e-mailed Gilt about it, I got a reply within 48 hours with an apology, the promise of a full refund (for the item I didn’t receive) and a welcome gesture – that I may keep the item I was sent in error and consider this as my gift from Gilt.

On the morning that we were to leave Bangkok, we were at the airport a good two and a half hours before our flight to Manila. In reality, however, we were a good seventeen and a half hours early.

Our flight which was to leave at 9:25AM was delayed and was instead leaving at 11:10 PM!

In my years of travel, I have never been delayed more than three hours tops, so you can understand why I am saying that we got stranded in Bangkok. That coupled with the fact that our group of five was really anxious to get home, it being 2 days before Christmas day.

And so we asked about alternative flights and even connecting flights to Manila but there was none. Remember that it was almost Christmas and everyone was rushing home.

Philippine Airlines was, however, going to billet us at a hotel and so after some discussion, we boarded the bus that was to take us to PAL’s offered accomodation, Four Wings.

The ride took some 25 minutes and as it was my first time to visit Thailand, I had no idea where we were. We had previously stayed at the Siam Kempisnki Hotel in Bangkok and it didn’t seem like Four Wings was anywhere near it.

As it turned out, Four Wings was also nice and check in was smooth. After bringing our stuff up to our rooms, we were ushered to the lobby restaurant where breakfast buffet was being served. The food selection was great as well.

After breakfast came lunch and then dinner. There wasn’t really anything to do but watch TV and eat as one drawback of the Four Wings Hotel is that the nearest mall is 20 minutes away by car. Phooey.

By the time we were advised to check out and board the bus back to the airport, we were all overstuffed from the all-day smorgasboard but enthused that we were finally going home.

I think Philippine Airlines did a great job in handling this one. Definitely 5 Plutos.

Upon closer inspection, we learned that these were the United Buddy Bears and that 143 of them were in town visiting Malaysia’s capital, after concluding a tour of Europe – 140 representing the countries recognized by the United Nations with 3 special bears, all espousing peaceful co-existence and international understanding among cultures.

Curious about how our own country was being represented in this Ursidae convention, we immediately worked our way through the labyrinth of alphabetically sequenced “hand-in-hand” grizzlies and found our bear below.

Predictably, the Philippine bear is predominantly yellow as this is the color of the country’s current administration.

What we didn’t expect, however, was the Philippine eagle as icon Not that we mind, though. Being Davaoenos on first name basis with Pag-asa ;-D , the recognition and affirmation was instant. We could not, however, help but wonder if other compatriots would feel the same way towards our buddy bear.

We tried to take photos of each bear but gave up after a while because we couldn’t get each bear to pose solo, sans the posse and paparazzi.

Japan’s bear (a stark contrast to most of the other bears).

The Swiss Bear.

The Buddy Bear Exhibit in Kuala Lumpur started tarted last December 8 and will run until February 15, 2012. The project is also a children-focused endeavor with activities geared at helping children in need.

Well, my bestfriend always said that I was but I didn’t think much of it until I found myself staring at the almost full imprint my wet feet made on an office folder, when while shopping for shoes online I came across this do-it-at-home-feet-type test. A subsequent visit at Runnr at Bonifacio High Street only confirmed the home test results.

Come to think of it, it does make a lot of sense. I am actually a US 6.5 but I buy shoes much, much bigger than my real size. The biggest I’ve gone is an 8. I am just not comfortable wearing shoes my true size because my feet always had the proclivity to push towards the front of my shoes, an imbalance brought about by my flat feet.

Had I known this earlier, I could have staved off earning two black toenails years ago at Disneyworld in Orlando. It took 18 months for those toenails to get back in the pink of health!

Over time, my shoe preferences have become very specific. I won’t wear heels that are pointy and taller than 1.5 inches. And since I travel a lot, my flat feet’s gear of choice are sneakers that are versatile enough to climb the steep temple steps in Cambodia and also walk the corridors of plush convention halls in Hong Kong.

Prada Velvet Cap Toe Sneakers in Candy

Last week, while on vacation in Kuala Lumpur, I was pleasantly surprised at how well my candy colored velvet and rubber capped toe sneakers (pictured above) ferried me from place to place. I had not meant for these to be my primary walking shoes but I had loads on my mind when I was packing and forgot to bring a second, already tried and tested pair. But after a day of walking in them, my flat feet were in love.

A favorite of many, the Tiffany Charms line lets you design your own bracelet with your choice of chain (silver, gold or platinum) and embellishments, adorable charms in plain metal or with gemstones or diamonds and categories such as love, celebrations, nature and hobby, giving the “finished” product a made-for-you feel.

In a survey conducted among wealthy consumers by the Luxury Institute, Tiffany & Co. ranks fifth on the list of Top Ten Luxury Jewelry Brands, joined by Harry Winston (1), Buccelatti (2), Van Cleef & Arpels (No. 3), Graff (4), Piaget (6), Cartier (7), Chopard (8), Bulgari (9) and Mikimoto (10).

Tiffany & Co.’s design and craftmanship are instantly recognizable, a trait very much desired by jewelry collectors, bolstered by the savvy move of copyrighting its very own color known as Tiffany Blue, a private custom color of Pantone, numbered 1837, which is also the year of Tiffany’s foundation. Specifically because of its ties to Tiffany, this particular hue of light blue used for its packaging and product catalogue is now associated with romance and celebrity weddings .

Being a travel junkie and a dog lover, these two charms spoke to me when I went to Tiffany in Hong Kong:

Two bestfriends in one charm – dogs (man’s) and (girl’s) diamonds. Pave diamonds dot this platinum Scotty with the emerald leash adding an elegant splash of color. (US Price Per Website USD 2300 exclusive of tax, HK Price HKD 20100 tax free)

This 18k yellow gold suitcase has a working hinge so you can actually open it. It is embellished on the front with a round sapphire, a triangular diamond and a rhombus shaped pink sapphire. This design has been around since 2005 and is already a classic. (US Price Per Website USD 1700 exclusive of tax, HK Price HKD tax free)

Lest we forget, we need a chain bracelet to hang these charms on.
18k yellow gold oval link clasp bracelet chain (US Price Per Website USD 1950 exclusive of tax, HK Price HKD 17100 tax free)

Where to shop for Tiffay & Co. in Hong Kong

Although there are other Tiffany stores in Hong Kong, my store of choice it the one at IFC Mall. I went to Tiffany at Elements Mall specifically wanting to see the suitcase and scottie charms but the lady salesclerk, instead of checking if they still have these items in their inventory, kept insisting that the cupid (yup boy, bow and arrow) suited me better.

Cindy of IFC Mall, on the other hand, was very patient and helpful, indulging my curiosity for items I’ve browsed on their website but are not on display in their shelves, taking out item after item, without making me feel pressured to buy, wink!

Citibank credit cardholders and special guests were treated to a pre-opening shopping preview from 2:00 in the afternoon to 6:00 in the evening and posted below are some photos from the event.

Cute quilted fuchshia kid’s coat

Queue at cash counter

GAP Davao is located on the ground floor of Abreeza Mall just across Starbucks. Citibank credit card shoppers get a limited edition GAP Davao tote with their purchase.

Update: I was at GAP today, 9 October, anyone can now get the GAP Davao tote with a minimum purchase of PHP 5000.