You can’t currently purchase Skype Credit directly from the Skype application on your iPhone. However, you can purchase Skype Credit using your iPhone’s internet browser, in the same way that you would from your desktop.

So, fire up your Safari on your iPhone, login to Skype and buy the credits.

Local food in Hangzhou is also known as Hang-bang-chai and there are plenty of stores where you can get your local servings.   In this post, I will share with you the 3 very affordable restaurants for your daily Hangbangchai fix.

Grandma’s Kitchen also known as Waipojia
At this restaurant, the huge list of dishes listed in the menu was the first thing that caught my attention.   Ask the waiter or waitress for their signature dishes and you cannot go wrong.  There are many branches located all over Hangzhou but my favourite was the one next to Xihu (West Lake); simply for its proximity to the lake and the many tables that they had.  Be warned of long queues during lunch and dinner hours.  Be early or late at the restaurant if you dislike queuing. Food are served quick even though the restaurant is full. www.waipojia.com.cn

Green Tea Restaurant
The concept is similar to Waipojia and so are their queues during rush hours.  I dined at the branch located next to Xihu and food was served quickly too.  Do indulge in their Green Tea Beer.

Zhiweiguan
I patroned this restaurant in the morning for breakfast.  You will have to buy vouchers to be exchanged for food at the counter.  Unused vouchers can be returned at the same counter for cash returns.  The food here feels like Hangbangchai unchanged since the restaurant opened.  I did observe locals thoroughly enjoying their food but some servings are not to my liking.

Air Asia has indeed touched many lives by allowing us to travel afford-ably around the region. Air Asia from time to time releases promotion or coupon codes giving us better deals and savings. Below is the list of current promotion codes. Feel free to add on more codes in the comment section.

Indeed, now everyone can fly.

Last updated: 11th January 2012.

AirAsiaGo Promotion
Enjoy 20% when you travel with AirAsia and get a 10% discount on our hotels.
Code: AAGO1101
Book from 11 – 13 January 2012.
Travel from 30 January till 26 April 2012.

AirAsia Fabulous Fly-day
Save 10% on hotels. Key in this promo code for additional 10% savings on hotels.
Code: FFD1706. Get this promo at airasiago.com.
Every Friday is a FABULOUS FLY-DAY!
From 11am – 4pm, enjoy deals you won’t find on any other day of the week!
Booking Period : unknown
Travel Period : unknown

American Express Selects
Save 10% on holidays from Kuala Lumpur when you book from 1 December 2011 until 29 February 2012.
Promo code: “AAGAmex2012″

I love Korean food; in fact I love all kinds of food.

If you are looking for the best Korean Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur, head on to Daorae Korean BBQ Restaurant located in Desa Sri Hartamas.  Note that Daorae has a chain of restaurants scattered all over Malaysia and the Klang Valley but my favourite is still the headquarters which is located at Desa Sri Hartamas.

Today, I decided to have dinner there and the bottomline, it was a very satisfying dinner. The food was great and the service was excellent — as usual. My cravings for good Korean food is fulfilled by Daorae time and time again.  The food here is comparable to those I tasted in Seoul.

If you are looking for the best Korean restaurant in town, look no further than Daorae Korean BBQ. Geon Bae!!

p.s. If you have had good Korean food elsewhere, please leave a note of that restaurant in the comment section below, I would love to give it a try.

It looks like the whole BlackBerry community is faced with the error “CLR20r3″ when using BlackBerry Desktop Manager version 6.  The same happened to me.  I was using BB DM6 just fine when one day, BAM!!! the error appeared.  I have posted a screenshot of the error as above. I’m sure many of you are in the same boat as me — or rather as was I.

After reading forums, scouring blog posts, testing and experimenting on my own, here are 2 methods you can adopt to resolve your BlackBerry Desktop Manager hang (or stop responding) error:

1. First – uninstall version 6 and install version 5.  This method have been described as the most sensible thing to do in order to stop your hair loss.
2. And second – live with the problem and use the workaround below.  This is what I experimented and it worked fine for me.  To me, this is a temporary annoyance until RIM releases the next version/patch.

• Plug in your Blackberry using the USB cable
• Start BlackBerry Desktop Manager (if it does not start automatically)
• Your BB DM should prompt the fatal error. Close the error windows and don’t bother to send the report to Microsoft (not that it helps).
• Pull out your USB cable and count from 1 to 5 slowly.
• Take a deep breath and exhale slowly
• Plug in the USB cable again
• Start your BB DM again
• And voila! Your synchronisation starts and you can use your DM again.

Let me know if this works for you in the comments section below.

So, you manage to connect your Mac Mini to your television, switch on the mini but you can only hear sounds coming out of the Mini’s internal speakers. You tried tuning your TV and have no idea why the sounds are not emitting through your TV. Yep, that was my experience as well until I found out that there needs to be a simple configuration that needed to output audio from my Mac Mini to my LCD TV using the HDMI cable.

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Click on System Preferences
2. Click on Sound listed under Hardware
3. Click on the Output tab
4. Select HDMI
5. Turn down your TV’s volume (lest you shock yourself)

That’s all there is to it.  Enjoy!

After subscribing to DiGi, reality sinks in. The truth is, I’ve experienced a lot of blind spots wherever I go and it’s beginning to annoy me. I am missing out on calls, texts and most of all, Internet access. Why is it that when you need the service most that it becomes unavailable?

Where I’m seated right now, the DiGi Yellow Man is definitely not here…

This is me new mobile phone. I was tired of carrying my Nokia E71 and it was also going bonkers on me.

Armed with some cash, I went around shopping for a replacement. All I wanted was a small and light mobile phone that will be able to call and text. It must be light enough that I don’t feel it jingling in my pocket.

I was looking at a few models until I came across the Nokia X3. It seems like it suited my requirements and it is also a touch screen model. Instead of buying on impulse, I decided to head home and do a little research.

Back home, I read a lot of reviews on this phone and to my astonishment, the reviews were very negative. There were a lot of complains about the X3-02, such as; freezing, not touch sensitive, poor battery life, does not sync well with Microsoft Outlook, auto reboot and et cetera.

Now, I sat there dumbfounded after reading the reviews. No mobile phone could be that bad that Nokia will push it to market. This would only kill its reputation and consumer confidence.

Not sure if it’s bravery or stupidity, I made up my mind to purchase this phone. Purchased this phone I did and I am pleasantly happy plus satisfied with it. In my opinion, battery life was good, syncs like a charm and ease of use was there. My only grouse: No GPS. Oh, I do miss my Garmin apps on my E71.

Bottom line: Awesome lightweight mobile phone for calls and texts.

Once again, Asian countries will have to wait. Nearest to our shore is Singapore and the expected date is in April 2011. I take it that it will be sometime before Malaysians will be able to buy from Epi Centres, Machines or Harvey Norman outlets — by then, iPad3 might have made it to the market.

Well, every cloud have a silver lining. Perhaps this is an opportunity to save some money and buy the BlackBerry PlayBook instead.

The next time you visit Resorts World Genting (passionately known as Genting Highlands), head on to the Imperial Rama Restaurant — located in Highlands Hotel.

There is this dessert dish that is to-die-for. Each time I get the opportunity to eat there, I’ll make sure that I order the Durian Tempura.

The food presentation is rather “normal” but the taste is awesome; close to heavenly. The trick here is to eat it immediately when served. The weather in Genting is humid and cold; so your dish is going to get soggy when left on the lady susan for a while.

When you take a bite, you will be overwhelmed with the ying and yang sensations. The outer tempura is hot and crispy while the durian paste inside is soft and cold. When this ying-yang mixture is in your mouth, the hot neutralised the cold while the soft texture counters the crispy-ness.

My hats-off to the chef. Well done and the price (RM$8 each) I paid for is well worth it.

At 9:26pm, I stepped unto the 57th Floor of the Marina Bay Sands, Singapore; where Sky-on-57 is located. This is the same floor as the famed SkyPark except that you will need to pay S$50 to enter SkyPark (free for hotel guests). Entrance to Sky-on-57 is free but in order to have a meal there, you will need to book in advance — way in advance. I chatted with the manager and was told that the restaurant is fully booked for the next 2 weeks.

I had a seating in the open area overlooking Singapore’s Business District — ordered a few drinks — and watched the light shows. The sight was just amazing. Gaze in front and you see the CBD; to the left, the Marina Bay Financial Centre; and to the right, the Esplanade and beyond.

This is an excellent place to have a group of close friends and business associates gather together. The setting is casual and relaxed thus encouraging the patrons’ eyes to be fixed onto Singapore’s night lights and the skyline.

I’m not sure why they make it so difficult for Mac users. If you are a PC, I bet the client software is everywhere on the WWW.

Anyone can help out a fellow Mac-er here…

In most cases, you will be required to bring your dying/dead iPod to the Apple store but you will be worried if your iPod is still under warranty or otherwise.  Here’s the good and bad news.

The good news is that you can check your iPod warranty status online at https://selfsolve.apple.com/GetWarranty.do

The bad news is that the warranty status check does not cover all countries.  You will need to key in your iPod serial number.  If you are unable to locate the serial number, click on this link: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1594

Craft Brews carry the normal brand of beers such as Carlsberg and Hoegaarden as well as a line of American beers called the Flying Dogs.  A look at the packing labels of the Flying Dogs have already made me decide not to try them; it did not look delicious.  Craft Brews also serves what they call the signature beers (brewed by Red Dot Brewhouse); Czech Pilsner, Monster Green Lager, Weizen (Wheat Beer) and English Ale. Descriptions of each beer is appended below — I took it from Red Dot’s tasting notes page.

When I was their, they were out of English Ale, so I tried their Weizen, Monster Green Lager and skipped the Pilsner.  Weizen tasted good and fresh but I would stay far away from their Green Lager; the after taste that lingers in my mouth is undesirable.

There is nothing to shout about happy hours at Craft Brews simply because it’s RM2 off normal price. I would have expected a 30% off or buy-one-free-one kind of happy hour deals. We are, after all, talking about a working day’s happy hours.

Plenty of parking at Craft Brews and parking rates are RM3 flat after 6pm. Details of Craft Brews:
Address: G3 Podium, Ground Floor, Menara Batu Kawan, 1 Jalan PJU7/6, Mutiara Damansara, 47810 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
Telephone: +603-7722-3000
Opening hours: Mon – Sun 12:00pm to 2:30pm and 5.00pm to 1.00am

Red Dot’s Tasting Notes:
Czech Pilsner
A classic pilsner, this has a pale straw colour and bubbly appearance, and a malty taste and pleasantly floral nose. Low on bitter flavours, a smooth and light hop flavour adds an edge to the Czech Pilsner. Finishes clean and crisp on the palate.

Monster Green Lager
Strikingly green coloured pilsner definitely stands out for sheer novelty value but the taste doesn’t let down as well what with its traditional subtle taste of hops. Brewed and lagered with European-manufactured spirulina to give it a unique colour and a whiff of fresh fragrance.

Weizen (Wheat Beer)
Golden and cloudy in appearance, the Weizen has a fruity nose and a lightly spicy flavour. It’s light-bodied and very refreshingly easy-drinking.

English Ale
For those who like a stronger tasting full-bodied drink, the English Ale is a complex combination of flavours – smoky, spicy and hop-py, while being somewhat vinous. A rich ruby red, the ale has a good balance of smooth malt.

Besides the precious conversion to oxygen, this plant is able to purify the chemical formaldehyde.  Examples of where this chemical exists are foam insulation, plywood, pressed-wood products, grocery bags, waxed paper, fire retardants, adhesive binders in floor coverings and cigarette smokes.

We will need 6-8 waist-height plants per person for air purification.

As far as I know there are 2 methods to grow the Mother in-law’s tongue:

1. Re-potting – From an existing plant, lift the plant and look for shoot or offsets. Cut though the flesh that is attached to the parent plant and pot it.
2. Cuttings -  From the stem, cut 4 inches across the grain and pot it.  Beware of the orientation to ensure that you pot it the right side up.  In about 4 weeks, you will have a mother in-law’s tongue plant.  If you see new offsets, you can re-pot those as well to propagate more plants.

In both instances of growing, ensure that the soil is moist and not soggy.  Water minimally once a week but before that, test to ensure that the soil is dry before watering. This is because the mother in-law’s tongue dislikes over-watering where the root will rot.

Now that I have the mattress for a month, I must admit that I have had some beauty sleep on it.  The mattress’ pocket spring supported my body well and since I’m a side sleeper, that helped much.  The mattress’ edges are “fortified” and does not sag when you sit at the side.  This mattress does not require turning and flipping on a periodic basis; making it an excellent choice for the lazy me.

As I skimmed through the drinks menu, I noticed that they had a fruity beer called Blanco and ordered that.  The drink came along with the SGD$15 bill which I duly paid in full.  A sip later and I can really exclaim that this is one of the fruitiest beer that I ever had; so much so that Hoegaarden pale in comparison.

The next time you are in Singapore, skip the “Singapore Sling” drink and order the best beer in Singapore; the Blanco.

After a quick unwrapping of the mouse, I got it to work on my laptop.  Here’s what I like about it:

1. It’s lightweight
2. Comes with 2 ‘AAA’ batteries and a nice velvet pouch
3. Saves battery by folding the ‘tail’ to deactivate the mouse
4. Small transceiver that is not obstructive when plugged into USB port
5. Transceiver is magnetically attached to the bottom of the mouse when not in use
6. Mouse is workable at distancesof 20 feet (yes, I tried this and Microsoft claims up to 30 feet)
7. Sensitive and works better than optical mouse

Having used this mouse for a 2 weeks period, I dislike the fact that the below the arc, it is empty space.  My 4th and 5th (ring and pinky) fingers have no support at the ‘sides’ of the mouse; a feeling that I am accustomed after years of using ‘normal’ mice. Other than this minor discomfort, I do not have any dislikes for this mouse.

Now that I myself am flying in and out the region for work, I begin to drag my feet to the airport.  The early years of flying was fun; every trip seem to be an adventure on itself. Now, it’s a chore — waking up early in the morning, taking the dreadful taxi to the airport (in itself is already a risk. Cabbies are like F1 racers), long waits at the airport and things gets worse during transits.

If only my every flight destination is to some holidays, I will be looking forward to it.  NGC’s Air Crash Investigation series is not helping either.

There are several methods to get rid of bed bugs as listed below:

1. Move out of your home for 12 months – this is known to get rid of bed bugs because they will die from not feeding on you. However, cockroaches will be the head of your home.
2. Take a big piece of fabric and seal the entire mattress in it – because your mattress is sealed, no bed bugs can get in or out of it causing all bed bugs and their youngs to starve inside the mattress.  They will die after 6 to 12 months or so, therefore, you cannot remove the mattress cover for that period.  I tried using a large plastic sheet sealed around the mattress but it caused uncomfortable sleep and heat too.  The other fact I found was that this method is good only to kill bed bugs in your mattress but not entirely since bed bugs can live just about anywhere; bed frames, cracks in the wall, curtains, etc.
3. Drown them – bed bugs die easily when immersed in water.  Wash all your linens, fabrics (bed sheet, curtain, clothing, etc) that is in the room.
4. Sun everything – take your mattress out into the sun and let the sun ray do their magic.  Remember to turn the mattress over for a good and even tan. If possible, take your bed frames out for sunning.  If you are really desperate, move your furnitures out into the sun too.  The heat from the sun either kills them or makes them leave.
5. Use insect aerosol – Spray them with insect aerosol. I targeted the bed frames and furnitures but made one critical mistake, I used a non-water based aerosol which made my furnitures all oily and sticky.  Your room will stink for a few days, trust me on this.
6. Use steam to kill bed bugs – Heat from the steam makes bed bugs pop like making popcorn. And if you are wondering where to get steam to the room, I used a steam iron.
7. Call for professional help – if you can afford their fees.  Any pest-control company should know what to do.

Good night;
sleep tight;
don’t let the bed bugs bite.