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My husband I finally got the time to watch the movie, "The Dark Knight". After hearing so many good remarks about this new film, I could not help finding out what makes this movie different from the previous Batman movies.
I am a big fan of the Batman since the movie came out in 1989 with Michael Keaton as the lead star. I saw the succeeding movies including the first movie with Christian Bale as the Batman, but I still think Michael Keaton was the best Bruce Wayne and Batman ever.
I wasn't so excited about seeing Christian Bale since as I have mentioned, he is not my favorite Batman, but I have heard how Heath Ledger gave the Joker a whole new face- more menacing. One of my friends who saw the movie agreed with a lot of people that Ledger was better than Jack Nicholson. Another reason why I wanted to see the movie was that Katie Holmes is replaced by Maggie Gyllenhaal. And as far as I know, this is her biggest break on the big screen.
I was amazed by the kind of technology the Batman uses in the movie. That motorcycle was to die for! Moreover, the director and writers gave the whole movie a new twist.
The movie was rather realistic than fictional like the Batman movies in the 90's were. For example, that scene with  Harvey Dent in the court room mentioning the gun was made in China, is pretty much true with most of the products being sold in the US. Also, the presence of Chinese and Italian mobsters in the movie is rather common among Hollywood movies lately.
Unlike Jack Nicholson's Joker character, Heath Ledger's character was made more menacing  to the extent of being a social psychopath. Not only did they establish a background to his character but they also made his face more hideous by putting a scar on his face as opposed to the original Joker's mere make-up.
Even though, I was amazed at how Heath Ledger portrayed his role, especially with the flicking of his tongue ( so disturbing!), I have to agree with my husband that as much as Ledger did a very good job in portraying as the Joker, he was no better than Jack Nicholson. Nicholson would have probably portrayed the role the same way had the movie been directed the same way. Although, I had to salute Ledger in changing his voice to sound evil. Something Nicholson would have not done since it came naturally in him. (:
I also like how they featured Aaron Eckhart ( No Reservations) as the heroic DA turned Two-Face. His face was gruesome. A really fine job done by the make-up artists.
Morgan Freeman's role is more memorable in this movie than the previous one. I especially like the scene where he calmly confronted the greedy Coleman Reece who was trying to blackmail him.
Eric Roberts did well being an antagonist.
Most of all, I like the way Maggie Gyllenhall gave Rachel Dawes' character a more mature image as opposed to Katie Holmes' teenybopper acting style. I was surprised that Maggie could act so good yet given so few projects. Perhaps, this is just the beginning of her blossoming career. 

I would say "The Dark Knight" is a good watch and perhaps the best Batman movie ever to made.

So we saw this pretty neat Asian restaurant today in Olathe, Kansas and we wanted to try it out. It seemed decent enough- not the ghetto-like appearance common among Asian restaurants in the US.
The interior seemed even more inviting. I liked the subtle lighting effects that brightened up the subdued olive green walls. The table arrangement was orderly that it created ample space for the whole place.
So in came the menu. Mandarin orange chicken, mandarin orange duck, mandarin orange beef. Seriously! I grew up with Chinese neighbors who practically shared every dinner they had and I never heard of mandarin orange chicken, duck, or beef.Or perhaps my neighbors did not cook such  dish.
So that I decided to try it if it was any good.  I chose to have mandarin orange duck and steamed white rice.  Once I had a bite of it, I could not be sure if I was disappointed or surprised. Disappointed that it did not taste anything Chinese at all. Surprised that it did not taste anything Chinese at all. Or oriental.  Or Asian.
It was some breaded duck strips, in sweet and sour sauce, with orange wedges, pineapple chunks, and garnished with spring onions. It wasn't too bad but it wasn't too good either.
I was wondering if it was the American (or Mexican) way of cooking Chinese food.
Okay, not to be too biased, I tried other Chinese restaurants but the rest are not as disappointing as this restaurant. Well, except for Panda Express which is a Chinese version of McDonald's.
At least the customer service was good. Much better than that of a Chinese buffet. (:

All in all, I don't think the place deserves another visit.

Kansas ('kan-zes), that mainly flat land found in the central region of the United States. It is bordered by Nebraska on the north, Missouri on the east, Oklahoma on the south, and Colorado on the west.
Did I say flat land? Kansas is mainly flat, that is, the western part of the state is even considered "flatter than a pancake" but the eastern part of it has some little bumps called hills. As most people perceive it as barren on the contrary, eastern Kansas has forests that are a home of deers, raccoons, squirrels, rabbits, foxes, among others. The capital city, Topeka is situated along the Kansas river in Shawnee county. The state is divided into 105 counties and 628 cities.
Next to Wichita, Overland Park is the largest city in the state and is the fastest growing city in the country. It is a part of Johnson county, one of the richest counties in the United States.                                                                                                                                                               
Although, some of my friends and relatives know nothing about Kansas except that it is nothing but a flat land in the middle of nowhere, with nothing to see but sunflowers and wheat fields, I found myself liking the place. Well, maybe the city and county we belong to. As Johnson county is one of the 50 richest counties in the nation, it offers numerous advantages to its residents. Clean streets all year long ( and believe me, you will appreciate it once winter comes), several job opportunities, safe neighborhood, and growing mall population to name a few.
It may be true that we don't have nice bridges like California or New York, great mountains like Colorado and Oregon, or beaches like Florida but the cost of living and lifestyle give us the opportunity to save a lot of our money to be able to afford trips to beautiful places.
Furthermore, the metropolitan rather reminds me of my hometown, Davao City, with its wide cleanliness, and less crowd. Most importantly, the people are mostly amiable at the same time diverse in culture.

Kansas is probably one of the places a person has to stay long enough to admire its simplicity and beauty.

                                                                                                            

My husband and I are not into dining out but when we do, well...
We love to try out new things.  So here's how it happened.
I wanted so much to get a bicycle while the weather is still favorable that I kept on bugging my husband about it until he could stand it anymore. So that one nice afternoon, we decided to check out some bikes at Wal-Mart. Not only is it's the cheapest but the nearest store too. And why we considered the location was important was that we wanted to walk to get there. And so on we walked just to find out the bikes they sold were warped. Ugh!
I was heavy-hearted going back because I did not get what I wanted. Plus, we had to walk another  2 miles or so.My legs were aching, too.
It was a bit past 9 o'clock when we passed by some little shops just a few blocks away from our apartment complex and we found these signs for restaurants. I was then hungry so we decided to check them out. There was a Mexican restaurant and an Indian restaurant. I did not care so much for Mexican food at that time so we chose the Indian restaurant.
What we saw inside was a bit of a surprise to both of us. The walls bore Indian paintings that depict the people's culture. The tables where covered in red and white tablecloth that went along with the soft ambers  that emanated from tiny lamps.
Not only did the place exuded great ambiance, but the staff also added to the pleasant dining experience. Their service was prompt and they were polite.  I liked the food I ordered. It was lamb curry. It had subtle flavor to it and the pita was the best I had.

We liked it so much that we decided to go there again. It was during lunch when they offered an all-you-can-eat buffet. And didn't I love it! We had to go back the next day. (:

I particularly like some of their dishes like meatball curry, chicken tikka masala, veggie khorma, saag paneer, and their chile chicken that tasted almost like the Filipino chicken afritada only it was dry.  I also like their mango custard and mango lassi.

I had been to an Indian restaurant in Kansas City, Missouri and I thought it was good. But I now realized it was nothing compared to this Indian restaurant just a few blocks away from us.
If I were not worrying about my weight, I would have been on my way there again. (:

Why
do you feel abandoned?
What
has gone wrong again?
Who
is it this time?
Where
has your courage gone?
When
will you ever learn?

That
friends are always there.
Whom
you can count on.
With
patient ears to listen.
Whose
hands you can hold.
Which
will never go cold.

There
will be trials everywhere,
Those
barriers on your way.
This
craziness in this world,
That
vanishing light from afar,
They
should not stop you.

From
following your distant star.
To
reach your ultimate goal.
For
the ones you love.
By
taking yet another step.
In
your heart you're strong.