So I turned the big 33 recently. As it was the middle of the week I had the day off from work to spend it with my Mister. The morning began with a nice walk through Spring Hill to ostensibly pick up cream for the pancakes I was making for Breakfast. Yes, I cooked breakfast on my birthday, but for a good reason... that being the banana syrup I was making to go on them. Now that the price of  bananas has gone down they are re-entering my diet. Yay!!!

After the yummy breakfast we relaxed playing PS3 and computer games before heading out to our first movie of the day. We were off to Cineplex at Southbank. Cineplex is great for movies and snacks. With tickets from $6.50 (before 3:30pm) to $8.50 for normal 2D movies, and a large drink and popcorn for $7.90 it is possible to go to the movies for under $20.

Anonymous was good. I thoroughly enjoyed it, although I've since been informed that it is factually incorrect, with the timings of the plays and historic events completely out from reality. Still it was enjoyable.

After the movie we went to Max Brenner for chocolate what else. As always the wait was long but the food was yum. I think part of the charm of waiting at Max Brenner is using the time to change your mind about what you are going to order... over and over again. I had the Sundae and Mister the Waffles. My favourite part was eating the little pot of melted chocolate :)

We then walked back into Brisbane to enjoy a late lunch/early dinner at Aroma Garden. This suited me and my Mister perfectly as they have a broad range of food. He had the Chicken Parmegarna and I had the Chicken Tikka Masala. I love the flavour of my food. I could tell it was homemade and although not technically perfect it was tasty and came with really nice papadams. The meal was probably a bit over priced for what it was (over $20 each for the mains, even though they were a good size). It was nice and the service was decent but I've had better meals for less at other restaurants.

After dinner it was to a free movie care of @reviewbrisbane. We were lucky enough to win tickets to see a preview session of Immortals. Visually pretty fantastic, the movie was good but seemed to lack a little in the way of script. The actors were decent and the cinematography nice, it was just that feeling of missing something.

All in all it was a great birthday, made even greater by spending it with my Mister.

Recently I shared a wonderful lunch with friends at King of Kings in Fortitude Valley. We went for the Sunday Yum Cha. The food and service were amazing.  I particularly enjoyed the prawn and corn dumplings and the garlic chive dumplings.

The atmosphere was exceptionally busy, but happy. Everyone was having a great time. The wait staff were very attentive. In fact if I have any criticisms it would be that they could be overly attentive. We were there for a birthday lunch and as such were waiting for people to arrive and for the birthday girl to open presents and such. Even though it was clear that we were not ready to order (people were standing around the tables chatting) they came back repeatedly. Other than this minor inconvenience the lunch was fantastic. The food was delicious and plentiful. The tea was refreshing.

Over all I would recommend this restaurant to everyone who enjoys delicious asian cuisine. It was filling and inexpensive (we split the bill amongst the 8 people at the table and it came to $12.50 each) while catering to various tastes and needs.

Yes I know this is another off topic post, however I love my movies :) So here it is, the 10 movies I am looking forward to seeing over the next few months. (please note I have already seen Anonymous and Immortals - thoroughly enjoyed both - which is why they are not on this list) These are not in any particular order.

1. Melancholia - Kirsten Dunst and the end of the world. This movie looks stunning.
2. The Debt - Sam Worthington takes down a war criminal... who can argue with that.
3. Moneyball - a movie based on the way stats changed an entire game, and Brad Pitt looks great in it.
4. John Carter of Mars - As a fan of Science Fiction (films and books) I cannot wait to see John Carter.
5. Mission Impossible: Ghost protocol - The original Mission Impossible movie with Tom Cruise was great and I am really looking forward to the latest installment.
6. Tower Heist - This one looks hilarious. With a great cast of comedians I know this one is sure to make me laugh.
7. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of shadows - I can’t wait to see this one. Holmes and Moriarty face off :) yay!
8. The girl with the dragon tattoo - I loved the original and I am really looking forward to seeing what the director of Fight Club, Seven and The Social Network will do with it.
9. The Muppets: I grew up watching the Muppets and can still remember watching Kermit sing The Rainbow Connection. Definitely need to see this one :)
10. Underworld Awakening - A big fan of this series. Love all the movies and I am looking forward to seeing Kate Beckinsale reprise this role.

There are a few coming up in 2012 that I can't wait to see also.

Off topic a bit here, but I joined a gym!!! I am quite excited to be going back to the Gym.  It's been awhile and I am really looking forward sweating my butt off... literally. The aim is to go 3-4 times a week. Hopefully I might be able to fit a shift in on the occasional lunch break.
As mentioned in my previous post work has been very hectic and I have been finding myself mentally exhausted but not sleeping properly. Hopefully this can help me sleep better as well as the obvious health benefits. I have my first PT session on Tuesday :)

So life has brought me long work hours and short amounts of fun time. While I have managed to visit a few great places over the last couple weeks I have not been able to blog about them :(  This lack of Blogging will hopefully end this weekend when I shall post photos of a yummy Yum Cha lunch at King of Kings in Fortitude Valley. There will also be a few pics from the nieces Ballet recital in Maleny and their gorgeous Borzois, Oberon and Adonis. Stay tuned for blogging.