Asia’s most highly anticipated and long-awaited multi-continental race has made its return and wants you to be a part of it! After receiving countless queries and requests from television viewers, AXN brings back its biggest Original Production success, The Amazing Race Asia (TARA)!  Last season (Season 3) was billed as the toughest race ever, where endurance was the name of the game. Expect no less from the new and sleek Season 4, which will up the intellect ante with the most sophisticated demands on top of the already tough challenges the race will impose on contestants.

This season’s race will repeat its sheer excitement and intense moments of adrenaline rush as 10 teams of two dash across countries and oceans to areas they would never imagine having to go to. If one thinks the race is all about being sent to cities around the globe, this season will definitely bring new meaning to ‘off-the-beaten-tracks’ and ‘exotic spots’.

TARA3 team.

As with past seasons, competing teams can expect to win impressive pit-stop prizes and the first team to land their feet past the finishing line shall bring home the grand prize of US$100,000.

TARA 3 Ep 1 - Nat's eating challenge 2.

But what will it take to be anointed as this season’s victor? In this spectacular reality show where anything and everything can happen, being strong and fit, street-smart and resourceful may not win you the race unless you also have the tenacity and determination.  Of course, it does not hurt to have lady luck on your side too.  In the last season, it was a gut-stirring moment to watch the Hong Kong buddies Sam and Vince deal with a four-hour penalty in the last leg of the race and yet still caught up with the other two teams eventually to clinch the first place!

TARA3 finale - Ida & Tania in action.

According to Ricky Ow, Senior Vice President & General Manager of SPE Networks – Asia, “The Amazing Race Asia is THE race that everyone has been waiting for. No other reality competition series offers such a potent concoction of surprises, excitement, drama and intensity at such a lightning pace. Above all that, the race also offers contestants and viewers alike the sheer experience of worldliness which money cannot buy – traversing across countries and cities in a short amount of time and overcoming their lifelong fears with courage and grit. This season, we are looking for teams that are a cut above the rest; possessing the street smarts and savvy know-hows to run the race on a whole new level of sophistication.”

So, the long wait for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to race around the world, stops here and now. Grab this chance to test your mettle and fortitude in conquering the challenges which The Amazing Race Asia 4will bring!

Registration is from 5 February to 22 March 2010. All interested participants are to submit their applications in teams of two, and must be living and/or working in Asia (excluding Australia, New Zealand, and the Middle East). All contestants are required to be aged 21 and above, must speak English, as well as possess both a valid international passport and an international driving licence.

• How to register?

Entry forms can be downloaded from www.axn-asia.com/tara from 5 February 2010, 9.00am Malaysia time, and need to be sent in together with a 3-minute video to the address stated on the website. All information on the race can be found on www.axn-asia.com/tara, and enquiries can be addressed to Amazing_Race_Asia@axn-asia.com.

All applications must be submitted by 22 March 2010, 6.00pm Malaysia time. There will be strictly no extension after that date, so hurry and sign up now for the most thrilling adventure of your lifetime!

The Amazing Race Asia 4 is sponsored by Sony Electronics Asia Pacific, Caltex, Axiata Group and supported by Tourism Malaysia.

...and I'll plan to see you at the Start Line! 

2009 has finally come and gone.  And quite frankly, it's been one of those years that I'm thankful is now officially in the past.  Now, I can look forward to 2010 with a renewed sense of purpose and adventure, and I kicked off 2010 by spending the New Year's Eve Countdown in Hong Kong with my boyz of yester-year from over a decade ago.  So as I raced off to the Alive Not Dead New Year's Eve Bash at Zuma with my friend Terence Yin, we got stuck in some major street traffic when our taxi driver took us to the wrong location.  Inevitably, Terence and I got to do the Countdown on the streets with throngs of spectators enjoying the fireworks display, which actually turned out to be quite cool...

With no "viable" (or enviable) options for a New Year's Coundown Kiss , we opted to ditch the cab and march on down to the event...

Someone forgot to give me the dresscode for the night so I was definitely a little "tourist casual" for the elegant soiree!  Our other fellow CAL alum Steve Hsieh was at the door waiting to get the party started too...

The Alive Not Dead New Year's party was a huge success with over a thousand people dancing and making merry into the new 2010.  I had an "amazing" time catching up with everyone including this familiar face from TARA3, Vince...

Celebrating into the next evening, we enjoyed the harbor view after some sinfully delicious steak from Ruth Chris Steakhouse with Terence, Steve, and my longtime hommie Daniel Wu...

And after another night of catching up with old friends, it was time to take one last picture in the elevator before we all tucked into bed for the first night of 2010...

...and just for New Year's kicks, here's a pic from 2000 that tells me, "The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same!"

...or almost the same--Minus the big smiles and "party favors" strewn all over the table!

Happy New Year to Y'All and Let's Rock 2010!!

I hope you've all had a most memorable and Merry Christmas this year.  Once Santa dropped in with presents for the little ones, I attended Mediacorp artist Cavin Soh's wedding banquet to his freshly-solemnized wife Serena the day after with my own wife-in-tow...

Normally, I must confess that I'm not a "huge fan" of wedding gigs, but I knew we would have a good time catching up with old colleagues and friends from the local entertainment industry.  Upon our arrival, we first ran into actor Jason Chan, who recently did a German movie with Li Lin entitled "The Patriarch"...

Actor/Comedian Cong Cing and Henry "held court" this evening as the Mandarin and English M.C.'s for the night's festivities...

...and you could just see that Cavin and Serena were more than ready to tie the knot...

Once all the guests were seated, it was time to start "flashin" away with Patricia Mok leading the charge!

So now let's take a look at all the familiar faces that I had the opportunity to catch up including recently married couple Shaun Chen and Michele Chia...

Cynthia Koh and Chen Han Wei...

Tay Ping Hui and Vincent Ng...

...and a whole lot more!

So there you have it...the night after Christmas filled with more joy and laughter.  Let's hope we've got many more of these days to come for 2010!! 

Last Thursday night, The Amazing Race Asia-Season Three (TARA3) took home its second ATA Award at the 14th Annual Asian Television Awards for Best Adaptation of an Existing Format.  A few weeks ago, I had posted up a blog using Microsoft Windows Live Movie Maker (WLMM) to make a video for some of my Amazing Memories.  Since then, I've had people ask me to show them more clearly just how easy it is to use WLMM so here we go!

Let's start by opening up the  "Windows Live" folder in your Windows 7 OS...

I then just click on "Windows Live Movie Maker" to open up the application...

Once we're in, it's time to start making some movies!  I can either manually add in my own videos and photos...

...and I can just click on "AutoMovie" and have the application essentially put together the entire video for me.

And Voila!  Here's my finished Amazing Memories again using WLMM and AutoMovie!  Quick, easy, fun...and Painless! 

A few weeks ago, I was introduced to a new health product called COL+, which contains colostrum.  I think a lot of people don't even know what colostrum is so I figure I'd give a brief overview.  However, I'm sure most parents are familiar with it since it is the first milk produced by all female mammals (including humans) during the first days after birth.

Colostrum is the only natural product which contains active antibodies along with other vital health components.  After doing a little more "homework," I discovered that the benefits of this “Miracle Milk” have been known for thousands of years for its health giving properties, and studies have shown colostrum's protective effects against influenza.  Athletes have used colostrum in an attempt to improve their performance, decrease recovery time, and prevent sickness during peak performance levels.  In fact, the Australian Olympic swim team won more gold medals than China in the 2000 and 2004 Olympic games while using colostrum supplementation.

I also learned that the IGF-1 in colostrum promotes weight loss as it is needed by the body to metabolize fat.  We produce less IGF-1 as our bodies age so that makes it more difficult to lose weight.

COL+ contains colostrum from New Zealand cows , which is collected in the first 48 hours after the birth of a new born calf during a short period in springtime.

So what's the verdict?  I've got my entire family on it, and we haven't been sick once yet.  Although it hasn't been that long of a period, I actually feel like I've got more energy even though I don't always get sufficient sleep.  The kids like to drink it too because it tastes like watered-down yogurt so it's nice to know that I'm putting something healthy into their bodies, especially when everyone around us is getting sick with the standard flu or even H1N1!

If you'd like to find out more about what colostrum is all about, then visit the COL+ website at:

http://colplus.com/index.php/en/home

If you decide to try some, don't forget to let me know because I'm curious as to how it works on other human beings!