Moon Cakes

It's the Mid-Autumn Festival and even though I don't have one drop of Chinese blood in me, I am one with them in celebrating this happy occasion. I say happy because this is the only time of the year where I can eat moon cakes. Yes, those yummy confection that blends sweet and sour, mochi and green tea, mochi and green bean paste, or whatever concoctions they come up with.

I don't remember the first time I tasted moon cakes but I do remember one particular moon cake. Somebody gave a family member a tin of mooncakes. They looked heavy and were heavy. I couldn't wait and took a fork. There was a big egg yolk in the middle of the brown coloured paste. One forkful and I was in heaven.  The sweet and sour taste blended perfectly. And that was all it took - one forkful.

Each year, I try to look for moon cakes but I wasn't able to until this year. This year, I told myself I'd go look for moon cakes no matter what it takes. I initially wanted my friend to post me some from Hong Kong but knowing how tight Australian Customs are when it comes to milk and dairy products, I knew it would be impossible. So I did the next best thing, I texted a Taiwanese friend. The standard reply: Chinatown. Anywhere else? Bread top.

And bread top it was. It was 8.35 in the morning and I was one of the few who were early buying moon cakes. They had pandan flavour, the traditional white lotus paste and what do I see? Mochi and green bean paste. The last one was yummy. But it was too heavy so after eating one piece I gave the other to a classmate who squealed with joy when she realised it was her favourite flavour.

I got two more boxes and still not satisfied, I went to Chinatown in Little Bourke and saw Maxim's Cakes. And there they were - mooncakes in tins. They had a buy one take one promo and discounted rates for others but since I wasn't sure V would share my taste for them, I bought the individual tins for AUD14.00 and got another one for free.

These should be enough to last me until my cravings are gone. =)

From Bread top, the mochi ones got eaten early on.

From Maxim's Cakes at Little Bourke St in the city.

When I checked the label, it says they were manufactured in Hong Kong. So, in the end, I still got my Hong Kong - made moon cakes.

MYER Group Interview

I didn't think I'd enjoy it although I did prep myself not to take it seriously and just to have fun. Especially since I thought I would be late for the interview as I left the house much later than planned. The tram was a bit slow, or maybe that was just me but surprise! surprise! I got to the city with plenty of time to spare. I quickly dashed into OfficeWorks to buy a folder since the email said to bring the resume.

I arrived at the MYER Learning Centre after following a very long corridor to find people in suits and very business looking attires sitting at the lounge area. And I noticed a friendly face from school! How's that? There was a bit of a wait then a lady came around asking for our names. Mine and Jo's and another's girl's name weren't there so we had to write down our names. Then they called us into a room with tables that had a maximum of 10 chairs each. But for our table, we had 8 since we were the last to come in, which turned out great in the end since nobody tried to dominate the conversation. I hope I didn't. I know I spoke a lot but I also tried to involve the other two guys who weren't very outspoken to speak up.

But before that, the HR Manager introduced herself and the other 3 ladies who would be monitoring us. Then she told us a bit of the company, what the general benefits are for team members, a brief history of the company, what the company is currently doing with their buildings, etc.

Then she gave us a problem-solving task. We had to come up with 5 key points in line with the store's international image. She said while we had to answer the questions, the main thing that they would be looking at would be how the discussion in each table would go. That's when I was glad that we had fewer people in our table as it would be harder to speak up in a bigger group.

The second part was a role-playing task. We were put in pairs and we had to play the part of a seller and a customer. We have to show that we know how to provide excellent customer service but at the same time how to sell products.

After that, it was done and we were thanked for coming.

For the results, we were told that we would be informed of the results after 3 weeks. If we didn't pass, we can apply again after 6 months. If we did pass, they'd keep our resume for 6 months while they try to match our qualifications with available positions.

And that's how it went. =)

Fun Ladies

was the lasting impression I have after I left my retail work placement at Blue Illusion Malvern.

My feet hurt from standing the entire day. I absolutely have no idea how Esta and Jane do it. They were marvelous people. They knew almost 90% of all the customers who came in. It was what customer service should be in a retail store. They greeted them if not immediately, at least while they're in store. If they're repeat customers, they chat to them about their families, their recent vacations. They ask them what they want to see in store. They give them honest feedback about the clothes they're trying it on. And what's more, they know how to sell add ons if not upsell. If the customer says its not a good fit, they give them another size. If they say, it's too dark, they give them a lighter colour. They don't just let them go.

And all the while, they were patient, fun and always moving. The only break they had was when they have to go to the ladies' room. They even eat lunch while working!

I think I did ok. I wasn't as great as they were. Also, I think the customer don't really trust my judgement because I'm younger than they are. But I don't really mind. I got what I wanted out of it, which was to see and experience how retail works. What I saw was how retail is supposed to be and what makes BI Malvern one if not the best grossing stores among all the BI stores. They know how to take care of customers but they know how to treat the store as a business as well. They really enjoy what they're doing (they've been with BI for more than a decade) and it really shows.

Whew!

After that very brief holiday in Cairns, I quickly got into the groove by having my work placement at BI. It was a great opportunity to work with J. Just watching her calculate and project sales was a fascinating process. The past week and the last few days made me realise I missed working  in the corporate world. While others loathe it (cue dear hubby of mine), I seem to thrive in it. I enjoy working with people who know what they're doing and who make me learn, too, by entrusting tasks to me.

And it seems, the feeling is mutual. Today, the talent manager asked if Jd and I could continue working for the next two weeks just to help out J until the other lady comes back from her annual leave. The great thing about it is that it's going to be paid work (that is if I heard it right. yippee!)

Also, I got a call from MYER saying that they received my CV via the school and I was invited to a group interview next Wednesday. It's for the Christmas casual position and while it's not a permanent position, I think it's a good way to experience working at MYERs. I was emailed what to expect and hopefully, I get it.

It's going to be a busy week starting this weekend. I was given the opportunity to visit one of BI's retail store which I believe is one of their top earners. It's this Saturday. Sunday and Monday, I have to review for the Customer Service Test. Wednesday, I won't be attending Millinery as I have to attend the MYER interview. Thursday and Friday, I'll be in BI for (hopefully) my paid work.

Funny how things seem to come together once the ball starts rolling.

Here's for more things to come!