what a wonderful world

Hong Kong/ Macau Jan 2012 (Day 4)

2012-01-28T10:40:00.000+08:00

We went to Lantau Island where we not only took the cable car to Ngong Ping Village but also booked a tour to Tai O Fishing Village.

Check out the pictures...

Started off by heading to Citygate Outlets for breakfast...

mum who is not afraid of cold

she was nervous...

foggy and cold

Reached and we thought we would be late for our tour so we literally ran to the meeting venue!

des with the driver and tour guide in the background

The tourguide was a blur sotong. He did a head count before the bus left and thought there were 10 people in the bus when it was supposed to be 9. It was only when we reached Tai O then he counted again and was shocked to see only 9 people in his bus. Reason for his mistake? He counted a bag as a person. Stupid loh! Ended up one person missed the tour.

Pretty mum

At Tai O

So many seafod products.

Brought us to a museum that exhibited stuff that were used in the past which were not really relevant to the Fishing Village

Tai O island which looks like the face of a horse

dried oysters

fish maws of different grades and sizes

fresh seafood

The village is pretty small and its residents are mainly old people. It feels a bit like our kampong where they will keep their doors open for any one to pop by for a mahjong game.

Pictures with the stilt houses

Super windy

Shark fins and puffer fish

Alien fish maws

A shark

Then, we were on our own to explore the village

While waiting for the bus, my back was in pain due to several days of walking... I was holding on to tea eggs and a dried starfish that I bought for 30 cents which I can use to show my students in the future.

Back at Ngong Ping

Stray dogs that curled up to sleep in this weather

At the buddhist temple

We had vegetarian food for lunch. Here are what we had.

Best beancurd I ever had! very fragrant and sweet. I think the syrup was cooked with some ginger or what and this made the beancurd very tasty.

Dim sum and kuehs

Braised soy products in curry, cinamon and normal soya sauce

Fried beehoon

We went back to Citygate for shopping and Des treated us to dinner which was pretty satisfying.

Ma Po Tofu

Sweet and sour pork

Gong Po Chicken which doesn't look like it

Lastly, french beans with minced meat.

So, that marked the end of Day 5.

Hong Kong/ Macau Jan 2012 (Day 4)

2012-01-20T17:57:00.003+08:00

After spending the previous day shopping, we decided to do something else for a change and that is to visit a theme park! Ocean Park was our first choice because we have all been to Disneyland and wanted to see for ourselves what was so special about Ocean Park.

The day was cold as usual. In fact, it was colder than the previous day probably because Ocean Park was situated on top of a hill and along the coastline where the wind was particularly stronger.

Took the train to Admiralty Station where we then queued for Bus 629 which will take us to Ocean Park. I did not have any difficulty getting to the bus terminal because there were signs directing us from the station.

The place is colourful!

Aiyo the pictures reminded me of how cold it was when we reached. Was totally unprepared for the wind and I wore just a thin pair of leggings under my tunic dress. My ass was frozen lor.

At the panda section

Went to have breakfast at an eatery...

The place is panda-themed.

Char siew baos

Panda custard buns

Whoever up there must have regretted...

Took a tram up to explore the other half of OP where most of the thrilling rides can be found

Went on this

Hurrying to the next venue to catch the 11.30am perfomance

There we were...

Superrrr colddddddd

Feel bad for these two performers because they had to get into the water...

wow a dolphin!

The less thrilling rides

Then we went to the jelly fish aquarium...

Huge jellyfishes

Did you know that jellyfishes have no brains but yet their cells can work together to perform multiple functions.

Sea monsters!

We went for ferris wheel ride and regretted once we were up!

Fake smile

Since none of us had the guts to take those thrilling rides, we decided to head back to the kiddie section by cable car

How can we miss out the carousel?

Pretty flowers...

Time to see pandas!

Hello Lazy!

What a weird position the panda was in... like sitting on a rock and resting the head and arms on a table.

Red panda

All kinds of goldfish

these are cute...

We were too tired from climbing up the numerous slopes in OP. I guess OP is definitely not suitable for old people. But my mum still made it!

Saw a couple had their caricatures drawn and mum suggested that des and I should try out. The result? What he drawn does not even look like me.

I think des was pleased with his.

The day ended with us having dinner near our hotel and doing some shopping Bonjour and Sasa stores.

Claypot vege again...

This is not too bad...

Stay tuned for Day 5!

Hong Kong/ Macau Jan 2012 (Day 3)

2012-01-18T13:25:00.000+08:00

Day 3 is all about shopping.

Checked the weather report and it was reported that the day will be exceptionally cold. My initial plan was to go Lantau Island but since the place was rather open and that we will be taking a cable car up the mountain, I decided to change my plan. Instead, we were going to shop at a few places. More indoor places to hide from the cold.

First stop: Sham Tsui Po

It is an old neighbourhood where you can find flea markets and fabric wholesale shops.

Dressed warmly (a right choice)...

Markets

Mum bought a nail clipper LOL

It may not look like but it was very very very cold. So windy and with every wind blown in our direction, we were shivering!

Happily wandering...

Some Ma Lai Cake bought from a vendor

Second stop: Kwai Fong

Kwai Fong has three shopping malls. There is a shopping mall (Grand Seasons) that is more modern and another which looks abit like People's Park Complex (Kwai Chung Plaza) where you can find many smaller shops selling clothes and accessories. Just like City Plaza. I spent quite a long time in the hair accessories shop. Too bad it's winter or I would have bought more clothes.

Still cold

Resting at a bakery at Grand Seasons before we crossed over to Kwai Chung Plaza for lunch and more shopping.

Had lunch at a small eatery and this is what I ordered: Braised spare ribs bee hoon soup which tasted a bit like Pig Trotter in Vinegar

Des's curry pork chop rice

The other two that my mum and the auntie ordered

Show you what I got from there...

Mini Mahjong set des bought

Bumpits and hair donut

Some tops...

Still many more but I didn't take their pictures...

We went back to our hotel for a rest before shopping at Tsim Sha Tsui in the late afternoon.

Brought them to SOGO...

Their Art Science Museum I think

Was craving for Jap food...

The gorgeous Peninsula Hotel

Freezing colddddd....

Took a cab back to the hotel before Des and I went out to Mongkok again.

Hong Kong/ Macau Jan 2012 (Day 2)

2012-01-16T16:22:00.004+08:00

Day 2 is all about Macau!

The day started at 8am with us having a hearty dim sum breakfast before taking the ferry to Macau at the China Ferry Terminal.

Outfit of the day: thought it was going to be cold so I purposely dressed in layers

Went to this restaurant called Hao Cai which is located in the building in front of our hotel. Sis tried it during her HK trip and highly reccommended it to us.

Most of the customers were elderly patrons and the two of us seemed like the youngest of them all. Hongkongers really love to yum cha. They can sit there for hours with just one order and a newspaper and the waitresses will not chase them away. But I guess they patronise the restaurant every day so this is fine to them.

A wide selection to choose from

Beancurd roll (very oily because I think they did not drain off the oil after frying)

Century egg porridge (lukewarm)

Prawn and char siew chee cheong fun (I prefer the Singapore version where the sauce is slightly sweet whereas those are more saltish)

Lotus root cake (texture is crunchy)

Char siew bao (not bad)

Har Gow

Siew Mai

Honestly, the food was average. I think Singapore has better dim sum but you can find more varieties in Hong Kong and yum cha is definitely cheaper than in Singapore.

Then we took the train to Tsim Sha Tsui where the ferry terminal was.

A rather peaceful Tsim Sha Tsui (morning and evening sights are totally different)

Canton Road (like Orchard Road)

Tickets bought for the 10.30am ferry to Macauuuuuuu

Excited! First time travelling out to another country from a foreign country!

I specially set aside S$100 for gambling! Talk about that later...

Action!

I was afraid that I will get seasick so I took the motion sickness pill after breakfast. The sea was choppy that day and I felt as though I was on a roller-coaster ride and my heart literally dropped when the ferry went up and down. But after a while, everything was back to normal and I think I dozed off.

Reached Macau and off we went in search of the shuttle buses that will take us to the various hotels and casinos!

Decided to go The Venetian first since it was the furthest away from the ferry terminal on the island of Taipa

Similar to HK, Macau is separated into three islands/parts: Macau (where the ferry terminal is), Taipa and Coloane. See, I did my research!

Babylon Casino (too many casinos in Macau)

Grand Lisboa in the background (the place which I will never forget)

Macau tower I think (where you can bungee-jump from the peak)

One of the three bridges (highways) in Macau that links islands

And we reached! What a great day to travel to Macau because the weather was fantastic! It was not too cold but windy enough.

We had such a heavy breakfast and yet mum was complaining of hunger! Had to quickly search for a place to settle our lunch.

Love the decor!

ooooh, casino! My second time IN a casino! First time was a horrible experience where my cousin wanted me to do something embarrassing. :/

Found the foodcourt. Many empty tables but not enough chairs.

Soy chicken rice (YUM!)

Went to explore the place before hitting the casino...

WAAA, the sky is soooo blue....

Murals

The Casino!!!

What a huge Christmas tree! This place looked so grand but it allowed indoor smoking! Terrible! And you know most gamblers are heavy smokers!

We didn't stay long. Just watched some china men played roulette before we set off for our next destination which was the Pork Chop Bun Street. After watching people gambled, I was even more convinced that I will visit another casino after sightseeing.

Wanted to walk to Galaxy Hotel or City of Dreams but they were too far away so took a cab to the Pork Chop Bun Street instead where the famous pork bun stall was. We ended up going to Ruins of St Paul instead as the driver told us that the stall was closed down as the vendor did not have a proper license and it was already 3pm so we had to visit Ruins of St Paul before going to a casino. We had already bought the return tickets to HK and it was scheduled at 8.30pm. With such a tight schedule, we can only exclude certain places from my initial itinerary.

Driver was a nice guy which kept chatting with us about the difference between HK and Macau. He was telling us how much cleaner Macau was. He could only dropped us off at Senado Square where we were supposed to walk to Ruins of St Paul. My only advice if you want to visit Ruins of St Paul or Senado Square? Well, these places are over-rated. Nothing special as the shops that you see along the way are almost the same and you have to walk damn far to see the Ruins which I am sure, you will not even want to climb up further to take more pictures. This was exactly what we did.

Guess what my mum encouraged the auntie to do over here?

Very smart move: to buy little mandarin oranges back to HK! Can you believe it?! We have not even walked to Ruins of St Paul and the two old aunties decided to buy oranges to carry all the way to the place and then buy more souvenirs and then carry to casino and back to HK!

So, who will carry all these things in the end? DESMOND AND I! Wahhhhhhhh.....

But my mum said the oranges were very cheap. Only S$1 plus for a BIG bag. Yes, you heard me. A BIG BAG was what she bought! *sobbing uncontrollably*

See that white plastic bag? The auntie hid the other half behind my mum's backside. LOL

Alot of pretty architectures...

attempting to take some artistic shots: failed miserably

Found this egg custard thing... no filling but very nice. Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside...

the spokesperson! LOL

A rather unappetising pork chop bun we got from a stall along Senado Square

Still walking

Ok, spotted it.

The aunties went to buy some local delights as souvenirs.

Des looked like he was super-imposed onto the background LOL.

Me with a almond biscuit in my hand! Yay! I made it and I can proudly say "I have been to Macau!"

Ok, next.

One of my fav pics taken in Macau!

We were tired from all that walking and just quickly took a few shots before hailing a cab. When I told the aunties that we still need to climb up those stairs you see in the background, their jaws dropped! LOL. It was a scare la! I just wanted to get out of this place. Super packed and getting a cab from here wasn't easy too. We got to walk up a slope and snatch whatever cab we saw or we had to risk walking down the same way we came.

The slope that we climbed up to hail a cab. The students just ended school at 4pm!

Next stop: Grand Lisboa (the more oriental Entertainment Centre)

Their washrooms

Ok, story time! Are you ready for the most absurb story of the year?

So, I said I brought S$100 for gambling. In case you don't know, when it comes to gambling, I can be a bit stingy. If I win money, I am very happy. If I lose money, my heart will ache like mad and I will make myself promise that I will not gamble again which I always break my promise. Anyway, since I have never played at a casino before, I thought I would make this one exception. So, when we went to the casino at Grand Lisboa, I was particularly interested in roulette but was reluctant at playing with others as it can get pretty stressful for a beginner like me. I asked des if there was a electronic roulette where I can play through a computer or something like that. He went to find and finally found one where there were four terminals. Just insert the notes and place your bets by touching the screen kind you know?

There were two roulettes: one green and one red. So, to begin, I inserted a HK$20 note (which is around S$2 plus). Mum asked me to bet on whatever number I wanted and so I just placed HK$10 bet on the no. 26. Then, I waited for the roulette to start rolling. All along I thought I placed my bet on th green roulette. So when the number on the red roulette was revealed and it was 26, I was shocked and deeply disappointed! I mean, how can it be so coincidental! 26 on the first try! Damn, I should have placed my bet on the red roulette.

The number revealed on the green roulette was 10 I think. So, while I was recounting to des and my mum, I heard, WAIT FOR IT, money cashing in from my terminal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I won 36 times!! SO, I placed my bet on the red roulette and not the green one! How lucky can it be!!!!!!!! There was a total of 35 numbers on the roulette and on my first try, I hit the right number! What is the probability of that!

So with HK$10, I won HK$360. Yes, in a few seconds' time. WTH!!!!!

I went on playing a few more games and ended up winning HK$540 (which is ard S$80 plus) in less than half hr's time. Now, I know why people get addicted to gambling.

My win.

How proud I was on that day!

Went on to watch other people win and lose more money. A guy decided to try his luck and changed about S$500 of chips and played a round of roulette. None of his bets won and he lost S$500 in just one game.

A proud winner!

That marked the end of Day 2.

If I can visit Macau again, I want to check out Galaxy Hotel and maybe other attractions. I think there are more places to explore in Macau such as a panda conservation centre, some other famous streets, artistic hotels and museums.

Hong Kong Jan 2012 (Day 1)

2012-01-14T16:18:00.001+08:00

So, I'm back from my first trip of Year 2012 and I must say, twice is enough. Even though I was pretty excited about the trip but I guess six days in HK is sufficient and I don't think I will be going back there in the next few years. Too much Cantonese, rudeness of the people and smoking. Speaking of the latter, no matter where we went (ok, except Ngong Ping), everyone was smoking and we would return to our hotel each night with nostrils stuffed with PI SAI! Yes, that gross!

Nonetheless, it was a fun trip where I fulfilled my promise of bringing my mum to HK to visit Lantau Island. Not to forget that shopping was satisfying too! I bought so many things that will last me till next year. haha :)

I took too many pictures so I will not be writing too much. Shall let the pictures tell the story ok...

woke up really early for the 8.30am flight...

@ T3! Huge merlion!

My travel companions for the next 5 days

not forgetting him...

Oh I'm in Paris without having to be in Paris... Get it? :0

Great photography skill I have... LOL

I was excited!

My outfit matched the background hahaha...

Soon we boarded the plane and off to HK...

I was the "tour guide" so I had to plan for everything, i.e. transportation, itinerary and food since I had been there before. We took the airport express to Kowloon station where there will be a shuttle bus to take us to The Cityview.

Speaking of the hotel, I am deeply impressed with their service. I always think of HK as a rather cold country meaning that their people can be rather hostile and that the service industry in HK was rather bad. But this does not apply to The Cityview. You will know why later...

"Yay! Safe flight so hopefully the journey to the hotel will be a smooth one!"

So guai! Queued up for the train...

The bus that will take us to our hotel...

Hongkongers must be thinking I was crazy when I took this picture. What is so special about this picture? Well, I watch TVB drama and I know this is the kind of public houses that the people live in. I must say we Singaporeans are very fortunate. How dirty do they look!

more...

My mum's and my luggage were huge and heavy. We were really worried that we would not be able to carry the luggage up the shuttle bus as Des sprained his bag. We were rather lucky as the shuttle bus driver helped us with that.

We checked in at our hotel and we were very happy with our rooms. I made the reservation through email and I remembered requesting for connecting rooms as I wanted the two aunties to be near me. They replied that they will try their best in making the arrangements. What I didn't know was that it was impossible for me to get connecting rooms as I only paid for two superior rooms which were the cheapest and connecting rooms were only available if you book premier rooms. The people of Cityview were kind enough to auto-upgrade our rooms to premier rooms (just like what happened the last time I went alone with des) and I must say, what a huge difference it was! The rooms were newer, more spacious and most importantly, we did not have to shower in a bathtub! You had no idea the pain of climbing into a bathtub to shower every morning! First, you worry about how clean the tub is and next, trying hard not to slip in it.

our bathroom

a very satisfied des!

Oh, and I don't need to elaborate how conveniently located the hotel is. You get food, MTR station and shopping just round the corner. So, whoever that wants to travel to HK, I highly reccommend that you stay at The Cityview. :)

Once we washed up, I brought them to the porridge and noodle stall that I raved about which was just located just opposite the hotel. Mum agreed that the porridge was fantastic!

Raddish beefball noodle

The ultimate! The pig liver was sooooooooooooo tender!

Century egg porridge with shredded chicken

The food was good but service was mehhhhh.

Afterwhich, we walked to Mongkok (just a few streets away) for shopping. Along the way, these are what we saw.

A street vendor selling popiah wrapped with malt sugar, peanuts and coconuts!

Very nice!

So cute right! Can't imagine people wearing this on their wedding day. I won't mind trying! LOL

Ladies Street

The weather was not too bad on the first day we arrived. I did not even wear my outer jacket so I thought this will apply to the next five days but man, I was wrong.

Mongkok was crowded because it was a public holiday that day.

Went shopping at Argyle Centre.

Then, we were exhausted from all that walking and decided to have dinner at this restaurant called Fok Lum Fisherman Wharf or something along Nathan Rd.

What a pose! LOL

The decor of the restaurant: forever in wedding banquet mode.

Dishes that we ordered:

Sweet and sour pork (my fav)

Claypot prawns with vermicelli (very fresh)

Claypot mixed vegetable (ohhh noooooo... weird way of cooking where the leafy vegetables were stewed till they became soft and yucky)

Claypot pork ribs with chesnut and pumpkin (not bad)

So, that's all for the first day in HK. We went back to our hotel and turned in early for the night as we were going to Macau the next day.

Stay tuned for Day 2. :)

Last Outing of the Year (Titanic Museum @ Art Science Museum)

2011-12-31T15:24:00.000+08:00

Des and I decided to visit a museum before our HK trip and the start of my semester. We were contemplating either the Titanic exhibition or Dinosaur Live at Science Centre. But after reading about the Titanic exhibition from KT's blog where she highly reccommended it, we set off to Marina Bay Sands! Well, it was a good decision made!

What a sunny day it was!

The last time I went MBS, one section was closed. Now, the shops are opened and there are 7-eleven, Ferrari store and Gong Cha.

In my striking orange top and new flats!

A painted elephant by some famous artist

Art Science Museum (definitely better than the Maritime Museum @ RWS)

A lotus pond!

The weather was perfect for photography although we couldn't really open our eyes!

Photography was not allowed in the museum but we honestly find the exhibition very entertaining. It was both interactive and informative as we get to understand more about the history of Titanic and see the artefacts that were retrieved from the seabed 70 over years after the sinking.

Oh, we were each given a boaring pass with details of the passenger. Approaching the end of the exhibition, there will be a board where you can find out if the passengers survived the sinking. Mine did probably since females were allowed to board the safety boats first. Not so lucky for des's passenger who died.

Anyway, today is the last day of year 2011 and I have to say I am very grateful for a meaningful year that I have. All I wish for 2012 is to maintain what I have in my life now and most improtantly, less sickness so I can save more $.

Here wishing everyone a good year ahead!

Christmas and Boxing Day 2011

2011-12-26T22:26:00.001+08:00

Well, I should say I am very "happening" this year. LOL

I spent my Christmas Eve, Christmas and Boxing Day all with my closed ones and I can safely say I have a life!

So, Christmas Eve was spending watching Sherlock Holmes with Des and as usual, we went to Des's godparents' house for Christmas lunch. All of des's relatives attended and I must say, it was kind of hard initially to blend in with them but I tried. It was a pleasant lunch and meeting his relatives that I have not met for some time.

Then, dinner was at Michelle's house. Her family organised a dinner party and KT and I were invited. SH did not attend because she wanted to spend her Xmas with her family instead. They really prepared well with food, Xmas tree and the three of us spent the night chatting away. Thanks Michelle for inviting us over! :)

contributed these... apparently, they were well-received...

Boxing Day started with meeting SY and Mic to sort of celebrate SY's belated birthday. We just chit chat and passed SY her belated birthday present. Next, I met up with Des in the late afternoon and we had dinner at Imperial Treasure at RWS. Our first day trying the food at Imperial Treasure La Mian and Xiao Long Bao and we were quite satisfied with it.

I thought the XLBs were very tasty. Nicer than Ding Tai Fung's? The meat was tender and fresh.

The other two dishes were good too.

Des's favourite Gong Bao Ji Ding...

Gan Bian Si Ji Dou or fried french beans with minced meat... I like this more...

Fried rice

Corn soup with crab meat to share... Minjiang's better!

Then, we went on exploring other parts of RWS and took some pictures at new locations!

It was very windy that evening... But with the playing of Christmas carols in the background and the cool weather, it felt very romantic and I felt as though we were in another country all of a sudden.

The Waterfront

The link in the background connects Vivocity to Sentosa.

Feels like Darling Harbour in Sydney...

We continued walking and came upon a cave with waterfall.

Great spot to take pics!

So, I guess Xmas ended on a happy note and I am looking forward to New Year Eve where there will be more celebrations and lots of foodddddddd again...

Santa Claus is coming to town...

2011-12-25T00:20:00.000+08:00

Yay! It's Christmas Eve and I just came back from a day of celebration with des. We don't usually celebrate festivities in any way different from our usual dates, just watch movies, window-shopping and have great meals. But, they are still special to me because the ambience is different.

Like today, I realise that most people are either staying at home or they are attending others' parties. Marina Square is like a ghost town! I can count the number of people there for once. Anyway, we went to TCC and tried some of their main courses and were quite amazed. I usually thought that TCC is famous for their wide variety of drinks but I was wrong. The main courses are good! We tried Seafood Aglio Olio and Baby Crayfish Spaghetti.

Now, speaking of Xmas, I always like the idea of having a Xmas party. It can be something small and cosy like what we had three years ago where it was held at sis's house and everyone brought or cooked something. The party wasn't that authentic as we had satay, curry, bee hoon and five spices but it was still fun. I even planned a segment where my relatives can do cha-cha dance together. Everyone had fun.

If I have the money and a house in future, I would love to plan one where there will be Xmas tree, turkey, ham, Xmas carols playing in the background, pastries made by me (or bought from elsewhere if mine turned out unsuccessful or that the guests request that I don't make any cos they are awful LOL), games with prizes, gift exchange and photo-taking. It doesn't have to be big but good enough to invite a few close friends and relatives to spend the day with.

Now that will be a promise I made to myself. Merry Christmas everyone! ;)

I shall share my favourite Christmas Song of All Time here.

Even Mariah Carey has her favourite side of the face which is the right side. If you notice, she will only face the camera using the right side of her face.

Random Outings...

2011-12-16T10:27:00.002+08:00

So, three weeks have passed since the start of holiday and I have gone out on several occasions with friends and family.

Some updates on the places and things that I have done lately...

Dinner @ City Square Mall with SY and Mic

Haven't met up with them for a very long time since everyone is busy with their own thing. SY just got a new job at Novena Parkway hospital and Mic is preparing for her final year exam. As for me, I am free and so I want to meet them to update on our lives. We decided on City Square Mall as it was located near SY's workplace and it was also quite quiet there.

My belated birthday cake from them... I think they know that I love kueh and they said they bought kueh lapis so my family can have it. Haha... very thoughtful...

Had dinner at Astons... treat from SY cos she is working now! Thanks SY!

We haven't take such photos for a long time too. See, my iPhone 4s camera is so clear and sharp!

Meet up more often girls!

Singing K at Teo Heng with Family

the very excited lucas...

some hokkien hit song!

Lucas has been very busy playing with the mic and whatever that he saw...

Farmart and Qian Hu Aquarium

Have been there many times before and there is nothing much to see honestly. It is located at Lim Chu Kang area. You can just google for the place. I think Farmart is like a ghost town, very Malaysian... Don't believe? Look at the pictures yourself.

Unchained parrots... scary...

Pay $4 to feed their fishes... haha

Large fish pond

Lucas's distractions...

Then we went to this corner behind the fish pond where there was a mini zoo...

Huge tortoises

Mega huge frogs...

Mice that look scary... They look like they will get mutated anytime and the cages were so dirty...

Rabbits!

More birds...

goats...

The guy who didn't seem interested or fascinated by the whole mini zoo thing...

Basically, it's a ghost town...

Then, we drove to Qian Hu Aquarium which was not too far from there.

Tortoises for sale!

Fishes...

Gigantic cat fishes

more fishes...

And more fishes... (parrot fish I think?)

Random thoughts on past and present...

2011-12-14T02:03:00.003+08:00

It's really late now but I just couldn't sleep... Maybe it was the dinner just now which made me feel very bloated or that I am thinking about something... I feel very blessed. I figure out that even though I may lack something in my life before, I soon have them replaced or given to me later. I mean, I am not trying to be a show-off or what but this has been what I observed for some time. I may lack a father but I have other people treating me even better than what my father did in the past (pa, pls don't pull my toes, I'm just stating the truth). I used to envy people and asked myself why I don't have the things which others have when I was younger but now, I appreciate those moments and could even treasure the privileges more when they are bestowed on me. Hopefully, I wish that what I have now can last forever.

So, talking about insomnia, I decided to look through my past entries of my blog and it felt warm and fuzzy when I read about my days working at RH. It was a really tough period as I think I worked like a coolie back then. But I just felt so grateful for those hard times because it was a good opportunity for me to learn to be more resilent. And I can't say that there were no happy monents. I really bonded well with my ex-colleagues. We could chat, crap, gossip and laugh. Unlike now, where building relationship with teachers is so much harder.

Not to forget, I was single back then. How my ex-colleagues were trying to matchmake me with some old and bald manager and how that guy also tried to display his interest many times in front of me until it became super irritating and disturbing (I found out he's just a player)... Reading about those moments is a pure joy because my mindset changes so much now. Back when I was single, I sounded more desperate and would note down every detail of how guys try to know me better or attract my attention at work. Being attached now and more matured, I could no longer care more about those gimmicks and would laugh at how funny and awkward these people behave.

I thought I really behave and look more matured and that no guys will ever want to try those at me but it still happened twice recently. I couldn't be more amused. First, it was a jewellery salesman who tried to impress me when he intentionally changed from speaking Mandarin to English when recommending a ring to my mum. It was funny because he sounded like a Malaysian and his English sucked. All this while my mum spoke to him in mandarin so what was with the change in language? My mum couldn't even figure out what he was talking and decided to leave soon. Before he left, he even walked us to the door and wished us merry Xmas! All the while giving me eye contact and a big smile. Erm, I'm not the one wanting to buy things from you. He should try that on my mum instead. LOL

Then, the next incident took place at skechers at nex when mum n I went to shop for her shoes. The saleman was a ITE student probably younger than me and looked like he was working part-time because his uniform was different from others. He was so chatty and at first tried attracting my attention by asking what shoes I was interested in when the customer was my mum. Finally, probably realising that I was ignoring him, he began to serve my mum really well, being super attentive and helpful. It even reached a point both of them were talking about personal stuff (preference and holiday destination that they have been to)and he just squatted in front of my mum's feet and helping her try on her shoes. Eww! Each time, he purposely talked very loud and when trying to explain to my mum the benefits of the shoes, he asked me, " you you knoww engrish, can you help me tell her thissss..." CMI... If not, he will try smiling at me for no reason, talk too much to my mum which pissed me off because we spent half an hr inside the shop. Before we left, he even told my mum that the shoes were made of pig's skin so "ma lai bu ke Yi chuan (Malay cannot wear)"!!!! WTH!! What's the point?! LOL n when we left the shop, he even gave me a shy smile from the glass window when I turned to help my mum carry the bag! It was only after I complained to my mum that she told me that I was rude because the guy asked me if I was his schoolmate (a name he gave which I can't remember)and I ignored him! I didn't even hear that and honestly that was a terrible way to start a conversation. So, he expected me to say no and give him my name? Lame...

After all this crapping, I'm starting to feel a lil sleepy. Going to head to dreamland.. Good night all!

Let's talk about shoes tonight...

2011-12-11T12:36:00.001+08:00

If you know me well, I like shoes. No, not like, but rather LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE shoes.

When I have the money, I love to buy shoes, preferably flats.

When I don't have the money, I love window-shopping and will tend to linger more in shoes boutiques, trying on the shoes and selecting the next target to spend my money on.

I guess the reason why I seem more willing in spending my $ on shoes is because I have huge broad feet for a girl and I remembered mentioning this before in my blog that when I was a teenager, it was so difficult for me to get the right pair of shoes. Either I'll get blisters when I wear that pair of shoes or the shoes do not have my size. It is terrible and even till this date, it was the main concern when I select the right pair of shoes.

Over the years (actually after I started earning my keep), I have bought several pairs of shoes, be it for work or play, and I love them very much. I have also developed "weird" feelings over them as I will wear them and admire them every now and then, going like "ooohhh, so comfy, so nice..." Yes, I know I am a weirdo. But you just cannot help it because the shoes were not cheap in the first place and the last I want from buying them is discomfort or ugliness.

Oh, I also learn that there is a reason why shoes from certain brands are more expensive than others because you are paying for the quality! Either the lining is made of pig skin or that they use good quality materials for the leather which really makes my feet feel so comfortable while walking in them. I have bought many pairs from cheaper brands such as Mitju and Mondo and I must say, they don't last very long (tried and tested: shoes of more expensive brands can last longer). Furthermore, they always have that fake leather smell which you can smell it even when you are sitting down. Another reason why I stop buying them is because the sole is not very supportive. It is usually thin and after a long day of walking or standing, my sole will ache (Plus, you know how heavy I am).
I eventually stopped buying them because I want my feet to be happy and I still have a long journey to go.

In this post, I shall introduce some good brands, share some shoes that I bought over the years and some shoes that I avoid. You will see pictures of flats because I love wearing them and they are really more comfortable and lasting!

1. Pazzion

(Average price: $69/pair)

I am sure that you guys are not foreign to this brand. Afterall, I would say Pazzion is a fierce competition to the local brand, Charles and Keith. I love Pazzion because they have very pretty and glamourous designs! Have you looked at their new kids collection?! Soooooooo cuteeeee! I want them all. (You can check out their website: http://www.pazzion.com/)

Well, this brand loves to use sequins, pearls, blings in their designs and they use lots of them. That is also the reason why I like them too. Sometimes, they may come up with really unique designs and sometimes when I have some money to spare, I would feel so lost in the shop and ended up buying two pairs at one go (that's what happen two weeks ago).

Branches throughout Singapore (see, I can remember all by heart!): Marina Square, Bugis Junction, Wisma, Marina Bay Sands, Junction 8, Tampines Mall

Shoes 1

Ok, this is a really sucky way to take a pic of the shoes. You only see my feet! hahaha... This pair is bought two years ago and I call it my Alibaba shoes because they look like it! They come in many colours such as gold, white, pinkish silver, silver and black! I bought the black one because it was a new colour and I thought black is easy to match for work and casual. Oh, I think I bought the gold one before but they became loose and torn after I wore it on a rainy day. They are easy to match. You can wear them for work with a dress/pants or smart casual with jeans.

This pair of shoes received a lot of compliment and I still have it. However, they have become loose over time and do not look as pretty and fitting as before.

Shoes 2

I bought this together with the previous pair. This got to be love at first sight! Super pretty! They come in another colour- yellow with orange gems. I love it so much! Initially I wanted to get the yellow pair but because my main intention was to buy shoes for work, I decided on the black pair because they are easier to match. The gems and pearls are arranged in the shape of the heart and in addition, the shoes will not get out of shape (become loose) because they have a scrunch at the back of the shoes which is elastic.

I really love them because they are very fitting and classy-looking The sole has such thick padding that I can sprint in them comfortably. Again, I received many praises from ex-colleagues because they have never seen shoes with so much bling before LOL. However, I got to be extra careful when I wore them, making sure that I did not hit them against anything which could have broken the threads and caused the gems to drop out. Because I wear them so frequent, the last thing I want happens and the blings are no longer shiny and neat as before.

Shoes 3

This is the third newest pair of flats I got not too long ago. I was shopping with my sis and we came upon this at Wisma. It is a classic design, very simple with a bow at the front and the material used is patent leather. It comes in black and maroon and I got the maroon one. I think it looks a bit like those ferragamo flats and I considered myself lucky because they only have a few pairs for each size and initially during the second visit, the lady told me that they did not have any more of my size and I had to wait for the next batch. But after checking, she decided to give me this pair which was reserved by another customer because the customer wanted the black one! Very sweet design that goes well with dresses.

Shoes 4

This is a pair of turquoise suede low-heeled shoes. I really treasure it because I remember this is the first pair of heels that I bought with my meagre salary working at RH. It also signified the start of my shoe-buying habit. I love the ruffles at the front of the shoes. The heels are shiny and reflective too. This is also the pair that I wore for my sis's wedding. I rarely wear them because I don't want to get the suede material dirty and the colour is so unique too. Don't want it to spoil so quickly!

Shoes 5

This is the highest pair of shoes I have. It is actually a pair of wedges where the sides are weaved. Very sturdy and comfortable but not suitable for wear on a long day. However, I remembered how I always wore them to school during my contract teaching at SJI as my working pants were usually long and I also wanted to appear taller than the mischevous bunch of boys!

Trust me, the height really made a huge difference in taming the boys. The stare from top to down can be deadly and more effective haha... Looking back, I was so steady in the past, I can walk and run in them! If you ask me to wear them out now, I seriously have to think twice.

Shoes 6

Say Hello to me one of the new pairs of shoes that I bought recently from Marina Bay Sands! I went there recently to buy shoes for Chinese New Year after my sis showed me the two pairs that she bought. There was a promotion going on where you can get the second pair at 10% off using UOB card. It's been such a long time (not really) since I bought new fanciful shoes so I thought I should head down for a look. The main intention was to get the giraffe print ballet flats which will be shown later but it was not available at the branch at Marina Square (where we went to shop initially). So, we headed to Marina Bay Sands and I saw a Japanese lady trying them. At first sight, the design and colour looked a bit too complicated and unattractive. After seeing the lady tried them on, they looked good and they matched the jeans that she was wearing on that day. Hence, I went ahead and bought them so I can wear them for smart casual days.

The materials and designs are very much similar to that to Shoes 2 which is my favourite pair of flats so I was really happy that I got them.

Shoes 7

This is the giraffe-print ballet flats that I bought together with Shoes 6. Hmm, they are not as comfy and fitting as the one above. Material is a little cardboard-like stiff BUT, they are too pretty to resist. hehe... Oh, and I like shoes with animal prints!

2. Gripz

(Average price: $59.90-$89.90/pair)

My sister used to buy lots of heels from them and she was again the one who recommended this brand to me. Designs are pretty and unique too but they can be slightly pricier than Pazzion. I think the heels are more interesting than the flats and once in a long time, you might come across one that is both pretty and comfortable. They have a couple of branches throughout Singapore such as Wisma, Marina Square and Jurong Point. I usually frequent the one at Marina Square so I can also visit Pazzion! WAHAHAHA... So, next time if you hear me saying that I want to go Marina Square, you know what that means.

Shoes 8

I don't know what is going on with me lately but I realised that red has sort of becomes my favourite colour. I have red bag, red wallet, red handphone cover BUT not a pair of red shoes that I love alot. Again, the story of this pair of shoes started with Sis buying the blue one (Midnight blue) which was equally nice and we brought me to Marina Square last year to shop for my CNY shoes. I saw the red pair and immediately fell in love with it. The sole was spongy... The design was cute (Zebra prints with a cute ribbon)... The material used was glittery cloth... They were in red which made my feet look fairer! I can't bear to wear them so often as I am afraid that the cloth will get dirty... hehe

Hmmm, should I get the blue one too?

Shoes 9

I didn't want to post picture of this pair because they have been around for too long. Even though I only wore them a few times (lesser than 5?), I am too embarrassed to take a picture of them because they look dirty and old and smelly.

It is a pair of silver low-heeled shoes resembling snake skin that I bought for RH Dinner and Dance and also lent my mum for sis's wedding. Still wearable but the design is a lil too loud for me so I keep them in the cupboard till now...

3. TROIS + INCH

(Average Price: $59.90?)

Not my favourite brand and the shoes are mostly quite ugly and cheena. Bought two pairs from them because the designs were very special. One is a pair of flats that I got from the branch at Wisma because they were in denim material with the USA flag at the front formed using crystals. Received so much compliment when I wore them from schoolmates. Matched well with jeans but I accidentally soiled them during a rainy night and there goes my short-lived shoes. It was hard to remove the mud stains from the denim and it was heartache for the next few weeks because they were a very comfortable pair where the lining was made of pig skin. :(

TROIS + INCH mostly sells open-toed shoes or sandals.

Branches: Bugis and Wisma

Shoes 10

Another pair of suede shoes, another pair of wedges... This pair is different because the design is much more playful. They look more like ballet wedges because of the lacing and ribbons. I like how my feet will not shift that much in the shoes because of the elastic sides which cling on tightly to my broad feet. I bought them for CNY 2011 and they were a comfortable pair. In addition, it is that common to find grey suede wedges too!

4. Hush Puppies

(Average price: $69.90/pair)

I was never a fan of Hush Puppies. I did not even enter the shop when I walked past them. However, my sister started recommending the following pair to me during her pregnancy. As her feet got swollen and she could not wear heels, she was always on the lookout for pretty flats and she came upon them while shopping one day. I think she bought the gold and black ones and even returned after her labour to buy another gold one to keep for future. Yes, they are that comfortable.

Shoes 11

I call it my rubber shoes. I bought the silver-purple one. One thing good about such shoes is that you don't have to be afraid of dirtying them because you can clean or wash them later. Wanted to get the gold one to keep but the colour of the rubber somehow changed and so I aborted the idea. You can walk for hours in them and you won't get blisters.

When I was shopping at OG one day, I saw a brand that sold shoes similar to the one I got and it was like 1/3 of the price. However, the texture of the rubber was different and the sizes were not accurate as well so I guess I have been paying for quality. Anyway, it was a great pair to wear to school.

5. Adidas

(Average Price: $80-$100 plus/per pair)

Definitely not a sporty person. I did not even own a pair proper sport shoes, I wear the New Balance one given by my brother which he bought using his NS points. However, when I looked at the number of shoes I owned from sports brand, it seemed like there were only two and they were all from Adidas. It must have been the three stripes that attracted me! ahaha..

Shoes 12

Grey suede ballet flats that I got as my 21st birthday present. Don't you think they resemble Shoes 10? I wore them to KL and Cameron Highlands. An okay shoes for walking but they can get smelly because the sole will absorb all the perspiration.

Shoes 13

What can I say? I bought this pair of sneakers because I saw many people wearing them and I thought I can wear them on days where I want to look sporty. The design is very simple: white and purple. However the tip is a little narrow so my toes can get a bit paiful after wearing them for long. But they are good for walking and I remembered wearing them to HongKong last year as I was afraid that the weather will be too cold and I don't want my feet to be frozen stiff. Think too much!

6. Converse

(Average Price: $59-$89/pair)

When you think of sneakers, you think of Converse. Converse has accompanied me through my Poly years. I used to have a pair of hot pink sneakers but was stolen by somebody from my neighbourhood. Then, Sis got me another pair with graffiti design and I remember wearing them so often for my lab sessions where we had to wear covered schools. I threw them away when they became dirty and worn.

Shoes 14

This is the latest design where the shoes are lighter because of the reduction in the use of rubber at the sole. I bought the classic black one after watching Glee 3D with KT. I was telling her how all the cast members wore polo tshirts, jeans and converse sneakers and yet looked so healthy and good. Hence, I decided to get one pair myself so I can wear them in NIE. Look more like an undergraduate hahaha. Actually the pair that I wanted to buy isn't this. I wanted to get those where you can lace up above the ankle kind but Mum said they don't suit me.

I bought them for several months now and I only wore them twice. Haha.. But I will bring them with me to HK in Jan because that's what Hongkongers love to wear and I can blend in with the culture. HEEEHEEE...

Well, that's the end of the post but I'm sure it's not the end of my relationship with shoes. Will update when I can get a new pair. :)

Hello Ah Bui!

2011-12-07T12:10:00.003+08:00

Sleepy lazy me… One thing or the only thing I hate about holidays is that you have so much time to spend that you tend to become slow and lazy. For example, I could easily wake up at 6.10am every day before the start of holiday but now? I will snooze, snooze someone and eventually switch off the alarm and continue sleeping till 9 plus. Scary! But I suppose I am still a considerate lazy bum because I make the effort to turn off the alarm so as not to wake my brother up.

You might say it’s ok for me to sleep because after all, this is the only period that I can have enough rest before a new semester starts but the truth is, I actually did not follow the promise I made. I promised that I would put my holiday to good use and begin my exercise regime and 2 weeks have passed and yet, I have not done anything. L

Before I go into that, maybe I will share the story of my ~~fluctuating~~ exponential weight gain with you guys.

I have gained a lot of weight during the past three years. I used to be a “skeleton” with a huge skull (LOL) at 48kg and then my days at NIE started and it became so comfortable with des picking me up from school and bringing me out for sinful yet delicious meals ever so often that my weight remained stagnant at 51kg.

It got worse when I went to China for my year-end trip and I just had to blame it on the weather and food. First, the weather was so cold that I felt hungry every now and then. Almost all our meals were taken care of and all we had to do during the trip was to visit some attractions, eat, board the bus, sleep through the long hours of travelling and the reach the place, eat and again sleep! How can I not grow fat?! Just that trip alone, I gained a good 2 kilos!!! Well, it didn’t help that each meal involved 7-10 dishes and food was incredibly cheap and yummy in China! Haiz…

Speaking of which, here's a pic of me in China... So fat till my face can't fit the frame! LOL

Can't believe I will say this but I LIKE CHINA! I wanna go there this year... WHY DID I CHOOSE HONGKONG!

Anyway, I wasn’t upset or anything when I saw the weight gain. In fact, I thought I looked better and more proportional then. I checked my BMI and it was in the healthy normal range. I was quite happy with the newfound curves but it also means that I got to buy new pants and jeans because I could no longer fit into size 36. Nothing much happened during that period. My weight remained at 53-54kg and probably no, it must have been the lack of exercise and all that genes from my mum, I noticed that I had quite a bit of cellulite which is why I try not to wear short skirts or shorts.

Everything was fine until my sis got pregnant. While she put on weight slowly (even reached one point at which the doctor was so worried about whether Baby Lucas was indeed gaining nutrition in my sis’s tummy), I put on weight at a much faster rate. My waist became rounder and my bottoms fuller. It felt like I was the one pregnant instead. Things got worse during my sis’s confinement. My mum and I stayed at her house to help her with the cooking of confinement food and turned out I was the one eating most of the sesame oil chicken, chicken cooked with chicken essence, fish with ginger, pig trotters in dark vinegar and the list goes on. You know how nutritive those food are and they all went into my stomach! Holy cow!

But then on, I did some exercise such as morning walk and my weight dropped a bit. Stress definitely helped to control my weight, if not I’m pretty sure that I would have become fatter during practicum since I spent most time sitting in front of the computer doing work.

To cut the long story short, after a long semester, I checked my weight the other day at my sister’s house and I broke new record! My weight went up again! Not that I can’t tell it myself but I was shocked to see those figures! It was like “No, I will never be this fat one la” to “Oh oh, I got to do something before this becomes fixed!”

So, there you have it, story of my weight. A pretty sad ending but I am confident to change the ending! After three years of exponential growth, I can safely tell you how to gain weight quickly, that is if there is anyone who is interested in knowing LOL. Well, that is to always sit in front of the laptop surf the net or do your work and rarely walks around. You will CONFIRM become fatter!

Anyway, what I want to say at the start of the post is that I am going to encourage myself starting from now, to do some daily exercise. Hopefully, before the start of the new semester, I will become lighter. Hee J

PS: Watching my diet is a bit hard lah with December being a festive season. I guess taking a small step at a time is the right way. hahahaha

My Teeth Story

2011-12-06T22:44:00.000+08:00

Updates!
Managed to get this pics of the moulds taken before the start of my braces... Can see how crowded my teeth were! OH my!

X-ray of my mouth! Tell you something stupid abt me, all along I did not know I have 4 wisdom teeth. Whenever des or my friends were talking about wisdom teeth, I will tell that that I don't see mine protuding out from the gum so I have no wisdom thus no wisdom teeth! How silly am I right! It was only recently when I looked at the X-ray taken two years back then I noticed the four teeth hidden beneath the gum! Can you spot them?

Wah, quite jialat lei! The second incisor on the right is practically covered by the first.

The tooth marked "X" is the one being extracted.

Now, my teeth are sui sui! Anyway, this shall not be the end of my journey to having perfect teeth, I still notice some gaps between the teeth as some teeth are quite small and have shapes that make it hard for me to have completely straight and packed teeth. So, hopefully in the years to come, I would have the chance and $ to go for refinement and also gum reduction!
______________________________________

Counting down to my birthday!!!

My celebration has sort of started a day before my birthday, with the NIE mates celebrating my birthday with karaoke and high tea @ Goodwood Park Hotel! They even got me a present and a card! So sweet of them.

Before I got to that part, I shall share the story of my brand new straightened teeth. Anyway, I already spent so much on them, I think they really deserve a post!

In case you forget how I look before getting braces, this is it!

Hello Bunny!

Aiyo, protuding front teeth... Didn't really hate my teeth at that time. I think they were not as bad as some other cases that I have seen before. The cons are that I couldn't smile with my mouth closed, pronounce "H" properly without sounding like "hecks" and always getting ulcers on the lips because my front teeth may accidentally bite my lips. Super sian!

Oh, and I think my jaws were a lil bigger back then...

Then in June 2009, I finally got the money and time to get my braces done. See the gap in my mouth? I got 4 teeth extracted so that it can correct the overcrowding condition.

June 2009

The process was not pleasant at all! I had to endure frequent cases of ulcers and pain as well. BUTTTT, for the sake of beauty, I endure!!!!!!!!!!!!

And you know how some people say that you will lose weight when you have braces, I totally DISAGREE!

You will see why soon... haha...

December 2009

June 2010

August 2010

December 2010

Not only did I not lose appetite, I adapted pretty fast and could eat almost anything!

Besides the change of hairstyle, my teeth also shifted pretty fast.

Jan 2011

As my teeth become straighter and tighter, my waist and face become rounder and fuller! HAHAAHAHAHA

June 2011

So after about 2 and a half year later, I finally got rid of my braces and here I present to you my new shiny and smooth teeth!

Are you ready?

I can smile with my mouth closed, like finally!

And this is me smiling with my lips opened.

Anyway, I feel neutral about my new teeth but I'm just glad that the tedious and expensive process is finally over!

Say HI to my new teeth!

By the way, I have a new phone! And I'm so lucky to get the white one.

iPhone cover that I bought from Bangkok in June

The phone is also partially sponsored by KT, SH and Mic. Thanks girls!

The People Who Accompanied Through Semester 1

2011-12-03T21:27:00.001+08:00

This blog is dedicated to a group of IMPORTANT people who has not only accompanied through the first semester of school but also will be accompanying me in the next one and a half year. They are none other than my NIE mates.

If you have been following me on twitter or facebook, you would have known that I have broken my own record of having 100% attendance this semester! Yes, it means that I have not missed any lesson at all and I was surprised when I found out too. If you know me well, I fall sick easily and even if I don't, the slightest tireness would have already encouraged me to take a MC and skip school. BUT, I didn't!!!! WOOOHOOO!!!

On days where I was sick, I refused to miss school and I must credit those friends for that change of attitude in me. They are not only smart but great company! I actually looked forward to school because I can get to see them and crap non stop.

Furthermore, we had so many excursion trips this semester and that together with the projects that we were involved in just brought us closer. We went for forest walks, morning strolls at Botanic Gardens, beach seining at Changi, plant lesson at Seletar and MacRitchie Reservoir and also walking in deep muddy swamps at Sungei Buloh! It was sooooo much fun!

I finally got a taste of university life where I have a group of friends that I can confide in and the feeling is just wonderful!!!!!!!!

The many science excursion trips that we have...

1. Mount Faber: To recce the place for our plant project

That's Wanjo in orange (a plant expert haha), Zongbing (the only guy in our clique with good advice) and Chen Yang (a very nice and helpful girl)...

Hard at work!

2. Alexander Forest Walk: To begin working on our plant project by taking pictures of the plants and noting their characteristics

Christine is the one in blue (a very experienced lady)

With so many talents in the group, how can we not do well? haha

We are the A team!

3. MacRitchie Reservoir: To learn about primary and secondary forests

That's my professor in blue!

4. Singapore Botanic Gardens: This became a place that we frequented for plant lessons

Then, Shi Hui joined our group...

Proof that we were learning something...

5. Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve: To learn about the mangrove ecosystem

We had to get down and dirty! Super muddy...

See! The entire feet were submerged in the mud!

It was not easy to walk and there were so many moquitoes.

6. Botanic Gardens: went back for more learning

Can you spot the frogs mating? The male frog fertilised the eggs externally! The brown thing is actually a foam bag where the eggs are.

It was not just work and no fun. We even went out for movie and lunch before returning to school for a late afternoon class.

Had pasta at Ambush

We caught Paranomic Activity 3 and the whole time Chen Yang was sighing whenever the footage of the video cam came up! LOL

7. Selegie Reservoir: To learn about Primary forest

We walked along a secluded path which led to a primary forest. It really felt like we were in the show "Survivor"! To know whether a place is really secluded or not, you can judge based on the number of moquitoes! hahahaha...

A monkey spying on us!

Look at the background!

8. Raffles Museum of Biodiversity: To learn about the diversity of life

The last excursion of the year! All the animal exhibits are real!

Huge clam!

Gigantic garoupa!

Corals

9. KBOX and High Tea @ Goodwood Park Hotel: To celebrate the end of the semester and my birthday!

We went to the Kbox at Scape and the room was so small for the five of us. Would have been better if we went to Teo Heng instead.

Then, we walked over to Goodwood Park Hotel for high tea!

This high tea was different what I had before with my sis and mum. It was next to the hotel lobby and the spread was not as wide. They were mostly sandwiches, snacks and pastries. Even though you can choose two drinks, I don't think it is worth the $50 that we paid.

Nothing fantastic... Honestly, I thought I could have gotten more from Subway haha.

These are the only hot food or I would say deep fried frozen food that we could have done it ourselves at home.

Creme brulee

I did not try this but according to my friends, it was very sweet. I tried the bread pudding instead and when I took a mouthful of it, I almost fainted! Soooooooo milky! Tasted like milk powder! Yucks!

I had sencha which was basically green tea with a sweet aftertaste

The $50 food that I had LOL

This pic is hilarious! Before we took this pic, we asked a man who was having a smoke outside the hote to help them take a pic (which is the pic before this). It was quite blurry and we saw him struggling with my camera while holding on to his cigarette. So, we decided to get another person to help us take a pic and we saw a chef standing outside a restaurant. He was a caucasian, most probably an Italian because the restaurant was an Italian one. He was very willing and asked us if we wanted to take a pic with him jokingly. That was when we saw the blue poster at the back and he was a celebrity chef. After we had the pic taken, he asked me to show him the pic and we saw the restaurant manager photobombed us! Very mischevous indeed! But they were nice people!

Anyway, this marks the end of the post. Hopefully in next June, I'll be able to do up a post like this. :)

Hui Ren's ROM Ceremony

2011-11-29T20:56:00.002+08:00

It was the first time that I have ever been to a friend's ROM ceremony and I also realised that soon I may be receiving more of such invitations.

Hui Ren was an ex-colleague from KHS and we went through practicum together. I always find her model-like bcause she is not only tall but thin and pretty as well. She was my neighbour in the office and we would always chat while marking the huge load of books and worksheets. Even though we taught the same level, our conversation topics did not just limit to school. We could talk about anything, from clothes to bags to houses to wedding too! I also remembered how shocked I was when I saw the engagement ring on her finger because I thought she was still young for that. I even jokingly told her that she must not forget to invite me to her wedding and YES, SHE DID NOT FORGET ABOUT THAT ahahhahahaha...

So, her ROM ceremony was held at Hort Park, a place that I have been very familiar with since the start of the semester. Hort Park has several function rooms that are open to the public to rent as venues for any form of celebration. Hui Ren and her husband got the biggest one and I must say, it was very spacious and a great choice for ROM ceremony. You will soon see why.

The bride in the centre!

I didn't get to take many pictures.

The groom waiting eagerly...

With Luan Yin and Yi Jie

The couple prepared so many polaroids for guests to take pic

So more professional shots taken of the couple by ZX Workshop...

The room leads to an outdoor area where the bride threw her boutique...

Another open area for buffet

I like the vintage romantic feel of the pic.

Hereby, I wish Hui Ren and Wei Jie eternity love.

My 23rd Birthday: Food and Fun :)

2011-11-27T20:48:00.001+08:00

Just came back from a full day of celebration with des... Wow, another year has passed so quickly! I hate to believe that I have grown one year older! Can you believe it, I am 23 this year! 2 more years to mid 20s and I feel kind of old now...

But what to do? I have to resign to fate and pray that I won't age so quickly and that I will grow healthier, prettier, slimmer and wealthier each year. haha

So, for my birthday this year, it was non-stop eating and roaming around Resort World Sentosa! Even though we have been frequent visitors of RWS, we were still quite satisfied and surprised at how there were still things not explored yet.

The day started early with us going to Vivo for dim sum breakfast. Dim sum was at Food Republic's Bao Jin Tian and honestly, it was nothing to boast about because the food was meh.

Dim sum that we ordered:

Steamed porkribs

Fried prawn roll and siew mai

Steamed carrot cake

Chee Cheong Fun

Chicken Congee

Then, it was movie at Gold Class! I am an avid follower of Twilight Saga and I have to admit that watching movie at Gold Class is a pleasure! The seats are so comfortable and there are fewer people in the cinema. Everyone is considerate as well. Although the tickets are not cheap, I think it is worth the money to watch a good movie in a Gold Class cinema. :)

Well, I was kind of disappointed by Breaking Dawn Part 1 because there wasn't much action and they actually broke the story into two parts. But, I guess that is what all film producers are thinking: more installments more money. Nonetheless, I still get to watch Jacob!

Then, it was off to Resort World Sentosa!

Festive mood!

Thanks to Des's mum, des and I are fun pass holders of Universal Studios Singapore and so we can enter USS as many times as we want in the one-year period. I have tried the Battlestar Galatica (yes! both Human and Alien thanks to my sis! will blog soon abt that!) and initially our plan was to just stroll and check out the souvenir shops. We accidentally chanced upon the new unopened Transfomers ride! So lucky ok! The ride was exclusively opened for all annual pass holders and that means we can be the first few to try out the ride without queuing!

Super shiok lo! Imagine us bypassing the crowd and enter the attraction with all the tourists looking at us as if we get special treatment! Hmm, we did get special treatment hahahaha. I like the ride. I think it's entertaining and most importantly, I won't get motion sickness. Must try!

The weather was kind of crazy and unpredictable. One moment, it was scorching hot and the next, it began to pour!

We roamed around USS and caught the waterworld show which I didn't get the chance to watch in the past. The queue was too long! The show was quite interesting and I thought the performers are really dedicated to performing. So exciting!

The performers were splashing water at the front-row audiences.

The performer was super high!

Des also got me a new sleeping buddy! It's a big GINGY!!!!!! So cute lo! Lucas got the small one and now I got the big one! Can hug to sleep...

Soon, it began to pour and we left USS.

Since we had a hearty breakfast, we decided to skip breakfast and have tea instead. So, this time round, we went to a cafe located at the lobby of Festive Hotel. We were so tired from all the walking and just wanted to get some light snacks and drinks before dinner.

ordered ice blended cafe mocha

Des ordered ice blended vanilla and he said it was kind of tasteless.

The sandwiches turned out to be not so light afterall wahahahaha... (This picture was hilarious! It looks as though the waiter is standing on my shoulder).

We had time to spare and I knew the Singapore Maritime Museum just opened recently and wanted to visit it. We walked over to SMM to take a look. My verdict: you can give it a miss. LOL

FYI: $5 per adult ticket.

A huge lion head

Zheng He

The place was huge but seriously, the space was under-utilised! Nothing much to see and the exhibits that we saw there were so simple and lacked uniqueness. Waste our money!

Maximum LOVE!

Anyway, we still spent quite some time there before we headed to Palio @ Hotel Michael for Mediterranean dinner. We have been there once and I am in love with their lobster linguine and freshly-made bread! Super fresh and fragrant and soft! It wasn't cheap but again, thanks to des's mother since she has given us some vouchers to use.

Super fresh!

Lychee Iced Tea

Are you ready for the ultimate bomb of the dinner????

The super delicious lobster linguine! Oh no, I'm already salivating!

And the rather plain Hotel Michael pizza

Got the waitress to help us take this pic

Then it was cake-cutting back at home. Des bought a black forest cake this year from Swensons and when I asked him why he bought black forest, he said, "I asked for Snow White but they don't have it and so I bought a black forest cake because Snow White is probably living in there." WTH! Speechless.....

The cake was so hard to cut. I don't really like chocolate and so I can't appreciate it. Nonetheless, I had a fantastic 23rd birthday!

Lucas is growing up!

2011-11-24T11:15:00.001+08:00

WOOHOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!

Exam's over and it's time to slack and do the things that I want to do without worrying about homework and school all the time!

Oh and this also means that I should be more diligent in blogging since there are so many backdated posts that I have yet to share on my blog.

Not sure if anyone's interested in them but I try to make it a point to blog about interesting things happening around or to me as I want to treat it as my personal diary.

So, I shall kickstart with a post on Baby Lucas. This mischevous boy has been growing and picking up new things fast. He is no longer the chubby smiley baby but more of the active, "up-to-something" boy! HAHA

But, nonetheless, he brings lots of joy and laughter to all of us and I really miss him during my exam period when I could not see him as often as usual.

He has not learned how to speak properly yet or walk without support but I'm sure all those will come to him soon.

Here's a video of him driving his favourite car and it also shows how he can understand sentences like "play music" and "dance for me" etc. By the way, that's my sis talking in the background.

Will be back SOON!

2011-11-16T09:56:00.001+08:00

I know I know...

I have been neglecting my blog for too long but I just want to give my fullest attention to the first semester of school and guess what? It's coming to an end in one week's time!

In fact, I'm having a science exam tomorrow and I shouldn't be here at all BUT I thought it would be nice to update on my blog before people start thinking that it is no longer functioning.

Anyway, I have had a very fruitful semester so far and enjoying every moment.

Next week spells the start of my semestral break and it is something that I am more looking forward too and of course, it also means that something *ahem* special is coming. Hehe...

Well, I guess my break is quite well-planned already.

Lots of meetups with friends to celebrate, my own celebration, time for baking, hopefully a cruise trip, universal studios, christmas celebration, HONG KONG, JAM HSIAO's concert (AHHHHHHHH!!!!! I'm going to learn all his songs so I can sing out loud on that day) and lastly,

BANKRUPTCY! LOL

I'm jobless now, you know?!

Oh, and not to forget that I will have my braces removed next week too, though I am not looking forward as it will mean that more $ will be gone...

So many events (happy, sad, angry) took place in the past three months and I will update on them on my blog too when my exam is over.

I can't wait to revisit those events again as everything is moving at such fast pace that I don't have much time to appreciate each one of them.

On a different note, I have been watching clicknetworktv for some time and they have a new program called "Tried and tested". In one of the episode (http://www.clicknetwork.tv/watch.aspx?c=3&p=31&v=639), the host was introducing some hair products which I thought was really cool. How I wish my hair is long enough so I can try out those new hairstyles such as easy peasy achievable bun, clicked-on bangs and so on... You can check out the website, http://www.girlhairdo.com/

I am particularly interested in getting the velcro bumpits and trying out the bangs! I wonder how I will look with straight bangs but is so afraid to get it trimmed because I'm worried that I will regret it. Anyway, you can check out those websites when you are free.

Till then, wait patiently for more updates!

Steve Jobs- A Legend

2011-10-06T11:59:00.000+08:00

I haven't been blogging for a very long time.

Twitter is to be blamed because microblogging is so much easier and I could do it anytime anywhere unlike blogging where I had to use my laptop to access the page.

So, today I woke up and like any other days, I immediately accessed Twitbird on my iPhone and was waiting for updates on my friends' or celebrities' lives when I saw this piece of breaking news from Strait Times- Apple announces the death of former CEO Steve Jobs.

The first thing I did was to retweet it because I knew that this piece of news was not going to affect me but many of my friends who are fans of Apple products.

At that instant, I suddenly cannot accept this piece of news. Yes, he is not my family or relatives but I was deeply saddened by his demise. He, for who I know, was a man who had not only created the most innovative and groundbreaking devices for the whole world but most importantly, he made a great impact in my life, as of manys as well.

I can't call myself a fan of Apple products for I still prefer to use conventional computers operated on Windows software. But, I simply can't live without my iPhone.

It all started when I first joined teaching as a contract teacher. I was posted to a school that was pretty far away from my house. The daily traveling to work in the early morning had depressed me greatly as I had to endure the crowd and the tiredness from taking the MRT. So, it was that time when iTouch was introduced and after knowing what I can do with iTouch, I contemplated buying one.

In the end, it was des who got me. Understanding how bad I hated traveling to school, he packed the iTouch with songs and videos for me to watch. Songs by Westlife, Paramore and videos on Spongebob. Those were my morning entertainment. Once I boarded the train, I would be busy with me phone and before long, I would reach Novena.

Then, iPhone came along. I was never addicted to my handphone before that. I can ignore my phone, not bringing it out and still survive at the end of the day or days. However, the idea of having a phone which allows accessed to internet, instant checking of mail, watching videos, listening to songs, playing games and more was too good to be true.

The iPhone craze started and I soon joined in the trend to get the "magic phone". You have no idea how much I benefit from this creation. The traveling to NIE is even longer and everyday, my iPhone has been my companion. Also thanks to iPhone, thousands of apps are soon available. This also created jobs for many others.

Steve Jobs, I am very grateful to what you have done to me. You are a technology visionary and you will always be remembered.

Love,

Sally

Buffet @ Fiesta

2011-08-06T13:37:00.000+08:00

As mentioned in my earlier post, my family and I went to Festive Hotel the other day for buffet dinner. The name of the restaurant is called Fiesta and it was a BBQ buffet. Tried there before and I think the food was pretty not bad. The highlight will have to be the salad bar where you can basically find many different types of dressing and salads.

It was in high spirits that we made our way there for a hearty dinner.

Went to Orchard OG for some shopping before dinner

Thanks to Des's mum, we can have unlimited access to Universal Studios for one yr! WOOHOOO

dessert section

fruits and puddings

salad counter (my fav!)

cold dish such as salmon, mussels and prawns

sushi

BBQ!

Chou Ba Bi

We were pretty lucky that day because there is free live music. The ambience was perfect and we all enjoyed ourselves.

Shall end the post with a video of chou ba bi grooving to the music.