h o l i d a y

Here's some random photos which I've been wanting to upload this hols but was hit by the procrastination bug.. =P

New Year's Day CCG with the ASEngs at SamKoh's place... Ice breakers, sharing, dinner, games and lots of lameness!!

Bak Kut Teh with Mee Sua
Had dinner at home with my dad and Ivan one of the days when we were somehow in the mood to cook up a storm. So that's what we did... Bak Kut Teh made with one of the unused spice packets which went to Germany and back. And really really tender pork (apparently from the front trotters) mmmm...

Bergedil
Potato patties, croquettes, or whatever you wanna call them... Ivan's creation!! Interesting ingredient -- Chanchulat (fried shallots). Really delicious, albeit a bit on the wet side, kudos for a first try! ;)

Cordon Bleu Chicken
Was initially afraid that it'd be too dry, since it's after all chicken breast, but amazingly it was still rather tender! Perhaps it was Ivan's wonderful tenderizing pounds, or the heap of cheese and garlic butter (yes our own version huh) we stuffed inside, or the shocking amount of oil that resulted (either from the buttered bread crumbs or the chicken itself)... Nonetheless, it was totally sinful mmhmm.. =)

Iced Capuccino
Had dinner with Joseph and Sebastian on New Year's Eve, introduced Sebastian to quite a number of local specialities like Tim Sum, Rojak and Goreng Pisang, hawker centre hopping around Chinatown. Then we walked all the way to Boat Quay for some drinks. Ended up at Manchester United Club's Pub thingy along Boat Quay as it was the only one with available seats at that time.. Almost got murdered by Ivan who joined us later though (yesh yesh Liverpool rules huh).. =P It seems like a rather new place, the staff don't seem all too experienced, my iced capuccino was practically dripping whipped cream all over haha (at least it's a really generous portion).. Managed to have a really good view of the fireworks over the Singapore River though.. =D

Sent Joel and Geri off at the airport.. See those scarves around their necks? Still can't believe we managed to stitch both their names on each hee..

Went for Chris' 21st birthday party at Aloha Changi... By the way, him and some friends of his belt a mean acapella sia.. ;)

Did some singing myself with MM this Christmas too, carolled at Carmelite Monastry and Assisi Hospice...

Went to Union Square on Boxing Day with some CSS peepz to salsa!! Was a bit rusty hee, but good fun!

Breakfast at CSS retreat.. Hilarious looking photo huh.. hee.. Was a good rejuvenating experience... Love my group too, somehow everyone felt comfortable opening up despite having only just got to know each other only during this retreat..

Tried making shepherd's pie for Christmas dinner hee.. Turned out not too bad, maybe a bit too buttery, if I should say myself. Then went to Blessed Sacrament for midnight mass.. =)

One of the bestest holidays I've ever had, I must say!! =D (And in no small part thanks to a certain someone hee..)

d e l i m o r o c c a n

Beef Tagine
Heard and read about Deli Moroccan situated along Bussorah Street, in front of Sultan Mosque in Kampong Glam. Happened to be around that area and happily tracked it down and tried it out. In my humble opinion, the beef tagine was beautifully spiced, though a tad watery.

Mixed kebab with french fries
The mixed kebab was really tasty! Simply love the spices, but I was rather expecting beef chunks like the chicken chunks, instead of the minced beef. So it unfortunately kinda ended up being rather similar to the beef in the beef tagine. Oh well, at least it was worth the amount you're paying of less than 10 bucks per main course, definitely a steal for such 'exotic' food in Singapore!

c i n e l e i s u r e

Beef Ball Noodles
Wanted to try Toast over at Taka, but unfortunately didn't manage to catch them in time before they stopped sandwich production. But no matter, we went on to Cineleisure to check out the makan there. Remember a friend telling me about some rather decent indonesian food there, so found Es Teler at the basement which kinda fit the description. Tried their beef ball noodles. Nothing too exciting about the soup and all, but the beef balls are really quite gigantic and rather tasty, with a hint of garlic (in my opinion at least).

Crespelle de Spinacci
Then we adjourned to the food court next door for Pizza Pazza's Crespelle de Spinacci (if I didn't get the spelling wrong). Kinda had a love at first taste (Ok, pardon me) when I first had it their first outlet at Anchorpoint (opposite Ikea Alexandra) , and now they seem to be popping up everywhere, from Cineleisure to Vivo City even. Quite glad actually, since their standard seems to be still there, at least for this entree over at the Cineleisure. Do try it if you're in a cheesy mood! Totally awesome crepe skin thingy with a mash of spinach, mushrooms and chicken inside (tastes like they're cooked in a herb mix used for escargot) on a plate of cream cheese... And only nuts like us would still douse it in more parmesan cheese! Haha little wonder how my other friends have shaken their heads at how we can smother a pizza under cheese like at Timbre.. =P

s c h o k o l a d e

Chocolate Fondue
Schokolade sinfulness to the max, man... =P On the last day of my exams, on Henderson Waves bridge that links Telok Blangah Hill Park and Mount Faber, how cool n sweet is that huh.. ;) And if you realised, the bridge is mostly made of wooden planks, and so we were trying not to set it on fire with our tiny tealight candle, nor get caught for it at least..

Totally soaked the marshmallows in oozing luscious chocolate mmhmmm... (Causing myself to drool again oh dear..) Had it for christmas again, with bananas and apples too. Perfecto! Hmm and I wonder whose advert-worthy hand is that in the pic? Hee...

Triple Chocolate Crunch
As if that wasn't enough chocolate indulgence, I chanced upon some Marks and Spencers sale before X'mas and was telling my sis about the items on sale. And managed to get tempted by her and my 'lil niece to pick up a box of Triple Chocolate Crunch too. They wanted 4 boxes, while I got 1 for myself, so basically, I looked like I was buying the whole shelf of it home haha.. It's 3 types of belgium chocolate and oat, how drool-able is that?

m a x b r e n n e r ' s

Been craving for some good ol' chocolate for some time, so headed over to Max Brenner's Chocolate Bar with a fellow nut for dessert as our first course of dinner.. ;)

Suckao!
It's the definitive drink here.. Was good, especially towards the end, though somehow not as wonderful as I was expecting, p'raps it's been too long since I last visited, p'raps it's the fault of our other drink...

Maragnan
Not sure whether I got the spelling right, thanks to my 'wonderful' retentive abilities. Despite it coming in a teapot, it's got no tea at all, and you're supposed to drink it out of a shot glass. Anyway it's basically chocolate (what else do you get at a choc bar?), kahlua and fine spices. Makes me wonder what's in the 'fine spices'... Yupz, it's got alcohol in it, so you can find it under the 'Aphrodisiac' section of the menu. Think it's the first time I ever had Kahlua warm haha... Reminds me somewhat of Glühwein, must be the warmth, spices and alcohol. Wonder what if we do a warm Irish Cream for Xmas ooh... =P

Think I've had better chocolate in Europe, but am still impressed by the innovativeness of the drinks -- interesting ways of serving up their choc, always liked their cute cups and mugs too.. Kinda saddened by quite a number of items on the menu being struck out, and it looks permanent too. The crowds streaming in the evenings and the queues forming at the entrance still aren't enough to cover the costs of running a business at the Esplanade? Oh well...

By the way, the Esplanade's a really great place to hang out on Saturday nights. We were treated to a free quartett concert (who happened to be some of my friends! gosh..) at the area near the entrance to the theatres, and a jazz band belting out some oldies at the outdoor amphitheatre beside the Singapore River. Lots seems to be pumped into making Singapore a vibrant arts hub, an important ingredient to be a cosmopolitan global city, haha ok shall stop trying to sound intellectual (blame it on the studying this exam period).. Just enjoy it!

Whatcha Think About That

(Official MTV's not out yet..)

Whatcha Think About That
- Pussycat Dolls ft. Missy Elliott

(Ladies)
So if your dude aint actin right,
you tell that dude he got to go,
If that dude be clamin that he broke,
you tell that dude he got to go
If he wants you to stay in the house everyday and night,
you tell that dude he got to go
If he wants to run the streets,
Then you run the streets to and you tell him he got to go


Baby, Baby somebody’s gonna cry tonight,
Baby (baby), Baby (baby), but it won’t be my tears tonight
(Lets go!)
So whatcha think about that,
whatcha think about it,
So whatcha think about that, that, that (oh baby)

Verse 1:
Tonight we’re gonna switch up,
I’ll do you, you do me,
Tonight your gonna stay home while I run the streets

What do you, what do you, what do you, what do you think about that baby,
What do you, what do you, what do you, what do you think about that?

Baby!, Imma let you play my part,
So you can feel a broken heart,
Let me just talk, make sure that you call
So I can say it

Baby, Baby somebody’s gonna cry tonight,
Baby (baby), Baby (baby), but it won’t be my tears tonight
So whatcha think about that,
whatcha think about it,
So whatcha think about that, that, that (oh baby)

Tonight your gonna call me a thousand times,
Tonight I’mma make up a thousand lies

How do you, How do you, How do you, How do you feel about that baby,
How do you, How do you, How do you, How do you feel about that?

Baby, Imma let you play my part,
So you can feel a broken heart,
Let me just talk, make sure that you call
So I can say it!

Baby, Baby somebody’s gonna cry tonight (that’s right),
Baby (baby), Baby (baby), but it won’t be my tears tonight, oh

So whatcha think about that, (oh)
whatcha think about it, (oh)
So whatcha think about that, that, that (oh baby)

Missy:
Okay!
Hol up, whatchu think about that,
You wear the dress and I put on your slacks,
Tonight I’m goin out and ain’t comin back,
You ain’t gonna get no more pussycat,
See me in the club I’m out with my girls,
Do like you do when your out with your goods,
Up in the club its just me and my girls
Play like Katy Perry kissin on girls,
Now you can’t eat or sleep,
And now you in the house thinking about me,
And now I do what you do to me,
And now I love to see you weeping

Baby, Baby (baby) somebody’s gonna cry tonight (somebody’s gonna cry to tonight)
Baby (baby), Baby (baby), but it won’t be my tears tonight, oh

So whatcha think about that, (oh)
whatcha think about it, (tell me)
So whatcha think about that, that, that (oh baby)

(Oooooo baby, hey)

(Ladies)
So if your dude aint actin right,
you tell that dude he got to go,
If that dude be clamin that he broke,
you tell that dude he got to go
If he wants you to stay in the house everyday and night,
you tell that dude he got to go
If he wants to run the streets,
Then you run the streets to and you tell him he got to go

(baby, baby)
oh baby, somebody gonna cry tonight, oh, somebody gonna cry tonight, baby!

m a t c h m a k i n g 2

OMG... I seriously can't believe what happened today...

There's been this auntie who greets me every morning when I go jogging at Telok Blangah Hill Park. So I just return her greetings too. But she started saying and asking me questions which sound really suspicious:

"Are you chinese?"
"You're pretty! Pretty!"
"Are you married or studying?"
"Studying in Poly or University?"

And lastly, something that sounded like "Oh! My son [is] also studying in uni!"

Oh dear.. Sounds like another parent who has taken it into her mind to do some matchmaking. And it's no longer limited to Hong Lim Park either!

M A F 2 0 0 8

Went back for Mid Autumn Festival at HCJC on Sat.. That's a photo of most of my exclassmates who went back, and one of our seniors... Ok, it's no longer HCJC, it's HCI, but I'll always remember it as such.. =P Nothing much of the compound has changed, other than the String Ensemble club room no longer being where it used to be.

Really really glad to be back!! So many memories that I hold dear.. Serene and I were practically gushing about our memories throughout our tour around school.. So much time has passed since, so much has happened.. It's been a tiring journey so far, but this trip back has somehow refuelled my drive, sounds corny? But it's true.. =P Maybe it's the HC fighting spirit.. Never noticed it so starkly until now, maybe the realisation only emerges after being away for some time..

m a t c h m a k i n g

This is seriously hilarious... One would've thought that with all this modernization in Singapore, and the government trying to lose its image of being a 'PAPa government' by allowing demonstrations and all, it actually suggests that parents try matchmaking for their children. That's like almost the ultimate in authoritarianism with regards to private life. And most amusingly, an astounding 150 parents actually took the advice and went for the matchmaking session held yesterday! And that's not even counting those who're exploring other means of matchmaking or who're going to attend future sessions.

I wonder how successful all this will be. Singaporeans of our generation have a vastly different mindset from those in China, who were brought up as the example. It was reported that a parent was saying that her son never had time for a social life, which led me to ponder -- will he have any time even after his parent has found him a match?

Isn't that the inherent problem?

Singaporeans are so driven by the typical concepts of success, it's been overly discussed over the past donkey years, the 5 Cs and counting.. But where does family come in? (It obviously doesn't begin with C haha.) Some view it as a burden. Some view it as just another goal in life. Doesn't that just remind you of the game, Sims2? Family-oriented Sims will have aspirations pop up that you help them fulfil, then that's it. It's but another thing on the checklist.

What's the use then, of having 2 people who just lead their separate lives, come together just to fulfil a goal, like some 'big events' like marriage or having kids, then have nothing to do with each other for the rest of the time? Is all this Singaporean pragmatism turning us into little more than machines? Forming the 'ideal' family unit, having kids so it doesn't stress the next generations financially, going through the motions, seemingly perfect, but always so hollow.

What happened to the sharing of lives and all?
Is that too idealistic a question to ask?

g a h m e n

Yes, I'm finally back!! haha... And in more ways than one.. Yupz, back to blogging and back in good ol' Singapore! Had to join the fray of uni life shortly after touching down... Haven't even got some of my photos from my friends haha, so still owe an entry on my Brussels trip.. Anyway, I realise that I seem to be more interested in newspapers and politics now (oh dear, signs of age?? *horror*), found this on Double Yellow's blog when I was doing some research for one of my many projects.. Enjoy!

Top 10 Reasons Why our Gahmen is like a Vending Machine

10. The vending machine runs on power.

9. We have to pay the vending machine in order to get what we want.

8. The vending machine will accept only Singapore coins.

7. The choices available in the vending machine are varied so that every category of sweetmeats and drinks are well represented.

6. You can only select from the choices that the vending machine thinks is good for you.

5. Sometimes the vending machine may decide not to give you what you want even after you have paid for it.

4. If you abuse the vending machine, it will be like talking to a wall.

3. If you kick the vending machine when you don’t get what you want, it’s only your leg that will hurt.

2. Only someone who works for the vending machine can fix any problems with it.

And the Number 1 reason why our gahmen is like a vending machine is....


1. You have to bow before the vending machine everytime before you can take something that you have paid for!

f r a n c e

We had a Pfingsten public holiday on Monday, then a 1-week holiday for the rest of the week for uni break, almost thought we'd get stuck in Stuttgart for the hols cos we were too busy planning our hol in Switzerland just the week before so cheap tickets were all kinda gone.. Phew, luckily found cheap TGV train tickets within france on offer during that period.. =) So off we went (Winnie and I)!!

We travelled to Strasbourg first, quite a small city in France that's near to Germany... At certain points in history they were actually under Germany, so it's got some german influence and some of them speak german too.. Heard it's quite a nice place, so decided to pay it a visit hee.. Finally reached there about 11am, after the exciting episode of being chased off the train halfway through, cos we honestly forgot about Baden-Wuerttemberg tickets only being valid after 9am on weekdays haha... Purposely woke up at an unearthly hour so we can take the early connection there, but ended up reaching late still haha..

Us in our hostel.. CIARUS... Quite happy with it, cos it's rather organised, clean, bright, and serves a rather good spread of breakfast... 21 euros per person per night in a 6-bed female dorm..

Walked around Strasbourg... Went into a few churches... Quite a number of them actually have explanations printed out in all different languages for visitors to read while walking around the church.. Find it quite cool... ;)

Petite France... Found a postcard of a painting of a slightly different angle of this exact place haha...

Choucroute -- the french word for Sauerkraut!

More prettiness of Petite France...

The Cathedral that seems to be the main attraction of the town.. =P Goth... Doesn't it remind you of the one in Prague? ;)

The Parliament of the European Council... Doesn't that cylindrical glass building look like a modern-day Colosseum?

Me and my dream hat! Always liked hats ever since I was a kid.. =P Was almost tempted to get one, if not for the price and not going to be wearing it much anyway..

After our amazing race run to catch our train, we're off to Paris! TGV trains seem newer and posher than the DB's ICEs haha... And best of all, the colour scheme is purple! =P

After a long deliberation over which tranport tickets would be the most economical and nasty customer service (our hotel's stop is in Zone 3 despite a ticket sales lady insisting that it's in Zone 4), we finally bought the week pass for Zones 1-3 called the Carte Orange... Only snag was that we needed a photo to stick on the identity card... So Winnie tore her photo with her cousin and I tore my useless Aufenthaltserlaubnis (hope the Customs don't hold it against me the next time I fly haha)... Hilarious lah.. Showing off our cards in front of the main train station...

ur super shagged looks after manouveuring through the Paris metro and RBR system with our heavy luggage (best of all is that there's no escalators or lifts at most stops)... Finally at Epinay sur Seine, but still need to search for our hotel from there...

Our bed! Woohoo.. ;) Arty-farty photo of slept-in bed with our bags representing each of us haha...

Couple photo in our bed! haha... Quite a nice, clean, simple and cheap hotel, only thing is that it's quite far from the city centre...

HDB neighbourhood? That's the neighbourhood where the hotel is in haha... Welcome to the non-touristy part of Paris!

First stop: Eiffel Tower!

Us at the highest level of the Eiffel Tower! 12 whooping euros per person for the lifts up here.. -_-'' But the view was good, and you're in Paris man!

Went further down to get a photo with the Statue of Liberty, but apparently the next bridge was a bit too far already haha... Nontheless.. ;) Yes, that tiny thing at the foot of the Eiffel Tower...

Us in front of the tower itself, and the ubiquitous tourists in the background haha...

Can you believe it? The Sainte-Chapelle was on strike! Haha... So everyone was refused entry...

No wonder even the traffic light red-men strike such an angry pose haha...

The Notre Dame!

Inside the Notre Dame Cathedral...

This priest gives confession in sooo many languages! My my... There was even a priest approaching visitors in whatever language they speak and providing them with an explanation sheet in whatever language on the biblical story sculptures... Makes one feel proud of the catholic church sia.. ;) Not just a church that's turned into an empty shell for tourists to gawk at...

Petite Luxembourg... Nice park to break for a picnic.. ;)

Gangster-head spotted smoking cigar in park! Haha... One of our favourite snacks... A bit like love letters rolled with fillings like haselnut or chocolate inside...

Found this composition of 2 old ladies chatting animatedly in front of the pond amusing.. ;)

Rushed to this garden to find out that the only interesting thing is that everything's symmetrical...

Nope, I didn't just flip the above photo...

Found these in a shop window.. How sweet..

Arc de Triomphe... These europeans are really fond of all these triumphal arcs eh... Seen them practically everywhere -- Spain, Italy, France...

Hotel des Invalides.. Nope it's not a hotel for invalides.. =P We almost thought it was a hotel so almost didn't visit it... Ends up being a military museum, with a church behind where Napoleon is apparently laid at...

Paris' version of Orchard Road!

Didn't go to Disneyland Paris, but at least went to Disneyshop Paris haha... Got scolded by the staff for taking photos, so this is a sneak shot muahaha...

Introduring...Winnie the Pooh!! So fits her lah, especially with her new-found craving for honey ever since she came to Germany haha... (No staff came to stop us when we were taking this photo though, weird)

The Louvre Museum.... Free for under 26s on Fridays 6-10pm! Woot!! More money-saving schemes muahhaa..The highlight -- Mona Lisa! It's quite amusing that it's placed in this gigantic room with gigantic paintings hung all around the walls, but everyone's crowding around this tiny one in the middle haha... It seems almost insignificant in terms of size..

The grounds of the Louvre Museum at dusk.. Was super tired after only going through a tiny section of the gigantic museum, left slightly before 10pm...

We dropped off our luggage at the Paris main train station (for an outrageous 5 euros per piece!) And trooped off to Mont Matre neighbourhood.. Moulin Rouge in the day...

Sacre Coeur.. Sacred Heart church.. Our famous amusing photo haha.. With tourists all in action as our backdrop... ;) We were eating our Pate on the steps when a group of Singaporeans suddenly approached us and asked us to help them take a photo with the church, then chatted a bit and seems like one of them is actually a friend of our friend who's also doing SEP in Stuttgart! Small world! No idea how they spotted us amongst all the other tourists though haha..

The steps up to the church.. Quite a nice white church, though a bit young... Rather disgusted by the guys hanging around at the foot of the steps trying to slit tourists' throats with that tourist scam of making friendship bands for them... They can get quite rude and insistent when you refuse, but just gotta be firm, oh well..

Boulangeries abound! We were popping into every bakery we could spot to look for ok-priced and delicious-looking pastries haha...

Finally, I settled for a Choquette... Super light and delicious!! Quite amazed that Delifrance actually bakes a good version of it! Winnie had a quiche that was also ooh-la-la.. ;)

Enjoying our Macarons on the train back to Strasbourg! The chocolate one was really really good.. According to both of us at least... Kanna still insists on swearing by the coffee ones haha... A sweet close to our France trip! =D