Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Glad that the firm decided to give us the eve off to make it a long weekend. Can't wait for the next one. 

Our usual annual family dinner went well despite my aunt's maid problems. But, she has four hearty boys to help her so no issues there. While the chicken was roasting, my uncle and I decided to tackle the tree. This year, they decided to buy a nice woodsy live one. Aside from the shedding of pine needles, really like the look and feel of a live Christmas tree! The coordinated baubles and such from Ikea made decorating such a breeze really - everything was up in a jiffy.

Work in progress

Bought the headbands from HK a couple of years back. The santa hats were from goodness knows when.

My mom took this extremely unglam shot with her camera phone but it's reflective of how I felt after too much ham and some wine. Nua-ing on a super comfy beanbag (with Ellie doing the same) watching Michael Buble croon Christmas songs. The only thing missing was a fireplace with a roaring fire!

Wedding at sea

Waking up at 5.45am on a Sat after a trial last week to attend a wedding is in all honesty quite a trial itself but a combination of factors put me on a high despite the lack of sleep.

There's the sea for one and the excitement of an early morning "excursion" to a far-flung spot of Singapore - one degree 15 at Marina Cove on Sentosa to be precise. I have not been there and am unlikely to go there in the near future unless I get to know some rich friend who stays there or get invited to a yacht party - very remote situations either way.

ES and AG had the beautiful idea of solemnizing their marriage on a yacht and the theme was white. I was not in white cos the last time I wore a white dress was as a jie mei at SX's wedding and it seems abit too dressy and un-nautical. The day before, we had a horrendous storm. On Sat, it was cloudy but soon cleared up fortuitously. Here are some pics I managed to capture while trying to find my sea legs!

Early morning harbour. Had a celeb spotting moment - the Queen of Caldecott Hill no less and her family in tow!

  

Love the early morning serenity and clear water (don't like the seaweed thingy growing underwater though). 

Wandering along the pier in search of the yacht. 

Love the pretty homemade touches the bride made to the yacht.

 Designed by the bride and cut out by me! Made with my fav new buy - the Silhouette Cameo.

J and I sneaking in some shots before the ceremony.

Very pleasant Justice of Peace. I guess amicability is one of the major criteria in becoming a JP!

The family with big eyes all around!

Out at sea - sun-decking.

Nice to admire, impossible to procure.

Lazarus island - very bucolic in my view.

In front of the lalang field.

The happy couple.

Pose looks familiar? Before anybody says this smacks of corniness, I'd better say that I put the couple up to it. But at least the smiles were natural!

The sea-sick victim whose agony was only slightly alleviated by a pill.

Early bday wishes

September always seems like thanksgiving for me where I am especially grateful for the people and things around me.

Received a very sweet and whimsical card from Cui (to my scrapbooking heart's delight) and my first thought after reading her message was: it's hard to believe we've known  (and put up with) each other for so long. 

Had an early bday dinner with gfs so that we could catch SX before she popped but her darling little prince E decided to grace us with his arrival 2 weeks earlier! Here's some snapshots I got of the proud mama and papa with baby E. Time for the daddy to take more pics of mom and baby please!

Hands down the cutest present I will get this year :) Can anyone actually bear to eat up little red riding hood and her big bad wolf?

First day

I seem to be the slightest bit obsessed with the seasons (maybe cos I'm deprived of it?)

Anyway, it's the first day of September! I always have a soft spot for this beautiful month, not least because it's ahem my bday month, as it heralds the start of autumn. Some people might say that it's still summer (yes global warming); I wouldn't know cos it doesn't change much here. But, the nights do feel a little cooler and the days end a little earlier and I can almost feel the year, very slowly, winding down...

Unfortunately, back to more drudgery (work) with a pic to remind me of better days!

The Ranting Panda

My friend D has started a food etc blog at http://therantingpanda.wordpress.com/ and I'm really enjoying his concise yet personal reviews and pictures. Helps that I happen to like the places that he frequents as well.

D deserves an applause cos everyone who has a blog knows the commitment involved in maintaining one much less an interest blog!

It's getting warm again

 "Summer" in Singapore will be bearable if we didn't have to dress in suits and trudge to office everyday when our rightful! place is at beaches and pools. I wonder how the Americans/Europeans get to abandon their work and go for their long summer vacays.

I like to look to browse though my Japan pics and try to, vicariously, feel the cold December weather (which embarrassingly made me long for Singapore's balmy weather in a couple of freezing moments). How apt is the grass-is-greener adage!
 

For someone who has not experienced the joy of jumping in a pile of autumn leaves, I couldn't resist playing with the scattering of leaves along a walkway in Jingumae, one of my favourite areas in Tokyo.

Can anyone get tried of Disneyland?

A walk through Ginza after lunch at Tsukiji Fish Market.

Tiong Bahru

Yes, apparently there are still undeveloped places left in Singapore where people can set up indie shops and cafes. Finally managed to drop by the new "Haji Lane" - this little neighbourhood in Tiong Bahru with sprawling (relatively speaking) open spaces between blocks of walk-up apartments and lots of trees. I had delicious flashes of "this reminds me of the narrow streets of Montmarte" and "almost like the hidden lanes of the Albacin".

Would be deemed inefficient parking nowadays

Quaint neighbourhood

Quaint corridors

And the streets have the most pedestrian names like Yong Siak Street, Seng Poh Lane, Eng Hoon Steet, Chay Yan Steet. It was all the more charming to discover hip cafes and shops sprouting up sporadically amidst traditional provision shops, fish shops and Hainanese curry rice (can't wait to try!).

 

 

 

 

  

Trying to sneak a shot of the cute baby

I was pleasantly surprised to see that unlike the presently blog-shop cluttered Haji Lane, the few shops in Tiong Bahru are genuinely more interesting and varied (Strangelets, Nana & Bird, Books Actually, Fleas & Trees). One of the main draws is the cafes there (40 Hands, Tiong Bahru Bakery, Social Haus, Open Door Policy). Be warned, you will have to pay a premium for the books, clothes and knick-knacks.

Vintage clothes

Entrance to shop

New location of Books Actually

Tried the bread and pastries at Tiong Bahru Bakery (deceptive local name but headed by a French chef with fantastic decor especially the takeaway boxes and paper bags). 

Tiong Bahru Bakery

 

The inside

The croissant (had the choc one) is as good as the reviews claim but very stingy on the choc and overpriced for the size (and lack of choc). The mandarin tart was a good mix of citris and pandan filling on a perfectly butter and crunchy base. I like the squid ink bun sandwiched with smoked salmon and ham - thought it was charcoal bread at first (craving for the piping hot one at Moomba!). The ham was a tad too salty though. The apple crumble was crumbly enough although I think a person with a very sweet tooth will appreciate it better. The focaccia with ham, cheese and rockets was disappointingly hard - I never trust those pre-baked bread with melted cheese on top. Drinks are limited - the usual coffee, chocolate and tea only.

Managed to pop by 40 Hands and immediately fell in love with the decor again. Food there is a mix of western (mainly brunch grub) and asian (saw some tau sar piah bao!). Snuck away with some peanut butter shortbread thumb cookies (again overpriced and frankly looked better than it tasted) and a snookie (a cross between a cookie and scone?).

My only wish for the place is that the government doesn't unilaterally decide to bulldoze it over for another of those soulless condos.

Dropping in to post a few layouts I did some time back before continuing with my work.

These were some cute pics of my grans taken at a recent family dinner. Put my new chrysanthemum punch to work for the background and I like how quick it was to put together this  layout.

My memories of Seville is abit clouded by the wet and blustery weather. The day we visited the Alcazar was no different. I cannot say how much I love studying the clean yet intricate Moorish designs of the palaces and cathedrals found all over Southern Spain. The Islamic influence in a predominantly Catholic country is fascinating and I think the architecture in the region reflects this phenomenon more clearly than anything.

Florence conjures to the mind art and history and beautiful sculptures. These are all true. But one of my favourites spot in this Renaissance city is not the Uffizi museums but the splendid view from Piazzale Michelangelo. I've been there when it was sunny and swarming with tourists, when it was rainy and deserted and so delightfully peaceful and this time, I managed to catch a glimpse of a Florentine sunset from this rather underrated place.

 

 

I'm not lying when I say I cannot get enough of Cinque Terre. They're probably my favourite pics to scrapbook cos it has everything that makes a good picture - sunlight but not too harsh, blue skies, greenery, colourful houses, hills and the sea. Notwithstanding how much I love that place. It turned out to be a happy misfortune when we had to hike the more challenging Sentiero Rosso when parts of Sentiero Azzurro was closed due to a landslide.

 

Finally.

I was surprised, excited, delighted, absolutely excited when I chanced upon a copy of Nylon at the 7-Eleven near my house. Not any Nylon but Nylon SINGAPORE!! Woohoo, we're finally getting there! Never thought we would be cool enough to join the Nylon gang. I love it that the style and typeset of the magazine remains the same (lots of graphics and drawings) as its US sister but the content is more relevant now since the references are local. Here's a rather unglam pic of me holding the inaugural issue:



Had another kind of heart-pumping-blood-rushing surprise last week when I saw the cover page of MyPaper announcing that Tokyo ramen stall Menya Musahi has opened a branch in Raffles City. Sounds familiar...sounds familiar... then it struck that it was the one and only ramen stall that I visited in Tokyo at the recommendation of my colleague! Finally tried the original of something before it got transplanted here though we took almost an hour and lots of guesswork before locating the stall (even then, we were unsure that it was the stall until a kind Jap guy confirmed it haha).







Was reminded how brilliant the Artemis Fowl series are and how much I like it when I borrowed the latest book from my cousin. I have all the books except the latest one, having stubbornly refused to buy it at a whopping price of $30 for a paperback. Eoin Colfer is underrated I feel, his writing is sharp, witty and humourous - I'm not even sure kids will actually get some of his jibes. I would even go so far to say that Artemis Fowl is a perhaps a little more thrilling and imaginative than Harry Potter. Both involve magic, one is charming, the other mind-blowing. Highly recommended, I love his writing style.

Am glad to have snatches of time to update my blog again.