the sweetest of dreams... the worst of nightmares

travel. make love. drink wine.

2010-03-25T12:08:00.003+08:00

what I enjoy about life

Liting's Wildest Night Out

2010-03-22T18:25:00.007+08:00

For Liting's Hen night, we set out to have a night of wild, girly fun! And it turned out really well....

Our party started at a gorgeous suite in Fullerton Hotel...

The room was really spacious and nice!

We ordered tons of wine and champagne glasses for our drinks...

And surely a Hen party is not complete without the bubbly... and strawberries

One of the activities for the night... Dare cards for the bride to be

The room was filled with balloons

And very yummy, comfort food to complement our drinks

Look at the spread! yummmm

We did some cam whoring before the bride to be arrived

And here is the hawwt bride to be! On her wildest night out

Our cheers and well wishes to the bride to be...

Our party adjourned to St James for more crazy fun but the pics are classified. What happens there stays there. Heee.

Congrats to the bride to be ( now newly wedded bride) ! Hope you had tons of fun that night and had a night to remember.

its 2010!

2010-03-22T14:35:00.004+08:00

This year, BoyFriend organized our countdown celebration and according to him, New Year countdown is not complete without viewing the fireworks.

So he booked a room at Excelsior with a good view of the fireworks above Marina Bay...

We also welcome the complimentary evening cocktails! More so when its the celebrations...

Unfortunately this time round, I had to be on standby to do some work over new year's eve... so it kindda sucked when I was quite high and had to do work still... nevertheless when it was done, we quickly proceeded to the lounge to watch the fireworks display...

As we were quite late... we did not manage to catch the full view of the fireworks as it was blocked by the early birds. Still, it was enjoyable and watching it in each others arms... in the comfort the lounge with the complimentary cocktails was a great experience...

Thanks BF for planning! I would love to spend every new year counting down with you... :)

Our annual Christmas Party 2009

2010-03-22T13:38:00.005+08:00

In accordance with our yearly tradition, the Fab Babes would organize a Christmas Party... this year we held it a Liting's new place and was joined by her bball friends whom are part of the bridal party for her wedding. Initially I was apprehensive about getting along with them but it turned out they are really fun and nice people to hang out with!

We were missing Anne and Dot though...

This year our food totally rocked... some were saying that it was not as good as the past... but IMO its just as good if not better!! I ate so much and was totally stuffed afterwards...

Look at the spread! And our center piece was the huge turkey as usual

Credits this pic to Qiuyi who spent minutes trying to get the perfect shot of our lemonade heee

And finally I met Eda, Liting's nephew... I swear shes the cutest baby I have ever seen!

Yummm yummm

The number 1 Fab Babes camwhores

And to end it all, we enjoyed some éclairs ShiQi brought from her favourite bakery along East Coast Road

The party people

The Fab Babes minus N and Dot.

We had loads of fun! We should really have more house parties...

And this was how we celebrated Christmas 2009.

Playing catch up

2010-03-22T13:34:00.002+08:00

I just realized that I am 3 months late on my posts!!! And so much have happened since then... I can't wait to blog about Liting's Hen night and her Big Day as well as some important events that are happening in my life... the change of job... our Tokyo vacation in April...

So I am going to quickly catch up on my blog posts!

Merry Christmas 2009

2010-03-15T15:26:00.006+08:00

Christmas eve was a relatively quiet affair as we counted down in the comfort of our room at Novotel Clarke Quay...

Typically Christmas is my favourite season... and I always believe that its best shared with a loved one. Had a delightful dinner with free flowing wine... and decorated our room with as many balloons as we could grab... Sweet and memorable the way I love it...

Christmas 2009 light up

2010-03-15T14:44:00.005+08:00

Every year, BoyFriend and I would make it a point to admire the Orchard lights up and take loads of pics. This year it was no exception...

We really loved the lights up this year... although there was no specific theme... it was aptly titled: Christmas all decked out.

As usual, Takashimaya had a huge gorgeous tree...

Then we headed to the very hyped Ippudo for some ramen...

At night when all the lights came up... nice!!!

It was a very enjoyable date night... albeit a simple one... :)

Euphs and CY's solemnization

2010-03-15T13:49:00.007+08:00

Euphs and CY say I Do...

At Changi Fairy Point chalet

I'm just going to let the lovely pictures speak for itself...

It was also a good time for the 38 gang to catch up!

The setting was super gorgeous...

It was a most beautiful moment... as Euph's dad walked her down the aisle...

After watching 27 dresses, at this moment while everyone would be looking at the bride, I would sneak a peek at the groom... to see the look on his face as he saw his bride walk down the aisle towards him... the feeling is most heart warming and sweet..

dear Euphs... this is way overdue but heres wishing you and CY a marriage filled with love and joy...

Qing qing's 25th bday

2010-03-15T13:44:00.003+08:00

Came back in time for Qing's 25th birthday celebrations!

It was a simple affair with dinner at a really good sliced fish beehoon stall near Holland Village followed by drinks at Wala's after.

Being the youngest of the girls, its our last birthday celebration of the year...

Happy Birthday babe!!! hope you had a smashing time... this post came really late... but still happy 25th!!!

HK/Macau 2009 Last Day

2010-02-22T21:17:00.007+08:00

Its our last day and all we wanted to do was to eat, try our last luck at the tables and drink away!

And we did just that...

We headed to Sands Hotel and Casino for some very cheap all you can eat buffet!

Then we checked out the newest hotels on the Cotai Strip... City of Dreams...

We had quite a lucky streak at Hard Rock and also received some complimentary dining vouchers at the craps table... so we spent it all on a very decent and good meal at a Chinese restaurant within the vicinity.

yumssss

Finally when it was approaching our flight time... we attended an event with free flow champagne and tapas...

And this is the last of our trip before we headed home with a heavy heart. Had so much fun! Got a feeling we are heading back again someday...

HK Macau 2009 Day 6

2010-02-22T15:28:00.011+08:00

This day is the last full day and night we have for our trip... so we made full use of it...

Started the day with a nice simple breakfast at Lord Stow's Cafe. Its one of those places to have coffee, read the papers and relax. Liked it! And we have been debating whether the Lord Stow's egg tarts or the Margarets taste better. So we could finally find out. I give my vote to Lord Stows because its less oily... but both are very yummy!!!

And of cuz we bought a whole box... greedy greedy... so sinful

We also ordered so sandwiches and an egg omelette which was nicely done

When we exited the cafe... we ran into this very cute dog!! I would have dog-napped it if I saw this back in SG. Just like how Baby has a perpetual smiling face, he has this sad look... So cute!!!Wonder what breed it is though...

Then just because we finally remembered to bring along our sunglasses, we decided to wear them to camwhore.

Visited Black Sand beach... which honestly I feel just looks dirty...

Then back to Venetian for more picture taking... this time we walked around the building facade and snapped random pics...

We spent the rest of the day at the tables in Venetian... particularly the Craps and Three Card poker table... and when it was time for dinner... we could afford a fairly decent meal. :)

Headed to Praia Grande... this cosy restaurant with average food... but the ambience was amazing...

Perhaps its the wine intake or the fact that we were the only customers at the restaurant... so it felt exclusive. And while we were dining, one of the staff started singing and playing the guitar... at that moment... everything just felt so right. It was just one of the most romantic moments ever.

After dinner activities were the same as every night... drinks and more drinks! heeez

HK Macau 2009 Day 5

2010-02-22T14:36:00.007+08:00

Day 5 started late as we totally slept in after the long night before...

Had lunch at the foodcourt located at The Grand Canal Shoppes in Venetian...

On our way to the casino, we snapped some pics of the fake sky ceiling and the Grand Canal...

On the escalator leading to the casino...

We also did some casino hopping... and visited the Wine Museum to stock up our wine...

This night, we had dinner at an Italian restaurant which serves really good italian cuisine...

I really loved the ambience as well... its a very nice first date location

The bread basket looks good!

And of course we had wine...

The pizza is oven baked to perfection...

The pasta was not too creamy and very tasty!! yummmmm... totally drooling now

And we ended our night as usual so no pics! heeez

HK Macau 2009 Day 4

2010-02-22T13:42:00.011+08:00

November is always a good time to visit Macau. Theres sun, yet its sufficiently cool and not to cold to avoid the outdoors.

And as usual, we ate so much and played so hard... its always memorable and fun... and thats why we always go back

Senando Square was having some uplift... still the weather was fantastic...

Our food frenzy started with Wanton noodles...

Very sinful sharks fin soup...

We were so greedy we had two bowls

Then double boiled milk dessert... super yummy

After eating too much... we burned our calories by table hopping in Grand Lisboa. heeez

And it was our lucky day!

Then we popped by Margaret's Cafe nearby to have pipping hot egg tarts

Its too good to have only one!

And some pics of our hotel lobby...

Dinner was at an old school local eatery which my Mum recommended... they had duper cheap and fresh seafood with a porridge base steamboat...

I remembered this night to be the coldest... and having a hot steamboat dinner compliments the weather perfectly.

We managed to do some casino hopping...

This was taken at Wynn...

Caught the zodiac show and the fountain show which I made sure not to miss this time round...

The best time to view the fountain show outside Wynn is definitely when its dark...

I really like how all the buildings light up at night...

One of my most favourite acitivity is to drink tons of wine... and order the very delicious pizza for room service.

Awwww missed these times so much!

HK/Macau Day 3

2010-02-22T12:29:00.011+08:00

Woke up early for a delightful breakfast at the Enchanted Garden... where Disney characters joined us for picture taking which enhanced our dining experience... the breakfast spread was extensive and really good... with small touches that made it so enjoyable...

The waffles were yummy on its own... but being mickey mouse shaped made it look cute and even more yummy!

Had fun taking pics with Mickey and Goofy heeez

After breakfast, we headed to Tung Chung... where the Citygate Outlets were as well as the cable car to Lantau Island. Meantime, we camwhored on a largely empty disney train.

Cable car ride to Lantau Island on the crystal cabin...

It was really cold and fortunately we brought our jackets...

Still I loved the cold weather here... and our long stroll to the large Buddha was fun

Very misty and cold!

Time to travel to Macau! Yipppeee...

Still it was quite tedious, heading back to Disneyland Hotel to grab our lugagges and all the way to HK Macau Ferry terminal... luckily the MTR system in HK is very efficient... and finally when we got to Venetian in Macau, we were duper excited and very happy to be back! Crossing the casino floor to get to our lift lobby was sooo tempting and we had to do our best to contain our excitement...

And this time round I think its a good decision to stay at the Venetian... the room was supe spacious and very nice! It felt so good to spend 4 nights here.

As usual we used our winnings for our meals... and the food was really good! This night I remembered placing a bet on Casino War and upon winning we immediately headed out for dinner... :)

I really loved the food here. The steak was duper juicy... and their wine is cheap and good

And we spent the rest of the night intoxicated and at the casino in Venetian... was a good night!

HK/ Macau 2009 Day 2 - HK Disneyland

2010-02-22T12:24:00.000+08:00

As part of my anniversary surprise for BoyFriend, I arranged a trip to HK Disneyland, where we stayed at the very nice Disneyland Hotel. HK Disneyland is much smaller than the one at Anaheim, US. But we still enjoyed ourselves very much! We took tons of pics and I guess BoyFriend loved his surprise...

The Disney train...

I liked how much attention was paid to every detail in the room. We could fully immerse ourselves in the whole Disneyland experience... and the room was fantastic... we stayed at a turret suite with views of the South China Sea... unfortunately we woke up late after partying till late the day before so we spent whatever time left of the day at Disneyland... Din manage to explore the hotel grounds till night.

And best of all, I loved loved the jacuzzi bath!

Their toiletries are way cute!

En route to Disneyland!

The Main Street with cute little stores selling mainly souvenirs.

Tomorrowland... where we took every single ride. Good thing we came at a non peak time. We manage to breeze through most rides without a queue and even re take those we loved... like Space Mountain...

The must take ride in Disneyland: Space Mountain

Its a good thing BoyFriend enjoys theme parks! Its just such a great date place.

And we grabbed a quick lunch at the nearby diner.

The enchanted castle

Theres something magical and dreamlike about taking a carousel ride. We always most definitely take carousel rides when we visit theme parks.

Winnie the Pooh simulation ride. The fun part about visiting Disneyland is that they always have themed simulation rides. Which I actually prefer compared to scary roller coaster rides.

And every different item is a surprise in itself. We enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.

And we also took all the kiddy rides...

At night, I had some difficulty taking good pictures as most turned out rather blurry. But still managed to capture a great shot of the fireworks finale.

Overall our time at the park was fantastic. Initially I was hesitating on coming here as some complained that the park was rather small... but I think as long as the company is right... and you enjoy theme parks... its still very enjoyable. Unfortunately we had no time to visit Ocean Park but mabbe next year! (or rather this year since i'm back dating my blog posts) :)

Back at the hotel where we enjoyed a swim at the indoor pool... had the whole place to ourselves...

Wrapped up the day perfectly with room service, a jacuzzi bath, a late night stroll around the hotel and a movie marathon

HK/Macau 2009 Day 1

2010-02-12T02:04:00.000+08:00

After a mad rush from Macau airport to the ferry terminal and then across to HK at 4am in the morning... we finally arrived at the Excelsior. Had a really good rest and woke up all fresh and ready to shop, eat and celebrate our 2nd year anniversary. Had a packed itinerary for today...

This is the view from our hotel window... staying at the Excelsior turned out to be a really good choice as it was so conveniently located: footsteps away from Causeway Bay MTR station and Times Square... with 7 eleven just round the corner... and a very yummy porridge store nearby to grab a hot breakfast... the next time I go back to HK... will definitely stay back here again

By the time we woke up, it was near noon... perfect timing for our dim sum brunch.

i don't remember all the dishes but they were sure yummy!

I'm drooling just looking at these pics...

Greedy us ordered way too much food

Heading out for some shopping to burn off all the calories hee

Times Square as well as our Dim Sum lunch location was just steps away!

Duper crowded!

And onward to Central for H&M shopping

Amazingly we could still eat Maks Noodles after all that for lunch... This day was the only day we had in HK island... so we had to eat our fill

World Trade Centre... just outside our hotel

And then we got ready for our anniversary dinner.... Cafe Deco located at The Peak. Fantastic views of the harbour and very fresh oysters... but the rest of the food was just so-so.

Still, the reasonably priced wine coupled with oysters was good enough

Some claim that its a 2 month reservation wait to get the seats by the window... so glad we got it! The view was amazing... and we caught the HK harbour show from our dinner table

Wine sampling before choosing our bottle

The oysters were really good!

And after dinner, Lan Kwai Fong for drinks and clubbing

By the time we reached BeiJing club, there was enough alcohol in our system to last the whole night

We were lucky enough to get our own table conveniently located near the dance floor...

Had a great 2nd year anniversary celebration!

Baby darling... its been 2 years... though not completely smooth sailing... you never fail to make me smile... and cheer me up when i'm feeling down. You had been my pillar of strength during my moments of weakness and my voice of reason during my irrational times. You apologise and make it up to me even when I'm unreasonable... It was a very happy 2 years. :)

Thank you for every memory and I really hope this is forever.

Jet off to HK/Macau 2009

2010-02-11T19:16:00.000+08:00

I know this is way overdue! Have been procrastinating on posting about the trip and in the process all the past events from 3 months back have been neglected! So i'm going to take this CNY holiday to try catch up on my blog posts!

13th November 2009, Friday evening.

So here goes!

Our luggages is a couple!

I am beginning to think this is going to be a regular affair! Its back to Hong Kong and Macau in November... same time as last year. Previously, we were more focused on shopping in Hong Kong, so this time round we planned a more touristy itinerary... for Macau we explored less places and spent more time just enjoying the moment. This trip was also meant to celebrate our 2nd year anniversary... :)

2010 Resolutions

2010-01-04T12:32:00.000+08:00

Here goes!

1) I will be a better person

2) I will always be there for my friends

3) I will be nicer to BoyFriend

4) I will be more aware of the small things

5) I will be more sensitive

6) I will be more punctual at work

7) I will not procrastinate

8) I will update my blog more timely

9) I will consume less alcoholic beverages

10) I will laugh more

11) I will stop beating myself up over everything

12) I will be more optimistic

13) I will keep to my promises

14) I will be less anti-social

done! :) having high hopes for 2010!!

it just the first month and half of my year seems packed already! There are so many things going on its hard to plan anything else...

February we can look forward to the long weekend during CNY... Liting's bachelorette party... And then its her big day in march...

We are moving house from April... and May is Big Bro's wedding!

All these while searching for a place of our own... balloting for flats or if proved repeatedly unsuccessful... we will start looking at resale flat options...

BoyFriend and I are also hatching plans for a short getaway before mid year... and a long extended break in Sept...

And Mum just verbally booked me for a 2011 June trip to Japan haha! so far away!

Guess I gotta shelve my individual extended break plans for now...

I love my Baby!

2010-01-04T02:34:00.001+08:00

Just trying out one of the features in blogger... finally revamped my site and am loving it! Just in tune with the new year!

Look at that face! Just gotta love him...

Review of 2009 Resolutions

2010-01-03T01:45:00.003+08:00

So i'm going to review my 2009 Resolutions and see if I have achieved them...

1) Stay sober

-50% achieved I guess. I don't think I managed to stay completely sober but to a certain extent I definitely had less morning after puking moments... and cut down alot on drinking during weekdays... so it was not bad. :)

2) Stay out of trouble

- Definitely! It was hard but I did it!

3)Be a better friend

- Theres always room for improvement but I can say i'm better than before I hope!

4) Be a nicer girlfriend

- Still have to work on this... but definitely tried!

5) Be a better worker

- Loads to improve on ... but I guess I have tried to be more positive at work which translates to being a happier person at work

Overall I think I deserve a pat on the back! Yay!

Top 10 Unforgettable Moments of 2009

2010-01-02T23:41:00.008+08:00

I was going to review my 2009 New Year resolutions but decided to first look back at the happy/memorable moments of 2009...

Overall I think it went pretty well!

My relationship with the BoyFriend is still going strong... despite some of the small disagreements... although I admit it usually stems from my own frustration...

We have also made some long term plans involving each other... started balloting/looking for a place of our own... found Baby... who fits into our picture of how our family will look like in the future... Made several holiday trips which formed some of the most unforgettable and sweet memories...

On the friendship front... although there can always be more to be done to be a better friend... I do feel that I have made some improvements... I have learnt to be more tolerant... more accepting... less judgemental. I have tried to be supportive whenever possible...

I have also reconnected with a lost friend... but regret not doing it sooner...

I have also learnt about forgiveness. Sometimes it just takes more energy to hate someone than to just forgive and forget.

Family life has also turned out alright. Somehow after Big Bro got married, the family grew closer as now we have more reasons to sit down, talk and have more meals together as a family since we are living apart.

Work has been monotonous as usual... but I guess the regular working hours, having colleagues that are not political is always a good thing. I might not particularly enjoy and love what I am doing... but I have to admit I am not unhappy here. So thats still alright I guess.

So onto the top 10 unforgettable moments of 2009 (not in order of importance):

1) 2nd year anniversary with BoyFriend

- dinner with a view of HK harbour, enjoying a bottle of wine, partying afterwards.. totally having fun together. I could not ask for more.

2) Taiwan Trip

- I was going to specify some of the more memorable moments during this trip but somehow every moment is equally enjoyable and unforgettable. Touring Taroko Gorge... waking up beside Sun Moon Lake... bringing Baby home... even the train rides. Love every moment.

3) Genting/KL trip

- Being reminded of how we first met... :)

4) Cruise to nowhere

5) Korea Trip

- Skiing... snow... piping hot steamboat in cold weather... gorgeous scenery...

6) Batam trip with the Fab Babes

- Always reason to celebrate our friendship... love them to bits

7) Bringing Baby home

- He might be the most mischevious rascal but the feeling of coming home to see him just warms my heart.

8) Big Bro's solemnization

- To see him tying the knot with his special someone... awwww

9) Anne's Farewell

- Not exactly a happy moment... but in a way I am happy for her that she is pursuing what she wants to do... And the farewell party was a great way of bidding her farewell, to let her know how much we'll miss her... and how much we love her!

10) My 25th bday celebrations

- A great dinner and drinks with the Fab Babes... felt so touched when I got my bday cake... it just totally caught me by surprise somehow. Celebrating with BoyFriend at Sentosa Resort and Spa... my 25th bday rocked.

Wow 2009 was great!!

Busy Bee

2009-12-07T18:13:00.006+08:00

At the blink of an eye... its December! My favourite time of the year... theres Christmas, my favourite holiday and soon the countdown begins to 2010. Time for new resolutions,new beginnings, new plans... can't wait!

Been duper busy the past month... after the week long of holiday-ing in HK and Macau... filled with late nights... crazy drinking and pigging out... had so much fun we were hoping so badly that we could strike the jackpot or something so that we can stay on holiday forever!

Then back to reality... been rather busy at work... and mystery shopping assignments... in between spending time with BoyFriend and keeping up with social events... Had fun partying with Daph at zouk sometime back... Qing qing's 25th bday... and Euphs solemnization ceremony...

As usual i'm probably going to take some time with all the uploading of pics... but will try to do so the next few days...

Also been drawing up some rough sketches of what 2010 entails... theres no solid plans as yet... but the way things are going... 2010 is going to be the year of much change... in a good way I hope! :) hopeful!

A quiet Halloween

2009-11-09T16:43:00.005+08:00

After hours in the crazy queue outside Phuture last year, I swore never to go to a club on Halloween and boy was I glad I stayed true to this.

Had a quiet but enjoyable Halloween with good company at the Toys Museum... there was complimentary drinks and food... as well as interesting ad hoc stalls like caricature drawing... tarot card reading... it was fun! This is the only shot I got... and the rest turned out to be really blurred.

Went home early as we are currently sticking to healthier lifestyles... especially for me... After nursing countless hangovers... it finally impressed upon me that its time to go slow... so i'm purging my body by staying sober... at least till our holiday heee :p

38 gang forever

2009-11-09T15:54:00.005+08:00

Met up with the JC clique girls... a.k.a the 38 gang at fou de fa fa for a catch up/way overdued dinner. The food was just so-so but the company was delightful. As usual, every time we meetup, theres endless topics to chat about... just like the good old days.

Euphily also handed out her wedding invites! So congrats if you are reading this!

Time really flies... it feels like just yesterday when we were carrying those oversized backpacks, gossiping in the cafe... having classes in a container classroom... and now one of us is entering the next phase in life... gasp

Its so scary to grow up! Why wasn't I warned?

Long weekend spontaniety

2009-11-09T14:51:00.009+08:00

On a whim, BoyFriend and I decided to head to Genting highlands and KL for the long weekend... And it nicely coincides with the time we met there 2 years back. Had loads of fun at the gaming tables (though not so fun when we lost our winnings), drank a hell lot of alcohol... playing pool while intoxicated... not remembering how i got back to our room.... lots of pigging out... deja vu at our drinking hole 2 years back in KL. Nice!

Genting Highlands... as usual... shrouded in mist...

All these waiting time on the long escalators... a good time for camwhoring

And its lunchtime!

At this Chinese restaurant in First World... probably one of the more decent restaurants in Genting. Theres little good food here... but who really comes here for the food anyway? haha.

And our drinking/ gaming session ensued

Our initial plan was to spend the entire weekend in Genting... but as we made the room bookings so late... it was fully booked on Monday night... so we decided to revisit KL... actually its not really KL... its at Petailing Jaya... the outskirts of KL. And had a surprisingly good time. :) not forgetting its almost been 2 years since we came here... and its also where we had drinks together for the first time as friends... so there were many fond memories and reminiscing.

The view from our hotel room

Having a crammed room in Genting... staying at One World hotel was splendid. I have this thing for nice hotel rooms...

Nearby, there was a huge shopping mall... and we basically shopped our evening away...

And loads of food... i think i gained a few pounds on my trip... ooops

its very sinful but totally yummy!

Dragon I and Caton-I. Yep we had breakfast and then afternoon tea.

The tea cup is too cute!

Deja-vu!

Both of us made a separate, spontaneous decision to visit KL 2 years back... and it brought us together for the first time. :) I love spontaneity... especially those with the happy endings

Up to speed!

2009-11-09T14:45:00.003+08:00

Finally found the time to make some updates on whats been happening for the past month instead of random ramblings and song lyrics...

So the past events include:

- my spontaneous long weekend getaway to Genting highlands and KL with BF

- meeting with the JC 38 gang

- Halloween @ Toys Museum!

Going to religiously upload pics... and this week we are gearing up for our trip to HK and Macau!! yipppeee! i really can't wait! Although we have been there before, but I'm equally excited! Can't wait to get to the craps table at Venetian... heeeeee.

Optimism

2009-10-30T23:16:00.004+08:00

BoyFriend has an amazing ability to remain optimistic despite the circumstances...

On bird droppings along Orchard Road:

Me: Wow! Why are there suddenly so many birds in orchard road? Can't they do some bird control of some sort? What happens if the shoppers/tourists kena bird droppings? Its going to damage the image of Orchard Road which we are trying so hard to build ( referring to all the ongoing buidling facade uplifts). Lets walk faster I don't want to be one of the victims.

BoyFriend: Don't worry... if we kena bird droppings... it only means that we can buy 4D!! Immediately go buy $50 big and $50 small!!!! Confirm strike!

On Monday Blues:

Me: Sucks its Monday tomorrow.

BoyFriend: Don't think about tomorrow. Just think about today. Live one day at a time.

I think BoyFriend's optimism balances how pessimistic I am.

Sweet Disposition

2009-10-30T00:15:00.002+08:00

songs of desperation

I played them for you

a moment, a love

a dream, a laugh

a kiss, a cry

our rights, our wrongs

- Sweet disposition, The Temper Trap

Fallin

2009-10-22T17:17:00.007+08:00

I’ve been spending all my time

Just thinking about ya

I don’t know what to do

I think I’m fallin’ for you

I’ve been waiting all my life and now I found ya

I don’t know what to do

I think I’m fallin’ for you

I’m fallin’ for you

I think I’m fallin’ for you

I can’t stop thinking about it

I want you all around me

And now I just can’t hide it

I think I’m fallin’ for you

- Colbie Caillat's Fallin' For You

Conflicted

2009-10-22T16:19:00.001+08:00

I have no idea why... but I just am.

Happy quarter life to Qiuyi!

2009-10-16T10:15:00.005+08:00

Been really slow in uploading of pics and updates of the past events so its catching up time!

The Fab Babes celebrated Qiuyi's 25th bday at Queen & Mangosteen followed by after dinner drinks at Peppermint Park.

Me and WQ with her funky new hairstyle!

The happily engaged couple

My love

The birthday girl & her love

And yummy pics!

The birthday cake... everyone thought it looked really ugly and old fashioned. i thot it was kindda cute!

Happy quarter life qiuyi! Though you are president of the boring club... we still love you hee! And no worries you won't be too boring with the Fab Babes as your closest friends! heee.

Alive

2009-10-15T10:24:00.003+08:00

I'm totally digging Black Eyed Peas 'Alive' right now:

You said - you said - you said

That im the only one

You said that im your number 1

Now your gone and I feel numb

Tell me where do we go wrong

You are my best friend and boyfriend

Now its seems like you're my worst friend

I gotta do soul searching

Without you im a whole different person

I aint acting like I used to

I don't feel loved like I used to

It was your love I was used to

In fact the whole album rocks.

First Date anniversary

2009-10-14T11:00:00.002+08:00

Its been a crazy 2 years... but i'm so glad we went on our first date. :)

Its too late to apologize

2009-10-07T14:30:00.002+08:00

I wonder if its the right thing to do to apologize the morning after for drunk texting

Love is Selfish

2009-10-06T16:17:00.005+08:00

When two people decide to enter a marriage, its never just about the two of you...

Why make a decision to pursue your own happiness when it brings about pain to the other people in your life? Is that really true happiness?

True, Love is Selfish... so even if it means forcing the people you love to live with someone they loathe?

Theres really an extent to my tolerance.

So if you are going to push me, I'm fully capable of pushing back harder.

Our day outing to Jurong Bird Park

2009-10-04T21:54:00.007+08:00

Being typical night owls mean that we seldom have pics in daylight...

On one Saturday afternoon, BoyFriend and I finally ventured out in the sun for a day excursion to Jurong Bird Park... and the pics turned out most lovely.

maybe we should do this more often...

Our favourite exhibit at the park: Penguins! ok and also because its air conditioned and indoors. hee

The flamingos look so pretty

The World Of Darkness: housing our fellow friends... the owls

Did you know we have the largest man made waterfall?

Back to the penguin exhibit for feeding time... they look way too cute!

Dinner @ Bistro one zero three

Simple.. yummy food!

And before our late night movie, we chilled out at The Queen and Mangosteen for after dinner drinks and soccer

Supper! haha no wonder we are getting fat!

Had a fantastic day out! Tiring but good... It feels as though we are tourists... :)

The past weekend

2009-09-28T14:09:00.005+08:00

I had a difficult time trying to think of an appropriate title for this post on my past weekend.

Of late, it seems our social activities typically involve drinking copious amounts of alcohol. Which isn't a bad thing... but its definitely taking a toll on my age-ing body. The hangovers are getting harder to get over, Im definitely having more of those "black-out" moments when I just can't remember some of the events of the night before... which is kindda scary even for me.

Yes. Its time to quit. But then i like to procrastinate.

Last weekend spent Friday having a nice dinner with BoyFriend, and enjoyed a few bottles of wine... which were surprisingly good and cheap...

Saturday checked out Bro's new flat... which was really nice and cosy... located on the 29th floor... with great views... had a delightful steamboat dinner with the family at Sunset Way...

Then joined the girls and our new-found social drinking buddies for drinks... which turned kindda weird before we left at 5am.

There were several unexpected electronic purchases this weekend as well... BoyFriend got me a micro hi-fi system which i've been searching for ages.. yippee and our 10-year dinosaur television set finally broke down... So Mum got me a tv for my room while shopping for a replacement. double yippee. So now BoyFriend and I are keeping a look-out for discounted game consoles... and hatching plans to wire the cable television into our room.

Overall it went reasonably well considering they were largely unplanned for...

On another front, I'm feeling somewhat disappointed with someone important to me. Although I'm probably at no position to pass judgement or interfere... can't help feeling this way. Just hope things will work out somehow...

Dr Loosen's Riesling

2009-09-24T21:48:00.002+08:00

I really feel like downing a bottle of this right now... its sitting in my cupboard tempting me.

Arghh just wished there was someone to enjoy it with

Drunk.. but glad

2009-09-11T17:43:00.006+08:00

I think i cannot count the number of times BoyFriend has seen me almost drunk and rambling nonsense.

And yet every time he does see me this way, I can count on him to take care of me... bring me my painkillers, force me to remove my makeup and tuck me in bed. :)

There was once we witnessed a couple... the girl was drunk and the guy basically hit her very hard and shouted at her to wake her up. But she was too stoned to defend herself. It was so freaky...

One of the times I'm so glad BoyFriend is who he is.

The Tower Reversed

2009-09-08T12:01:00.005+08:00

Out of boredom, I drew a tarot card last night and this was what came out...

I googled the meaning and found it here: http://www.crystal-reflections.com/tarot2/rider/tower_r.htm

This was what it read:

The Tower (R) - The process of change has started. Do not resist the inevitable breakdown of your present circumstances - let go, do not fight it. Look at things the way they really are - ignore the opposition and you will win the day. To rid yourself of something old or undesirable, you need to literally get rid of it - so that something much better can come along. See the writing on the wall - accept your situation and do what you know is right. Do not wait till the last minute - trying to hang on only makes the situation worse. Clear things up and have the courage to start over.

Your "ego" can find a reason for everything - but it is the wrong reason. Allow yourself to undergo the full experience. Trying to keep a tight reign on your reactions may lesson your pain for the moment - but in doing so, you do not release all the repressed emotions. The painful experience continues inside you - never having gone its full course. In trying to shield yourself from the Towers lightening - you virtually become its prisoner.

Enlightenment is a disturbing experience because it disrupts the little false "ego" world you have surrounded yourself with. You suddenly see that there is much more than the everyday world with all of its problems - there is an "inner" world filled with happiness and joy. You have always been aware of it, but you identified with it on the "ego" level in which you always seemed to loose. In the transition from the Tower - you never "loose" anything. Your "ego" becomes subordinate to your Inner Self and you begin to enjoy creating for that is what truly makes you happy. On the "ego" level - you win some and you loose some. In the creative situation - you ALWAYS win because you are not playing any games - you ARE important or you wouldn't be here!

One thing about reading a tarot card... is that no one can really tell you what it means... its about what it means to you.

And right now I'm quite sure this is not referring to my love life.

I just hope i'm not wrong.

Judgement

2009-09-08T11:48:00.001+08:00

And then this feels the worst.

And then i forgot about accusation.

I'm not being judged or accused right now... but just a random thought.

Your love is just a lie

2009-09-07T22:35:00.004+08:00

A guy friend once told me this story:

He knew a couple.. who dated ever since they were 16. They got married when they turned 23... and everything seemed picture perfect.

The husband was a successful man... his career was going well... his wife became a housewife after giving birth to two kids. So he is this typical nice family man... spends time with his family... ferry-ing them everywhere... they were like The Perfect Couple.

And then one night he received a call from this family man asking him to visit a red light district...

Ok and this guy friend of mine is obviously no angel either but when he arrived at the 'location', he was shocked when everyone was familiar with his friend... obviously a regular patron at the place.

And suddenly everything is just a lie.

Or maybe the world is just fucked up this way.

Disappointed...

2009-09-07T15:13:00.004+08:00

The ballot results for Punggol Residences is out...

And once again our number really sucks.

I've been a good girl this year... so wheres the good karma?

Will just have to apply again... :(

Weekend cruise getaway

2009-09-07T13:27:00.007+08:00

As part of BoyFriend's bday celebration and our monthni-versary weekend... we went on a cruise to nowhere...

Onboard Star Virgo...

Our tiny room... with adjourning balcony... I love looking out at sea, listening to the waves crashes against the ship... and enjoying the sea breeze...

Our welcome drinks!

Theres just endless things to do onboard... and the many meals were one of the highlights...

Even before the ship set sail... we could have our first meal onboard... we chose dinner at Bella Vista, with a western menu...

And washed the food down with drinks!

Then we explored the ship... which was fun

No prizes for guessing how we spent the entire night... lots of drinking... and at the games room :P

And we woke up early for a nice breakfast

Great views from our table...

Breakfast was good!

And after a swim... we had lunch. haha... lots of food!

Me outside our lunch venue...

And we had a delightful dinner at the deck... with gorgeous views... and bbq food and beer. Probably my favourite meal of the entire trip...

We even tried our luck at bingo and lucky draw games...

Overall the cruise was great! can't wait for our next trip together...

Never who they seem to be

2009-09-07T12:36:00.004+08:00

So last weekend was booze filled:

Friday night drinks with Doro and LT together with Doro's colleagues and friends.

Zouking on Saturday night with Daph

The sudden influx of acquaintances made me realize how people are usually not who they seem to be.

Take for example this random guy Daph introduced on Saturday night.

At first sight he may seem the typical self made man: hes involved in some trading, investment related...

Currently living alone, parents and siblings are based in San Francisco.

Usual hobbies include travelling, occasional drinks at Zouk. Sounds tame enough. So we exchanged contacts... for networking purposes since we din have any namecards.

And several drinks later he becomes a changed man...

Guy: You know what? I'm in love with you.

Me: Huh? hmmm ok thanks i guess

Guy: Yes really you don't believe me? If you give me a chance I'll be willing to do anything for you. I will listen to whatever you say.

Me: Ok... but i'm attached... getting married probably (flashes pic of bf)

Guy: Just give me a chance... I've never felt this way before...

Me: Bet you tell that to every girl you know

Guy: No really you are the first

Me: (gives Daph the save me/lets get outta here look)

Guy: I'm heading to Toyko next week... come with me... i will get you anything you want

Me: Thanks really. But i'll pass.

So the moment he stepped away to the washroom, we made a speedy exit without saying good bye.

And why am i saying this? Its becoming hard to ignore the constant calls up to now...

I don't typically ignore people... its just who I am. But I think he deserves it.

And then again... isn't this what they always say at the beginning?

...

Just as I was typing this, LT dropped me a message online.

And yes... people are not who they seem to be.

Happy 26th bday celebration with BoyFriend

2009-09-03T12:09:00.008+08:00

BoyFriend's birthday celebration dinner was held at 7atenine @Esplanade... and I believed we both enjoyed ourselves tremendously...

The ambience here is amazing...

The birthday boy!

Its not easy to think of what to have... hmmmm... everything looks yummy!

I really liked the blue and white theme... and the setting was so romantic.

And the yummy food... We chose the Food unlimited... where the chef would prepare around 13 varieties of tapas... from starters to dessert... which is basically unlimited. BoyFriend also had the Beer unlimited after our very filling meal...

We were also given a choice of one main course each... totally sinful but worth it

One of my favourites... the scallops... of course we had several rounds of this...

It was interesting as the items were determined by the chef... so it was a surprise every time a dish came...

I believe this is the kurobuta pork belly wrap... one of our main courses.

And the foie gras and beef burger. yummy!!!

And several other tapas food which tastes very good as well

Happy 26th birthday baby darling!!! muakzzzzz

Farewell Anne!

2009-08-24T16:39:00.009+08:00

Before Anne left for Japan, the Fab Babes held a surprise farewell party for her.

We had pretty decorations...

The room was spacious and had a good view of the floating platform...

It was fun hiding the party secret from Anne! And we had lunch before we gave her the surprise

Lunch @ Brotziet was good! and we had lots of fun pic taking

I really like Liting's dress! She looks hawt!

Yummy happy beer!

The food was good too! Of course not as good as the company...

Ummm hmmmm

Then we sneaked back to the room to make the last minute preparations...

where we filled a bathtub filled with ice and drinks!

Surprise!!!

Evidently, Anne looked very touched! Awww

Happy party people!

Anne tried on the dress we got her... which had a sexy revealing back... nice!

The weather was amazing... look at the view...

Then the drinking started early evening till late...

time to pop the bubbly!

And we watched the fireworks from the comfort of our room

All looking abit tipsy... hmmmmm

We tried to enter Butter Factory but gave up as the queue was too long... a wasted trip...

Still, the farewell surprise was very successful! And I think we made our point to bid Anne farewell with a blast and to show her how much we would miss her.

I miss you Anne!!!

Partying without the Birthday girl

2009-08-24T16:22:00.005+08:00

The Fab Babes planned a follow up celebration for Liz on her actual day... and we decided to party on Mambo night to celebrate the occasion... then in typical disaster day fashion, the birthday girl could not make it in time... everyone was late... and the party... basically was kindda a flop.

Even my dinner sucked.

BoyFriend and I grabbed a quick dinner at Barcelos @Vivocity... and we were the earliest to arrive...

The food was totally not worth the money... I could have spent the same amount for much more enjoyable food at Ajisen or even Carls Junior... and totally not filling.

Then our attempt to get free drinks kindda flopped too cuz there were only me and Lt in the end... okay we look abit way too happy here... the prospect of free drinks on a mid day night always bring the smiles.

Then when we finally made it to Zouk... we decided that the birthday girl was not able to join. :(

we managed to take some pics though... outside zouk's toilet...

At the dance floor...

And we even danced a little at Phuture...

Called an early night as it was not what we planned for... Sometimes a party night can turn either ways... for some unkown reasons... so we can only try.

Crazier

2009-08-24T15:48:00.003+08:00

" I've never gone with the wind, just let it flow

Let it take me where it wants to go

Till you opened the door

And there's so much more I'd never seen it before

I was tryin' to fly but I couldn't find wings

But you came along and changed everything

You lift my feet off the ground

You spin me around

You make me crazier crazier

Feels like I'm falling and I

I'm lost in your eyes

You make me crazier crazier crazier"

I absolutely adore Taylor Swift's Crazier.

Don't remember the last time someone made me feel 'lost' and 'crazy'. Kindda a good thing perhaps.

Incidentally Dot posted something about Taylor Swift's Love Story. That I adore too. :)

Happy quarter life Alice!!

2009-08-24T15:29:00.003+08:00

And then more Korean cuisine on Liz's bday the next day!! so yummY!! We celebrated her bday at a Korean restaurant at ECP... it was a great venue as we had our own private room so basically we could goof around and make lots of noise without disturbing anyone else..

Our Alice baby turns 25!! (but she still looks kawaii and needs her ID checked when we enter clubs)

The Fab Babes.

Korean Feast-ing + Winebar chillout session + Zouk

2009-08-24T14:54:00.007+08:00

As the title of this post suggests... had korean food for dinner, followed by chilling out at Winebar and I met Daph for some zouking.

I think ever since my trip to Korea, I had been more or less a fan of Korean cuisine... and was delighted when the Fab Babes suggested Korean food for dinner... we headed to a small cozy Korean restaurant along the stretch of eateries near Bugis. yummmm

My kimchi soup

Kimchi pancake...

Then next on the agenda.. chill out session at Wine bar. Or initially it was supposed to be chill out but we ended up downing shots after we had a round of beer and another round of wine...

No pics of the shot down-ing moment though.. but MM managed to catch it in video... Talk about spontaneity.

Then I headed to Zouk members' for more rounds of drinks with Daph.

And no, I din get drunk. In fact I don't recall the last time I actually puked because of over-drinking. A good thing I must say...

Still, it was a good night :)

Happy 11th year anniversary to the Fab Babes!

2009-08-09T12:38:00.007+08:00

The Fab Babes escaped to Batam island for our 11th year anniversary and had a most memorable time...

This is us at Harbourfront terminal

We had to get up duper early in my standards in order to board the ferry... No slacking on the taking of pics though... everyone seemed to perk up for pic taking time...

The beautiful resort... Which imo was the only great place in Batam

And after a looong time getting ready... we finally set off to town area for some massage and lunchie. Somehow these cab rides were full of fun... with the right company...

And then of course we had A&W. Looks like the only decent food at the mall

All relaxed after a massage.

And thats all for pics from my camera... I got lazy after some time and slackened on the taking of photos while the other Fab Babes continued snapping away...

In all, not the best getaway location... and i probably wouldn't want to go back again... Still, it was great to spend the night with just the girls...

This came kindda late but... Happy 11st year anniversary!!!

I love y'all.

Just your heart in exchange for mine

2009-08-05T00:07:00.003+08:00

"My heart... It feels like my chest can barely contain it. Like it's trying to escape because it doesn't belong to me any more. It belongs to you. And if you wanted it, I'd wish for nothing in exchange - no gifts. No goods. No demonstrations of devotion. Nothing but knowing you loved me too. Just your heart, in exchange for mine" - Yvaine, Stardust

Wear sunscreen

2009-07-28T21:18:00.003+08:00

Whenever I'm feeling down and worn out... I listen to this and it makes me feel better instantly:

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of ’99

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it.

The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience…I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; oh nevermind; you will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked….

You’re not as fat as you imagine. Don’t worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing everyday that scares you

Sing Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts, don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss Don’t waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind…the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself. Remember the compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how. Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life…the most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don’t. Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees, you’ll miss them when they’re gone.

Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll have children,maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary…what ever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself either – your choices are half chance, so are everybody else’s.

Enjoy your body, use it every way you can…don’t be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it’s the greatest instrument you’ll ever own.. Dance…even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room. Read the directions, even if you don’t follow them. Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents, you never know when they’ll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings; they are the best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future. Understand that friends come and go,but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard; live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft. Travel. Accept certain inalienable truths, prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do you’ll fantasize that when you were young prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders. Respect your elders.

Don’t expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out. Don’t mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're 40, it will look 85. Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it.

Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth. But trust me on the sunscreen…

I miss the 38 gang!

2009-07-28T00:08:00.005+08:00

Have not met up with the JC gang for some time and I missed them!

During this time, it struck me how much we have all grown... we are currently all in serious relationships... and we have reached this point in our lives where our decisions have serious consequences. Its no longer as simple as rushing to complete our assignments, skipping classes... life used to be more carefree then.

And then at the end of the day, regardless of what happens... and how seldom we meet up... how we might grow apart... the close bonds of friendship that we had forged years ago would last us a lifetime.

Big Bro's solemnization

2009-07-27T23:35:00.006+08:00

Attended bro's solemnization ceremony at Botanical Gardens some time back...

Awww....

Its been a long time since I attended a wedding and it was most romantic...

Before the start of the ceremony, Bro was giving an impromptu speech on how he is now going to embark on another journey together with his wife...

There was a short portion where he likened his life to a story book... and every chapter marks a new beginning... with his marriage, is yet another chapter in the book. And hes looking forward to the many more chapters in his life where he will build with his wife.

Its not exactly the most original, interesting speech but it was heartfelt and at that moment, I could see in his eyes how he truly meant every word he said.

this pic was taken by the photographer... hmmm its really the best he took of me and bro.

After seeing so many failed marriages... somehow I'm not the most hopeful/happy person when I think about weddings. Somehow its no longer picture perfect when one is aware that several marriages could just end so easily.

However that doesn't mean that I no longer believe that marriages can work and true love prevails. And from what I saw... my bro has found this special person whom he truly loves.

I sincerely wish my bro and sis in law ever lasting happiness together.

Mad about soba

2009-07-27T23:30:00.002+08:00

Recently, BoyFriend and I have been crazy about soba!

Haha what a boring post but hey it looks yummy no?

Liting's Bday surprise!

2009-07-20T15:45:00.008+08:00

The girls managed to pull off a birthday surprise for liting.

which is kindda a huge achievement as we are typically not very punctual.

The weather was just amazing and we had quite a huge variety of food!

Din take more pics though... cuz I was too busy eating and posing for pics for other cameras. Din even manage to take a pic of the bday girl!

Happy quarter life Liting!!!

Say hello to Baby!

2009-07-20T15:25:00.002+08:00

And our new member of the family arrived!

Its Party time!

2009-07-20T14:26:00.003+08:00

I usually take the chance to pack my weekends without BoyFriend with partying sessions and meetups so that the gfs don't miss me too much...

Recently have been catching up with Daph daph. Shes such a party animal! Seldom see her outside of the club. And today was as usual. Met her at zouk for her pre-bday celebration and a couple of her colleagues. They were surprisingly friendly and its not often that I have so much fun with people I just met but I did! Even managed to dance abit in phuture...

2nd night of the weekend met up with the Hot Babes...

Been missing alot of our threesomes recently... due to individual committments... but would probably be meeting up soon!

WT's friend, Boon was spinning at Gallery bar so we headed over. Turned out to be tons of fun as if it was like a private party in a club venue. There was sufficient drinks and we met many new people.

Overall I had a fruitful weekend. Although it was spent partying away... I managed to open up abit a made some friends. Somehow I can be rather anti-social and socially awkard. But this weekend, I tried to mingle more with new people which was good in a way...

Happy 25th bday celebration with BoyFriend

2009-07-20T13:40:00.006+08:00

This year, BoyFriend arranged a weekend celebration on Sentosa.

Checked into the excellent Sentosa and Spa resort

The room was spacious and the bed was most comfy! I also loved the huge bath tub.

Had a long stroll along the beaches... and did some kayak-ing...

Then visited UnderWater World.

Somehow I must had too much sun and had a terrible headache at night. So we decided to postpone the dinner to the next day... and had room service for dinner instead...

Totally sinful!

Woke up to breakfast in bed... :)

In the evening, we headed to the originally planned birthday dinner venue... We had a great time here last year for BoyFriend's birthday... and this time round, we managed to catch the romantic sunset...

Totally stuffed ourselves... and I made my birthday wish over a lovely tiramisu cake...

Though last year was more eventful being in Gold Coast and all, this year was no less romantic/memorable.

Happy 25th bday celebrations

2009-07-20T13:03:00.006+08:00

This year, it was a weekend long of birthday celebrations with friends followed by another weekend alone with BoyFriend.

Had steamboat dinner with Jess and Jack. yummy!! Its not the typically japanese food dinner that I have with them so it was a nice change...

Then we headed to Gallery Bar for some champagne.. celebrations are not complete without the bubbly!

Saturday night met up with the Fab Babes for dinner at Brussels Sprouts and drinks after at The Wine Connection.

I was totally surprised when my birthday cake came! Although its tradition that we get cake for our birthdays every year, I was still caught off guard when the service staff brought the cake in. thanks babes for making the effort to keep it a surprise year after year!!

Drinks at Wine Connection... and we all had heart to heart talks afterwards.

There were more pics but somehow they turned out quite blur so never post them.

Had a great birthday celebration!! Thanks babes! Love y'all.

Last day in Taiwan

2009-07-20T11:27:00.007+08:00

We are going to the zoo zoo zoo... to see tuan tuan and yuan yuan

The highlight of the zoo trip is the panda exhibit! Was kindda disappointing as they were sleeping! the zoo was rather crowded. plus the unfortunate downpour made it difficult to walk around much...

So after visiting the indoor exhibits... we decided to head for indoor activities to avoid the rain

Lunch at so mall along the mrt line. I saw this Jill Stuart ad so we went shopping in the mall... and meantime we grabbed some lunch.

Very yummy kimchi soup!!

Then next on our itinerary is Hotspring spa at XinBeitou.

Nothing to see in this pic.. I just like it. :)

Our private hotspring room. There was a tub with normal water and another for hotspring water. And the connecting room had a sofa to relax on and a television. Quite a nice place!

Enjoyed our hotspring bath... afterwards my skin smelled of sulphur but was really smooth...

Then we went to Miramar for the ferris wheel ride... haha really covered alot of places. But it didn't feel hectic...

So we decided to have random food and street snacks for dinner... We started with some xiao long bao at Miramar cuz we were feeling hungry

And onward to Shilin Market

The must try Ji Pa with its long queue

And snow ice dessert...

I like this ad!

Then we met our future family member.... :) love him to bits

He just has this bring me home look that is impossible to ignore!

Initially I had several regrets during the process of bringing him back... but now after all the effort... I think its worth it. Even when I reach home every evening having to clean up after him... waking up every morning to his barking for food.. still no regrets.

At that time it might seem like a whimsical decision, but BoyFriend stood by me and supported me. Reminder to self: to give BoyFriend more hugs for always being by my side regardless.

Then of course we had to party our hearts out on our last night in Taiwan.

I loved Taiwan!!! and would probably head back at any chance possible.

How I wasted 30 minutes of my life

2009-07-06T17:45:00.005+08:00

So I received a phone call from this Mandarin speaking person supposedly from Hong Kong Disney Land. She asked me to attend their dinner event organized by 200 sponsers and some charity folks. It will be shown on some channel (she was speaking too fast) which is broadcasted all over Asia. And I was like... errrr i'm in SG how you want me to go HK?

Then she offered to send some disneyland tickets as they are celebrating some anniversary... which I couldn't catch as well. Fair enough... maybe some promo thing... so I gave her my address. At most just receive some junk mail with some advertising no big deal.

Several days later, I received the same phone call... this time to follow up if I had watched this show. No I did not.. of course not. I dun even know what show is that. So this time she added that I was very lucky to have won the 3rd prize... an SLK 280. WOWWW

Since I am located overseas, I could only be given the money in cheque so she confirmed my address again... okay fair enough give me cheque... some $700 000 HKD. About 140k SGD. Sounds too good right?

Being swarmed by work on a random Monday morning, I could not help but think what I could do with the money... get married soon... maybe. Give my mum some money... give everyone a treat.

I was feeling so happy at that moment, I called BoyFriend and told him about it... As we spent another few minutes thinking of what we could do... downpayment for flat? Holiday?

Suddenly work sounds like the last thing I want to do...

And then I googled: Hong Kong DisneyLand scam.

Damn. Wasted 30 minutes of my life.

Taiwan Trip Day 9

2009-07-05T15:36:00.005+08:00

Has it really been 3 months already? Its scary how fast time flies.

I'm going to quickly finish up blogging on the Taiwan trip like finally and start having some new relevant entries! So much has happened since then... My various bday celebrations... Liting's surprise at Botanical Gardens... Batam trip with the girls. and lots of spontaneous partying sessions...

So 9th day in Taiwan... 3 months and its still vivid!

Had brunch at Din Tai Fung. It supposed to taste better here but honestly I can't taste the difference. Its slightly cheaper though...

And a short cab ride away is Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall.

Probably can't see it in the pic but it was drizzing then.

Then we headed to Taipei 101.

Nothing much to do there except to take some shots as evidence.

Haha everything also can take...

Then theres this whole chunk of time missing without pics cuz we went shopping at WuFenPu!!! Finally got to do some shopping beyond XMD. Its funny that we hardly spent any time shopping during our trip to Taiwan. So I really made full use of our 2-3 hours there snapping up everything. And theres so much to buy!! I like all the act-cute, princessy dresses (though not suitable for me)... but I don't care! haha. Theres just rows annd rows of shops... like never ending shopping. So no time for pics! Plus it was raining by the time we got there. So in between shops we had to shelter ourselves from the rain and manage our many shopping bags.

Then after that we had to head back to our hotel to put down our stuff... before dinner. As its going to be the last night having dinner at XMD. We decided to try as many small cafes as possible... first stop was Tamagoya!

Duper cute interior

Not the best food but reasonably priced... followed by random food like Ah zong Mian xian and Ji Pa.. and any food that looks decent from the push carts. Was really tired after the full day of shopping so no partying... stayed out late at XMD shopping...

and our last day... sobs

Taiwan Trip Day 8

2009-07-05T14:39:00.009+08:00

Day 8 was in Sun Moon Lake for the most part and then back to Taipei!

I believe we had the best pictures taken today. The weather was glorious and the effect was just amazing! I totally enjoyed our time here. Also, I'm amazed by the many things we did today. Visited many areas, so many nice pics... so much fun.

This was taken at the window of the restaurant downstairs while we had our breakfast.

And we rode another round around the lake... taking several stops at the different attractions along the way.

This is WenWu temple... one of the attractions along the lake.

Peacock garden...

Bike buddies!

Wheeeeee

One of the higher points along the lake...

Gorgeous scenery

Then we made it back in time for our ferry ride starting from the harbour at the hotel...

Ferry rides can be sooo fun...

Meet our souvenir from all the accumulated 7 eleven purchases...

At Lalu island right in the middle of the lake...

And then back to Taipei! This time we were staying at another hotel, TS Hotel also at XiMenDing. It is nearer to the train station but not as centralized as Rainbow. But we liked this place more. The room was very spacious and I liked the interior...

And finally a good meal! I was missing the steamboat here so much that I made BoyFriend eat it with me one more time... I'm such a steamboat addict.

All geared up on our way to party the night away. Taipei rocks.

Went to Pasoul... only entry fee and we enjoy free flow drinks all night. And they served quality drinks... not the watered down kind. They even had absinthe and long island tea in their list of free drinks... but we din try that. Normally I would stick to a one type of alcohol policy if I want to avoid a bad hangover the next day... And the poison of choice for the night was Vodka Cranberry... me loveeee.

Also love the music! The dance floor before it was packed...

And just as we were getting sufficiently high... there was a club raid. So all drinking stopped.

The club raid was really over the top. There were many police men and tv crew...

Lights up... so we just took pics... and they checked everyone's ID...

Would really like to go back to Taipei to party again. Had too much fun!!!

Taiwan Trip Day 7

2009-07-05T08:42:00.003+08:00

Finally the sun came up and we quickly headed outdoors before we had to leave for Sun Moon Lake.

Caught the last glimpse of the cherry blossoms. Apparently they bloomed earlier this year so we could also see a few trees of cherry blossoms that have not withered yet...

Unfortunately in my haste, i did not pack proper hiking shoes. Wearing flats is so not suitable for all the climbing!

I think this is the Sisters Lake or something...

Then we took an incredibly tedious route to Sun Moon Lake... Bus to Jiayi station > Cab to the HSR > HSR to Taichung > Cab to Sun Moon Lake.

It was just crazy. Considering all the effort to get there. Taking a cab straight from Alishan to Sun Moon Lake would have been a better option.

When we reached our room in Sun Moon Lake, the view just took my breath away. Simply gorgeous

Complimentary dinner downstairs...

Then we strolled at the area around the hotel...

Admired the light ups along the harbour...

Later we rented a bike and ride round the lake. It took almost 2 hours as we were unsure of our way and it was really dark. So much so that I could see fireflies as we went past jungle areas. Luckily I was the pillion so I could relax, feel the wind against my face and admire the night scenery. Had a most memorable time...

Taiwan Trip Day 6

2009-07-04T12:57:00.007+08:00

Just less than an hour train ride away from Kaoshiung is Jiayi... en route to Alishan. Decided on going by the incredibly slow Alishan forest railway which was a built along a scenic road uphill to Alishan. It took about 4 hours I think. Super long! But since we decided that we are likely not to revisit, we just had to experience this once in a lifetime.

Upon arrival, we were informed that we are unable to bring up our huge luggages as the railroad was broken halfway. So there was 20-30 minute hike where all passengers had to get down, bring along their belongings and walk through the forest, climb stairs and all to get to the connecting railroad.

Thus it was a frantic rush for us to pack everything we needed for the night into our carry on bags. Luckily we made it in time as the train was about to leave! whew.

yay we made it! Now for the duper long ride uphill. We plugged in our ipods and chatted, admired the scenery as we were on the train. Also met this helpful/nice elderly couple from LA. They seemed to be on their retirement trip as they had visited a couple of places in Asia and this was one of their destinations. I really wished one day I would be able to retire comfortably and just travel the world. But by then I'm not too sure if I would have the energy... hmmmm

One of the sights along the way... kindda reminds me of the train ride we had in Cairns. Just much more slower and it was quite a bumpy ride! There were several tunnels, spirals and switching of rails where the train had to reverse to get onto the connecting rail. Very interesting indeed.

This was taken when we switched trains... the hike was not too tiring but we were glad we packed light!

And several hours later... we finally reached Alishan. And to our utter disappointment, it was raining. The area was shrouded in mist... and it was very cold...

See how Silent Hill misty it is...

And we checked into XinXin minsu where we were staying for the night. As we arrived rather early, we were lucky to be given a 4 person room. So it was really spacious. The ominous weather kept us indoors for the rest of the day as there was absolutely nothing to do outside due to the heavy downpour. We were warned that the rain was too heavy for hiking... and that the weather might continue this way through the night.

Turns out we really were stuck indoors for the whole day we were there. We could only make the best of the situation... and totally pigged out... and watched a couple of movies back to back on HBO. I was surprised that they had sooo many tv channels considering their location and how laid back the place was.

We also napped alot... and finally we ventured out for dinner when the rain was lighter.

11 degrees! Its kindda cold here. But we love cold weather.

Our steamboat dinner

Unfortunately it rained the entire night afterwards and we could not view the sunrise which was supposedly the highlight of our stay here. Was feeling disappointed and sad as I was really looking forward to an beautiful sunrise memory with BoyFriend...

Taiwan Trip Day 5

2009-07-04T11:42:00.007+08:00

5th day was also spent in Kaoshiung... where we took most of our pics along the mrt line! Okay cuz its new and clean and all. Plus at main stations, they had some attractions which were great backdrops for our cam whore pics... heee

Haha we had tons of fun. :)

came to a point when we could self entertain by getting lost between stations.

As we headed to Cijin Island for seafood... we stopped by a dessert store selling very yummy ice desserts... mmmmmmmm

Ferry to Cijin Island. Supposedly good and cheap seafood... which we thought otherwise after trying it. SG definitely has much tastier/cheaper/prepared in hygenic conditions seafood.

The view at Cijin Island

At least the sunset was beautiful.

And then we headed to Love River and took a bumboat ride. It used to be really dirty and foul smelling along the river but has been cleaned up recently.

As usual we kept ourselves entertained by taking loads of pics.

LiuHe Market. Kaoshiung's version of Shilin Night market. Didn't eat anything as they did not look as appetising as the food at Shilin.

And this was one of the attractions along the main stations at Kaoshiung. I think its called the galaxy of lights or something. Cool right?

Overall a very relaxed day. Chilled out at our room afterwards to get prepared for our long trip to Alishan the next day...

Taiwan Trip Day 4

2009-06-21T20:06:00.010+08:00

En-route to Kaoshiung...

The High Speed Rail was really fast and it took less than 2 hours to arrive...

Nothing much to do, but cam-whoring while waiting for the train can be lots of fun. Somehow there was little to do at Kaoshiung but time really flew past fast. Even when we got lost between mrt stations, it was a most memorable experience.

On our way to Dream Mall, supposedly the largest mall in Taiwan. I really like their mascots!

Lunchtime at some o-school tuckshop themed restaurant.

The Hello Kitty ferris wheel at Dream Mall

And cuz we were such gluttons, we had tea break at TGIF

The best time to take the ferris wheel is supposed to be at night... which we did... and it was most romantic.

Each cabin has its own cushions of Hello Kitty and Friends. Way cute!

Unfortunately I was having a terrible headache and later on gastric pain which put a damper on our night. Managed to check out this club with entry fees and free flow of drinks but left shortly. No pics though!

Anyway one thing for sure, despite all my unreasonable requests and whimsical wants, BoyFriend would never complain and always does his best to please me... And thats why he's my favourite travel companion.

:) and we promised to travel the world together