The Proposal, Moon and Time Traveler’s Wife in one weekend
We contributed nicely to the weekend movie ticket sales (not often but we try) for three shows over last Saturday/Sunday. Starting the movie mayhem was “The Proposal” starring Sandra Bullock and some young dude. Simple premise with the threat of deportation causing Sandra to propose to her assistant and thus giving us a many laughs throughout the show. Favorite scene : naked wet couple running into each other *grin*.
Sunday morning, we caught “Moon” @ The Picturehouse (The Cathay). This movie caught my attention #1 for being a sci-fi film, #2 being shot on the (set of the) Moon (week before we also had the debunking of the moon landing if you can believe that)! The lack of good science fiction is getting on my nerves so I’m glad for directorial debuts in “Moon” and “District 9“. The subject matter of cloning isn’t new but the very process of discovery about the cloning deceit and great visuals (I miss the look and feel of good old models) made for an entertaining viewing even if it has a very limited screening here. As we left the cinema, we also caught the trailer of a very funny Israeli movie,”A Matter of Size“, about sumo wrestling but unfortunately, all four screenings have been sold out!
“Time Traveler’s Wife” from my short review on Bookjetty of the book (2nd read) while Yh is on her 2nd read also.
Bought this book while taking a flight up to Bangkok to pass the time.
Got quite absorbed in the fascinating narration that I had trouble
putting it down during the trip. Might not be the best book for some if
you find yourself having trouble with time travel stories. I love it
though.
Both of us agreed that while the attempt at making the film was admirable, it would be too difficult to achieve the emotion and pace of the book so it was a slight letdown (especially after second reads of the book).
Zhi Cha gets featured! 煮炒来咯 or Sizzling Woks every Wednesday 8pm
Sizzling Woks (煮炒来咯) just started airing today on Channel U and we were able to catch the first episode. I forgot to record the show on the media center and missed out on the first stall’s address (thanks to bobafett81’s forum post for additional info). This week’s episode featured two stalls in Ang Mo Kio. With delicious food like crayfish and pumpkin prawn balls, we must go try it out (or get one of the dishes for upcoming potluck dinner)!
豪乡海鲜小厨
BLK 158 Ang Mo Kio Ave 4
1． 双味鱼 / 2 Taste Fish S$25 (Crispy Fried Fish with special oyster sauce, and Water Boiled Fish with Assa sauce)
2． 金沙虾婆 / Golden Sands Crayfish S$18 (made with goat milk powder)
3． 沙皮鸡 / Sha Pi Chicken S$16 (each day only has 20 Sha Pi Chicken for sale)
甘家庄
BLK 202, Ang Mo Kio Ave 3
1． 东坡肉 / Dong Po Meat S$12 (pork cooked for 3 hours with special sauce and spring onion and ginger)
2． 金瓜奶王虾球 / Golden Pumkin Crispy Prawn Balls S$14 (Pumpkin sauce made with Mashed Pumpkin which has been steamed for 3 hours, butter, evaporated milk and curry leaves)
3． 金针菇豆腐 / Mushrooms with Tofu S$8.
Sources:
http://www.makansutra.com/forums/singapore/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=17075&p=268941
http://8.mediacorptv.sg/programmesdetail.aspx?iid=MDC090903-0000007
Short stay at Sentosa
Sentosa is quickly becoming our weekend getaway choice. We’re back again at Rasa Sentosa (2nd stay) and just having a quick lunch at Silver Shell Cafe.
Planning to catch Up 3d in awhile and a walk via Imbiah’s 11th new attraction (after last week’s botanic garden visit, we’re in the nature mood!).
Musings: botanic gardens ginger Nature orchid rainforest Singapore
by michael
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Rainforest Walk at Singapore Botanic Gardens
It’s not often that we decide to be “tourists” in Singapore and so when Yh suggested the Botanic Garden’s as a place to visit for the weekend, we decided to do it instead of the usual movie and meal in Orchard. Unfortunately, my body clock decided to play havoc and meant I was up at 4am! (3 hours before we were due to get up and set off for Singapore Botanic Gardens).
After a quick cab ride down towards Chuny road we were just in time to get breakfast and sign up for the Rainforest tour (held every 2nd saturday of the month).
Our guide for the day would be a school teacher who had an excellent knowledge about the various trees and plants dotting the boardwalk. It felt almost like a geography lesson with some rather knowledgeable participants chipping in little notes of interest about Australia and India. We also learnt that the patch we were walking through was a primary rainforest (i.e. one which had not been cleared before and thus was much more bare than a secondary forest which would be thicker).
How to spot an ailing rainforest?
- big patches of sunlight seeping through (the one we were in blocked up to 80% sunlight while a healthy one blocked up to 90+%)
- little or no fungi (we spotted some white fungus but it was only just starting)
There was small efforts being done to repair the damage to the rainforest like replanting trees along a path that was damaged by visitors when the boardwalk was not fenced and sprinkler systems to aid in the hydration. We also learned that the banana tree was in fact incorrectly categorized as it was actually a herb.
There was also an “Ah Beng” of the rainforest that had been imported but was thriving the expense of the native plants. There’s many more useful information that would definitely benefit folks who are interested in nature. We’re already planning to join the next tours that will focus on the Ginger and Orchid Garden as well as the Evolution trail.
After the hour tour, we ventured off on our own to the Ginger Garden where we caught sight of the ginger (Etlingera elatior – Torch Ginger) used in our much loved Singaporean Rojak.
Couroupita guianensis – Cannonball Tree was also fascinating due to the huge fruit it bore which resembled its namesake. The flowers were brightly colored and I wasted no time getting some very interesting macro shots of them (bugs included).
The Orchid Garden was next (SGD $5 adult admission fee) and there we spent lots of time walking around and snapping up photos of the various orchids in the well designed garden. Also noticed the frangipani flower above just resting on a bed of leaves just along the path.
Over at the Mist House, there was some rather well maintained varieties that really caught our eyes. The textured colors and bright purples was a delightful subject to photograph.
The Cool House also showed off the types of orchids that will suit a wetter and cooler climate with a refreshing waterfall and mist that surrounded us as we enjoyed the respite from the heat.
There was so many varieties of orchids that I’ve just highlight some of our favorites. Feel free to enjoy more of the photos over at the album. We’re already looking forward to the next visit back to the Botanic Gardens!
Musings: drive fireworks Kukup Malaysia Travel weekend
by michael
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Drive to Kukup for dinner n fireworks
About a hour and quarter drive from Singapore is the coastal village Kukup in Malaysia. This would be our 2nd trip there in recent years (July 2007) but this time would be shorter since we were just planning on good food and some fireworks fun. Getting to Kukup is pretty easy since there is only one direct route via Tuas second link and then heading up to Pontian Kechil and then back south to Kukup. You can’t miss the signs on the way. We also passed by Gelang Patah where we had dined at “Restoran Tian Lai” on July 19th.
After setting off at, we hit immigration at around 5.15pm and both cars set off towards the village. The ride was uneventful via the rather well maintained country roads (mostly single lane) and we reached our destination at around 6.30pm. Parking (I think it was RM $4) is very convenient with a small bus that will take you to the village centre (5-10 min walk).
Ig recommended Ah Keong’s food as he had been here recently and we settled in to order a sumptious meal of fried bee hoon, stewed fish and crayfish. Crabs was unfortunately not available but the last dish of steamed prawns more than made up for it. Total bill was approx RM $225 which was pretty decent.
The other aim of the trip was to set off some fireworks. After some negotiation, we trooped off to find a corner to set off some explosive fun. Video below shows the highlights after some minor technical difficulties getting a good sequence (most of us were noobs at this).
About to board HSR to Kaohsiung
About to board HSR to Kaohsiung
Musings: Shi Lin Night Market Taipei Taiwan Travel Xi Men Ding
by michael
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Day 1 Singapore to Taipei
0750 : We got to Terminal 1 @ Changi Airport quite early and proceeded to get our boarding pass. T1 compared to the new T3 really feels quite old.
This is the first time our whole family has travelled together since 2002 China Trip(before my sis and myself got married)! This time round, we have baby Celeste along with us.
The plane trip (via China Airlines) was pretty smooth with some turbulence reaching Taipei. With my third visit, everything seems just as it is with the only difference being this would be summer and the weather would pretty much be similar to Singapore.
Celeste was great throughout her first plane trip with her usual curiosity in everything. The trip to our hotel (booked via Chan Brothers) at Hotel Riverview Taipei took slightly less than an hour since traffic was pretty good. This was a short 10 minutes walk to Xi Men Ding although I preferred Wonstar which we stayed during the last trip for its nicer rooms.
1820 : After a quick drop of our luggage, we proceeded to Xi Men Ding to take a quick walk around. On route, there was a road side stall selling Onion Pancakes (yh loves them) next to a cinema.
Since we were in Xi Men Ding, we had to try the famous Ah Zhong Mian Xian. This delightful soup noodle is great to have in all seasons! We got shared 2 bowls between my parents and ourselves.
1920 : My sis, bro-in-law and Celeste went off to find a place more suitable to have dinner while parents, yh and myself headed down to Shi Lin night market.
While we were there, we had to try Hao Da Ji Pa (fried chicken cutlet) which I never miss out on since tasting it in 2003! Of course, we also made sure to cool off with a bowl of mango shaved ice while my parents had a mixed fruit. See my dad enjoy the cold milk syrup shaved ice in the hot summer.
The crowds in the summer was even more than I remembered during the winter period. Seems everyone enjoyed taking a stroll past the various roadside stalls selling all manners of food stuff and clothing.
The illegal hawkers also displayed their wares in easy to display (and pack up) mats/ or tables which quickly disappeared into the alleys when the police came patrolling. The crowds would just cover up the gaps as if nothing had happened. We also passed by a shop where Yh had bought a bag in 2006 although nothing really caught her eye this time round. Since the night was still young, we split up on the way back when my parents wanted to explore Xi Men Ding further. We went and caught a movie “Blood : The Last Vampire” (our first in Taipei) near the onion pancake stall. Movie was below average and very cheesy effects. By the time we reached back to our hotel, it was about midnight and we turned in for a early day to Yang Ming Shan.
Arrival at terminal 1
Arrival at terminal 1