Bangkok: I'll Still Smile

The most significant highlight of the day took place (once again) in the evening. 

This, however, wasn't a pleasant one. 

I guess one could say that I ought to be thankful it hadn't begun in the morning. 

Lest it ruin my day otherwise.

Because it would have had. 

Instead this morning, like we'd done previous mornings, we had a breakfast of organic eggs and the 19-Grain Toast that we had bought from the Lemon Farm store. My eggs this morning were scrambled, and the bread was fried. 

In the late morning we headed to Ploenchit where he had a medical appointment, and so we managed to have a plate of basil pork rice for lunch at our regular Boat Noodle place. 

I can't remember whether I had a bowl of boat noodles or not.

And I don't know why I don't have a picture.

(That's what happens when the brain is too occupied)

From here we took a BTS at Ploenchit down to Chidlom, then walked through Gaysorn Plaza to the Big C building where from Boots I got my new favorite body mist. 

Frankly I ought to take a picture of the Vanilla Almond Body Mist from UK brand Soap & Glory, but right now I don't have one, but let me tell you, I've fallen completely in love with the scent in this translucent pink bottle.  

I wish I could tell you just when it was I fell in love with body mists.

Maybe it was after coming to BKK after a long, long hiatus and finding out how wonderful the scents of body mists lingered. 

Maybe it was after realizing mists were much easier to transfer to smaller bottles as compared to EDPs where I'd have to use the pipette or spray it in bit by bit by bit. 

But I fell in love with them all over again- in Thailand- and am currently into my new favorite one. 

From Boots we headed up to the supermarket on the 2nd floor, to Big C itself, where we got packets of pumpkin seeds and packets of goji berry powder. 

I unfortunately didn't get a chance to go in this time. 

Instead I perched myself on a bench outside the entrance, jaga-ing the trolley bag and watching other shoppers go in and out of the supermarket. 

Always a joy it is to watch the shoppers as they make their way into the supermarket with an empty carrier bag (or sometimes a suitcase which they then have to check in upstairs) and come out bearing either Big C's carrier bags (of varied sizes) and sometimes, a carton- supplied by the supermarket and which you have to tape it up yourself. 

We haven't gotten a carton thus far.

But we do have a gigantic carrier bag that we later used to put newly bought shoes. 

My friend came out with an armful of packets, we stuffed them into his trolley bag, and headed off to Siam Square for a massage at Thai Thai. 

Again this afternoon we did a 4-in-1, or is it a 5-in-1... I don't particularly remember, but whatever it is I'm there for, I always fall asleep. 

It always happens somewhere in the middle of the foot massage, around the time when the therapist is working her hands over my calves, circulating the blood in the vessels. I'm always astounded by the skill they have, that somehow, don't know how, through the skin they can sense, and detect, where the affected points are, applying the accurate amount of pressure to ease that particular point. 

Hardly has there ever been a time that I don't fall asleep during a massage.

Which is a good thing since due to the time difference I sleep later than I normally do, and I wake up an hour earlier than I usually do. 

When we finished my friend told me about this restaurant somewhere in the Silom area that had been recommended, and which seemed to be pretty good. 

So we got on the BTS, on the Silom Line, and headed to Chong Nonsi BTS station. 

Located at 150 Silom Soi 3 in the Bang Rak district, it is a short walk from the Chong Nonsi BTS station, and by right, it is not a difficult place to get to, except that the still half-awake brain gets sometimes confused by Google Maps and we ended up criss crossing both sides of the station on opposite sides of the road more than a couple of times. 

Eventually we took Starbucks and McDonalds as our guide points, got the right side of the station, the right side of the road, and walked straight from there.

Lon Lon Local Diner sits snugly at one corner of the Trinity Silom Hotel. 

I'm not sure how the rooms are like, but the lobby brings back a familiar feel of the 90s where the floor tiles are shiny, the furniture is minimalist functional, and there's plenty of space. 

It's one of those places where people generally do stand around or sit around whilst waiting for friends to come down or for friends to come in. 

You can almost expect a convoy of tour coaches bearing group tourists parked outside the entrance as they excitedly wait to check in, or wait after having checked out. 

What makes this restaurant interesting is just how compact, and eclectic the place is. 

It's very Instagrammable- the place- and throws out plenty of old-school coffee shop vibes. If you ever wondered what a coffee house (in Thailand) might have looked like several decades ago (maybe the 70s or 80s), this place might be it. To us who don't have a clue, it's vintage, warm and quirky. To us who do know, it's probably nostalgic, maybe familiar, even. 

Reviews praise the presence of gluten-free, lactose-intolerant and vegan dishes on the menu.

And no kidding, there really are plenty of dishes that meet the criteria of all three.

Not that we were paying attention though. 

We were caught up in the variety of set menus, mains, starters, salads, soups, sides, desserts, and we spent a good amount of time looking over the menu, trying to make up our minds whether we ought to have just the set menu, or mains along with the set menu. 

In the end we decided we'd have both mains and a set and maybe some starters.

Now came the challenge of trying to decide on the set menu. 

It's not easy, I tell you, when there's so much here to choose from. 

Two rows, twenty-three items, including dishes like Stir Fried Kale with Crispy Pork served with Boiled Egg in Black Soup, Spicy Stewed Duck Thigh Soup served with Fried Chinese Sausage, Massaman Curry served with Vegetarian Spring Rolls, Pan-Fried Salted King Mackerel Fillet served with E-Sarn Tom Yum Mushroom Soup, and fish dishes like Fried Sea Bass in Garlic Chili Sauce served with Holy Basil Soup with Ground Pork.

You see the dilemma?

On one hand I was keen on trying the E-Sarn dishes.

On the other hand I wanted to know if their Massaman curry tasted the same as I assumed it would be. 

We took a while. 

But finally, after a bit of discussion between one and the other, we decided on the Chili & Salt Soft Shell Crab served with Boiled Egg in Black Soup. 

For a while we wondered what the Black Soup was.

And we still don't know what the soup was, except that it was clear, it was fragrant, there was plenty of sweetness to it, and we think it might have been a mix of different kinds of meat boiled in the soup mixed with herbs and sweet soy sauce. 

Then again the ingredients in this soup might be far from what we've guessed. 

And for the life of me, I cannot remember whether there was any chicken inside this soup! 

Perhaps my attention was too caught by the crispiness of the soft shell crab, which, by the way, was fried perfectly well. 

I cannot emphasize just how good the batter of the crab was. 

Yes, on surface it looked like it had a tiny little bit of a bready, dry texture, but it disappeared every time you took a bite. 

I don't know if it were the taste of the oil or if it were the tenderness of the crab meat itself, but the batter of the crab complemented the tender, clear-tasting flesh of the crab perfectly, and every bite became a combination of crunch, crisp, soft tender meat mixed with a perfect blend of flavors in the form of chili spice and salt. 

The flavors were huge when it came to this crab. 

For whilst it might seem nondescript- chili and salt, really, that's it- here at Lon Lon they had done it so well that the simplicity of both seasonings made for a wholesome meal altogether. 

I loved that the chili wasn't overwhelming. 

And neither was the salt so salty that you felt like you needed a drink to recover. 

Somewhere during our dinner of the soft shell crab, the rest of our order arrived. 

There was a huge bowl of Tom Kha coconut soup.

There was a Prawn Meat Omelet. 

Then from the starter menu we had ordered Fried Crab Meat Pork Rolls. 

Again the dishes might seem common and ordinary, like the kind we'd have if we were in any Thai or Thai-Chinese place, but we were overwhelmed by the size, and the depth of flavors in every dish. 

I don't know how it is but Thais (and Thai-Chinese) seem to have a distinctive way of flavors when it comes to their food. 

It would be lovely if I knew how to describe it using proper descriptive terms, but terms like sweet and savory and sharp and sour don't make the best descriptions for their food. 

The best I can come up with is that their flavors are rounded, sometimes stimulating, sometimes full of warmth, always comforting, always harmonized, always blended to the perfect degree that you never really get stunned or overwhelmed by the dishes (save for those extra spicy type that you ask for) 

It's like there wouldn't have been much to expect with Tom Kha the coconut soup. 

I am, after all, well acquainted with the dish- this being one my favorites ever since I first discovered it-  and this bowl might have felt like any other tom kha that I've had at favorite places back in the island, but for some reason, theirs felt richer, warmer and more comforting. 

Maybe because they were more generous with the coconut water or the coconut milk.

Maybe because the soup had had lots of ingredients inside. 

There were mushrooms, there were vegetables, there were lots of chicken pieces- all big, tender and easy to chew ones. 

I'm not sure how I should describe the Crab Meat Pork Rolls- I don't know enough of what we regularly call ngoh hiang to write about them but my friend said that the filling was far more luscious and packed compared to some other ngoh hiangs he had eaten before. 

Honestly, it was the omelet that surprised me. 

I mean, it's an egg.

There's not much to say when it comes to an egg, but that's the whole point. 

Because whilst it is a simple dish that's super easy to prepare, it isn't every place that serves you this much egg in a big, fluffy omelet that's chock full of big, fresh prawns dotted here and there. 

I, of course, had to put the chili aside. 

This dinner experience here at Lon Lon was wonderful. 

I had everything with rice. 

Whether it was the omelet, the chicken pieces, the rolls, I ate them all with rice. 

But we had to skip on the dessert. 

There wasn't enough time, and in any case I'd had with me a glass of iced coffee cold, strong and sweet prepared in the condensed milk style. 

I shall have to wait till another time to have the dessert, and this time I hope I'll be able to have the Coconut with Salted Egg Yolk, and the Dirty Lon Lon. 

Both sound interesting, especially the latter, with its Salted Coconut, Plain Coconut, Banana, Biscuit, Chocolate, Almond and Banana Liquor. 

Anyway, up till now I haven't written about what it is that was most significant for the day. 

You know what, I don't feel like going into detail about it- the feeling's still fresh and it's not time to talk about victory and victory smiles yet- but yes, like the title says, whatever it might be, I'll Still Smile. 

(And I pray, next time when I do come here to try more of their food, I'll dig the sugar, and I'll still smile)

Bangkok: The Centara Japanese Buffet

Our breakfast this morning was one of organic eggs fried in a pan over the stove, and two slices of 19-Grain Toast bought from the Lemon Farm Organic Store just down the road. 

For some reason I didn't get to take pictures of the food we had this morning. 

Maybe my mind was occupied.

Maybe I was thinking about something else. 

In any case we did some work in the morning here in the room, then walked down Lang Suan Road towards Central Embassy for lunch. 

It's a short walk, and interestingly, we pass by the road that leads into Nai Lert Park and Central Chidlom's TOPS supermarket, which always has a special place in my heart for being the very first TOPS supermarket I visited all those months ago. 

Lunch at OKONOMI on the upper floor, and this afternoon we had our usual favorites. 

I ordered a Salmon and Cheese Mazemen. My friend ordered Spicy Salmon Rice, and we shared a bowl of Pumpkin Soup. 

I don't have a picture of the Spicy Salmon Poke- usually we're quite hungry by the time the food comes to the table so we just eat. 

But the sauce is nice- an tasteful mix of layu oil, sweet soy, negi and shiso- there's cured salmon- all cut into little cubes- and then there's carrot tsukemono sitting on top a bed of multi-grain rice. 

My friend loves the rice. 

I, on the other, love the noodles of the Mazemen. 

It's so fascinating that I never seem to get tired of this dish no matter how many times I have it. 

Maybe it's the combination of sweet soy, shiso, and lemon zest in the noodles. 

Maybe it's the cured salmon also all cut into tiny little cubes that make this a wholesome, pleasant dish to eat. 

I like mixing up the noodles with the camembert cheese and the carefully concocted sauce. It makes the noodles creamier, it heightens the flavor of the noodles and it adds a chew to the noodle that wasn't that obvious before. 

We took our time with the Pumpkin Soup whilst getting some work done. 

Afterwards we crossed over to Moon Massage at Siam Square for one of my favorite massages to be had in BKK- the 4+1 massage that combines a foot massage with a bit of hand, shoulder, neck and head. 

The most charming thing about this treatment is that I don't have to change my clothes (I'm lazy), my hair doesn't get oily (even though I love a good head spa) and the skillful therapists are able to get the toxins out just by doing a good massage over the right nerves, the right veins, and the right lymph nodes. 

I always tend to fall asleep whenever I do a 4+1. 

If I'm not too tense, that is. 

When we finished, we headed across the road to a restaurant on the 24th floor of Centara Grand. 

My friend had heard about the Japanese buffet at NAMA Restaurant and wanted to try. 

Guess what, it was one of the best Japanese buffets I'd ever had thus far. 

Would you believe me if I said it blew my mind? 

Up till now I had never known just how expansive a Japanese-themed buffet could be. 

On one side there was a salad and seafood bar. 

Adjacent to it was a drinks bar. 

Then right at the back, round where the coffee machine was, the dessert counter. 

One however doesn't begin the meal with dessert.

So I headed back to the salad bar, where, with everything there was there, I took a couple of cherry tomatoes, some carrots, a bit of corn mayo, and some crab salad. There was tamago, so I helped myself to a couple slices of that too. 

When it came to the seafood there were fresh oysters, so I took three.

But then this evening was also Fresh Seafood evening, and so my friend ordered an even larger bowl. 

The highlight of this evening was the dish we call Special Box. 

A wooden box in the zen-est shade of brown, it was a sashimi lover's dream. 

Not only were the slices all aesthetically arranged, the colors- in the shades of orange, pink, red and white- were appetizing, and beautiful. 

They didn't stinge with the sashimi, I tell you. 

Laid over a bed of ice were slices of squid, ikura, tuna, fatty tuna, salmon, fatty salmon, abalone, scallops, even sea urchin. 

I quite liked the ikura, the fatty salmon, the fatty tuna, the salmon and the tuna. 

The squid's chew, however, took some getting used to (I'm lazy- don't like to chew too long), as well as the abalone, which was in fact very clean tasting but texture felt somewhat grainy, which surprised me. 

The sea urchin, I didn't mind- I ate a bit of it the same way I ate a bit of everything- but my friend liked it better, so most of my sea urchin went over to his side. 

Perhaps it was the presence of lots other food which I wanted to try. 

It's hard for me to ignore when on the menu there's Wagyu Sushi and Fried Cheese. 

Then there were Grilled Scallops with Mentaiko sauce, there were Grilled Salmon Belly, Salmon Aburi and Grilled Prawns. 

We had a bit of grilled meat which came served on brown leaves and you just laid the whole leaf over the portable charcoal grill.

Then another highlight of the meal was the Crab Soup. 

Which, one would have thought would be enough to come served in a bowl, but no, there was the aesthetic part of it, and instead of it being in a regular, ordinary bowl, it came served in the shell of a crab. 

Shall I say that the soup was more of a rich textured broth than a regular seafood soup?

That it felt more like it had been simmering in the pot for hours and hours before being served. 

It helped that we heated the soup over the portable stove and that stirred up so many of the little bits in broth you felt like you were having lots of little crab bits itself. 

I'm not sure if we had other foods after that, but there was dessert, for sure, and this evening we chose some interesting ones off the menu.

There was a bouncy-looking Konnyaku jelly served with a sweet sauce of brown sugar. The shape reminded me of a big round crystal.... or an LED light. 

We had macarons (don't ask me what flavor it was), a serve of lava cake (overflowing with melted chocolate inside), and, for my friend, slices of chilled Japanese melons (cantaloupes?) that he said were fantastic and amazing and familiar and perfect all at the same time. 

Tis' a pity that we didn't get to try more. 

Displayed in the chiller counter display there was a matcha cheesecake that I thought looked really lovely, and they had a selection of ice creams that included strawberry cheesecake.

But I was full, and didn't want to stuff myself more. 

So, off we went, armed with a very satisfied palate, a very full stomach, and a thermos of iced genmaicha that I sneaked out of the restaurant.

Bangkok: Up the Ramp

Last flight out for the day it was for me to BKK this time.

To my (ignorant) surprise, it was full. 

It had not occurred to me that this many people took the 930pm flight out from SG to BKK. 

But there I was, seated at the Departure Lounge of Gate A6 in Terminal 3 with groups of people here and there around me.

Special mention must be made of this Gate. 

It is one of those gates located at ground level where instead of going straight on travellators as most passengers do, you go down an escalator instead. 

Yes, Gate A5, 6, and a few others more are at ground level. 

They're the kind of gate where you don't walk through the aerobridge to get onto the plane. 

Instead they're the kind of gate where you're guided onto a bus- baggage and all- and where the bus speeds its way here there everywhere over the tarmac to get you to your plane that's parked all lonely somewhere on the runway.

That's not all.

You have to climb up a ramp. 

Which, I have to say, can be quite an experience, considering that the time is 930pm, that the skies are dark, and you only have the lights of the runway stretch to light up the path for you. 

I don't mind climbing up the stairs. 

Just that I didn't think (what with Changi building T1,2,3,4 and now 5) we'd still board the plane the way as we did back when the airport was in Paya Lebar, or Kallang. 

What matters most is that one gets a smooth and safe flight, however, and we touched down BKK's Don Mueang at 11pm local time. 

Previously we had had a car booked via Klook, so we headed out to the area where all the ground transportation was, and found the car that would bring us to Urbana Langsuan.

coming this late to BKK has its benefits. 

The roads (some of them) are quieter, and you get to skip all the jams.  

The lobby was half dark, and quiet by the time we arrived at the hotel, but there was the staff at the door, there were the staff at the reception desk, check in was quick and smooth, there weren't a lot of regulations to listen to (thank God) and we got to our room soon. 

I had thought I was tired enough to shower, relax and fall asleep but I found myself feeling a little keyed up, so we decided to head out to the nearby 7-11 that we'd seen along the way where we got bottles of water, and a small tube of facial wash, which I had forgotten to bring. 

Afternoon Tea @ The Rose Veranda

You know, this may seem a little strange, but for once in my life I'd really like to just plonk all the pictures I took during Afternoon Tea at The Rose Veranda in Shangri-La Hotel- and leave them there. 

No Words.

Just Pictures. 

But here's the thing.

I only took picture of the very empty, and very pretty tea cup.

I didn't take picture of the tea pot.

I didn't take picture of the tea.

Maybe I was too busy drinking.

Maybe I was too busy eating.

And maybe I was too busy peering through the curved prongs of the carved banister down to the hotel's main lobby below. 

It's an interesting place, this Rose Veranda. 

At first glance it might not seem like a very big deal- many a hotel have their F&B areas also on the second and third floors- but you'll soon realize what a difference soft carpeting, comfortable armchairs and sun-filled spaces make. 

It is for this very reason that one must carefully make their selection of tea. 

Which, by the way, there is much they offer. 

Inexperienced me had assumed that there would be selections only in the range of three or four, but, no, not only did they have Black Tea, Oolong Tea, White Tea, and Green, they had Floral Imprinted, Single Estate, and the Blends. 

I was so tempted to try a tea called Rwandan Orthodox Tea from the Black Tea selection- it was supposed to have a caramelly aftertaste and a soft floral aroma, but then there was also the (malty) Kenyan Broken Pekoe, and the Nuwara Eliya from the Lovers Leap Estate. 

In the end I decided to have a signature: The Shangri-La Tea.  

It's not every day one gets to have a Ceylon tea blended with the flavors of Natural Vanilla and Pomegranate. 

Neither is it every day that one gets to have freshly baked scones with strawberry marmalade, clotted cream and lemon curd. 

I love scones.

To me there's no feel of a classic afternoon tea if there're no scones on the menu. 

But here's the thing about scones.

They're great for the three-tier and all that, but not so wise for a buffet.

Because scones are one of the things that fill you up rather fast, especially if you're like me who prefers her scones with clotted cream over jam. 

It didn't matter to us this afternoon.

We were kind of hungry, and so, in between the petit savouries and the scones, we were more or less finished with the strawberry marmalade and the scone and the cream by the time the previously ordered entrees came. 

By the way, it became a kind of game trying to figure out which savoury was which (the staff had removed the menu to give us more space) but with the sensory of taste and the sensory of eye, we somehow managed to realize just what it was we were eating. 

Right on top was what I think was a sushi-like looking thing but was actually Roasted Butternut Squash with Organic Quinoa, Gougere and Parmigiano Reggiano. Then again, it might have been the Tangerine Prawn Tobiko Roulade, Petit Pois Mousseline with Edible Flowers. 

I don't know which is which. 

It wouldn't surprise me if that little orange thingy on top were the Tangerine Prawn and the Edible Flower, and that the puff-looking thing to the right were the Roasted Butternut Squash instead. 

It just might well be. 

Fortunately the other two petits were easier to recognize. 

On the left was the Whipped Foie Gras Tart with Mango Apricot Chutney and Passion Fruit Marigold. 

And then below, the Siracha Chicken and Mentaiko Egg Sandwich. 

Don't ask me why the sandwich appears green. 

It just was. 

We liked the sandwich. 

Particularly for the Mentaiko and the Siracha, which, to my surprise, wasn't as hot and spicy as I thought it might have been. 

It was the tart that fascinated me. 

I mean, I'm more familiar with foie gras as foie gras on its own that I don't think of it as pairable with fruit chutney of mango, much less apricot, or even passion fruit, but the combination of savory and sweet was just too good. 

Perhaps that's what these little bites are about. 

A surprise. 

A little glimpse of life to not compartmentalize and assume and think that such brown whips can only be chocolate or hazelnut. 

They can be foie gras too. 

We were similarly impressed, and surprised, when the entrees arrived at our table. 

Not because the Chicken Breast didn't look like a chicken breast.

Not because the Tenderloin didn't look like a cut of beef. 

But because there were adorable little surprises here and there. 

I knew I'd ordered a Free Range Chicken Breast with Truffle Foie Gras Butter, Burnt Onion Soubise and Pinot Noir Reduction. 

Which I got. 

What I didn't expect, however, was the big stem of a green vegetable on top of it, nor the little bits of what seemed to be edible garnish at the side. 

I wish I'd paid closer attention to what the orange swirl or the khaki brown dollop were- definitely not the butter, that I was sure of- and now that I'm trying to recollect, I realize I've no idea. 

It might have been some sort of mandarin orange thingy. 

Or it might have been egg. 

With Shang, you can never tell. 

My friend's Pan Roasted Sous Vide Prime Steer Tenderloin brought with it its own pleasant surprise. 

One might have wondered just what 'texture of mushroom' was, but we didn't put much thought into it, and when it came, we were surprised to find a huge chonk of a battered, deep fried mushroom done tempura style. 

That vegetable was so good, I tell you. 

We almost didn't have enough. 

Another thing we also almost didn't have enough of were the butters, and we'd actually tried asking for another portion of both the Truffle Foie Gras Butter (mine) and the Wasabi Shoyu Butter (my friend's) but then the staff came back saying that there'd be extra charges so we left it alone... 

No matter, that's how it is, and we headed off to the dessert bar not long after. 

I wish I had pictures to show just how the dessert bar was like, but let's just say that there were cakes, there were cookies, there were little chocolates, there were macarons and there were sweets. 

The setup wasn't very elaborate- not anything with a 3D style that we sometimes see at patisseries or confectionary bakeries.  

On the other hand, it was very simple.

if it was a cake, it was a cake. 

If it was a cookie, it was a cookie. 

Nothing more, nothing less. 

There seemed to be a lot of chocolate. 

So yep, I got myself a plate- and how strong and sweet they turned out to be. 

My favorite, perhaps, was the carrot cake. 

Like Red Velvet, it's one of the cakes I've always wanted to have, but seldom get (because I'm the only one who likes it and more often than not, I can't finish).

But then there was also the very rich-looking Oreo cake with (what I think is) peanut butter creme, and the chocolate coated pretzels, and trust me, both of which were just as good.

It was fun nibbling on the pretzels, tasting the sweet chocolate through the saltiness of the hard biscuit. 

Likewise I was so impressed by the degree of sweetness on the thicker than thick creme layered on top of the Oreo brownie that I decided to take it slow and ate through the entire brownie very, very slowly. 

Still, it was too rich.

And, sad to say, because I was very interested in this plate of cookies- I think it was gula melaka, or was it pandan- the cakes I wasn't able to finish. 

I needed to save space for the Palate Cleanser, which was, if I'm not wrong, either mango or mandarin orange or lemon or something citrusy. 

But there was a macaron, and the thin little biscuit underneath that cheerful looking palate cleanser gave a fun, gorgeous crunch I didn't know I needed.

Next time I'll go to the dessert bar earlier, spread the sweet out together with the savoury, and balance it all properly so that I'll have room for what I already have, and what I want to have.  

Next time too (if the menu stays) I think I might try the Zucchini and Goat Cheese Tart too. 

I like goat cheese.

And if it's got minted pea puree and citrus, I think the flavors will be balanced pretty good. 

Flowers of CapitaSpring

We were determined to take a post-brunch walk around the rooftop gardens of CapitaSpring Tower this time.

To look at the herbs.

And to look at the flowers. 

Which, for the last few times, captivated by the breathtaking scene of the island from 57 floors up, I'd completely missed. 

Perhaps I'm someone more into scenery than gardening and flowers and leaves. 

Perhaps I'm someone who gets so absorbed by surroundings as beautiful as these that she forgets there's just as much to see in the presence of living beings grounded by roots, soil and earth. 

So this time I was determined not to let the opportunity go, and here're them pictures of pretty little blooms.

To be honest, I wish I knew the names of these flowers.

But I've never been the type to pay much attention to flora (other than admiring how pretty and fragrant some of them are) and when presented with these, other than the roses, and what looks like a hibiscus, I've no idea what they are.

Perhaps someone will be better qualified to appreciate these blooms. 

Same way someone else will be more thrilled at the sight of a herb garden growing so high in the sky than I was.

But in any case, the thought of having a garden so high up in the sky is a pleasant, comforting one, so here they are!