A Little Brook

So I found myself over at this place near the (newly moved) Bird Park and the Singapore Zoo.

I wasn't here to see any penguins, storks or flamingoes. 

Neither was I here to see any tigers, lions or elephants. 

I was here to see something else entirely. 

But they weren't kidding when they said this place is close to nature. 

It really is. 

And even though there might be replicates- aviaries, enclosures, transported trees and all- there're also parts that are natural, and parts that you can't tell whether they're man-made or not. 

One of the spaces I couldn't distinguish between one and the other was this- a little brook very close to the main road. 

On one hand it looked natural, as if it were sloping naturally from the hill where it seemed to originate from. 

On the other hand, however, those stones... 

I don't know if our country has ever had stones this natural this huge. 

The brook was rather parched today. 

I'm not sure if it were always this way- it's been some time, but I remember it having a bit of water once, and I was surprised that today I could see the bed of the brook, and the base of the scattered rocks all over the bed as well. 

Then again it's been a dry season- a very dry, hot season- and so no surprise if even the little brook at this place has been affected too. 

Perhaps then one good thing I did see this particular afternoon were the flowers.

They were blooming really well. 

Maybe someone waters them.

Maybe they bloom well on their shrub never mind the weather. 

But they were very pretty. 

And seeing them gave me a quiet little smile too. 

Diandin Leluk @ Golden Mile

So it might not sound very festive... but this meal at Diandin Leluk on the second day of Chinese New Year turned out to be the last one I'd have over at this outlet in Golden Mile.

At that time it didn't occur to me that I wouldn't have the time to go back for a visit again.

But that's how it was, and I'm tremendously glad that we ordered all of our favorite dishes for dinner that particular day. 

One of the things we've always ordered here at Diandin Leluk is the Massaman Curry Chicken. 

I don't know its heritage, I don't know from which province it comes from, but they do it very well, serving it with chunks of delicious, tender chicken chopped into bite sizes pieces, and patterned-cut mushy potatoes that go extremely well with the sweet, not-so-spicy, dry-style curry.

Another dish we always order is the tom kha, or the coconut cream soup. 

At other places we've had it before, but today, after trying to make up our minds between green curry beef and tom kha, we decided the weather suitable for a pot of tasty, heartwarming soup.

It wasn't heavy.

Neither was it too salty. 

There was a lot of lemongrass at the bottom of the pot. 

There were also a lot of onions, cherry tomatoes and other native vegetables floating about in the pot.

What we particularly liked were the chunks of chicken bobbing around the soup which we happily ladled up and placed in our bowls. 

As good as they were eaten on their own, the flavors of chicken actually went very well with the minced meat (prawn?) and the minced yam of the ngoh hiang that we'd supposedly ordered as an appetizer but since everything came almost at the same time, we had it as a main.

I'm not complaining. 

The blend of textures were wonderful.

Perhaps that's one thing which strikes me most about this meal at Diandin Leluk- the combination of textures on my palate, and the way the sweet and savory came so comfortably together.

It was like this with the Massaman curry.

It was like this with the ngoh hiang.

And it was like this with the cendol at the beginning of the meal even though it wasn't planned.

We simply forgot to inform the wait staff to serve it only at the end. 

So for Chinese New Year dinner we turned the order of the meal around, starting with dessert- a lovely medium sized bowl of sweet coconut cream cendol chock full with beans, atap chee, the red rubies and the green green thing.

And we ended it with a fluffy, savory omelet-covered rice which we couldn't finish and decided to dabao home for lunch next day. 

Birthday For The Parent

It was planned that we would have a quieter celebration this year. 

Not that celebrations had been boisterous previously, but we thought we might keep it a bit more low key this year.

So we did.

There was a card, of course.

As was a gift bag containing little presents that (in The Parent's words) could be scented, could be eaten, and could be used. 

One of the things we decided to keep was the presence of coffee, and cake to be had after our dinner. 

Except that The Parent decided to switch it around a little. 

So, instead of the usual sliced cream cake that I'd been getting for the longest time, I got these from Bengawan Solo instead.

Memory is a funny thing. 

All along I'd bought creamed cakes because they were reminiscent of the coffee cakes, pandan cakes, yam cakes and fruit-topped cakes which we'd been having throughout the years. 

But I hadn't remembered just how well liked kueh lapis, cheese cream pandan Swiss rolls, and marble butter cakes were too.

There're some things in life, I suppose, that are like new discoveries. 

You never know what you ought to expect.

It's a good thing thus that life doesn't always throw you too many changes all at once, and you get to keep some patterns- even if for the sake of convenience and slight familiarity. 

Like a meal of cabbage, vegetables, hard boiled eggs, tofu, brinjal and chili bought from the economy rice stall downstairs and steamed in the rice cooker.

And like having our regular cups of coffee with the slices of birthday cake. 

Everything CNY 2023

You know, there was a time when I had thought that, due to circumstances, my Chinese New Year for2023 would be a very quiet, maybe even a somewhat somber one. 

But life springs you surprises sometimes. 

It wasn't as sombre nor as quiet as I thought it would be.

Never mind that I didn't get to go to the bazaar at Chinatown very much like I usually do.

Never mind too that I didn't get to buy crates of mandarin oranges or bak kwa or new soft drinks or bags of sweets.

There were red packets (courtesy of the banks) on the coffee table. 

There were brand new jars of cookies. 

And there were mandarin oranges bought from the supermarket in portions of five. 

It was all very festive looking, and- looking at the pictures now- I'm glad I decided to make it this way. 

At least I didn't miss out on the occasion. 

Despite how this picture looks, it wasn't all just (plain-looking) Filet O Fish burgers for The Family's Chinese New Year this year.

We had coffees.

We had cookies.

And there was a day when at another place I had the joy of salmon belly sashimi, shallow-fried mushrooms, pan-fried foie gras made slightly burnt, and cordyceps-something on my plate. 

Let's just say it felt luxurious a meal. 

Yet it wasn't only the salmon belly sashimi or the foie gras that gave me the sense of luxury this year.

There was also the rare privilege of having an entire roast suckling pig for two people.

It's very seldom that I get to have a roast suckling pig.

It's never that I've had the entire pig almost to myself, served complete with head and all. 

So huge the portion was that my friend brought it back in two large platters placed in bright pink carrier bags meant for delivery. 

One of the platters went straight on the table for lunch with the provided sweet plum sauce.

The other went into the fridge- together with the head of the pig which I refused to leave on the table because there is no way I can put a piece of meat inside my mouth with the head (and eyes) of the very same creature staring back at me. 

Don't matter if the eyes have been removed and stuck with cherries or cherry tomatoes. 

My brain sees it staring at me.

So, yes, into the fridge it went- this foil-wrapped head of a pig- along with the containers of sweet sauce and the other box of leeks and flour cakes.

I wouldn't have been able to enjoy the flavors of the pork and the crisp of the skin otherwise. 

One thing that surprised me about this dish was just how little feel of the oil there was.

All along the thought of suckling pigs had given me a very oily, greasy feel. 

This one didn't. 

In fact it felt very much like sio bak (roast pork) to me, except that the meat was thicker, solid with way less fat, and the skin flatter and crispier. 

I ate my portion with the little floury white cakes, and the fresh, juicy leeks. 

The little pancakes took a bit of getting used to- perhaps I'm more familiar with crepes- but I liked the leeks. They added a refreshing burst of veggie juice to the otherwise gamey-tasting meat. 

A plate of pea sprouts, or dou miao, accompanied our meal. 

I'm really glad for all the food that I had during this Chinese New Year.

It was lovely to head down to Golden Mile (Little Thailand) for a delicious meal of Tom Kha (coconut cream soup), Massaman curry chicken, some fried ngoh hiang fritters, omelet with fried rice, and Thai chendol.

Thai food has always been a great pick-me-up, and we relished the entire meal, beginning with the Thai chendol (because we'd forgotten to let the staff know to serve it afterwards), then the coconut cream soup which we happily slurped up, then the Massaman curry sweet and spicy but not too hot, the fritters and finally the omelet, which by then we realized we had actually completed our meal without rice.

It's been a few months now, but one thing I do miss very much about this season are the cookies.

It's not every day that I get to savor a buttery pineapple tart with the gentlest of pineapple fillings that aren't too sweet.

Neither is it every day that I get to have as many buttery rich, melt-in-your-mouth sugee cookies as I like. 

Maybe one day I will look back at the less-buttery pineapple rolls with a quiet, pensive smile, but for this year, I'll just say I'm glad to have gotten them and when the season comes around again next year, I know I'll keep an eye open for them, and maybe even buy them too. 

Stroll Sights: Tessensohn Road

I've heard a lot about Tessensohn Road.

But I've never actually been there. 

Tessensohn Road is a little stretch that comes right after Race Course Road, opening onto Balestier Road. 

It's difficult for me to define what exactly it is that on this little stretch I hoped to see, but, having heard about it for so long, what with me being in the area today, I decided it good to drop in there.  

My route this afternoon took me from the edge of Race Course Road. 

There're a couple of public housing flats here. 

There's also what I think is a religious institution- a well known Chinese temple whose main entrance is accessed from Serangoon Road and whose back sits on Tessensohn Road. 

Right after the Chinese temple (or the religious institution) was the row of shop houses that I had come specially to see.

I shan't detail what it was I looking for, but let's just say that some things don't necessarily change. 

Like how if some units on this stretch once housed the offices of a heavy machinery hardware distributor and supplier, today the same units look like they still deal with machinery. 

Some units still look like they belong to commercial offices. 

Others, however, have been converted into offices for organizations, associations and dwelling-like homes.

One thing that hasn't changed over the years is the presence of this association. 

From what I hear, they've been sitting at this very same spot since the early 80s- that's about 40 years- and once upon a time staff from the offices (in the shop houses) opposite would order coffee, snacks and hot drinks from the in-house cafeteria within. 

Relationships got so familiar that the "Kopi-soh" working in the in-house cafeteria would pop over during her break time to these offices, sit down, and chat with the young office girls. 

I don't know if the staff there still do that now.

Perhaps our society really has changed. 

Perhaps things don't seem as simple, or sufficient as before. 

We've all evolved. 

Deeper and further into spaces of our own, longer into solitude (or vice versa), and more discerning about the communities and groups we now belong. 

Yotel and the Runaround

It was at this place that I made the decision that I really, really, really wanted (someone) out of my life. 

It wasn't because of a disagreement or a quarrel or hatred- no, not any strong emotion like that- but because simply I realized there was just no more sharing with each other except what was carefully curated, and all the interference didn't make sense anymore. 

Perhaps it is a bit extreme to say that there're people in my life whom I don't wish to see or hear to speak to anymore, but it's human, and when the existence of each other's presence becomes a bane to each other, then there's no point keeping each other in each other's life anymore. 

Add to that the realization that there's no more hope for it to improve or change- there's just no point anymore. 

It wasn't the environment of Yotel that made me come to this decision. 

Of course not. 

But Yotel did make me see that there was a world which I belonged to, and which I could be a part of. 

Maybe me being on the 19th floor made a difference. 

You see things differently.

You feel things differently too. 

Some days the light's odd. 

Some days the light's better. 

How you interpret it is all very subjective. 

I actually liked the coziness of the room, which, if you ask me, is not exactly how one might describe the place. 

Yotel prides itself on having decor likened to that of a space-themed cabin. 

The most fascinating thing about the room is its bed which is of the sort that can be raised up and down from a flat position to a reclining position to a sitting one. 

What I liked, however, was the wardrobe area, and the hangers. 

For some reason they made me feel like I had to be neat and structured in my placement of things.

Being a structured sort is one way to feel organized in Yotel's room. 

That, or have what we call organized chaos. 

I guess I belong to the former. 

I like my things by the side and in rectangular shapes and squares. 

That works for Yotel's style, I suppose, although the latter type can be comfortable enough just as well too. 

I was determined to experience as much as Orchard Road as I could staying here this time.

And I did, with a bit of shopping, and, well, a lot of dining. 

Lunch right after check in was at Itacho Sushi in ION Orchard diagonally across the road. 

We were hungry, so we ordered something different, and we ordered more. 

There was the Kagoshima wagyu sushi, and at another time we might have gone for the soy sauce salmon sushi with the cod roe sauce. but today we decided we'd have an extra order of soft shell crab, and sweet potato fries. 

The crab was of a nice size, crispy on the outside, well fried and great to bite. Then I got the soft crab flesh beneath the crisp, of course, and there was the burst of flavor once bitten into it. 

We couldn't resist our usual order of roasted salmon belly sushi, and a favorite order that I call salmon maki with tempura bits. 

All this- at a late lunch hour- however made us feel very full and so we decided to make our evening meal a supper instead.

There's a place in Shaw Center right on Orchard Road, so we agreed we'd go to that after my hour-long (responsibility) was over. 

Being not very hungry I thought we might just take only dessert (which is something the cafe is popularly known for) 

But then we looked at the small bites menu and decided to try out their nachos as well. 

We weren't disappointed. 

Cafe De Muse might have a bit of a Korean influence somewhere, but their nachos were good. 

Crispy, crunchy, filled with black olives, green olives, red peppers, chopped tomatoes, guacamole and sour cream, it was a great portion, and we had a wonderful time chatting and finishing it all. 

Nachos weren't the only thing we had at Cafe De Muse.

We ordered a chocolate bingsu too. 

This, I particularly loved.

There was this mountain of chocolate shaved ice, there were these huge cubes of chocolate (something)- I think it was dark chocolate- there was a drizzle of chocolate sauce all over, and on top of everything there was a huge scoop of dark chocolate ice cream.

I loved it so much I told my friend I would come back here next time and maybe order the same dark chocolate bingsu all for myself. 

My friend laughed. 

We, however, weren't done with the chocolate. 

Not for this particular weekend breather in any case.

Because the next day we went to this place at the back of Tanglin Post Office, and we had another chocolate cake. 

Best part, it wasn't just the chocolate cake that was good. 

Our mains were notably perfect too. 

Like the steak (I forget what cut it was) he ordered, which was gloriously tender, came with black pepper (or was it mushrom) sauce, and a wonderful selection of vegetables that included carrots, h and soft, delicious potatoes. 

And like the fish and chips which I chose over the pasta because I felt like having something fried as much as I felt like having hollandaise sauce with fries. 

I'm glad for the choice.

The batter of the fish was just how I liked it, and I almost wished there were pieces more than two. 

This place on Nassim Hill I will say I really do like, and when opportunity comes, I hope to head back here for a meal again. 

There weren't a lot of unique meals after that, but I didn't mind. 

I'm more than happy whenever our breather comes with breakfast.

Which, yes, we did have here at Yotel- eggs, waffles, toast, salad, cereals, yogurt, dim sum and a bit of Asian here and there. 

Coming here to Yotel was to relive an experience that I'd somewhat forgotten, and being in the space, and in the room, reminded me of how life does change, how things don't always stay the same, and how it's best that we define who we are, and at least try to carry on. 

Maybe I might have been here on the Shaw Center side of Orchard this, but my mind wasn't completely absorbed by my surroundings or the hotels around me. 

There were moments when the skies reminded me of Los Angeles, and gave me hope of a time when I would return there.