Past my mid-twenties...

It's pretty depressing that I'm already one day into my late twenties... :P But that fact of life aside, the first day of being 26 actually felt real nice, cos I didn't have to work; and felt really loved :) That aside, also gave myself some nice treats hehe... old already, need to start 'pampering' myself more... :P

Feeling the travel itch again.

There's a bunch of 20th anniversary airfare deals on SilkAir, such as $398 all-in-fare to Kathmandu, Nepal... and a bunch of other interesting and slightly further Asian destinations that are not China (somehow no urge to go China for time being).

Hmmm....

Bad days are meant to be blogged and eaten away...

This morning 'the colleague who calls me names' gave me a pack of half-eaten Marks & Spencer gingerbread men her daughter had rejected... I figured the little one didn't quite fancy the taste of ginger... Anyways, it was a lovely gesture on her part but a truly unfortunate fate for the cute gingerbread men, cos all 6 of them were gobbled up by a pek chek me by the end of the day. That's about 18 grams of fat ingested... Well, they happen to be butter gingerbread cookies.

I dunno if it's a very girl thing, but when I feel discouraged/ demoralised/ upset about something, then I just can't concentrate too well on other tasks for the rest of the day. Whereas some "unfeeling?? :P" ppl can be so emotionally unaffected and manage to clearly delineate work and feelings and be productive all the time. That's a cool skill I have yet to master. Sigh. And of course, their productivity's also not hampered by the cumbersome/distracting snacking of cookies throughout a stressful day.

Glad that it's the end of my bad day, but suspect tmr's not gonna be very much better. Nonetheless, I'm really thankful for lovely ppl around me/within sms-distance (haha) that have brightened up an otherwise even greyer day... :)

David Cook - Always Be My Baby

As usual, I only discover and like things ten months after everyone else... ;)

Happy Valentine's!

I'm so happy it's weekend, cos I can finally take a proper break to rest, laze around and recharge a bit...

Today also happens to be mum's birthday, and this morning I woke up to a tiny surprise... Dad, while getting his healthy breakfast at his fav erm Loyang Point, got my mum ONE stalk of rose! (Earlier in week I told him this year why dun I order a bouquet on his behalf for mum then he said ok, but he subsequently went and told my mum about my plan, in the end we didn't buy cos she said dun waste money... I thought that was it, no flowers... Hmm, so in the end he still had something up his sleeve) It was all rather sweet because he like NEVER EVER buys flowers. Dunno why today decided to get a flower... so we all poked fun at him, good-humoredly. And though it kinda came in tacky packaging, it was a pretty nice and 'fresh' rose :)

To all my dear friends out there, here's wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's!

My pok Samsung phone has died on me a 2nd time... this time round the touch screen buttons have both gone on strike... :( Work is also piling up with no end in sight. Sigh, my life is bleak... for this week and next week :(

Little heart tuggers...

Sometimes, little things make all the difference. 2 little items at 2 restaurants caught my eye...

I thought this white "pom-pom" flower at Marmalade Pantry looked really cute. The petals remind me of a chrysanthemum, perhaps a spherical kind or what! I asked the waitress what kind of flower it was... but she was equally clueless. So it shall remain the pom-pom flower in my dictionary :P

Little glass of white cum brown sugar cubes at PS Cafe, Palais Renaissance... Though pretty, we figured it was actually somewhat unhygienic. Like, if unfinished by end of day throw away quite wasted, but on other hand, quite gross if they get recycled repeatedly hehe :P

"The Guillotine Times"

Sounds like the title of some horror novel? Far from it... But it's disturbing enough to me that it's some official term associated with the ongoing Budget Debate... Not sure why I never came across this term till an email cascaded down from MND was circulated early this morning. Basically, as I understand it, each Ministry is allocated some time to discuss its expenditure during these "Committee of Supply" sessions (that's another senseless term that I cannot figure out, but at least it does not conjure any negative/fear-inducing image) and so during this "guillotine" time, each Ministry's "head" is literally on the chopping board huh... Concurrently, key officers under each Ministry are supposed to standby just in case their inputs are needed to answer questions. Then some say that must really physically be in workstations all the time..?! I mean, understand we need to provide support/inputs in event queries cascade down... but cannot help but wonder why there's need to induce "can lose your head anytime" kinda fear leh...

Dun like the idea that way to get ppl to do things seriously is to instil fear in them, be it via deviously crafted phrases (though I wonder if like COS it's actually some antiquated term passed down from eons ago) or severe punishments for mistakes... So unhealthy if whole system is governed by fear, rather than genuine commitment towards serving the public well.

I think I'm having yusheng overdose-- after lao1-ing with diff grps of ppl some 4 times over the past 6 days or so... Nonetheless, I never get sick of the tiny squarish keropoks... :P On top of yusheng, have also been 'rampantly' indulging in new year cookies and other sinful stuff... Coupled with my highly irregular gym-going the past month... it's pretty understandable why I am feeling really guilty now :P Add to that my pretty lousy performance at the weekly tennis sessions (I think sometimes coach exercises more than me hehe) it's time to cut-back on high-calorie items in diet... Alas, I know I will almost certainly fail if I attempt dieting, just cos willpower to resist food/snacks is too weak hehe... After all, why torture myself...? :P

TGIW!

Another busy week (half-week) at work just whizzed past, thankfully... And I'm trying to enjoy every moment of my precious weekend... Thru no conscious effort of my own, this year has seen me engaging in more people-oriented activities on weekends... catching up with ppl and other wholesome activities that are not shopping :P This afternoon I also managed to catch my idol Jamie whip up some really yummy-looking yet healthy salads. J-- he actually tried to concoct his own yuzu salad dressing while preparing this salad with tuna sashimi hee...

I know this is really kinda late, but here's the last instalment of my winter adventures in Japan (Just some random pics this time round... mainly of food :P)

A teddy bear cafe just outside our Takayama ryokan... We had a late breakfast there. Three teddy towels for three of us :)
We chose a seat near all the teddies... And freely arranged them to join our meal ha. (Only for pics lah, not the whole meal...)

The matcha green tea latte I ordered came with a tiny bowl of biscuits... One of them's in the shape of a teddy bear!
An okonomiyaki place in Kyoto, Gion district (the geisha district). This eatery was really kinda weird/bit sleazy... Well, you can dine with these life-sized mannequins... And 'admire' the bordering-on-porn drawings on the noticeboards...

Yummy caramelized sweet potato from supermarket!!! Very delicious... but had really sticky teeth after that :(

My convenience store purchases... I love the convenience stores in Japan. There's a staggering variety of lovely-looking drinks/snacks/ice-cream to choose from. Above: Milk pudding and instant matcha latte (the one with hearts on the packaging comes with two tiny kit kats too) I love matcha... Why they dun sell in 7-Eleven here...

A huge snow rabbit to end off the series of Japan posts.... ;)

My "triad chief" director

Ha, I finally managed to upload this photo... Of my dept director dressed up as Chinese "lao3 da4"... Hehe, I loved the birdcage. Think he also felt very pleased dressed up like this for the night :)

Happy Chinese New Year!

It's rare that I actually get some 'peace and quiet' to myself on a Chinese New Year's eve, but it's nice to have this little window of personal time to laze around and reflect a little...

These days, Chinese New Year really isn't very meaningful for me. This year, I'm just thankful to be able to enjoy a (much-deserved!) long weekend break. Though it's THE TIME to get-together and catch up with relatives, I really dun fancy having routine reunion dinners with aunties/uncles/cousins (on dad's side) whose 'affairs' I only hear about occasionally when parents engage in dinnertime/bedtime gossip... Aiyah i probably shouldn't be such a cynic but deep down it bothers me quite a bit why all of us continue the yearly practice of visiting one another just for the sake of 'adhering to custom'... For example, mum complains to me XXX aunt's well-off daughters always hav this see-ppl-no-up attitude and very sian3 that we still have to visit them... Seriously, if we all dun REALLY want to do it, then why not NOT do it and like laze at home during CNY right? :P And why do ppl have to be fake and pretend to enjoy entertaining guests we do not truly welcome in our homes? Oh well, perhaps when peers start to set up own families/ have own place I'll truly have some fun visiting ppl during CNY... ;)

Oops, after much complaining, I hope I have not doused the festive mood too much! To all my dear friends out there, I sincerely wish you a good year ahead and a work-free long weekend to relax and recharge :)

It's been a crazy week... And it doesn't help that I wun be feeling TGIF! cos tmr would be just as busy... Oh well, at least I'm gonna get a long weekend... before the things I owe ppl come haunting me again... Sigh, tph correctly pointed out that when I'm free, will complain that I'm bored; yet when I'm busy, feel super drained... hehe :P

International Mafia Convention 2009

Our annual D & D was held at Ritz-Carlton yesterday evening... The most enjoyable part for me, well, was seeing bosses dressed up to the theme. And it's not everyday that you can see your own director dressed in red chinese-style robe, complete with sunglasses and birdcage prop ;P And this year's much less stressful, since I'm out of the comm :P

The good view from the complimentary hotel room...

Sigh, seems like age is catching up with me... The other day a lil boy at the tennis courts called me 'auntie' even though I was dressed in a relatively youthful-looking outfit... Hai, old = old huh, even dressing doesn't help... :P

Then this afternoon my "beloved" colleague gave me a most "flattering" nickname..."rou4 rou4". this is her second time telling me that I actually have arms that are nice to pinch... I rebutted that's cos she has been pinching ppl with bony, fleshless arms. HMPH! Though she tried really hard to make amends afterwards, I told her I'd remember her remark FOREVER. Actually I am relatively unaffected by her frivolous comment since I think that it isn't entirely justified, but you know, today the evil streak in me was itching to induce guilt in someone... :P

Japan Winter 08/09 - New Year Special

Hee, finally got down to writing this 2nd post on Japan trip...Feel like I've had very decent work-life balance the past week, what with movies, tennis and chilling out with dear frens; some of whom I only see on yearly basis... :(

So after some 4 days of snowy adventure, the minshuku gang left the relatively uncrowded countryside and arrived in big-cityish Kyoto some 3 hrs later... Trip was planned such that we would spend New Year's Eve in Kyoto... since we could then witness the new year rituals/ festivities during Japanese New Year (正月 - pronounced as shogatsu). Kyoto was supposed to be MY destination, since I was clearly the most beguiled by guide books (they all hail Kyoto as THE quintessential Japanese destination). But lazy me clearly didn't do as much preparation as I should have, esp given my pre-trip enthusiasm... hee. Nonetheless, we got on fine (I think? ;P), and with the very extensive and tourist-friendly bus network, still managed to visit the key attractions Kyoto was famous for.

Apparently on New Year's Eve in Japan, most temples will ring the temple bell 108 times to "ring in" the new year... Apparently this is to curb the 108 mortal desires, which according to Buddhist belief, torment humankind. To witness this special bell-ringing, we set off at 10 something from our hostel to one of the more famous temples in the vicinity, Chion-in Temple... Unfortunately the buses headed towards our destination were all packed with the new year crowds, so we ended up taking a night stroll towards the temple....

Along the way we sighted hordes of people at the entrance of Yasaka Shrine (a pretty famous shrine in Kyoto)... Well, the original grand plan was to visit the temple and head over to a nearby shrine (the Japanese also have this tradition of visiting a Shinto shrine for new year... the first visit to a shrine for the year is termed 'hatsumode' and I guess it makes practical sense to do the temple ringing/shrine visit together...) Not so surprisingly, we were "immobilised" for a good half hour in the human jam while walking thru Yasaka Shrine and never made it to the temple... And so ended up ushering the new year in the middle of a human jam flanked by Japanese-style pasar malam stalls on both sides... ;)

Lanterns at Yasaka Shrine...

At the shrine, you can browse through a variety of new year merchandise for good fortune/health/warding off evil forces; from protective charms to... "demon-slaying arrows" (hamaya) :P

Or make a new year wish for your loved ones :)

More new year crowds at Fushimi Inari Shrine, late morning on Jan 1st (The one with the impressive tunnel of red torii gates)

This was also my first encounter with the omikuji (fortunes in the Japanese context, similar to what ppl do in Chinese temples here too), and the creepy omikuji machine... which we first chanced upon in a shrine in Takayama. We were curious what the machine does, and so I put in a 100 yen coin to test it out... This at once triggered the Japanese doll (originally positioned towards the fortune-seeker and standing right under the torii gate. she holds like a mini tray, i guess meant for collecting the fortune), who turns back into the temple-looking enclosure at the back.... We simultaneously screamed when that happened... Cos i mean, it was just kinda creepy... haha. When she like 'came out' again, we figured that the machine had run out of fortunes cos her tray was empty and there was nothing for us to 'collect'... Oh well, so no fortune for me. Both S and J were visibly relieved at the absence of any fortune, but somehow I lingered on... feeling a bit cheated... Our conjectures were subsequently confirmed by a staff who came out to put a "no more fortunes for the day" sign across the coin slot minutes after we tried it out...

Stole a shot of a Japanese lady reading her omikuji... I figured it must have been a decent one! We saw many Japanese tying their fortunes after reading them... but had no idea why... After reading up more on omikujis, I realised that there were many varying degrees of good/bad luck... And so you keep your blessings and tie your curses on the structures provided.... Makes sense i guess. Weird to say this, but the curses made a pretty sight... And so I was rather obsessed with them :P More omikuji shots taken at Fushimi Inari Shrine and temple in Asakusa...




Hee, stay tuned for the 3rd instalment of other random pics from my trip.... When I feel hardworking enough again :)

By The Boab Tree

I really like this song from the movie "Australia"... :) And of course, the gorgeous scenery...

p/s: I never knew that the Australian brand "Billabong" actually refers to "a small lake" in Australian English :P

Japan Winter 08/09 - *Snow Monkey Special*

This post is gonna be ALL ABOUT MONKEYS, so be warned! :) Japanese macaques, to be technically correct... Coincidentally, I chanced upon a photo in last Sat's Straits Times with 3 bathing monkeys from the same place-- Jigokudani Monkey Park. Jigokudani apparently means "Hell's Valley", cos the boiling onsen water coupled with surrounding steep valley/cliffs apparently conjure up the image of hell. Well, ironically they were in a most "hellish" place enjoying the most heavenly steam baths in winter...

Our ryokan owner, a pleasant grandfatherish figure by the name of Mr Yumoto, dropped us at the Snow Monkey Park entrance... It was kinda thrilling alighting in the middle of nowhere, cos I had no idea what to expect... And so began the "20-min" hike to see the famed snow monkeys... Well, if you walk as fast as the Japanese. If you dun stop to take pics every 2 min or so... :P

And so the hike continues... Well I suppose technically it was more of a snowy morning walk, cos the terrain was pretty gentle...

After something like 40 min, there were finally some concrete signs of civilisation! I really liked the look of these bright red benches covered by snow...

And the half-frosted Honda motorbike.

Entrance to the monkey park!

The onsen was tucked all the way inside the park, but we began to spot many many monkeys foraging for stuff in the snow almost as soon as we entered...

(Gazes painfully at sky) Why??? Why is it so cold???

Hmmm, he should join the clever guys bobbing in the onsen... :P

The little ones were irresistably cute. They looked like they were wearing brown eskimo suits....

Ah, the debut of my little guy... :) This is my most-photographed dude of the day... And this is one of my fav pics -- where he (I'm assuming it's a he) gazes pensively into the sky...

And checks out his very human-like fingers...

While the three of us were wondering how to get baby snow monkey to look straight into our cams, an ojisan standing (armed with SLR with telezoom) beside me did a brilliantly simple trick... He gathered some snow from the surroundings, shaped them into a tiny snowball and dropped it in front of the little one... It worked...

And the little snowball became his little treasure.... *Heart melts* :P

Little ones aside, there were also king-like figures.... presumably getting onsen massages from the more junior monkeys??? Unfortunately for the poor masseur, this customer doesn't seem too satisfied leh. In fact he looks pretty grumpy and annoyed? :P

A close-up of the red-faced Japanese macaque... Hee, if my experience has piqued your interest in these snow monkeys, you can read more about them on the official website here... There's even a snow monkey webcam... :)

Japan Winter 08/09- Trip highlights!

I'm back from my frosty winter holiday; with blue-blacked legs and terribly achy shoulders... And for once I actually appreciate the weather we have here in Singapore... :P It was refreshing visiting smaller towns nestled in the mountainous central part of Japan; though we eventually still ended up in the hustle and bustle of Kyoto/Tokyo, jostling with new year crowds in temples and shrines. And I made a not unexpected discovery that my spoken Japanese really isn't quite there yet hehe. It was also my first time going into public baths... :P Fatigue and cold-weariness towards end of trip aside, I enjoyed myself very much... Here are some trip highlights, in chronological order, from the four main places I visited -- Yudanaka, Takayama, Kyoto and Tokyo (more like a stopover destination):

Enjoying a snowy sunset amidst a lovely winterscape after a day of skiing; just before our sunset onsen bath in Yudanaka, Nagano Prefecture. (My glove-less fingers were almost frozen though :P)

Sake with tenzaru soba for dinner the same day. Kanpai!!!

In the middle of our supposedly 20 min morning hike to the Jidokudani Monkey Park... hehe, prob took us something like 40 min...

The snowy trees in the hills were a magnificent sight to behold...

Truly a winter wonderland... :)

One of my many many snow monkey pictures that actually turned out decent :)

Erm, snow monkeys getting steamy in the onsen.... ;P

Street food in Takayama-- Nigiri sushi with hida beef on a piece of rice cracker... The sauce created a pretty bloody illusion :P

Breakfast with teddy bears in a teddy bear cafe some 5-min walk from our accommo in Takayama...

Kinkakuji (or Golden Pavilion Temple) - Kyoto

Neatly lined pails I chanced upon in Ryoan-ji, a Zen temple in Kyoto.

A beautiful sunset at Kiyomizu-dera, Kyoto.

The beginning of thousands of torii gates snaking into the mountains at Fushimi Inari Shrine, Kyoto.

New year deco and swarms of people along shops leading to the Asakusa Temple, Tokyo.