Riverside weekend.

Riverside weekend.

I'm inspired to head off on a two-hour walk every Saturday morning, just because it is such a beautiful start to the weekend. We moseyed our way down to the river, and our route took us past an empty Shenton Way. The business district has a sleepy charm about it when devoid of office crowds, and I spotted some really interesting cafes which made me wish (just for a moment) that I worked in the thick of the action.


It was almost noon by the time we made it down to the river. The bars and eateries along Boat Quay are less off-putting when the service personnel are too occupied with setting up the tables and chairs to aggressively sell you their menus. It was nice to stroll and observe instead of hurrying through the stretch with my head down mumbling "no thanks".

Our walk took us around Robertson Quay, and I was surprised to see how crowded Epicurious was in comparison to its empty riverside neighbors. I'd read about the place being a popular brunch spot, but I never imagined it to be that in vogue. Worth checking out, me thinks. It's high time I ventured out of my Cedele habit.

Robertson Quay's laidback bars and cafes reminded me of a sunset walk I took with a friend many many years ago. The evening sunshine cast a rosy glow over the area, and we walked past several families barbequeing on the lawn of the riverside condominiums. A bumboat coasted by lazily, and the smell of petrol filled the air. "I wanna live here when I grow up," I remember telling him. The place lost its charm to me over the years, but yesterday's walk recaptured it. I've since grown up, and I think I would still like to live in one of the apartments facing the river.


pics from www.cakeglace.com

We decided to brave the Chinatown crowds to Pâtisserie Glacé at Craig Road. I've heard so much about the cakes that a visit was essential. The much raved-about Mont Blanc (middle) was disappointing, but the melt-in-the-mouth strawberry shortcake (if you seriously need me to point out which one this is...) more than made up for it. The first picture is La France, a pear tart with a crème brûlée custard which was tasty but not orgasmic. Perhaps Friday's pandan-kaya roll from Rich and Good Cake Shop set the week's benchmark a tad too high. That was orgasmic.

So we trekked back home with the cake boxes swinging in our hands, content despite our weary limbs. Right before the rain fell.




Sunday is usually my off-day and my time to take myself wherever I fancy after teaching piano, but as I already had my share of do-as-I-please time on Saturday (which apart from the walk included some much-needed vegging out and baking a swiss roll that fell apart), I made an exception to catch up with two of my favourite gossip queens over tea at Clarke Quay. (I know, I can't get enough of the river!)

Our ceaseless range of topics from mineral makeup to surprises and little blue boxes had us lingering over half-eaten sandwiches and waffles at Nectarine for a good three hours before heading off to Alegro for another three hours of churros and increasingly explicit topics.

All in all, an awesome weekend. :)

Weekends for the soul.

Weekends for the soul.

This weekend started on a good note. I caught up with Jinli, Chrystal and Waiyin over comfort nosh on Friday night, before heading over to Wai's for my mahjong initiation! Jinli claims it's her first time too, but she sure knows her way around the tiles better than I do!



Saturday's V'day dessert workshop at Whitebait & Kale. Bumped into Eileen there, which was a really nice surprise. She's a foodie. A real foodie. Really, really.



The creations: (clockwise from top left) Nutella Tart with Hazelnut Crust, Crème Fraiche & Raspberry; Orange Crepes with Rosemary Blood Orange and Chocolate Sauce; Millefeuille of Citrus Parfait & Crème Fraiche & Berries served with Candied Lemon Zest.

I really, really enjoyed the miellefeuille but I doubt I'll be trying it out any time soon, even though Chef Nabil made it seem really doable.


Popped over to Wala's for a pint with Erwin and HH after the workshop. There goes my two weeks of teetotalism! Oops?

And when I got back, my family rolled out the mahjong table for the first Khoo family mahjong game. My folks are chockful of stamina - my back was aching and my stomach was rumbling by the time we wrapped up at 2 a.m.

After my piano classes and my routine Sunday swim, I met CH for a roam around Chinatown before we headed down to get me my cross trainer. I figured investing in one would cost less than a half-year gym membership, and it would be a lot less of a hassle working out at home as well. I think S$399's a good investment for my health and my waistline, no? And just in case the guilt from all those tastings isn't enough to get me onto the machine, I've promised the sales uncle that I'll pop by around with a new silhouette! And no, I don't mean a rounder, larger one.

Sunshine on the happy road.

Sunshine on the happy road.

When you go to sleep happy, and dream about feeling happy, you wake feeling like you haven't slept at all.

The sun was up and shining by the time I finally roused from sleep at 10, so I slapped on the sunblock, slipped my pony tail through a cap, plugged in my iPod, and set off for a walk up Mount Faber.

Easy mornings with myself are a rarity now that I'm working, so I thoroughly relished that one hour with myself. It was a good way to work out the kinks from sitting at a desk, and to expand some of the calories from the past two days of "working' lunches.

I took the "Memory" route on my descent, and the ominous feeling I experienced during my last walk was absent. Sun rays broke through the heavy canopy, and I didn't have the urge to look over my shoulder every couple of seconds. Perhaps it is time to rename the route "Bygones"?

Anyway, this is just a quick post-brunch entry before I shower and pop out to meet Ran for a V'day dessert-making class at Whitebait & Kale. But before that, we've got a date with HP the piercer. I think I've snagged my belly piercing one too many times, and it's starting to look very sore...

Takes a rainy Monday to ease back into health.

Takes a rainy Monday to ease back into health.

The weather is crappy. The sun smiles for me to think for one minute that it's good to head out before the grey clouds take over and monopolize the sky. Once in awhile raindrops hammer the window panes, but the scariest of all would have to be the strong winds. I am half-worried that the window panes would shatter in the untiring gusts of wind.

Still, instead of hitting the shops and jostling with the increasing tourist crowds as I'd initially planned, a slow Monday might just be the perfect continuum from a chilled-out weekend. It felt good to not give a toss at all to time this weekend, and to fill all our intervals with sleep and catnaps. And good food.

I am certain that this six-week jaunt has brought nothing but positivity to my mind and spirit, but I'm not too sure about the accumulated effects of good European food on my body. I don't think I realized how much I actually loved food until this trip, although Ceci and my sis insist that they've known it all along. As Ceci aptly puts it: "When we're not shopping, we're either eating, or looking for new places to eat at."

And B insists that he's been thinking about food more often since my arrival in Paris. He was making fajitas one evening when he told me, "I don't know what's happening to me. I never used to cook like this." "It's love," I told him.


I don't think either of us realized just how good a cook he was until we he started whipping up increasingly creative dinners in the evenings, and I was relegated to the unofficial dishwasher. The tossed salad and cheese on bread supper we had the first weekend I was here has evolved into dinners with starters, main courses and wine.

I'll do up a proper post on his culinary adventures but for now, I'm plugging in Lanxi's Billy's Bootcamp into my Apple. I can't miss out on epicurean pleasures, so I have to work hard to minimize the damage. And to prepare for an evening of more food and drinks with B, Romain and Marine.

While I prance around the apartment, enjoy the belated post on Guethary, and I'll also urge you to re-read my post on Rome, for I've added to it the many scribblings from my travel journal.