Monday, February 28, 2011

Prosciutto Overload....



We dined at a newly opened restaurant right down below, it is called Limoncello. There are so many Limoncello restaurants around the globe, I don't think it is related to any of them, but I might find out something different later. Among lots of dishes that we had, we ordered a 13-inch prosciutto pizza served with rocket leaves and parmigiano regianno. To our surprise, they were so generous with the amount of prosciutto served, covering the pizza. With one of the anti pastis that we had, also had so much prosciutto, I think I have enough prosciutto for a while......

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Going Down...



The sun rises and the sun sets, many times it goes unnoticed. When it happens to be prettily visible, I'd love to enjoy the beauty of the process. Just beautiful. In this picture, the sun was setting.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Hibiscus

We got this Hibiscus from my mother in law, about a couple of months ago. It's a potted plant here in our place and delightfully, despite its small size, has produced many flower buds. One of them blossomed overnight as well. By noon, the flower stood grand very lovely.



Hibiscus is Malaysia's national flower, they call them Bunga Raya or Celebration Flower.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Overnight...



Lots if things could happen while one is asleep. This morning I saw these red flowers opened up when just last night, they still looked like down below.... I am amazed!

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Scrambled Eggs



I am more an omelette person than scrambled eggs, but this morning I felt like having scrambled egg with pan-grilled breads. With ham on the side and a little bit of salad as well. So I did. Simple and quick.

Monday, February 21, 2011

Quick....Snap!



It's so handy to keep a camera inside my bag. I am talking about a small one of course, that works way much better compared to my ipod touch or my Nokia. Last week, when I was in the car and I saw this taxi, advertising the jobs at Marina Bay Sands, I quickly took a picture of it. Who knows, I could apply for a position there.... like, maybe.... Food and Beverage or Bellwoman? Heh.



Today, as we were driving to Grand Hyatt for our lunch, I saw this minivan with printed ad of domestic helpers to clean the house. Out the camera and snap, snap. In case I need someone to clean my house, I have their phone number or I could check their website first. Handy. Heh.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Left....

Chinese New Year may be over for now, but we are left with quite a lot of goodies left to eat, even after we gave away most of what we have received from others. This year, I think, we got the best tasted of these cookies here. For more than 20 years I have been getting these cookies every year and eating them without knowing their names. Thanks to the internet, I found out that they have so many names, including Rose Cookies, Kueh Goyang, Honeycomb Cookies, Beehive Biscuit and Kuih Loyang. So far. I haven't asked anybody, but I'm quite sure that they have some Chinese names too.



Anyway, the ones I got this year, are so crunchy and crispy and to make it better, they have sesame seeds inside as well. Yum.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Almost...

I do wonder sometimes how it is like to be on the moon. I wonder how quiet it is there, because at this moment, I like some quietness and peace around me, just to give me some little time to think certain things over. Being a mother of three teenage girls, I do wonder of them. They are some mysteries to unfold at times. And they remain so, as some things are left unanswered. Maybe, like the Father's homily in church this evening, I could simply be less curious about them, because that could be for the better.



Last night was supposed to be the night when the full moon should have appeared. But the rain fell late in the afternoon and the cloud got in the way. The sky was dark. I am happy that I had taken some snaps the night before that. Yes, it's the same old moon, yes it is just as round as ever in my eyes and just as bright as it could be. But for me, it is always fascinating to see and a challenge to take picture of. And to feel that God is so awesome.

Friday, February 18, 2011

It's Morning, Folks!



Regardless what happened the day before, it's another day to begin again. The sun rose on time to give those who wake up early enough, a gorgeous painting in the sky. A painting that will not need hanging and cleaning from time to time. Free of charge, right up there. Just look up. TGIF!

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Mini Scalloped Potatoes



We had these Mini Scalloped Potatoes for Dinner, eaten with Chicken Schnitzel and salad. With two medium size potatoes, I made four nice mini sizes. The mini size was great, because it left no room for leftovers and my fridge remains pristine and roomy. Yay.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Italian On Valentine's

It was not meant as a celebration of Valentine's day, but we needed lunch anyway. Given that I was the one picking the restaurant, I selected one that we had never been in and has a little "thing" about it. So here we go, I picked Al Dente Trattoria at Esplanade. The "thing" that made me picked it, is the view, which is Marina Bay.



The review that I read in the net was not on the positive side, but we went anyway. The restaurant was not that big, but it might have another floor as well, I saw the staircase. They had set lunch to choose from priced at a bargain of $19.90, consisting of salad, main course and generous amount of dessert. DH went for ala Carte, he picked Sea Bass on potato and asparagus bed.



I went for their set lunch. I had Rock Melon salad with Endives and prosciutto as the starter and Seafood Risotto with salad for the main course. I love both of them. The dessert was Panna Cotta with Berries Compote, which came in gigantic size. It's not bad too and it's worth my $19.90 before tax and service. Our complaint was the slowness of the service. It really took forever for them to serve every course. However, they acknowledged the hiccups and they apologized. The staff was really nice as well, which I rarely find here.


Monday, February 14, 2011

Coleus



I have gotten myself a potted Coleus a few weeks ago. By now, I have propagated them by cutting and now I have them in two pots. They bright color makes them a nice house plant.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Connected?!

I struggled trying to find an accurate word to describe the state of the tent that I saw last weekend down here, by the pool. It's not hooked, it's not chained, it's not exactly parked. Connected? Hmmhh.....



The tent looked so cool, but the coolest part was the fact that it used pool noodles to attach to the tree branch. My guesses are so that:
1) the wind can't blow the tent away or
2) it will give a little more work for anyone trying to steal it, in case the owners went to the water to swim or fell asleep.
.... or
3) maybe it just looks cooler that way.

Perhaps the answer is 4) all of the above.....

It does not matter..... Zzzzz....... I'd better find something better to do....

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Ngohiong



All these years, when it comes to Ngohiong, I must say that I have been spoiled by DH's family. Either his mom, or one of his sisters have been supplying me some. They make them and have them ready for our family to eat anytime. All I need is to fry them whenever I am ready to have some. This week, I got two packs of more than 20 pieces altogether from one of my sister in laws. They are delicious. Better than those that are sold outside. I still keep more than half of them in the freezer......

Friday, February 11, 2011

Time For Rabbits...



In conjunction with Rabbit Year this year, there are six huge rabbits being display outside Mandarin Gallery in Orchard Road. Reportedly they cost $150,000. They are made of fresh cut flowers that require replacement after one or two days. If you come on different days, the colors could be different, naturally.





Some warning boards are placed there too, reminding people to keep their hands of these rabbits. It says, "TOUCHING WILL HARM THE RABBITS". Seriously.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Suddenly So Bright....



I'm not sure what went on last night, but I saw the sky was full of flashing laser lights originated from Marina Bay Sands Hotel. It lasted for some many long minutes. I read about MBS debuting performance that will involve laser lights for next month. It maybe that. We'll see.

Tuesday, February 08, 2011

One Sunday Evening...



We normally go to church on Sunday evening, but we had done it earlier last weekend so we decided to have dinner out. After weighing out several options, we went for Japanese food. Each of us ordered our own food and we shared some sushi as well. I had my Chashu Ramen and as usual, despite its goodness, I was not able to clear it all by myself.





It's always nice to take a stroll along the river when the day is cool and the sun is kind of away. There were a lot of people, walking, eating, drinking and the children playing and climbing tree.



Monday, February 07, 2011

She's Here....

Check out who's here! It's Taylor Swift.



She's kicking off her world tour in here on Wednesday evening and my two kids are going to see her perform. It's not a super timing, as it falls on week night, but it's almost like a chance that they should not miss. I was told, months ago or maybe more than a year ago, considering how hot Taylor Swift's tickets are, to grab her tickets the minute they were available. I did. The hour I found out they were on sale. From newspaper. It's a bit late, but these two kids of mine still have front row seats. There's a slight chance that I will become the mother of the year, this year.... Keep you fingers crossed.

Sunday, February 06, 2011

Lion Dance - Closer View...



We got the opportunity to watch Lion Dance again, up close and rather personal. The dance was performed in the yard of our residence and was arrangement by the management. It was easy to just turn up in time and watch or take pictures.



The two lions danced in front of a reasonable size of crowd. Kids seemed mesmerized by the rigorous movements of the troupe and the loud drums and other musical instruments accompanying it.



At some point, a little girl who was being carried on, I assumed, her father's shoulder, went right in front of me. She had this adorable curly hair and wore golden earrings. Cute.





One of the troupe that wore a mask, had the task of distributing and offering sweets and peanuts to the spectators. I would think, the mask looked intimidating to kids. I definitely would not like being with alone with one person wearing that sort of mask. Creepy......



The end. That's the bow.

Saturday, February 05, 2011

We Will Be Well Fed...

My mother in law cares about us deeply, no doubt about that. She is a very kind and generous lady. When she gives us things, she gives them in an outrageous amount. Always. Much more than we could possibly need. I don't think she has trouble remembering how she has given to us. God bless her, this 80-something year old lady has a very sharp mind and healthy body.



She likes to give us rice noodles that come in a huge 2.5kg bag. We have never been able to finish up one bag on our own so far. We constantly give some of them away to help reducing the inventory in a speedy manner. This time, we were way behind again. Or maybe the supply just comes too soon. We still had some, despite our efforts to give some away and we got a big bag in December. That has not been used yet and we got another 2.5 kg again after a visit to her house for Chinese New Year today. We now have enough rice noodles or many years to come.

So why don't we say no or tell her that we still have some? Because that has been done it did not work. We failed miserably. Life is a lot simpler with her by taking what she gives. The rice noodles do not cost much, but we know how much the joy that she experiences by giving and we, simply accepting. It is priceless. There it is. Loads of rice noodles!

Friday, February 04, 2011

From Way Up High....



With Lunar New Year, comes the Lion Dance. Yesterday, I could hear from way up here, 39 floors above the ground, the sound of the music accompanying the Dance. The were holding it right outside one bar/restaurant by the river. If you click the picture, you will be able to view the details a little better. There were quite a lot of people gathered around to watch, aside from some that were having meals there.

Thursday, February 03, 2011

And The Rabbit Year Now Begins...

Gong Xi Fa Chai! It's a new year all over. It's rabbits all over the card we received from Credit Suisse.



It's time to pay a visit to the only elder sister of DH that lives in the country. She pasted two bunny pictures on the wall to give a little flavor for Rabbit Year.



The best part of the visit, maybe after the ang-paw for the kids and the chance to meet her in person and chatted with her, was to see their cute dogs again.



The two doggies received tons of love from my two kids and became so attached to them. When the time came to say goodbye, they practically wept......... Poor doggies.....

Wednesday, February 02, 2011

The Day Before The Rabbit Year Begins....

Today is the eve of Lunar New Year. If you go out to certain places here, you could feel that some places were really hectic. People grabbed food and more food, shopped and shopped . It's like deja vu for me. I had similar experience on 24 December in Sydney. It is the day before the big day, when a lot of places are closed and many restaurants that are open, are fully booked. The days that give excuse to over-eating will begin tonight.



I finally made the time to bake some cookies, just in case they were needed. Cookies with strawberries jam, it's the redness that count these days. Hopefully, they are suitable for the occasion. We did not expect any guests to come, but who knows? Someone could decide they want to drop by and we'd like to have some decent things to offer. If not, we could gobble them ourselves too. Anyway, my cookies will be gifted to my in laws. I will be making more tomorrow, I think.