Hi guys!

May flew by in a blink of an eye, what with Labour Day and the long Vesak Day weekend. What did you get up to?

I'm pretty happy this month because I got to meet up with my friends, visit new places, and eat tons of yummy food! The simple life is a good life.

First up, I got to check out Jewel at Changi.

Wow, photos do not do it much justice, man. It is really quite grand up close.


The whole area is massive and styled like the Avatar rainforest, and honestly it's really quite surreal. All I thought was, wow, Singapore's experience with running Gardens by the Bay really paid off here. There are small pockets of greenery everywhere, and I enjoy them. Truly impressive. Where else in the world can you find a huge waterfall and huge green spaces in a stylish mall which is part of an airport?!

The entire Jewel mall was pretty amazing. Singapore is really putting her best foot forward here, in a way she knows best -a shopping mall concept.You get to experience a slice of life of how some Singaporeans eat* - such as the Birds of Paradise ice cream, Rich and Good Cake (which is always sold out - we tried to queue!), Naiise, Violet Oon, and even an atas NTUC Fairprice Finest! It's a nice representation! (*The hawker fare is already covered a long time ago by the various food courts and restaurants serving local dishes.)

We also spotted many shops that are available in places we frequent, for example, Xpressflower. There is also Old Chang Kee, Yakun and even Thai Express. Familiarity in every corner. (Some may say generic.)

The toilets were also very clean and had a lux futuristic feel. It's all in the details man. You know how toilet doors are usually rectangular for the breadth? In Changi, they are rounded. Wow, way to score on the tactile feel. Can't help but be blown away.

Either way, Jewel is absolutely stunning and I can't imagine how much planning was involved to pull this off. Lol. Proud of our country! Haha.

In May I was in a funk so I issued myself a Challenge. That's how I ended up going to the far-flung Jurong Lake Gardens, and also taste some Peruvian cuisine.

Trying Peruvian food for the first time

I got to hang out with the cutest baby, Zihan, First of his Name, Ray of Sunshine, King of Super Farts, and Son of super mommy Wenxin. Babies are so warm to touch! And they really have a nice smell.

Awwwww

Don't you feel so worthy when a baby smiles at you for no reason at all? In that moment, they seem to accept you completely, despite all your flaws and imperfections.


I also made a Nugget Bouquet for my friend Liqin who is getting married!

There's a little funny story behind it too. I went to MacDonalds and made my order at the counter.

Me: Auntie, 20 McChicken
Auntie: 20? *Points to McChicken on the laminated menu*
Me: *shocked* Oh no no no!!! 20 McNuggets
Auntie: lol
Me: *facepalm*

We very nearly ended up with a McChicken Bouquet hahaha.

I thought it turned out pretty good, though if I had longer satay sticks I could probably create some varying heights. I also used ink alphabet stamps to create some LOVE patterns on the brown paper and inked their names too!

We went to a chalet for a stayover to celebrate the occasion. Oh man, I have not been to a chalet in the longest time. D'Resorts at Downtown East now looks so fancy, with walk paths like U-Town at NUS. You also get access to lots of food and entertainment options like Teo Heng, right over at e-hub. I also had a Turkish Ice Cream. Does the Turkish ice cream man have the most troll job or what? Hilarious.

We had a blast, talking late into the night with cup noodles, nuggets, and wine.

This is rather random, but one thing I like about sleepovers is that you get to try different types of facial products and toiletries from your friends. Cheers to cheap thrills and girly moments!


I also watched the Pangdemonium Play, This Is What Happens to Pretty Girls. Yup, buying a season ticket was good idea! Can't wait for the next show, the musical Urinetown.

Also read up on some Buddhist concepts. I was wondering what Buddha had to say about money. I was always under the impression that he probably thought it was bad? And that we should not attach ourselves to money or material wealth. I was thinking along the lines of "Money is the root of all evil".
But according to this website, Buddha just says stuff like using your money to benefit others, raise your family, sharing your money, and not to have vices like gambling. He apparently also had teachings on how to balance your finances etc. Basically he says it's OK to have money, and to work for money.

Buddha Gif by Vivek Karthikeyan

I was thinking about this because I was wondering how career progression and earning money works with the concepts of Buddhism. For jobs, Buddha says not to harm others and not to do things like murder and prostitution.

As English Breakfasts go, this is a decent strong and robust tea. Don't leave it in for too long to steep, if not your tea was be super strong and maybe even bitter.

I drink an entire pot of this on my own so I definitely do not let it steep for long. The consequences of doing so would leave me tossing and turning in bed at night, unable to sleep well. It's potent, guys, so proceed with caution.

A closer look. Their tea leaves come from Cibuni, West Java.

I used to drink Twinings English Breakfast almost every day at work. It was delicious, yes, but it also started staining my teeth. Lol.

Apparently after drinking tea we should brush our teeth, if not our teeth turns yellow. Read this somewhere on the net, but I'm too lazy to follow this advice.

I also like to add fresh slices of lemon to this and make my own Lemon Tea. I can't bring myself to add sugar due to health reasons, but sometimes I do add a dash of honey to sweeten things up a bit.

Till next time! Happy tea drinking :)

Skye

Chong Qing Grilled Fish

18 Mosque St, #01-01, Singapore 059498 (Bugis)

Q: You bring your own wines to kopitiams and pair them with zichar. What inspired you to do so? Can you recommend a wine that goes well with these hawker dishes?

Hey you guys!

Glad to report that I've checked off another item off the Challenge! So far, so good.

We went to try a new cuisine - Peruvian food!

I hardly know much about Peru, much less eaten any of its food.

A little about Peru. Peru is a country in South America, and is most famous for Machu Picchu, an ancient city in the mountains. It also houses a section of the Amazon rainforest. Peru is near Colombia and Brazil.

So off we went to DUO Galleria at Bugis, where we had dinner plans at TONO Cevicheria. TONO Cevicheria is helmed by Peruvian chef Daniel Chavez, who also runs OLA Cocina del Mar at Marine Bay Financial Centre, and is mostly there nowadays. So from what we heard, TONO's chef right now is from Mexico.

Here's a look at the interior of the restaurant.

Enjoy lively salsa music - no Despacito!

Upon arrival you'll be presented with either Sparkling or Still water. For the uninitiated, still water is the normal water we drink. If you have been to Europe, Sparkling water is everywhere and you will probably encounter it. Some people enjoy the taste, but it's definitely not my cup of tea! I once mistakenly bought an entire 1.5l bottle of it as the label said things like 'NATURAL' and etc. Do not be fooled!

We used our Burpple 1-for-1 again, but I think for 2 pax you can only use it for the Mains or the Tapas like their signature ceviches. So we went for the mains.

First dish!

This is the Plancha De Mariscos, which is a grilled seafood bowl.

Plancha De Mariscos ($36)

We really enjoyed this! There were grilled plump prawns, a generous amount of squid, crispy melt-in-your-mouth fish, and vegetables like soft zucchinis and eggplant. However, the delicious sauce was the star of the show that bound it all. It was a pleasant flavour party in your mouth! The dish is topped off with these crispy rice bits too. Overall, a nicely layered and textured dish. And boy, did this smell good too!

Peruvian Paella ($36)

Rating: 9/10

TONO Cevicheria
7 Fraser St, #01-49/50 Duo Galleria, Singapore 189356