Skye Soon : February 2022

Heya!

We checked out a Vietnamese restaurant at Geylang (5 minutes walk from Paya Lebar MRT). It's right next to Rochor Beancurd.

There's actually another Vietnamese restaurant maybe like a few shops down... but this one has Burpple and BBQ SKEWERS!! Now that's not something I see every day.

I really love BBQ things so we had to give this a try.

Here's what the restaurant looks like.

The chairs and tables are all very low, just like in Vietnam! It's actually the perfect height for kiddos, lol. You will sit like a shrimp for the rest of your meal, however. XD

We ordered some skewers to try - one beef, one pork. They're about ~$2++ per skewer. (Sorry, forgot to pay attention to the exact price)

The beef cubes were so-so, veering a little on the tough side. 3/5

HOWEVER, the pork skewer was awesome! They come as smoky charred slices with a strong flavour. Awesomeee! 4/5

Next, we ordered the beef noodle soup because the BF once had some real good spicy beef noodles in Vietnam and have been looking for another bowl since.

This wasn't exactly what he was looking for, but it was not bad! The spiciness doesn't kick in immediately and I was tempted to add chilli. (Luckily I did not.) It's an okay bowl of noodles but I would skip this next time in favour of trying another dish like the Vietnamese Omelette or 'Fried Phoenix' (fried chicken wings) perhaps. 3.5/5

Now let's get to the star of the show: the bun cha! Bun cha consists of grilled pork slices, pork patty meatballs with rice vermicelli noodles. Usually the broth includes carrots, green papaya and onions.

The bun cha here is named 'bun cha obama', probably because Obama once went to Vietnam and famously had a bun cha meal in one of the restaurants.

Now how do you eat it? You can dip your noodles along with the broth, or maybe make a wrap!

Ah~~ the grilled meat was so gooood. The meat is all grilled for you and deliver to your table. Not sure if you could grill your own before covid-19? Either way, I prefer this because it's fuss free!

For some reason I detected some pandan (?) taste in the meatballs haha. Love the texture though!

Not a fan of taugey so we left that alone. The basil on the other hand adds another great layer to the dish. Dig it!!!

Our bill came up to $18.15 in total thanks to the 1-for-1 deal! They do not accept credit cards, but PayLah, cash etc is fine.

On a Friday night, the restaurant was filled with two other tables of merry uncles hanging out with lots of beer. More people started to enter as we left.

The owner was also very amiable and easy-going~!

We had fun and when the craving for BBQ skewers comes around again, I'll know where to go!

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123 ZÔ Vietnamese BBQ
Skewers and Hotpot

747 Geylang Road

Singapore 389654

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Love,

Skye

P.S. we also checked out an ice cream shop right next to the restaurant after dinner. It's called 'Monday Blues' and feature a cotton candy ice cream waffle set. The flavours looked kind of boring and run of the mill so we left. Oops.

Hey guys~

Recently I embarked on yet another new course - this time in coding! Best of all, it's FREE thanks to NLB. In fact, there are many courses such as business courses, cloud computing, coding, marketing, leadership and even art!

Haha, we should be so lucky. Here's how you can do it too.

Step 1: Make sure you have a National Library Board account. (Singapore)

Step 2: Log in at https://nlbsg.udemy.com/

Step 3: Enrol yourself in any class you like.

WHY I chose Javascript

I'm currently learning Javascript because I already have some understanding of HTML and CSS thanks to my shenanigans with blogging. These 3 components help in making a website. Things like Python are more useful to people like data analysts or people who work with Excel (I think). Javascript can also be used to make apps. Some famous apps made with JS that you know would be Netflix, Spotify, Facebook and Twitter! And, if you're not sure which coding language to learn, you can refer to pages like these.

Coding is a language. So far I feel that Javascript requires some logic and math (algebra, simple inequalities). As we live in the technology age, I think at the very least, it's important to know how coding works, even if you can't code a whole app or website from scratch.

The course I chose

I'm doing a course called 'The Complete JavaScript Course 2022: From Zero to Expert!'. The course spans across 20 sections over 69 hours. There are other courses too (like this one that is about 52 hours) but I thought, eh, just another couple of hours to have a more comprehensive understanding. So why not pick the longer one?

I adjust the videos to 1.25 speed (you can adjust it up to 2x). There are assignments and coding challenges to complete too.

Currently my progress is 56/320 lessons, or 5/20 sections. There's still a long, long way to go, but so far it has been fun and fruitful.

Journey so far

Initially it was really fun pretending to be a 'coder', especially when you start typing code on a dark screen. I felt so cool. The furious typing and clacking of keys really fed into the 'cool hacker' illusion you usually see in movies.

Sometimes things can get a little dry or confusing. Nevertheless, there are funny things that help you along. For example, there's this really funny comment that I always see on the QNA page.

(it was not so bad...)

and this:

I liked it. Haha.

The teacher is really thoughtful too. He prepared different pathways to cater to different types of learners. Super useful!

He also provides a roadmap for us newbies to encourage us. You can hear the excitement in his voice as he 'initiates' us into this new world. Love teachers like this!

Now I'm not sure how long these courses will be available so I'm just going to take advantage of them as much as possible. I mean, who knows what kind of package and duration NLB signed up for?

I'm happy to enter a new world (and start to understand some lame coding jokes.) Here are some:

Can't believe I can understand this now.

If I do manage to make something cool, I promise to show it to you guys! Gotta head back to 'code' now, so bye for now!

Love,

Skye

P.S. This is not a paid ad for NLB or Udemy, or even Skillsfuture...

Hey guys!

How did your week go? Mine turned out pretty good!

Art 🎨

I made a new looping gif applying the one point perspective method I learnt recently.

Colours are still tricky for me, but adding all these details and animated loops were fun - especially making the shooting stars! I guess picking up fundamental basic animation ideas since young really helps...

I also added music to this loop and you can check it out on my IG if you would like to hear it. I was going for a lo-fi kitchen vibe. Haha.

P.S. If you look really closely, you can see some familiar faces in this artwork - including a visitor at a corner....

I also started a new notebook to make some nature studies - leaves, flowers, trees and eventually landscapes.

Still not very good at shading but it's good to learn how to draw petals and leaves.

Food 🍲

I also had 4 big meals this week - it was really nice to dine outside with friends and family! I had Korean twice, Western, as well as an Italian meal. Super full and satisfied!

Korean meals are so intense! With banchan, rich soups and rice, meals can be really filling (but satisfying. How do people stay slim? Haha.

Met my friends for lunch and we had a really great meal from Gustavo Lapasta by Garibaldi. Having meals with friends usually mean we all get to sample food and enjoy more variety~!

To wrap up the week, I have been craving muffins so we baked some blueberry ones. I wanted to use up the butter from my previous baking project but in the end the recipe we chose only needed oil. Lmao. We cut the sugar by more than half to be more healthy XD That may have affected the texture though! I hope to make a muffin that is even more moist next time.

Movie 🎬

We also caught a 3h + movie.... and despite its long duration, the movie was really entertaining! It was so intense in the last hour.

Wanna guess what it is? Here are some clues.

"I rather be his whore than your wife!" Karrr-pui!
It's a 1997 movie directed by James Cameron.
"Draw me like one of your French girls."

Did you get it right? It's Titanic!

I've seen memes and short clips of this enduring (and endearing) movie throughout my entire life, but have never attempted to watch the whole thing. I'm glad I did!

Cinematic magic, even though the movie is already 25 years old. Amazing! Hats off to anyone who deigns to undertake such huge ambitious projects. Dedication at its finest!

The funny thing is that we watched this after watching a Mothership video of cruise life on the Royal Caribbean. Having second thoughts about going on a cruise trip now...

YouTube 📺

I also watched the latest upload from the University Challenge! That's the quiz with Singapore Max Zeng! The quiz is challenging indeed! The questions are so obscure and specific. I guess it helps if you have esoteric interests? A team should also have breadth though! Other than maths, science, history and geography, you also have to tackle categories like music, art, culture and literature too.

For example, in the music section, a part of a piece is played and you are asked to identify the composer.

For art, you are shown pieces of art and asked to identify the artists. Sometimes they just give you the names of the pieces and maybe the year produced. From this you have to answer (or make an educated guess). Amazing~

They even show you a photo of a musician from decades ago and ask you to identify her, and the other musicians on stage.

(It's Nina Simone.)

There are also science anagrams etc. You really have to have a well rounded team!

Did I understand everything? Nope. But it's fun to watch and I believe it makes me feel smarter. Sometimes I feel like my braincells are dying especially when I watch some nonsense TikToks by chance. It's terrifying because the videos just go on endlessly and before you know it, you already spent maybe 15 minutes watching someone attempt the 'eye colour challenge'.

The video says :'this app helps you choose your eye colour', when in reality the user can actually preset the colour they like in the effect. The audience doesn't know that unless they try the effect themselves. Sigh. The power of suspense and curiosity... not always a good pay off.

Gotta go now, see you guys soon! I hope you have a fulfilling week ahead!

Love,

Skye

Hey guys!

So today I just wanted to share some of the most memorable moments I have had as a busker in Singapore. I wrote this post about three years ago thinking that this collection of memories would be very nice to look back upon.

Back then I was actively busking but as you know, Covid-19 rocked the world and everything has changed since then. Right now there is *some* busking activity - very controlled and limited ones in places like Scape or some trials behind a glass/plastic sheet but I have not been participating in any of these (I was too late). The busking community has rallied and tried to inject some life back into the scene but honestly it has been hard for everyone in the live entertainment industry.

Well, let's delve into the post written about three years back! (Nov 2019)

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Just a little background, I got my busking license in 2018. I mostly busk at Paya Lebar Square but I have also busked outside Cathay too.

If you follow my Instagram, you may already know some of these stories. But I hope you enjoy these anyway.

Once an auntie stopped me halfway through singing to pass me an ice cream cone and milkshake from Macdonalds. Haha! Then I asked if I could sing any song for her, and we settled on a song dedication to 'Auntie Ali baba', with the song 'Mamma Mia' by ABBA. She clapped very loudly after the performance :) I quickly slurped up the ice cream before it melted - it actually did wonders for my throat and it was nice to have a break during the busking session!
The time when a five year old boy asked to sing. He looked very brave, but after a while he admitted that he was a little scared of performing in public. So his sister and his mum came to back him up! We sang 'Can You Feel the Love Tonight' from the Lion King, and also 修炼爱情 by JJ Lin.
Once a boy, clutching his P6 PSLE assessment books, hung around for quite some time, before coming up a few times to talk to me before literally running away. Haha. He told me things like, "You sing very nice", "When do you busk", and lastly, "I love you!" Haha that was very cute.
Singing outside Cathay was not the most pleasant as it was very dark, it drizzled, it was beside a busy road, and worst, there was another busker AND another event that hired performers on the same day. Was feeling quite discouraged that day, but later received hand-drawn fan mail from two teenagers who have continued to support me in my busking journey so far. Thank you!!
Teenagers are the most energetic of the lot! It was a quiet Tuesday night and I was just getting into the groove of things. I was busy trying to emote in the song 'The Climb', by Miley Cyrus, when suddenly I noticed a group of maybe 4-5 students waving their arms enthusiastically to my song, just like in a concert. They were smiling at me and at first I was thrown off because I thought I knew them (they looked a bit like my students, LOL).

To my surprise they knew the words to the song (which I thought was only popular in my era) and I could see their mouths moving from a far distance. Later on the last chorus I said, "Let's sing together!" and they responded with squeals and from a distance I could hear them singing soooo loudly together. They said thank you and 加油 before leaving. Two of them came back with loose change and to tell me 加油 again! That's when I saw that they were from my secondary school! That was really fun.
One time I busked in a different location, in front of Cheers at Paya Lebar. The wind was really strong and money actually flew away!!! Kind strangers helped me chase after the notes. It was hilarious.
During mid-autumn, an uncle left me matcha mooncakes! Later he also suggested that I have a QR code and that's why I now have a QR code. This kind uncle has also came by on other occasions, leaving me pineapple tarts and other treats!
Fun fact, the months after CNY, I received many fresh, newly printed $2 notes, most probably from angbao!!! 😂
Once, an old lady parked her grocery trolley at the side, took down her shawl, and to my surprise, starting dancing. We chatted a little bit and she danced to more songs like ' Sway'. Weeks later I got to know her as Auntie B and she told me that she lived alone and was depressed. She danced again, this time to the song ' Que Sera Sera' and 'Jingle Bells'. What touched me most was when she told me she had a good time. I look forward to meeting this auntie again!
When I sing Disney songs, little girls will gather around me with wide eyes, and giggle while they sing along. It's the cutest thing!! We are all princesses! I like to sing them songs from Frozen or Moana, though they also like Little Mermaid!
I usually busk near the entrance of Paya Lebar, so when I saw an uncle hobbling over, I did not make much of it. He shuffled his feet slowly with little steps, and my heart melted when I realised he was walking all the way just to give me $2. :')))))
My mum once came to watch me secretly from the side. LOL that was a huge surprise for me.
When I busk near Jollibee, many food deliverymen will park their bikes or e-scooters (now banned lol) nearby. One time they broke loudly into song with me on the chorus of 'Shallow' by Lady Gaga. I still laugh at this memory.
Someone once left me a paper bag of food and water! So sweet :') I must admit I thought it was Mcdonalds at first, and was very excited. Nope, it was something very healthy -an oats milkshake that I enjoyed - it became my dinner!
Two little kiddos, probably brothers, once danced and swayed along, and after they made the heart shape with their arms. ADORBZ!
Once someone came walking very intentionally to me, with a $50 note in hand. I was quite shocked but later he told me he just wanted to give me $2 (lol), so we gathered some notes to help him exchange his bill. LOL

There has been a lot of heartwarming (and funny) moments, and it's always nice to see people dancing and enjoying the music. Sometimes people stand in a corner, then later break into big smiles when they approach you and even give you words of encouragement. You never know what's coming next, the uncertainty of everything makes busking so unique!

Of course, not everything is rosy. Sometimes you get checked by policemen (so make sure you have your license), sometimes it rains, once an uncle told me something about pitch and whether I have found my own voice (lol I was butchering a Taylor Swift song), sometimes shop owners tell you to turn it down. But mostly it has been great (for me).

Just want to say a big thank you to everyone who has been supporting me thus far, you guys are the best! Thank you for sending me love on social media, or turning up IRL to catch my perfs! Some of you have come by multiple times, I want to say thank you for making time for me. Busking has opened quite a few doors for me as well, and I'm very grateful for that.

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It's so strange reading something you've written a while back. I didn't post this when I wrote it back then because the memories were pretty fresh in my mind and I also posted them on the days I busked.

Aww, I really miss busking and making precious memories like these.

I have waited and waited for the rules to relax but you know that ain't happening soon in Singapore. I'm not too sure when busking will be allowed again, but for now I hope everyone is staying safe and I hope to see you soon ~!

Love,

Skye

If you enjoy peaceful Ghibli vibes, this may be the live action film for you. Beautiful poignant moments, as well as lovely family and friendship ties punctuate this movie.

Our Little Sister

Language: Japanese

Year: 2016

Genre: Slice of life, Drama

What's it about: Three adult sisters adopt their younger half-sister at their father's funeral. A new life begins for all of them.

Thoughts:

Recently I've been more interested in 'sisterhood' films that are either about deep friendships* or in this case, sisters by blood. (*I revisited the Sisterhood of Traveling Pants. Firefly Lane is also something I enjoyed watching.)

My favourite characters are Suzu, the youngest sister who was adopted, and the oldest sister, Sachi. The actresses depict them with much life and personality! They are also very pretty~

Let me introduce the sisters:

Suzu is good at football and generally a lively girl despite having to take up heavy responsibilities as a child.

Her oldest sister, Sachi, is a nurse who brought up the other two siblings when both their parents abandoned them. She carries the weight of the family.

Second sister Yoshino is more carefree and loves to shop, drink and date men.

Third sister Chika is laidback.

From right to left: Yoshino, Suzu, Sachi and Chika

The sisters live in a large, charming and cosy house that would not be out of place in a Ghibli movie. It is old, dear and very nostalgic.

While the movie was calm and peaceful, I found myself being paranoid. Early in the movie, Yoshino introduces her then-boyfriend to the house and mentions something about 'no locks'. Taken together with another conversation about debts, loans, and nasty looking gangsters, I really feared for the girls' safety. It's a small town but anything can happen.....?!! There were legitimately no locks - just traditional sliding doors and a low gate that anyone can climb.

Luckily this film did not go down that road.

And of course, the Japan obsession, or shall I say, way of life with sakura cannot be omitted in this slice of life film! The youthfulness and energy of this scene was very invigorating.

Fireworks, festivals, home made plum wine and everything that pertains to a romantic view of Japan were included too. Though beautiful, I'm starting to think that these themes can get really monotonous - just like how almost every other Singaporean film features the iconic HDB flat.

Nevertheless, I suppose these elements are so embedded in the culture and cannot be avoided as they contribute to the traditional social fabric. We all need some structure even if times are changing.

The movie leaves you wanting more - you want to know how their lives all turned out, whether they still enjoy living together. You also wonder what it would be like to live in such a house in a small town, where the train hoots past you from your kitchen window. Very idyllic!

Overall, if you enjoy the slow, light-hearted pace of Ghibli movies or slice of life movies, this movie could be the answer. It's a classic for sure!

Enjoy!

Love,

Skye

P.S. Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Heyooo~

Sharing five food places I visited in the last month! Sorry for some of the crappy photos, I wasn't planning to do a post about these at all.

Curry Fried Chicken Cutlet

Expectedly, Hong Lim Food Centre is chock full with people, and this stall has a long snaking queue that disappears down rows of other stalls. Seems like it is very popular! If I were still working in an office, lunch time would be my favourite time for sure.

This is a treat at $4.50 with a choice of either rice or noodles.

The curry is rich while not overly watery. It is slightly sweet. The fried chicken cutlet is hot and crispy, as much as it can be, before it touches the curry. The noodles are A+, very springy! Love that.

P.S. SLII muffin egg tarts are available at #02-32 Hong Lim Food Centre too!

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Cantonese Delights

#02-03

Hong Lim Food Centre

Singapore 051531

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George's Laksa

The funny thing was that ST food writer Tan Hseuh Yun shared a post about George's Laksa on Facebook the night before our planned trip. We were worried that the place would suddenly be filled with queues but fortunately we needn't have worried XD

This yummy hearty bowl is $4. Skipped the hum on this occasion because the vaccination lady told me to avoid seafood after the jab. It's not my favourite laksa but its thick rich gravy places it in my top three.

Here's my list hahaha:

1. Parkway Laksa (now at Haig Market)
2. George's Laksa
3. Sungei Road Laksa
4. Katong Laksa (somehow always at the bottom of my list because the soup is almost always served cold on different occasions? I really don't know why. I gave this laksa many chances - don't scold me because it's your favourite, it simply is not mine.)

The uncle is nice and friendly too! Why is this of note? Because sometimes famous stalls have scary auntie/uncles that holler at you especially if you're a little bit slow in your reply. It can be traumatising.

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George's Laksa

307 Changi Road

Singapore 419785

(Eunos/Kembangan)

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Hamburg Steak Keisuke

Yes I know this restaurant has been around in ages but I never got around to try it. I This meal was the priciest! However, it does include a free flow salad bar and small desserts. We enjoyed that very much.

It offers four types of eggs - sunny side, tamago, tamago with mentaiko and scrambled. You have the usual suspects for the vegetables, several choices for salad dressing, sweet potato, bean sprouts, seaweed etc. I don't remember salad being so enjoyable. Haha. It's a good way to fill up on your greens!

We ordered two sets! One original hamburg set ($20.90) and one that had the oozy cheese ($22.90). Each set comprises of soup, rice, sauce, a tempura prawn, some tofu and of course, the hamburg steak.

The hamburg steak was juicy! The cheese one was surprisingly not bad too but at the same time it is oilier too. The hamburg steak here is very soft and 'flakes' off easily. Personally, I prefer a more solid patty but I guess hamburg steaks are usually soft like that.

The desserts ran out and were not replaced? So I didn't get to try anything from that side of the salad bar apart from the coffee jelly and watermelon.

Do take note that a server will be taking the salad foods for you due to Covid-19.

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Hamburg Steak Keisuke

72 Peck Seah St

Singapore 079329

(Tanjong Pagar MRT)

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Dynasty Fried Porridge

This was my first time trying fried porridge! Rozz often raves about it on her IGS so I was really intrigued. The stall is in a kopitiam, not a standalone restaurant if you're trying to look for it!

Both dishes were $7.

The fried porridge was flavourful, sticky and comforting. Perfect for a rainy day. Why eat plain white porridge when you can have this? XD

The KL Black Hokkien Mee was pretty good too! I enjoyed the thick noodles. The fried pork lard is very generous for both dishes but just dump them if you don't like them.

Overall I think it's worth a try! It's not phenomenal but not bad especially when you're sick of the usual hawker fare. Nearest MRT is Bendemeer (DTL) or Lavender.

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Dynasty Fried Porridge

#01-02 (in a kopitiam)

30 Foch Road

Singapore 209276

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Thai Gold Food

I was so wrapped out checking out the art work by NAFA students that I forgot I had to cross the road to Sunshine Plaza. D'OH!

Thai Gold Food is a familiar haunt for those who work/study near this Bugis area. We ordered a lot of dishes - to a tune of $14 x3 = $42! That's pretty affordable for the variety in my opinion!

1. Pandan leaf chicken

2. Tom Yum Soup *not too spicy, don't worry*

3. Fried Prawn Cake *MUST GET*

3. Kuay Tiao *choose this over phad thai*

4. Pineapple rice

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Thai Gold Food

#01-14/22

Sunshine Plaza

91 Bencoolen St

Singapore 189652

(shop with outdoor seating, beside Merely Ice Cream)

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That sums it up! I hope you have lots of fun food adventures!

Love,

Skye

Hello friends!

How has your February been so far? Hope Lunar New Year was fun for you. I thought it would be a great opportunity to rest up and be productive but I was clearly wrong. I did a little visiting but ended up spending a lot of time on entertainment.

What I read (Fiction):

I am enamoured with Neal Shusterman's books! After completing the Unwind series, I hopped onto the trilogy 'Scythe'. (Sorry it's such an inauspicious thing to read during CNY?)

What's it about:

Imagine a world without natural death. Human society is run by an all powerful but benign AI called the Thunderhead. Nanites in your body heal you instantly and you are basically immortal. To maintain death, a group of selected humans called Scythes (pronounced psy-the, not sith) glean people in place of natural death. Some scythes glean randomly, others do research before choosing. Some act with compassion, some revel in killing, ignoring the rules of the Scythedom.

Rowan and Citra are selected to be apprentices of Scythe Faraday, a respected Scythe. Their lives change forever.

I actually like this series much more than Unwind! The world building is great and the premise is interesting. The series has been picked up by Universal and will hopefully make it to the big screens.

What I read (Non-Fiction):

My friend Eli told me she was reading a book called Give and Take so I decided to borrow it too. I think they should rename the book to "Be a Giver". So far the book mainly tries to persuade you with case studies that being a Giver is better than being a Taker, despite it sounding counter-intuitive.

What I watched:

(Gif from kbizoom)

Over CNY I watched All of Us are Dead, Netflix's latest Korean zombie series. The first few episodes were so gripping. After watching the series I conclude that zombies are not scary - human cruelty is far worse.

The bullying scene is entrenched in my mind and I shudder to think about real bullying cases that are unreported, brushed under the carpet, or unresolved. I hope the situation improves...

Park Solomon's favourite scene. Haha!

I also tried to watch Lamb, a 2021 folk horror film where a couple finds a lamb-human baby in their sheep farm and raises it. The movie is very atmospheric with little conversation. Ultra creepy and suspenseful. I didn't finish watching it but we already read the plot because I was scared. Haha.

Other stuff I watched:

Encanto (We don't talk about bruno-no-no-no)
I want to eat your pancreas (anime + live action)
Why is this anime so sad? Savage ending.
AOT Season 4 Pt.2
Guess who spent most of the anime searching for a plot recap? Yes, that's me. I can't remember what happened.

What I ate:

I sampled so many CNY snacks and goodies that I keep wondering if I should Vlog XD I used the half strategy so I actually lost weight during this testing period.

What's the half strategy you say? Eat half and give the other to my BF. Haha.

I also tried my hand at making Jenny cookies using Buttermilk Pantry's recipe! It's my first time buying canned butter.

I didn't manage to pipe out my cookies cuz my piping tip was too small, but nonetheless they taste fine! I also thought that the cookies would spread so I made silly star indents in the coffee cookies. Well, now that I know that the cookie dough can hold shape, I'll definitely do a better job next time!

Well that's all for today! There has been a huge rise in Covid cases recently, and I'm torn between paranoia and resignation - should we just accept this as the start of a truly endemic situation?

Love,

Skye

Happy Lunar New Year to all! 🍊🍊

It's been the second? third? year spending CNY amidst Covid-19. I'm not sure about you but it seems like that many people threw themselves into full on spring cleaning, decorating and preparation more than other years. Perhaps it's because festivities are great reasons (and distractions) from the mundane, repetitive and somewhat restricted life we now have due to Covid?

Ah well, what can we do. I hope you guys are doing okay!

In recent news, I have been trying out some vegetarian food. Everyone has their reasons for eating vegetarian but mine is mostly due to curiosity.

All the vegetarian and vegan terms were unclear to me so I looked them up:

素食者 (su4 shi2 zhe3) Vegetarian: Does not eat meat but may consume dairy and eggs
纯素食者 (chun2 su4 shi2 zhe3) Vegan: Does not eat any animal products, including dairy and eggs.
斋食 (zhai1): Religious vegetarianism where onions, garlic and mountain leek etc are abstained from because they excite the senses and disturb a peaceful mind. (Quora)

There are many other variations like lacto-vegetarian and pecsatarian (no meat, but seafood is ok) but I'll familiarise myself with these first.

Let's begin!

First stop:

Mushroom Udon 🍜🥦🍅

from Tracy Juice Culture (Fortune Centre)

I saw this recommendation on IG and we decided to head down since we were in the Bugis area one weekend.

It was actually our first time at Fortune Centre. Sorry for being swaku haha we usually hang out in other places of Bugis.

It was really fun to explore a new 'mall'. Fortune Centre was bustling with life! Being situated near temples, the centre tends to have many tenants that offer vegetarian food, religious items/services. It also has a Ya Kun, Japanese cuisine, bakeries, pasta, and if I'm not wrong a (non-chain) BBT shop too. We also found a traditional art studio and spotted hobby group spaces.

The lady boss seemed inundated with orders when we headed there during the weekend (about 3pm or so). Tracy Juice Culture also serves desserts and healthy juices and smoothies like the Nutty Paradise (pine nuts. almonds, cashews). They seem to have a steady stream of regulars who are not fussed about the queue or waiting time. (BTW, they have two seating areas - one is in the shop while the other is a 1 minute walk into the back(?) of the mall. We followed the regulars.)

So anyway after some waiting, we tried the much raved about mushroom udon ($8.80)!

The mushroom soup of course was the star of the show. They are chopped and blended - but not too finely to make a nice hearty soup. The dish also comes with cherry tomatoes and broccoli.

Umami wise, I had stronger flavours but this was not bad too! I like soups with a peppery taste (white or black pepper is fine, depending) and I really wanted to add lots of black pepper to it. But is it rude to do so when you're seated right in front of the boss? XD Nonetheless still a comforting bowl to have. They offer take home mushroom soup packs too.

Other than the popular Mushroom Udon, one dish that definitely stood out was the Fruit Laksa.

Yes, you heard that right. Fruits like dragonfruit, grapes and pineapples.... with your laksa.

We have yet to try this but I will update this space when I do! :P

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Tracy Juice Culture

Fortune Centre

#01-34

Singapore 188979

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Noodles from Green Dot 🍜🥕🥬

Have I seen Green Dot in various malls? Yes.

Have I tried them out? Nope, not at all. So it's high time I did!!!

My friend recommended the Angelica Herbal Noodle w Cordyceps ($ 8.50) so we got that alongside a bowl of Taiwanese Spicy Dry Handmade Noodles ($7.90).

The dry Taiwan noodles arrived first with a bowl of soup with stalks of shanghai green (I think). It looks very simple.

The soup reminded me very much of Taiwan vegetarian food!

In my (very limited) vegetarian food experience, the vegetarian stuff I was exposed to as a child in Singapore usually consists of many fried or flour-y foodstuff, like mock meat. They are also often oily. When I was in Taiwan however, the meals tend to focus on more mushrooms and 'clean' eating.

The noodles were springy and flavourful. The chilli was not very spicy but still yummy. I can see myself trying to replicate the sauce so that I can eat this at home on a regular basis.

The Angelica herbal noodles was not bad too. My more recent experiences of angelica, or dang gui in Chinese, are of the angelica duck dish from Dian Xiao Er. They use quite a lot of it to create a heavier flavour profile. In contrast, this soup is very mild in dang gui flavour. The noodles were the same springy ones used in the Taiwan noodles.

Sometimes restaurants come up with creative 'mock' meats, such as mock crab, mock beef and etc. Let's also not get started on the whole debate of having mushrooms taste like beef etc. Some people do not see the point of having vegetarian food 'copy' meat dishes in texture or flavour.

Either way, I felt that the dishes here focus more on texture rather than on taste. It was fun experiencing different chewiness or smoothness from the Konnyaku Fishball and Soya Mutton.

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Green Dot

Bedok Mall, Nex, Plaza Singapura,
Junction 8, One Raffles Place, Westgate,
Paya Lebar Square, Bugis Junction, Rivervale Mall
and... more?

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Thoughts on vegetarianism

I have many different kind of vegetarian friends - the strictly religious, the flexitarian, the once a month vegetarian. Everyone does it for different reasons - some continue a family tradition of a religious practice, some are conscious of their eco footprint, concerned about their health or simply do it for the animals.

Either way I think it's a choice just like many other things in life. I don't understand why people have to be so upset or offended when someone chooses to live a certain way. No one is actually forcing you to be vegetarian, you can continue eating whatever you want. Just let the vegetarians live the way they want too~

Trying to abstain from stuff can be difficult and the self discipline and ability to stick to your guns is definitely something I look up to.

For me I doubt I will be become a full vegetarian, but I will continue to explore vegetarian food and eat less meat whenever possible. It's not that I die die need to eat meat but more like I just eat what is served and am open to eating meat. I suppose I could be a flexitarian of the health and eco footprint variety? We'll see!

At the very least, I guess the experience of choosing to eat vegetarian food reminds me to be more mindful of things I consume, which perhaps nudges me towards the direction of thinking about the living things that are used in our food. This 'vegetarian food adventure' helps paves the way to thoughtful eating, and I think the effects and attitude can continue to spill into other areas of life too.

Also thanks to my vegetarian friends for piquing my interest - you guys are influencers in your own right. (Meant in the best possible way, I'm not referring to 'influenza' influencers)

What about you? If you are a vegetarian or vegan etc, what are your experiences? What is a struggle for you and what do you enjoy? What is one thing you wish people knew? Would love to know.

Love,

Skye

P.S. Feel free to leave vegetarian food recommendations in Singapore in the comments, I love to check out new places!

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