40 Singapore foods we can't live without

I just came across this article on CNNGo - a list of 40 Singapore foods we die die must try. It's the food that we dream about when we're away from Singapore. It's the food we make a list that we must try when we are home.

For the overseas Singaporeans, venture at your own risk
40 Singapore foods we can't live without

Is there any on the list that you have not tried ? What else do you think should have made it to the list ? For me, they would be the Odeon Beef Noodles, Boneless Duck Rice & Black Pepper Crabs (I know they included chilli crabs but I'm biased).

Mighty Moghul Weekend Festival

Well I did say we were going & we did. The whole experience was a little different than the one we had at the Peranakan Museum. The ACM is much bigger & even though the weekend pulled in a big crowd, it didn't feel like we needed to jostle.

They set aside the huge River Room for the children's play area & where most of the action was.

No prizes for guessing what we did first.

Actually the henna stand was on the ACM Green so needless to say, we headed straight for it. There were free massages & eye brow threading but no, this was all she wanted to do (not that she would have cared for eye brow threading).

Fun fun fun. They also had a stand where you can *bejewel* your cellphone. Before I could even blink, they had put some bling bling on my phone.

Jewelery handicraft corner where you have a choice of making a necklace or bracelet.

Small fingers & good eyes needed - what maman does not have.

Voila, the end result. She was so happy doing this, the week after I went to the art shop to stock up on materials to make more beaded jewelery.

Then they had to color & decorate their paper daggers with sequins. She insisted on doing everything herself. It took so long, we missed the story telling session & had to bring back the paper Taj Mahal to do.


Of course we couldn't miss the main attraction which was to see " Treasury of the World - Jewel Arts of India". A collection that has been described as being the inspiration to Cartier.

Even for one who is not a jewelery person, I was totally in awe & captivated by all the pieces.



After the kathak dance performance, audience participation. I love how it's usually the kids that are the first to volunteer.

Did anyone else go ? Did you enjoy yourselves ? We sure did.

Adventures in Ko Phra Thong

I wouldn't have enjoyed our vacation in Ko Phra Thong as much if it had not been for our friends (yes the crazy ones who found this isolated resort). I know more than a handful of friends who would have stopped reading after "no hot shower" but I did receive several enthusiastic yeses.

I love the fact that we have the beach to ourselves. We even caught a couple suntanning in the nude (even though it is probably not allowed). You don't need to jostle for beach space. There are no loud groups (oops we were probably the loudest because of the kids).

There were gentle waves which was great fun for the kids. In fact we even had beaches on either side of the island too choose from - depending on the shade & the tide. Can you see my daughter growing up to be a surfer type ?

Entertainment isn't just for the kids. Our friends had a nice big terrace & we would gather there every evening for .....

Happy Hour

The adults played Scrabble &
the kids played Happy Family
(who needs TV ?)

We did venture off the island. One was a half day leisurely kayak trip to a nearby island to explore the bat caves & to check out yet another beach. I don't know why The Girl kept complaining she was tired when she wasn't the one rowing. No photos cos I didn't want my camera to get wet in case our kayak capsized.

The next which we really enjoyed was our trip to Surin Island. Some of the best snorkelling that I've done. The variety of the fishes & the corals are just amazing. Thankfully the tsunami didn't seem to have damaged too much of the sea life. As part of that trip, we also visited a Sea Gypsy village.

I think the ice cream truck just drove by cos all the kids seemed to be eating ice cream when we were there This was the jetty made up entirely of jelly cans (I believe that's what they are called). Our lunch stop.

Beautiful beautiful water....

This is Marion who was our guide &
also The Girl's snorkelling teacher

Practising in shallow waters

Earnestly spitting into her mask
Once, of course, is never enough

By our 3rd dive, she was already snorkelling away

I love sunsets
& always try to catch it when I'm on vacation

The staff at the resort was wonderful. Genuinely helpful & ever ready to play with the kids. The Girl found a new friend in Pinar & there were a few tears when we left.

What makes a great vacation - good food, good friends, good times.
Thank you Gaby, Loic, Joshua & Juna for being there with us.

For Martha

For Martha
Because you asked for it

This was the sand art we did at the Peranakan Museum

How green can you go ?

Did you take part in Earth Hour yesterday ? Last night I was out at dinner with a friend. We dined by candle light & honestly, didn't bother us one bit that there was no light nor air con (the restaurant didn't have air con to begin with). We just continued chatting & chomping down our food.

Anyway it seems befitting to talk about our recent stay at an eco resort in Thailand. My question is would you stay at a place that.......

takes you 2.5 hours by plane, 3 hours by car & 1 hour by boat to get to

where there is no electricity during the day

the current comes on from 6-11pm
so the fan only works during that time
after that, you have to depend on the breeze or wind
(or lack of)

with outdoor facilities which means

no hot water
maybe a little warm as the pipes get heated up during the day

constant stream of uninvited guests like frogs, lizards, monkeys

with thankfully modern toilets

with no minibar so the drinks are kept cold by a block of ice in an icebox
(the big barrel of water lasted us one week)

walking more than 1 km 6 times a day everyday
to the club house for breakfast, lunch & dinner

We survived our first eco resort. Admittedly it took some getting used to. Yikes no hot water but by the end of the trip, I appreciated the ice cold showers & would take one every opportunity I can. In that heat, it was much needed relief.


We learned to do things differently. Everything was done at a leisurely pace, there was no need to rush around. We woke up early to beat the heat. Breakfast at the clubhouse then it was off to the beach. Lunch. Afternoons were spent indoors - reading, taking naps, playing games. We ventured outdoors again only in the evenings. Slept early so that we could take advantage of the fan before it goes off at 11.

It wasn't exactly back to nature, rough it out type of vacation we had. For the most parts, it was very comfortable. Honestly, we didn't miss much of what we considered as basic amenities like hot water & minibar. The toughest part was not having air con. Even though we were by the sea, unfortunately there wasn't much of a breeze to speak of. Try sleeping at nights drenched in sweat. I would be quite happy with the fan but you can't feel it sleeping under a mosquito net.

The resort is made up of different villas - all uniquely designed. Ours was tastefully done up with Thai antiques & was told owned by a British soap opera actor, whose name I couldn't remember.

This was not Club Med so we had to provide our own entertainment. More on that the next post. I enjoyed a lot of quiet time in the afternoons when everybody was taking their naps & as a result, finished several books on that trip.

This was our favorite house
It's small - probably only for a couple
but love the adjoining terrace

So back to my original question, could you spend your vacation in a place like this ?