Closing One Chapter And Starting On The Next

Taking a quick intermission from my Japan posting to squeeze this in. I recently made a trip down to Brothers In Fine Food - a new cafe in Tampines - for a solo lunch all in the name of work. It was the first time I actually sat down in a proper cafe/restaurant to have a meal all on my own. I was a bit afraid to do so at first, because on top of dining alone, I had to make sure I got enough photos for the article I was putting together.

But alas, all was well. I had to take photos of the space and the food anyway, but having just a small handful of people at the cafe helped me to not just focus a whole lot more on what I'm doing, but also get better pictures!

Having a meal alone is actually quite satisfying. You get to be with your own thoughts, read a book or go through Snapchat, and just be contented with the me-time that you're getting with yourself. Note to self: try to find the courage to do solo meals more often.

This was probably one of the best steak I've ever had too. I don't have much experience in the steak department, but the beef here was so juicy and soft, and the beetroot pureé was amazin' to say the least.

Read more about it here!

In less than a week, I'll also be moving on to a new phase of life. I'm finally setting time aside for myself to work on the personal projects I've always wanted to work on, and start adding some decent work to my portfolio. It has been stagnant as of late, despite my self-reminders to keep working on something new. Time hasn't been on my side, but I think it's a good decision to sit myself down and get started on it now. There isn't much time left to uni enrollment, and if I want to get in, I need to make sure I have what it takes. The real question is: will I ever have what it takes? 

Till the next Jap post!

Letters to Japan: Day #2

As the days go by, I find myself wishing I was back in Japan, more now than ever before. 

For Day #2 in Tokyo, we managed to wake up (reasonably) early to head over to Yanesen Cemetery, a beautiful little place located somewhere near our Airbnb. We just needed to take a 20-30 minute bus ride to the place. 

But before anything else, food! 

We stumbled across this vending machine udon store along a line of stores where we were, so we decided to stop by to give it a try. I was completely fascinated with the self-service system, because I've never seen anything like it before, but apparently that street is filled with such restaurants. And I also found more of them at random busy train stations!

You make your orders and pay via the vending machines, then pass your little receipt to the chefs (yes, there are still human chefs physically there to make your food instead of just the vending machine) for them to prep your meal. I guess technically, that makes it a 'self-service' restaurant than a vending machine one right....

I got the really basic udon set, which comes with a normal bowl of noodles, paired with some porky broth which tasted pretty amazing. 

What I was really impressed by was the springiness of the udon noodles. I'm not normally one for udon, because I find them a bit too plain, with the noodles being a bit too floury and dry. I will always be a #ramengal at heart, but this place was surprisingly good! Reminds me of the other only really good udon place I know in Singapore, found in NEX's Japanese food street. 

Mmm... Probably not a good idea to look at such photos with a hungry stomach at 1.30am. Well I guess I wasn't hungry until I saw the photos.....

Belle got something like a 'sampler' set, so she got a small-sized curry noodles with another small-sized udon. A little bit of both. Her curry rice was pretty good though!

Probably one of the countless amount of things I like about Japan is how everything is painted in such pretty pastel tones. Even this bridge is in mint. It just makes the entire country look so rustic and beautiful.

Yanesen Cemetery was a complete far cry from what you see in Singapore. They are so peaceful and serene, with little a couple of other visitors walking around. It was so bright and airy too!

A pity the leaves haven't started changing colour yet... Or it would have been perfect. Belle told me that the locals come here for picnics whenever the cherry blossom season hits, so I guess the Japanese don't just take their cemetery grounds to be somewhere you only go to if you want to pay respects to the dead.

Afterwards, we made a last-minute decision to head down to Akihabara (forgot what our initial plan was). After all, I've heard so much about anime-city, so I jumped at the opportunity to see it for myself.

Two pictures only?? And both of them look exactly the same??? 

Yes. I got very distracted. First, by the PABLO Cheese Tart store that was right in front of the Akihabara tain station. It smelt so so good....... We couldn't possibly walk away without getting a box.

And then, I stepped into a Taito store and probably stayed there for close to an hour, trying to win a stupid Gudetama plushie keychain in the claw machines. Pretty sure I wasted 800Y there, and I didn't end up walking away with it in the end. 

We then walked around Akihabara for a good while more, and then found dinner at this little food court in Akihabara Station.

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I would squeeze my other pictures in for Mount Takao the next day, but there are way too much photos to include, and this post would get real draggy, so I'll just end it off here for now.

Damn... Don't know what I wouldn't do to fly back to Japan in a heartbeat.

Till the next one!

Letters to Japan: Day #1

It's been close to 3 weeks since my return from Japan, and yet I still find myself wishing I was back there. Even before travelling, I already knew that it would be my favourite country. Finally stepping onto Japanese soils and taking in their sights and sounds for myself was just a dream. Now, I say it with no reservations - Japan is my happy place. I'm already wondering when my next trip there will be, perhaps with Lun in about a year from now hehe.

Our first day in Japan was probably the rainiest throughout our entire trip. We were stuck at the Narita Airport train station for a good long while, lugging our luggages up and down the platforms trying to decide which was the right train to take. And because we weren't able to check into our Airbnb just yet, we decided to chuck our luggages in lockers before exploring Asakusa. 

It was also so refreshing to meet friendly, helpful locals that were willing to go out of their way to help you. We came across our first #helpfuljapanese at Asakusa Station, when we were dragging our baggages around trying to locate lockers. There were rows of them near the gantries, but they were all filled. The only ones vacant weren't big enough for our lugagges. But a Japanese man saw our predicament, and tried to tell us to twist or stack our luggages to see whether they could fit.

Even when we inevitably deduced that there is no way that our luggages could fit in the lockers, he tried telling us (in a mix of Japanese and hand gestures) that there were also lockers outside the station, and that we could look for the tourist centre nearby if we still needed help. This man was not obligated to stand there and help two lost tourists, but he still did it anyway, and we were so thankful.

   

While we were window shopping around Shin-Nakamise, we popped by Ganso Zushi, a place that Belle recommended from her last trip to Japan. It was honestly one of the best sushi I've ever tasted. Before this meal, I've never tasted salmon or meguro so fresh. Even the ikura was so sweet, nothing like what I've had in Singapore. The prices are so affordable too, with the cheapest going for ¥200. The place is pretty popular among locals too! It's not as popular as other sushi chains in Japan, but definitely worth the visit. If I lived in Japan, I could see myself coming by for every meal hehe.

Ganso Zushi

1-19-7 Asakusa, Taito

 

Soft serve galore! I've only been able to see these pretty ice creams on Instagram or Tumblr all my life, but I was finally able to have a cone for myself. It was amazing! Having ice cream in cold weather is also a different experience altogether. We got Rose and Açai!

Sensoji Temple was so crowded with tourists, all clambering to get their own perfect shot. Plus, it was about 3-4pm when we got to the temple, and it was about to close. But we were still able to walk around the grounds and take a couple of videos and photos of our own! 

Oh sigh, the problem of shooting landscape scenery photos with a darn prime lens...

In the temple, you could also get a mini fortune telling sheet after you donate ¥100. I got 'good' fortune while Belle got 'average' HAHA. If you don't like you wishes, you can tie them to the lanterns  or strings provided inside so you won't need to bring your luck home!

Alas, after our first day of exploring, we bought some croquettes at a store and slowly made our way to Tokyo Skytree, where our Airbnb was near. After standing around under the train tracks eating our 'dinner', we had to wait a little bit more before our host reached home at 8-ish close to 9. :')

It was a pretty tiring day, especially since we didn't get proper shut-eye on the planes to Japan, but I drifted off to sleep pretty easily, the moment my eyes were closed heh.

That concludes Day #1! I will edit my remaining images and continue with the subsequent days real soon. Till the next one!

at a crossroad

Our little overseas venture halted earlier than expected, thanks to an absolutely stupid blunder that I made on my end. Don't want to get into specifics but thinking about it still makes me disappointed in myself. But sometimes, things happen for a reason. And I'm pretty thankful for my trip ending a little earlier because a) it saves me a wee bit more money, and b) I can be with Lun before he prepares for his first outfield experience as a SGT (happening right now). I didn't really know how homesick I felt until I touched back down into Singapore, and got to see my favourite person for the first time in 2 weeks.

But right now, I feel so... stuck. I just found out over the weekend that entry into my course does not exactly require a perfect GPA score - all I need is a sturdy, convincing portfolio, and an aced interview. It definitely made me feel a lot more reassured. My GPA is not the best (in fact, it's pretty bad), so being able to enter a course that I love without worrying about my score is great. But at the same time, it sets me back a step when I get a reality check. My portfolio hasn't exactly grown as much as I'd want it to throughout this gap year that I'm taking off my studies. Sure, I've finally ticked a couple of things of my all-time must-do list, but I still feel like that's not enough. To be honest, will anything ever be enough?

It's time to start sending out some emails, working on more personal projects, and finally mapping my mind out. Keeping my fingers crossed that people will actually reply me.

The term 'doing this for my portfolio' has never held more meaning till now.

It's been long.

Well, hello.

It's been more than 2 months since my last post, and so much has happened since then. I turned 20, got a new job, and Lun enlisted into the army and just recently POP-ed. It's been a rollercoaster to say the least. The past months have, as usual, been a torrent of highs and lows, but I consider myself lucky enough to be able to say that I've had a good mix of both. There weren't too many dull moments to black out the good, and despite adjusting to a new phase in life, I was still able to always have something nice to look forward to. 

I've said it a lot of times to my friends all around me, but Lun being in the army makes life seem like a perpetual countdown. We are always counting the days down till he's able to book out, and then looking at the hours go by until he needs to book back in. Time never seems to be enough when someone you love needs to be elsewhere, especially since Lun and I were basically inseparable before the army. I'm not ashamed to admit it either - different couples work differently. Some do better and would rather not see each other every day, but some just like the comfort of being able to see each other regularly.

It was - and still is - that way for Lun and I. He is my stability, and my home to return to at the end of every work day. His home is basically my home, and I am so fortunate to be able to have a second family that is willing to welcome me and include me in their own dinners and activities, as if I was never a stranger to begin with. 

So you could imagine how strange it would seem to suddenly not have all of that. I don't regularly see Lun anymore, neither do we have family dinners often. But that's what makes his book out days so much more dear to me. It's saving up the dates and the things we want to do together and making plans in advance, and it's finally being able to see him at the end of his two-week confinement, all stinky, sweaty and callused but still him all the same. 

Eventually, you start to get used to it, though not entirely. Now it's all about focusing on my work when the weekdays are here so I can spend the time with him on the weekends, and getting used to being excited for Fridays, and then dreading Sunday nights. But it's all temporary, and I'm so happy that Lun is also finding joys in the army, and enjoying the friends and experiences that he's gained. 

After his POP last Wednesday (technically last last Wednesday since it was almost 2 weeks ago), we had an entire week to just chill and relax. An entire week, oh the opportunities haha. Besides being useless bums at home and just lazing around the bed and watching Ah Boys To Men (because, relevance), we also made a short weekend trip to Taiwan.

It's quite funny actually. Lun has already been there THREE times in a row. Three. The first with his school, the second with us for our grad trip, and now one more time with just us. With his SCS course, he might also be required to go to Taiwan again for training lol, four times in a row? It sounds a bit ridiculous, but Taiwan was almost a no-brainer for us because #1, comfortable and efficient Metro system that will get you anywhere you need to be in Taipei without a hitch, #2, we felt like there was still so much more we could do around the city, and #3, night market food, ru rou fan, and Chun Cui He milk teas. Need I say more?

It was so chilled, and I enjoyed the quick respite from reality. It's good to finally put aside the to-do list every once in a while and just dedicate your entire time to doing whatever you want. And I'm thankful that we were able to do this together. This was our first actual trip together, just the both of us, and I daresay that it only makes me want to travel with him more. Next stop, Jap bby? ;)

Anyways, I'm sorry for the damn ramble. Sometimes you feel like you can't type two coherent sentences and other times you get too carried away, without realising that you've already gone SEVERAL paragraphs deep. Oops. Are you even still reading to this point? Kudos to you if you are hehe. Not much pictures this time because we basically went to roughly the same places we did before, except making a trip down to the zoo (which was pretty lacklustre, we still enjoyed the Singapore Zoo a gazillion times more), the Xinyi Shopping District, and the SOGO stores. 

But just 2 weeks from now, I'll be embarking on another trip - this time to Japan and Korea with Belle. We've had this planned more than a year back, and I remember us whining about how it's 6 months away. How did 6 months become 2 weeks? We'll be gone for 21 days - the longest I've ever been overseas - and I'm feeling a weird mix of excitement and fear. But hey, what's life without stepping out of your comfort zone and doing something you've never done?

Till then. 

Letters to Taiwan: Day 9

It's finally come to the last Taiwan travelogue (after 4 months). Jiufen was more of a last minute decision, with the plan finally falling into place only the day before we made the day trip. But we still woke up (relatively) bright and early on the 17th of March, and made for the bus taking us to the mountains. The ride took close to 3 hours, if I recall correctly. It could be longer than that, but it was good for some shut-eye.

Spot the Lun in the photo on the left. This was how it was entering the Jiufen market.

Jiufen sits in the mountainous regions of Ruifang, Taipei, and is an extremely touristy spot. When we visited, the alleys and streets were practically overflowing with people, and they weren't very spacious to begin with. We had to literally squeeze through the throngs of human bodies. It was extremely cold because we were up on the mountains. That coupled with light rain made Jiufen feel almost like the insides of a fridge. I guess the mass amounts of people squishing you isn't so bad in that respect - at least you got a little bit of body warmth LOL.

I slipped on the wet cobblestones more times than I would like to admit, and since it was a sloping hill, I almost fell to my death (or maybe just a painful bruise). Note to self: never try going up slick slops with plimsols that provide little to no friction.

The tales were true. Jiufen really did give me serious 'Spritied Away' vibes. Cue the traditional red lanterns, sloped pavements, and tightly-packed shops. It was a little too crowded and misty that day, we even looked out to a view that was supposedly of mountains and the seaside, but the mist was so thick it was practically all we could see. But the overall ambience was still amazing. I've only witnessed such atmospheres in shows or in books, but Jiufen's streets was like something out of some old-school Chinese drama. Case in point:

Gotta have tea eggs! And they're perfect for the cool weather too. One of my biggest regrets is not buying one for myself. :')

Yup, that is one of the most Tumblr-worthy sex store signs I've ever seen on the left. Quite funny how they have something like that right smack in the middle of the Jiufen streets too haha.

Everybody has that one friend that's absolutely in love with Adidas, and I guess we found ours. Urrr, the human on the right I mean, not the cat. He got that jacket at the start of our trip in Taichung and he wore it basically 90% of the time after that. Also not pictured: his Adidas superstars.

The snaps almost depict how misty it actually was that day. Sharpening the picture just made it more pixelated. You can also see that we couldn't see anything else past the trees that were near us.



When you see a Vespa that isn't yours.

Jiufen's streets were utterly beautiful. Alvin also mentioned that this store did some pretty good red bean dessert. It was almost like Taiwan's version of our bobochacha, with tapioca jellies, beans and sweet soup, minus the coconut milk. It was quite a good treat for such cool weather!

After our quick dessert pit stop, we then started squeezing making our way out of the bustling streets. Instead of taking the bus down to another part of Jiufen, we just walked down the roads. It was a 20-30 minute walk, and the roads were also slippery and pretty dangerous, because it was basically a cliff. The road was tiny, so we had to stay well away from the buses or cabs that zoomed by. But if not for the walk, I'm sure we wouldn't be able to catch some of the views, or the life in the streets that we did. 

Also, I got so many shots of the boys carrying red plastic bags (they were these little peanut biscuits that they all bought), so I decided to put them here under a little 'series' called the Journey of the Red Bag Travellers:

The Red Bag Travellers begin on their walk to the next city.

The Red Bag Travellers pose for a 'fun' group shot, then continue on their 20 minute hike, disappearing into the mists of the mountains.

Two of the Red Bag Travellers make a quick pit stop to ensure all their peanut biscuits are still intact.




Along the way, the Red Bag Travellers pause to take a look at how far they've come.



Alas, the Red Bag Travellers are nearing their destination. They gather around to make sure everybody made it safe and sound, and also that their peanut biscuits are still intact. It's important that they make it back to Singapore in one piece.

The town was so quiet, I'm guessing because of the rain. It was peaceful but creepy at the same time.

We came across these little houses that were apparently preserved from the olden days. The houses' original structures were kept, and they were holding little tours of the interiors, so we decided to go in and take a look. (It was free anyways)

Is there honestly any better way to take a group shot?

The little village wasn't entirely entertaining, but we still managed to get some pretty good shots out of it. it was also less crowded, so we could slowly roam and stroll around.




I'm so thankful that we were able to visit such a tranquil location in Taiwan. Everything about the country is a farcry from Singapore, but spots like Jiufen really takes you to another world. Life is so slow-paced there. Can you imagine living in one of those houses, and experiencing the different climates when the season changes? It's nothing like I've ever seen before.

We didn't get to let lanterns fly in Shifen, unfortunately. But that gives me more reason to come back.

Can't really remember where this is, but Alvin also brought us to this mantou store in Taipei afterwards. They were arguably the best ones I've ever tried. The texture is so fluffy! There were many more flavours, like the one with pork filling inside, similar to our usual da bao here. Lun tried that, but I still preferred the original plain one.

We went to our last night market in Taipei, which had uh-may-zin fried dumplings.... I initially got 10 to share with Lun, but then went back for another 10 more to snack on when we were back at our Airbnb. It was that good. 

And just like that, 9 days came to pass. Leaving a country will always be bittersweet. By the end of our trip, I felt myself craving for some good ol' chicken rice and briyani. And most of all, I missed being able to see English signs everywhere! It's true what they say, that language must be practised, if not you might just lose touch of it completely. After graduating with my O Levels cert, I never really used Chinese anymore, simply because my course did not require me to. The people I met all spoke in English too, so I was rarely ever in touch with the Chinese language. Fast forward 3 years and I can't even read simple signs or menus in Taiwan anymore.... Just imagining being in such a country on my own without anyone to guide me scares me to no end, and I can only be thankful that I have people like Alvin with us during our trip. He was basically our translator/guide, planning where we went and taking care of us like the mother LOL. So thank you very much Alv. Let's all go for another trip again when you're back from the seas.

Things are set to change from here on out. Lun is enlisting tomorrow, and we are both feeling a mix of excitement and nerves. The future seems uncertain, not in the sense that anything is rocky, but more unknown. We don't really know where army will take him, but all I know is that I'll always be right here waiting for him to come back.

In the meantime, I'll try my best to keep myself busy. I've had many personal projects planned and devised, so now's finally the time to put them to work. Belle and I have also just booked our tickets to Japan and Korea this coming October, and words cannot describe how glad I am that this is finally happening. The land of sushi and ramen has always charmed me, and it's probably the one place that I desire to visit the most. Seeing the plane tickets that we bought makes things real. It's finally happening, and I cannot be more thrilled.

Sorry for the word vomit.