singapore 2014: the first three days
Day 1 (Wednesday): Arrival
~ we landed at 9am in Singapore but by the time we got to my parents' place it was 1030am. We had so many bags we had to take a Maxicab. Thankfully, after the mad heat of Dubai, in comparison Singapore didn't feel hot at all.
Squirmy spawn at the belt waiting for luggage.
People gave us looks but I was too exhausted to care.
~ It was good to see my parents again, and Tobey, who is getting on in years, went nuts trying to lick everyone and establish doggie dominance over the kids. This didn't last long though. Bao began giving my father anxiety attacks by alternately trying to sit on the dog and climb up and down the stairs on her own.
~ We put Bao to nap (she eventually slept for nearly four hours) and ate lunch. This was on top of the chwee kueh and carrot cake that my parents had bought from the market for brunch. Local food is love.
~ Right after lunch, I took a cab and headed to the dentist. I had decided to schedule this appointment right at the beginning because the dentist here in Geneva had warned me about the possibility of a root canal and if it was going to happen I wanted to get it over and done with. Thankfully this was unnecessary, although I did have a fairly deep cavity that had to be fixed. I also learnt that tap water in Switzerland in non-flouridated, due to some rather interesting reasons.
~ Cabbed back home after my long session at the clinic (which was strangely relaxing since I didn't need to make much conversation, just lie back in a chair and keep my mouth propped open) for a reunion dinner of sorts with the family, both J's and my side. There was tons of food. My sister also bought durians, which Bao tried. She spit out the first bite but then returned for more and ate maybe one seed's worth of durian. That's a good start. Everyone in our family loves the fruit!
Bao and her YeYe sharing durian
~ Got the kids washed up and into bed. That night, Bao woke up once and asked for milk. Although our Sleeping Time campaign has been a success so far, I didn't want her to scream the place down and wake everyone up so I acquiesced. This proved to be a good move because she then slept till about 9am in the morning, effectively shifting her body clock forward so that it fit our Singapore lifestyle more. After all, if she woke at her usual 6.30am, it would be hard to get her to stay awake till dinner, even with naps. Waking at 9am meant that she would go to bed around 9pm, which is reasonable given all the stuff we crammed into our day.
Day 2 (Thursday)
~ J went to the office today. My parents, who were on leave, announced that my father had managed to get corporate passes to the Science Centre for his geek-loving grandson, so that would be on our itinerary today.
~ Since we were going to be in the Jurong neighbourhood I asked to go to IMM for lunch, mostly because I wanted to shop for kids' shoes. Shoes are very expensive in Switzerland and even if we buy some random brand it still isn't cheap. We walked around the roaring sensory overload that is IMM (such a contrast to Swiss shopping malls!), had Japanese food for lunch, and I eventually got The Bun a pair of sneakers from Stride Rite which he loves because it has both Star Wars designs on it AND lights up when he walks. I couldn't find anything for Bao because they didn't have any covered shoes in her size. I did manage to get her some winter clothes that were on sale at Fox, though.
~ The kids started getting restless, so we headed off to the Science Centre. Bao fell asleep in the car on the short drive there and remained sound asleep for our entire visit. I was surprised to see how old and run-down the Science Centre had become - many of the exhibits were not working and it didn't have the buzz that I remembered from school visits decades ago. The highlight of our visit was watching the Fire Tornado demonstration. At the gift shop I bought The Bun some fossilised shark teeth and we headed home again. Too bad I didn't know that the popular Kidstop was also at the Science Centre, but in a different wing, or else we would have tried that place instead.
~ Dinner that night was at Alexandra Village with the family, including my grandmother and my aunt. Rather than eating the usual zi char I opted for the hawker centre instead so that we could have a better variety of food. Here's what we managed to chow on: claypot rice, satay, oyster omelette, cuttlefish kangkong, BBQed sambal stingray, double-boiled soup, avocado milkshakes and soursop juice, and tau huay and chin chow to finish it off. So much food, but so satisfying. The kids ate a bit here and there (The Bun particularly liked the satay and soursop juice) and were more interested in walking around the open area next to our table. I also visited the old-school bakery that's been around since I was a child and bought some red bean buns for breakfast. I grew up in the Queenstown area and have always had fond memories of eating at Alexandra Village - I was born across the road! Total comfort food for me.
The Bun outside the bakery
Day 3
~ This was a much-needed 'me day' - don't think I've had the opportunity to go out for most of the day like this since Bao was born. Unfortunately Bao woke up with a fever and rashes that morning. I figured it was a viral fever but told J to take her to the paediatrician anyway. She was still cheerful despite the fever so I knew that it wasn't too serious.
~ My friend SC came to pick me up for an early lunch. We chatted for the entire drive into town, where we met my old friend R (don't think I've appreciated such a big hug in a long time) at Saboten. Tonkatsu and prawn tempura, total deliciousness!
~ After lunch I headed to the building next door (side note: Orchard Road has changed quite a bit in a year!) to go to the hair salon. I wanted a proper haircut since I haven't managed to find a decently-priced stylist here who cuts hair using a pair of scissors, not a razor blade. I also straightened my hair to get it under control and hopefully everything will grow out nicely over the winter. This took almost three-and-a-half hours, but I enjoyed spending the time reading trashy magazines and exchanging stories with my hairstylist. Like I said, me-time is precious.
~ I met up with J, the kids, and his parents at West Coast Plaza later on for sashimi at Sakuraya. It's close to his parents' place and has always been a favourite for J and me. We gorged on seafood, especially The Bun, who loves ikura (salmon roe) and hardly gets to eat it in Geneva. Towards the end of the meal Bao started to have a Constipation Crisis and was tearful and angsty, but finally she pooped and was in a better mood so all of us spent some time shopping in the mall. I looked in Mothercare for winter coats but they hadn't come in yet so I only bought some undershirts for The Bun. We all went for kaya toast and coffee before calling it a night.
~ we landed at 9am in Singapore but by the time we got to my parents' place it was 1030am. We had so many bags we had to take a Maxicab. Thankfully, after the mad heat of Dubai, in comparison Singapore didn't feel hot at all.
Squirmy spawn at the belt waiting for luggage.
People gave us looks but I was too exhausted to care.
~ It was good to see my parents again, and Tobey, who is getting on in years, went nuts trying to lick everyone and establish doggie dominance over the kids. This didn't last long though. Bao began giving my father anxiety attacks by alternately trying to sit on the dog and climb up and down the stairs on her own.
~ We put Bao to nap (she eventually slept for nearly four hours) and ate lunch. This was on top of the chwee kueh and carrot cake that my parents had bought from the market for brunch. Local food is love.
~ Right after lunch, I took a cab and headed to the dentist. I had decided to schedule this appointment right at the beginning because the dentist here in Geneva had warned me about the possibility of a root canal and if it was going to happen I wanted to get it over and done with. Thankfully this was unnecessary, although I did have a fairly deep cavity that had to be fixed. I also learnt that tap water in Switzerland in non-flouridated, due to some rather interesting reasons.
~ Cabbed back home after my long session at the clinic (which was strangely relaxing since I didn't need to make much conversation, just lie back in a chair and keep my mouth propped open) for a reunion dinner of sorts with the family, both J's and my side. There was tons of food. My sister also bought durians, which Bao tried. She spit out the first bite but then returned for more and ate maybe one seed's worth of durian. That's a good start. Everyone in our family loves the fruit!
Bao and her YeYe sharing durian
~ Got the kids washed up and into bed. That night, Bao woke up once and asked for milk. Although our Sleeping Time campaign has been a success so far, I didn't want her to scream the place down and wake everyone up so I acquiesced. This proved to be a good move because she then slept till about 9am in the morning, effectively shifting her body clock forward so that it fit our Singapore lifestyle more. After all, if she woke at her usual 6.30am, it would be hard to get her to stay awake till dinner, even with naps. Waking at 9am meant that she would go to bed around 9pm, which is reasonable given all the stuff we crammed into our day.
Day 2 (Thursday)
~ J went to the office today. My parents, who were on leave, announced that my father had managed to get corporate passes to the Science Centre for his geek-loving grandson, so that would be on our itinerary today.
~ Since we were going to be in the Jurong neighbourhood I asked to go to IMM for lunch, mostly because I wanted to shop for kids' shoes. Shoes are very expensive in Switzerland and even if we buy some random brand it still isn't cheap. We walked around the roaring sensory overload that is IMM (such a contrast to Swiss shopping malls!), had Japanese food for lunch, and I eventually got The Bun a pair of sneakers from Stride Rite which he loves because it has both Star Wars designs on it AND lights up when he walks. I couldn't find anything for Bao because they didn't have any covered shoes in her size. I did manage to get her some winter clothes that were on sale at Fox, though.
~ The kids started getting restless, so we headed off to the Science Centre. Bao fell asleep in the car on the short drive there and remained sound asleep for our entire visit. I was surprised to see how old and run-down the Science Centre had become - many of the exhibits were not working and it didn't have the buzz that I remembered from school visits decades ago. The highlight of our visit was watching the Fire Tornado demonstration. At the gift shop I bought The Bun some fossilised shark teeth and we headed home again. Too bad I didn't know that the popular Kidstop was also at the Science Centre, but in a different wing, or else we would have tried that place instead.
~ Dinner that night was at Alexandra Village with the family, including my grandmother and my aunt. Rather than eating the usual zi char I opted for the hawker centre instead so that we could have a better variety of food. Here's what we managed to chow on: claypot rice, satay, oyster omelette, cuttlefish kangkong, BBQed sambal stingray, double-boiled soup, avocado milkshakes and soursop juice, and tau huay and chin chow to finish it off. So much food, but so satisfying. The kids ate a bit here and there (The Bun particularly liked the satay and soursop juice) and were more interested in walking around the open area next to our table. I also visited the old-school bakery that's been around since I was a child and bought some red bean buns for breakfast. I grew up in the Queenstown area and have always had fond memories of eating at Alexandra Village - I was born across the road! Total comfort food for me.
The Bun outside the bakery
Day 3
~ This was a much-needed 'me day' - don't think I've had the opportunity to go out for most of the day like this since Bao was born. Unfortunately Bao woke up with a fever and rashes that morning. I figured it was a viral fever but told J to take her to the paediatrician anyway. She was still cheerful despite the fever so I knew that it wasn't too serious.
~ My friend SC came to pick me up for an early lunch. We chatted for the entire drive into town, where we met my old friend R (don't think I've appreciated such a big hug in a long time) at Saboten. Tonkatsu and prawn tempura, total deliciousness!
~ After lunch I headed to the building next door (side note: Orchard Road has changed quite a bit in a year!) to go to the hair salon. I wanted a proper haircut since I haven't managed to find a decently-priced stylist here who cuts hair using a pair of scissors, not a razor blade. I also straightened my hair to get it under control and hopefully everything will grow out nicely over the winter. This took almost three-and-a-half hours, but I enjoyed spending the time reading trashy magazines and exchanging stories with my hairstylist. Like I said, me-time is precious.
~ I met up with J, the kids, and his parents at West Coast Plaza later on for sashimi at Sakuraya. It's close to his parents' place and has always been a favourite for J and me. We gorged on seafood, especially The Bun, who loves ikura (salmon roe) and hardly gets to eat it in Geneva. Towards the end of the meal Bao started to have a Constipation Crisis and was tearful and angsty, but finally she pooped and was in a better mood so all of us spent some time shopping in the mall. I looked in Mothercare for winter coats but they hadn't come in yet so I only bought some undershirts for The Bun. We all went for kaya toast and coffee before calling it a night.