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Chung Cheng Chilli Mee (崇正辣椒面) @ Golden Mile Food Centre aka Army Market [Beach Road]

January 21, 2014, 7:00 am
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I was supposed to blog about this yesterday but unfortunately, i literally lost all my pictures when the SD card refused to be read and kept insisting i must format it! Anyway, shall share more tomorrow. 

We shall now talk about this stall in Golden Mile hawker centre that managed to get into the good culinary books of the Great Kon with its offering of Chilli Mee (mee as in noodles)! 

Now, it may not sound much as i believe many of us are accustomed to ordering fish ball noodles, wanton mee, bak chor mee etc with chilli sauce, tomato sauce or a mixture of both. However, this is the first time i hear chilli mee being labelled simply as "chilli mee".

At one glance, i could not quite help thinking this was a dry version of prawns and pork ribs noodles sold in many other places with the exception of generous splashes of chilli across the surface and slices of hard boiled egg. 

p.s. i am not exactly a fan of yellow noodles; thanks to mom who has impressed upon me that yellow noodles are the most fattening carbohydrates. :(

Nonetheless, a foodie has to try what a foodie has been given (save for internal organs). 

First thought - this tasted suspiciously like mee rebus; albeit one with lesser gravy?! Blame it on insensitive taste buds but i didn't really quite get the uniqueness of this dish except for its naming. Furthermore, i like my mee rebus to be extremely lavish with thick, yellowish gravy. 

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Location
505 Beach Rd, #01-59, 
Golden Mile Food Centre

Map
As above

Price
S$3.00
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Recuva - Free Software to Recover Deleted Files from Formatted SD Cards

January 22, 2014, 6:35 am
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The D7100 i bought half a year ago offers dual memory card capacity and i had been diligently using the second one for backing up until the recent Ipoh-KL-Cameron Highlands trip when i almost ran out of memory juice. 

I conveniently stopped the back-up function and it didn't take too long for me to regret the decision; the appearance of the dreaded message (above) when i tried to retrieve photographs from the SD card! 

Frantic was the appropriate word to describe my train of thoughts then; a few hundred pictures resided in the card and they ranged from my last day in USS as an annual pass holder and a few food trips including one to Lady M!  

Well, i HAD to format the card in order to read it again and i know i have to find a good recovery software that is able to retrieve all the formatted files. As a poor man who takes public transportation to work, free was the key word i punched on google search. 

That's when i found Recuva! 

Run the installation file and the steps are super duper easy to follow via the wizard mode. 

Select the problematic drive and check 'run deep scan'! Do note that deep scan can take a long time to search for all the deleted files (including all the pornographic files that you assumed had been trashed).

Once that's completed, a whole chain of files would be available for you to highlight for recovery. Keep in mind the "state" of the file. Excellent would obviously translate into a higher chance for recovery.

Thanks to Recuva; i managed to retrieve the main bulk of the missing photographs!

There were a few indicated as "excellent" yet turned out to be unusable for publishing. However, i am definitely not complaining as i am just glad to get most of my pictures back! 

For download, please visit 

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Note
There were a few occasions after the deep scanning that i realised there was no way for me to preview or retrieve the files. The error message that was shown when i attempted to retrieve was:

"the volume for the file has been externally altered so the opened file is no longer valid."

Don't freak out! What happened in my case was that the connection for the SD card adapter broke intermittently and in the inflexible mind of Recuva, any file found thus far was invalid. Moral of the story? Invest in a good card adapter! 

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Cameron Highlands Pasar Malam (Night Market) @ Brinchang Town [Malaysia]

January 23, 2014, 7:12 am
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While seated in front of this computer where i am trying to string words into sentences for this post, i could not help but enjoy tonight's cool climate that Singapore rarely has. And it was so apt that the topic today is on the night market at Cameron Highlands.

The temperature in the highlands was definitely much chillier at night and most people would wear a sweater just to keep warm although crazy friends like Karen would probably walk out in shorts and sleeveless shirt. 

Since i have already covered the pasar malam three years ago (has it been that long?), this would serve as a refresher just to keep everyone updated. 

To be frank, nothing much seemed to have changed even though i got the feeling that the market appeared to have expanded further across the road. As usual, you can get loads of plushies! 

Mom was thankfully very tamed in her purchases; she was sorely aware that we would be travelling to Kuala Lumpur the next day and having to carry heavy produce, no matter how fresh, back to Singapore is no easy feat! 

Trinklets for sale - most designs were not suitable for adults and would likely be more acceptable for kids and young adults. Oh well, to each his / her own. 

The luminous lucky stones must be the "in" thing in Malaysia as i remember seeing them in Malacca a few months ago. Prices were quite reasonable at 1 for only RM 6.00.

If not for the heavy steamboat dinner i had an hour ago, i would gladly and willingly pay for a cat mountain king durian! Damn, i am so craving for durians now!!! 

Still remember this? The artificially coloured guavas that were said to be very bad for your health! Be a man (or woman), get the real guava without any preservative and seasoning! 

A drink that reminded me of the Air Mata Kucing in KL! Didn't try any as i usually have reservations towards drinks sold on the street without any protective seal; my stomach, contrary to popular belief, is actually quite sensitive. 

Chocolate strawberry!?!? This should go pretty well with pancakes and waffles! 

Boxes of perfectly shaped strawberries! Eat them at your own risk as sweet strawberries normally have uglier appearance. 

Wild honey - Mom regretted not buying any back! Her Chinese physician strongly recommended that she had wild honey to boost her immune system shortly after she returned from this trip. 

For a Friday on peak school holiday season, the crowd was not as massive as i expected. There were plenty of room to move around and i didn't remember having to jostle for any space. 

Minions were everywhere! 

Would love to purchase one of these to warm the ears if not for the fact i am a man and that i am almost thirty-four years old! Furthermore, I guess my shopping mentality has aged significantly over the past few years; in the past, i might buy for the sake of buying. Now, i often wonder if i NEED it and whether i would even use it a second time. 

Planned to buy this for Jovyn! On second thought, the colour was a bit too tacky and would likely be thrown to the "never, ever let Jovyn wear this" basket. 

This was so lame! The language of strawberry can be easily imposed on any physical item and i can name it the language of the computer mouse, the language of the toenail etc etc! 

Jumbo soft toys! Unless you travel up to Cameron Highlands using your own transport and has a massive car boot, don't even contemplate buying this back to Singapore! I stupidly did it once and it was so tiring! Imagine having the plushie sharing half your seat on a 10-hour bus ride! 

Cooked food section, as you would have expected, was the zone i loved the most! 

The comforting sound of cackling boiling oil, the delectable aroma that ranged from fried chicken to grilled lamb and the mere thought of being able to have them fresh and hot in the cooling weather - factors that totally optimises the enjoyment process! 

Want to know why i had so many food pictures appended above without much explanation?

Dad was on the same trip - his disapproving stare was sufficient to stop me from buying any food! To be honest, my dad's unrelenting nagging can entirely spoil my mood and hence, i am willing to sacrifice food in order not to hear him start his tirade. 

- the end -

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For more information on the pasar malam, including the days it is opened for business, click here. Questions can be posted in comment and i would try my best to reply them. :)


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Yong Kee Famous Fish Ball Noodles [榮记驰名鱼圆面] @ ABC Market [Bukit Merah, Behind IKEA]

January 24, 2014, 8:42 am
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I am extremely picky when it comes to eating fish ball noodles; more often than not, i usually stick with my usual stall and only venture to new grounds upon recommendation from close friends.

There were the rare occasions when i didn't know what to eat and a stall happened to be right in front of you with no queue yet came plastered with accolades and media recommendations. That's the exact scenario i faced a few weeks ago in ABC market! 

A simple bowl of noodles with four fishballs and two humongous meat balls, which by the way appeared more like oversized fish balls than the meat balls i am accustomed to. 

Nothing to complain about the noodles although i didn't quite enjoy the vinegarish flavour that seemed to be out of place in that concoction of tomato and chilli sauce. 

Fish balls wise, they were filled with softness and bounciness; the type i would buy as an ingredient for a steamboat dinner at home!  Meat balls were nothing to scream about with a fishy aftertaste that made me wonder once again if they were just oversized fish balls!

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Location
Stall #01-121, 6 Jalan Bukit Merah, 
ABC Brickworks Market/Food Centre

Price
Fish Ball Noodles - S$3
Meat Balls - S$1 for two.
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Festive Street Bazaar 2014 Part One - Year of the Horse @ Chinatown Chinese New Year Celebrations 2014

January 25, 2014, 7:28 pm
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Every year without fail, i would make my way down to cover the Chinese New Year bazaar at Singapore's very own Chinatown and this year is no exception!

The scene that greeted me as i stepped out of Northeast Line - the timing was barely 5.30pm on a weekday and the place was already so crowded?! Cannot imagine the situation as we get gradually nearer to eve of the lunar new year.

Someone was selling helium balloons in the form of plastic cartoon characters! I had the feeling this person was doing it illegally as many do during festive seasons in order to earn a quick buck.

My experience last year told me that if you really like that piece of auspicious decoration, go for it even if bargaining fails. Chances are good stuff would likely be sold out before the owner announces a massive cut in the prices.

Coming zodiac animal - the horse! And this means a lot of horse plushies sporting colours like prosperous red and fortune yellow!

Lion puppets never fall out of favour. Cat lovers would often lament the lack of cat in the zodiac calendar but feline has always been represented; albeit in a less docile form.

Souvenirs are so cheap at 36 pieces for S$10?! Each key chain was less than thirty Singapore cents leh!!

Oriental lady fans at only two dollars! As the weather has been so cool and windy in recent weeks, i guess people would buy it only as a souvenir rather than using it for practical reason.

Ang Pow (red packets)! With affordable printing costs, there are now so many designs in the market! I have yet to explore them all since i am generally a 'receiver' (in the local context, red packets can only be given out by married persons; lucky me)!

Once again, the appearance of Taiwanese jellies / mochi stalls! Surprisingly, prices have already started dropping from S$1.80 per 100 grams to S$1.50. Want to have the best deal? Wait till eve and you would most likely haul back one big bag (approximately 3 kilograms) for S$10.

S$10 soft blankets - buy one and get a smaller travel size blanket for free! I saw the same kind of blanket for sale in Northpoint's atrium sale at the same price but without the freebie.

Another Taiwanese specialty - Pineapple Cake! I tried it before in the Mooncake bazaar at Takashimaya; even though they tasted quite good, the steep price was a bit hard to stomach.

Solar-powered nodding toys! Just remember i actually a similar one in my house last year! Hm..... guess it must be somewhere around. I need him to assure a "sure-win" in the upcoming multi-million TOTO draw!

Caricature artist in Chinatown - S$12 for one face with subsequent faces costing S$6 each and up to a maximum of 3 faces on an A4-sized paper. Quite expensive woah...

Two things my attention - left was a fire cracker music player that had a price tag of S$148 for the large one! Damn, even real fire crackers might not have cost so much!! On the right was a tissue box cover in the shape of a cute dancing lion!

Utterly adorable bags for young children! Should i get one for Jovyn? Jerald might be a bit too big to carry this as he is now in primary school!

Unlike typical neighbourhood pasar malams, you rarely see stalls selling mobile phone covers and accessories. Competition might play a part too since the area has many permanent shops selling similar items.

Lady sandals for sale.

Malt candy! I used to love this in the past although i would prefer the traditional type directly twirled from a pot of thick and brown concoction!

People were crowding around this particular stall and i could not help but to check it out to see what it was all about! Damn, i am so "auntie" some time! Genes of the mother, no doubt.

It was a kind of flaxseed oil thingy. Little cups of soup (which contained the oil, i presume) were freely dished out and you are welcome to add in some nutritional nuts before drinking. i could not stand the smell and didn't even bother waiting for my turn.

Small sized pots of greenery that would be so suitable for office dwellers! Alex bought one of these from Malaysia once and it was said to be really low in maintenance.

So why not spend that S$10 and add some "nature" and supposedly good luck to your work station!

S$10 bedsheets!!!! I have yet to buy any for the new year and i am a sucker for such deals. Hence, i purposely made another trip this evening to buy two packs!!

Clothes for the kids. Psst, i sincerely hope Joyce would dress Jovyn up as a Korean this year! She would look absolutely cuddle-able!

Korean linen - pity they don't have the man's range. Even i was tempted to give this a try after reading from the banner that it was said to be extremely comfortable!

Manicure in Korean style? Many ladies were crowding around so i guess the fake nails offered for sale must have been quite pretty.

A customary shot of the street with the iconic Pearl Centre's in the background.

Seaweed with different flavours like almond, buckwheat and chilli. I am no fan of seaweed although i find Tao Kae Noi to be totally irresistible when it comes to simple snacking!

Yet another Taiwanese jellies / mochi stall.

Like the Taiwanese jellies / mochi stalls, you would not miss this shop with staff dressed in Japanese attire. If i remember it correctly, they have been at the same location for the past few years at this temporary festive bazaar!

Though dried mushrooms were the products that took up the most space, you must not disregard the bottles of mushroom essence! I shall not explain more; go and sample the braised mushroom seasoned with the powder and you shall know how delicious it was!

My memory must be getting good as i remember this biscuit vendor has been taking the same spot for the past few years too! Sampling is welcome!

6 for S$10 may appear to be a damn good deal. That's what i thought too initially although you must keep in mind that the quantity in one box can be quite little.

Mini lucky bamboo plants which signify prosperity, good luck fortune and most importantly, happiness!

Peach blossoms for sale!

Melon seeds, from Taiwan again! The owner seriously needs to re-design the stall; it was an exact mirror image from last year! Check out my post here.

Very traditional candies used as offerings for the deities and ancestors. They can be eaten of course yet i doubt many of the younger generation would know how to appreciate them.

Cushion covers - not my forte as i prefer hugging a bolster!

Australia macadamia nuts - they were in the same bazaar a year ago! Honestly, seeing a big X over the boxes can be quite misleading; were they rejected products? Please, turn the boxes to the other side!

How can we ever forget the peanut king who is forever very very generous in encouraging anyone walking past to sample their products!?!

This was taken from another stall yet the scenario of peanut shells all over the road remained unchanged.

3D jigsaw puzzle of notable worldwide landmarks!

Taiwan Basil - advertising a wide range of benefits (including slimming), my only memory of basil was limited to the drink i had in Bangkok and it was so thirst quenching!

Maybe i should invest in this multi-purpose electric lunch box for my office; at least i would have healthier meals and there would a glimmer of hope that i can at least lose some fats!

Old school sweets! A pity i have already reached the age when sugar rush is no longer considered along the line of blame-free indulgence! :(

Nuts!!! Friends who know me well would have heard of the story how i managed to land myself in A&E on the second day of Chinese New Year for three years running. Culprit? An overdose on cashew nuts!

Pinwheels as authentic as the ones from the famous Wong Tai Sin temple in Hong Kong!

Let's exit from the busy street and proceed for some quieter moments on an adjacent lane.

Smith Street - it had lesser crowd for a reason. It was still open for traffic as motor vehicles required the access to get to Chinatown Complex where there are few hundred hawker stalls!

Fake plants with an incredibly bountiful harvest of vibrant plastic fruits for sale. Note: Nothing against fake stuff and it only cost S$8 each.

A colourful pinwheel that was appropriately placed along a juncture where wind condition was extremely favourable for the wheel to display its full prowess!

Foreigner checking out the waxed products; i can understand his curiousity as i could not fathom till now how Chinese can even eat these preserved items!

Pomelos, pumpkins and bottle gourds! Maybe i should get one of the bottle gourds just to be aware of the taste; this is under the provision i can eat it like a fruit without the need to cook it.

Notice something that i have been posting for the past few years?!

The iconic inflatable dollies! Hm...... they were the same as last year except for the positioning. I hope i would not repeat this same sentence for the bazaar next year!

Dried persimmons which can be addictive!

Known as Buddha's Palm, i recollected a celebrity ever mentioning on a show that he /she would totally not touch this as it reminded him / her a decapitated baby's hand. Ewwwww...

Fresh olives said to relieve heatiness, stop coughing, clear the phlegm and toxic in your body.

The vegetable auntie was still marketing her fresh produce! I wonder why she wants to sell her vegetables at this location as it has a lot more tourists than locals.

Nian Gao - i just bought a medium one for my mom and i didn't know it can cost so much! Maybe it was because Mom has specifically requested to buy from Tai Chong Kok 大中国饼家.

Decor with the Chinese character 福 which mean happiness. Most Chinese would purposely put it upside down as the Mandarin pronunciation is similar to "arrive".

Attack of the minions again!

Fruit basket for the mandarin oranges given by the visitors to your house. In my family, it can be quite a challenge to find mandarin oranges to "return" to the our visitors as we have a much higher tendency to snack them!

Sky lanterns! On the eve last year, i got 8 for S$10! For my virgin experience in releasing the sky lantern i purchased in Chinatown, click here.

More for the tourists than us.

Bak Kwa shop that normally would not have attracted a second look except for one thing; Hu Zhen Long 胡振隆 offered lobster bak kwa! This was even more special than the pineapple bak kwa from Jin Pin Xiang!

Ending part one with a yellow pomelo! As i have way too many pictures, i didn't have much choice but to divide the street bazaar into two separate sections. Part Two would be back very soon!

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Location of Bazaar
Pagoda Street, Smith Street, Sago Street, Temple Street and Trengganu Street

Open Till When?
Till night of 30 January 2014
[Or 12.30 am of 31 January 2014]

Time
Recommended to visit after 4 pm.

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Fan Xiang Western Food (芬香西餐) - Chicken Chop @ Beauty World Centre [Upper Bukit Timag Road]

January 26, 2014, 7:30 am
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I used to be obsessed with chicken chop in my teens and would purposely seek out those old school western stalls first before considering buying from other non-westernised stalls! 

One of the better ones actually came from a food centre located on the topmost commercial floor of Beauty World Centre along Upper Bukit Timah road and despite a lapse of over fifteen long years, the stall still sports the same old look as if time has never hardly moved forward. 

Having been exposed to a wide variety of cuisines and food over the years (no thanks to the Great Kon), i had to admit that even though there was a nice, nostalgic feel when i attacked the chicken chop; that incredible happiness derived from tasting a great piece of chop was simply nonexistent. 

Unlike the chop from Clementi hawker centre, the sauce in this instance was just not sensational enough while the marination for the meat was a tad too bland for my liking. The saving grace came only in the form of the deep fried golden bun! 

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Location
144 Upper Bukit Timah Road,
#04-53, Beauty World Food Centre

Map
As above.

Price
Only S$4.50 for the chicken chop

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Melite Chinese Restaurant (萃英阁) @ NUS Staff Club

January 27, 2014, 6:21 am
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A new restaurant has recently taken over the empty space vacated by Sun Asian Bistro and we decided to pay it a visit simply to check out the food at this supposedly fine dining establishment. 

Despite the renovation, we can still see remnants of the old bistro although that was hardly of any consideration when food was of topmost priority for all five of us! 

Yang Chow Fried Rice 
Long accustomed to strong wok-hei aroma in fried rice, this was a bit too mild in my opinion. To add on to the disappointment, even the flavour was too bland for my liking.

Fried Egg with Tomato
Mom can whip up a mean serving of tomato eggs but this totally took the cake! It was just too palatable and filled with a hearty flavouring that seemed to contradict with the very light seasoning. 

Fried Kailan in Oyster Sauce 
Perfectly cooked and crunchy, i have to mention that no matter what, these were just stir fried vegetables! Okay, maybe i should not speak too soon. My mom's stir fried cabbage with luncheon meat is epic! 

Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs 
This was terribly delicious!!! For one who has seen a lot of pork rib variants (honey garlic, milk, coffee, stout etc), i am taken aback when i took my first bite. 

The sweet, vinegarish sauce definitely set it apart from the rest and was amazingly tangy. I have only one suggestion; possible to give us bigger and meatier pork ribs?

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Location
30 Lower Kent Ridge Road, 
First Floor, NUS Staff Club

Website

Menu
As above but for the latest menu and promotions, please check out the website.

Prices
Yang Chow Fried Rice - S$8
Fried Egg with Tomato - S$8
Fried Kailan in Oyster Sauce - S$8
Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs - S$15
[Subject to Service Charge] 

Discounts
NUS staff would be entitled to 10% discount whereas NUS staff club members would be given a 20% discount. 
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Piggy Banks - A Practical Yet Lovely Present

January 28, 2014, 7:03 am
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Many people might not be aware that i love to collect piggy banks. And nothing's better and more deserving than to have them in the shape that gives them the name!

So, for those friends who always hate to guess what i want / need as presents, here's a hint for you. Get me a piggy bank where i can work towards saving money for a rainy day! I do have some criteria though; they must not be made of plastic and preferably of glass material.

The best type would be as above where i could not even retrieve the golden S$1 coins without going through the painful process of 'killing' the pig for the treasure! 

Now, that really forces me to save. 

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Chinatown Street Bazaar 2014 Part Two & the Light-Up for the Year of Horse!

January 29, 2014, 7:30 am
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Let's continue with part two! 

The street decor for 2014 was obviously horse-themed, given that the zodiac sign for the coming lunar year is the horse. Since the horse seldom deviates in shape, i guess it's hard to impress visitors except to throw us many, many horses and win in terms of "overwhelming numbers"! 

Disregard the wires using your imagination and you see many of them galloping in the air right above the historic South Bridge Road! Ironically, horses used to traverse upon the same road a century ago! 

It's a pity that the food street cannot open in time to coincide with the festive bazaar. I am not sure if i am the only one but don't you think many construction sites are facing delays nowadays? What has happened to the efficiency Singapore is well known for?

Another picture of the horses which appeared as if it's just a matter of time before they are strangled to death by the red-yellow ribbons! 

Back to the bazaar again - as you can see, there were way more people and it was a little past 6pm! I can bet with you that the crowd would have been much large in the past two days with people taking leave and time off to prepare for the new year. 

More clothes! I actually walked upon the same street thirty minutes ago although there were just way too many things for me to lock my camera on! Sometimes, revisiting allows you to look at the same spot with a different angle, different perspective. 

Traditional Nyonya attire - i thought my mom would be a very pretty bibik if she takes to wearing Peranakan clothes but she insisted it would make her look fat!! 

Tiny, decorative figurines that served no other purpose.

Above were the bigger versions. For me, i have stopped buying such items as they would likely be collecting dust on my table! I still prefer my practical piggy banks!

Minions ang pow! 

Like aromatherapy!? Buy the essence and solution from this stall as they are having promotion! A shop in Northpoint selling the same brand was selling the air+ solution at S$15.90 per bottle! 

Horse-related decorations. Could you come up with auspicious wishes and greetings in Chinese that contain the Chinese character of "horse"? I can think of 龙马精神 (blessed with vitality), 马到成功 (succeed in whatever you do) etc. 

Horse plushies in various colours! Look closer at those at the back and you would realise this stall was still offering past zodiac animals for sale; for example, snake and dragon soft toys! 

Sampling for the Taiwanese yam mochi! 

Once again the Taiwanese products section; it's interesting that other countries products were gaining popularity and prominence when local products seemingly appeared to be taking a backseat in such big scale bazaars. Oh well, Singaporeans are fickle-minded when it comes to food!

I unintentionally overlooked the fact that besides the king of peanut, there was also the king of gua zi (melon seeds)! Honestly you cannot blame me when both concepts were so similar!

The dirty floor as a result of unstoppable sampling from almost everyone who walked past the shop! I think i should be able to satisfy my calorie count if i walk around the bazaar purely for sampling.

In Singapore where selling, keeping and/or letting off fireworks without a proper permit is considered as a serious offence, we can only seek solace in pathetic products like sparklers and party poppers. Well, you lose some, you gain some. 

2 new pieces of T-shirt for S$5?!?!?! 

New year couplets for the house? I am always very envious whenever i see how beautiful the characters were written as my handwriting, regardless of whether it is English or Chinese, is simply horrible. They're so bad; i could not even recognise what i wrote at times. 

More clothing! Doubt they would be as cheap as 2 for S$5.

Foreign children being taken on a tour of Chinatown! Maybe local school should also do the same since kids nowadays seem to be overly occupied with electronic devices like iPad and iPhone.

The lanterns lining the streets might not appear much from far although i would suggest you take a closer look; they were definitely not as plain as you initially thought they were. 

Aren't these Japanese good luck charms?! I should hang a few right outside my room window. Hm... on second thought, i guess not since the wind can be pretty strong in my area. 

Maybe i should invest my money on these vacuum containers instead! At the very least, it means i can cut down my expenses by bringing home cooked meals to work.

The main decorative display the Chinatown Chinese New Year Celebrations 2014! More on this impressive stallion later even though i believe you can read most of the background information online. 

Frankly, i found these coin-shaped lanterns to be relatively ugly and wondered if insufficient time has resulted in such unimpressive design. I spoke too soon of course. 

Queue for bak kwa was still manageable when i visited last Wednesday. 

The queue for Lim Chee Guan was much longer, as it has consistently been for as long as i remember. My sister's record was eight hours!

Unlike the past, the store would now station someone along the queue to notify prospective customers that certain range of their products was already sold out. 

Maybe because the famous sliced pork bak kwa was already out of stock, the queue was not as long as i remember it could be a few years ago. 

These massive horses between New Bridge road and Eu Tong Sen street were more realistically placed; giving motorists the impression that they are running alongside the galloping horses. 

I simply could not resist going up to the high floors of Chinatown Complex housing block to take some photographs! I believe many avid photographers would reserve a spot along the corridor before midnight tomorrow. For all you know, i might be one of them!

This gentleman drew damn well! 

The street was bustling with more and more people as day turned to night! The weather helped a lot as well since it was relatively cooling with a gentle breeze. 

I think mom bought something like this for the house. Sadly, the adhesive wasn't very strong and the bloody thing kept dropping off the wall!

Small tangerines for sale at 5 for S$2; a bit too expensive i think.

Dancing dragons and lions puppets! One of the pictures shall be my facebook cover page on the very first day of Chinese New Year! 

Yet another Chinese tradition; paper cutting! If i remember correctly, you can see a similar picture of this in past years' blog postings.

Blur looking horses! Since Chinese New Year is a joyous occasion, i would love to have the horses with a smile that flashes their two rows of herbivorous teeth!

Durians "tied" to a fake tree! A clever marketing ploy as it does attract a lot of attention! 

An alternative way to attract attention is to use a loudhailer or microphone to project your voice as far as you could to get customers to sample your products; in this instance, this man was asking people to try out his bird's nest jelly or something! 

Sampling is a must to get business! Even for me, i would not buy if i cannot sample. The only two exceptions to this rule are: someone asks me to buy for me and the products are priced much lower than what i perceived. 

Gigantic fortune cats! For now, my focus is still on pigs! Should you see one featuring pigs, please do not hesitate to let me know the location!

Kopi Hock - my parents like this brand for its very nice aroma! 

More photographs of the streets when the sky was still pretty bright. Honestly, i personally feel that the lighting at this time was quite good for photo taking; there isn't any shadow and i don't need to compromise my ISO to speed up the camera's shutter speed. 

The illuminated horses looked so much better at night! 

Once again, let me present to you the star of Chinatown for the new lunar year; the stunning beauty which is gearing up for the arrival of 31st January 2014.

For the third year running, students from the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) were given the task to design the street light-up for Chinatown. 

I could not quite remember the total number of horses that were crafted but it could likely be more than a hundred and seventy! This enormity might not be so apparent in the daytime so you might want to consider paying Chinatown a visit at night.

A panoramic picture which has not been appearing much in recent weeks. 

Remember my remark i made just now about the coins being ugly? I am taking my words back as they did give many the image of golden coins dropping from the sky! 

No wonder so many people would taking pictures of them at night!

=====

Location of Bazaar
Pagoda Street, Smith Street, Sago Street, Temple Street and Trengganu Street

Open Till When?
Till night of 30 January 2014 [Or 12.30 am of 31 January 2014]


For Part One, Click HERE.





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Day Three (Up to the Highlands): Ipoh - Cameron Highlands - Kuala Lumpur Trip 2013

January 31, 2014, 7:30 am
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The third day started peacefully with a relaxing walk past the historically important Kinta River to our breakfast destination; which, in my dad's words, was thankfully not another dim sum restaurant! 

Eu Tong Sen - a street many in Singapore would identify as a main ingress to Chinatown was the name of a Penang-born magnate who had many businesses in Ipoh! On a side note, he was the same man who expanded Eu Yan Sang into a chain of traditional Chinese medicine stores in this region. You may read his wikipedia page here. 

Remember i was sharing the enormous amount of bird poos found outside the shophouses in Ipoh? Some shop owners solved the problem by planting steel wires on high platforms where the birds would likely roost for the night. 

Breakfast at Sin Yoon Loong, said to be the innovator for the popular white coffee! You may read my review here although i have to warn you i wasn't satisfied with the caffeinated beverage!

So much so that I had to source for another place to satisfy my caffeine addiction. I could have gone back to Nam Heong but i figured it would be great to check out the less famous shops. 

That brought me to Lim Kopi - in the Hokkien dialect, this means "drink coffee". In the future, if i ever wanted to setup a food business, i would name it as aptly, somewhere along the line of "Jiak Png", "Jiak Cai" or "Jiak Ba". 

The white coffee was so much better in Lim Kopi (please disregard the soggy Chinese crullers) with a thicker, smoother consistency and a much richer fragrance! 

Do keep in mind that the prices were much higher compared to the two other traditional coffee-shops we went to although the premium can be justified by the nicer decor. I would have loved to try their special fried rice (one was said to be very very eggy on the menu) but was too full!!!

Renovation work to spruce up the dilapidated shophouses; Ipoh was said to be the next one (the first two were Penang and Malacca) that might be awarded the UNESCO heritage status which means it would be an opportune time to purchase some of these properties! 

It was only 8.30 am and this shop was already selling roast delights?!?! Anyway, it was listed on the food trail map for popiah and satay. 

Another colonial building. Singapore has had such buildings. Unfortunately, development takes precedence over history given the limited land we had, and many of them were torn down in the past few decades. 

Memory Lane - a flea market would take over the road every Sunday! It's a pity i didn't plan for a weekend stay in Ipoh and hence, am unable to share more on what to expect. By the way, memory lane is very near to French Hotel.

10 am - the private car with a chauffeur arrived to bring us up to the highlands!

Drove past this cliff that was part of the larger limestone cluster that housed the numerous cave temples we visited on day two. I must have passed by this landmark no less than three times the day before! 

Guanyin Cave Temple! Navigation in Ipoh wasn't very difficult in my memory and i am seriously contemplating driving up to Ipoh (from Singapore) the next time. I want to visit the Lost World theme park!! 

Wah, an old school theme park! *like*

There are quite a number of ways to Cameron Highlands and the one from Singapore has many sharp turns and abrupt corners; often resulting in a terrible motion sickness coupled with a few bags of puke!

This new route from Ipoh was said to be safer with wider roads and it was the first time i didn't experience a single bout of motion sickness! Furthermore, not once did i feel that i am about to say goodbye to this world. 

Aboriginal huts along the road - we didn't stop but if you do, you could get supplies of wild honey (mom was so regretting not getting any) and even tongkat ali (a herb valued for its aphrodisiac value! 

I thought we would be reaching in no time at all when i saw farms with plastic canvases! Truth was, we were only halfway through. 

Kampong Raja, the town nearest to Ipoh was still three kilometers! Brinchang, the place where we would rest our feet, was over twenty kilometers away!

I got the feeling that Kampong Raja was a major wholesale centre with many plantations and farms sighted along the scenic way. 

Unlike the other route from Singapore, it appeared to have limited places of attraction for visitors to stop by. 

The imposing words "Lavender Garden" were hard to miss! From the outside, this flower plantation at Tringkap (another town before Brinchang) looked interesting even though we didn't stop over. :(

Kea Valley - the moment i reached this place, i know it would not be long before we reached Brinchang! For those who are unaware, Kea Valley houses the ever-popular-with-Singaporeans resort; Equatorial hotel.

After close to a hundred and ten minutes of travelling on the road, we finally arrived in the super cooling Brinchang! The one-way private transport in an air-conditioned sedan was arranged with Jammy from My Ipoh Holiday. You may email her at myipohholiday@gmail.com for the rate! 

Checking in to Rosa Passadena! Kindly check out this link for my review of this hotel. 

As we still have about two hours before the start of Agro Delight Tour, it's time to roam around the area and see if there has been any change since my last visit two years ago!

Honestly, nothing much has changed.

Even Kavy Hotel was still operating its business, albeit with a larger ground presence after taking over the space of what used to be Strawberry Moment Dessert Cafe. For my less than stellar review of Kavy Boutique Hotel, please click here. 

Wanted to bring my parents to Oldies and Goodies restaurant for lunch but it had already closed down! Hence, lunch was fulfilled in a coffee shop further down the road; the chicken rice i had was pretty good with the exception of the rather bland rice. 

Time checked; 1 pm. We still have ample time to trek up to the nearby Big Red Strawberry Farm!

Small hillside cabbage plantation spotted along the way! Hm..... there wasn't any clear demarcation and i wonder if the huge, leafy cabbages were free for anyone to pluck. 

Before reaching the said entrance of Big Red Strawberry Farm, there were quite a number of shops selling food and accessories like the cheery windmills in the above picture. 

I bought a strawberry Popsicle that wasn't as good as i remember it to be. Perhaps because i had the commercialized brand this time. The brand-less one was way better!

Freshly steamed sweet potatoes could be better if they were sweeter! 

Many visitors were crowding around this adorable little girl who was selling sticks of strawberries coated in chocolate (fondue style)! I had the suspicion it was the girl who was the main attraction. 

Big Red Strawberry Farm - many tours would actually make a stopover at this attraction so i would recommend that you make a separate visit after the tour where you can make your purchases less hurriedly. 

For example, you can freely pick the type of cacti (out of the thousands on display) you want for your office cubicle or a pot of flora for your house in a more relaxed manner. 

In addition, the tour guide would also be dispensing education information that are actually quite interesting but would likely be disregarded if your mind is perpetually pre-occupied on what to buy. Of course, my recommendation is only applicable if you stay in Brinchang! 

A retail shop in the Big Red Strawberry Farm has what was arguably the biggest range of strawberry related products and accessories in Cameron Highlands; marshmallows with strawberry fillings, shower gel with strawberry fragrances etc! 

Time to walk back to our hotel where we were supposed to be picked up for the highlight of this trip; the Agro Delight Tour that was arranged online with Titiwangsa Tours! 

You may check out the following links for Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of the Tour. 

After putting our barang barang in the hotel after the tour, we took to the street again! Walking would help to digest the food we had over the Halal steamboat dinner at Hotel Titiwangsa. 

Despite the full stomach, it was so hard to resist the temptation of drinking hot soup and munching warm chocolate coated strawberries in such cool weather! 

Nevertheless, i succeeded in not getting anything! Not even the delicious aroma of food sold in the night market can break my determination! For an update on the pasar malam, please click here. 

End of Day Three! 

=====

For Day One, click HERE. 
For Day Two, click HERE. 

For an overview of my trip, 
Click HERE.


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Review of NS Golden Green Serviced Suite @ Berjaya Times Square [Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia]

February 1, 2014, 7:30 am
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Berjaya Times Square, with its more than ten levels of retail therapy and Malaysia's biggest indoor theme park, is no stranger to many frequent visitors. I have been wanting to stay at the hotel wing since it started operation ten years ago but budget consideration was always on the back of my head. 

Travelling with my parents this time, i decided to splurge a bit more by checking out Berjaya Times Square hotel (which also has the added advantage of being very close to the place where we would take the coach back to Singapore).

Imagine my confusion when i clicked on the map function for Agoda.com; how come there are so many hotels WITHIN Times Square?! Many of them were in fact clusters of service apartments located in the East Tower (otherwise known as Tower A). 

Since i have to book for a three-bedder anyway and the indicative price was pretty reasonable, i opted for the superior suite at NS Golden Green Serviced Suite!

Let's start with the good things; first of which was the fantastic, panoramic view at the suite assigned to us on the 28th floor! Even my parents were kind of taken aback by the breathtaking scene since they knew i am a miser when it comes to overseas accommodation. 

The suite was large and even came with an attached living room! 

In addition to a fridge and wash basin, there was even a microwave oven! Honestly, we didn't use any of them although i believe i might likely fill the fridge with ice cream, yakult and soft drinks if i went with the Gang of Four. 

A comfortable double bed and a single bed! I admit the furnishing could do with a bit of touch up although decoration, or the lack of it, has never been much of a problem for me, 

Bathroom and washroom were separated - as you could probably gauge from the above, it was a good sized washroom rarely found in hotels without paying top prices. 

Even the bathroom came with both shower and long bath facilities! 

Complimentary wifi in room could sometimes mean a few rooms sharing the same wireless signal. In this serviced apartment, you are guaranteed to have your own router which means surfing was WAY faster! 

You are also given access to the swimming pool and fitness centre; none of which i made use of. In fact, i didn't even have the time to check out the fitness centre! 

Young kids might also enjoy the small playground next to the pool. Older kids should consider paying Cosmo World indoor amusement park a visit instead! 

Just to give you a basic understanding of the suite, you may refer to the not-to-scale floor plan i drew for your easy reference. 

Now's the time to rant about the bad things we encountered. There was no physical counter for you to check in and you MUSTmake a phone call to a Malaysian number printed on the hotel voucher. Someone would then meet you OUTSIDE Tower A aka Berjaya Times Square East (not Tower B, where the hotel's check in counters were located).

This same person would then bring you up to a non-airconditioned hotel room on the 22nd level where there is a counter for you to pay your deposit and collect your room cards. 

The sight that greeted us as we entered the suite was shocking; bed that had not been tidied up, rubbish bin was filled up to the brim and litter was everywhere! This is the first time i have had such an experience!

Bad luck continued with issues like CRT television wasn't working (due to a loose cable), no towel, password for router was incorrect etc. Thankfully, the Bangladeshi worker was able to rectify them when we returned to the suite a few hours later. 

Another problem was one of inconveniences. The use of access cards for rooms is common practice among hotels. However, it has a much wider use here and you NEED it to enter the main lobby, exit to the shopping centre and even to press the 28th floor button in the lift! 

Most people would disregard the terms and conditions sheet. I happened to glance through and you know what i found? Daily housekeeping is from 9.30am till 5.00pm and there is no such service on Sunday! I could only wish clean freaks all the best if they happen to book for NS Golden Green Serviced Suite...

p.s. i am unsure if this is the same situation with the rest of the serviced suites in Berjaya Times Square that are operated by different companies.

=====

Location
East Wing (Tower A), Times Square,
No 1, Jalan Imbi, Bukit Bintang,
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Price via Agoda.com
One night stay on Saturday - S$93.48
[no breakfast and includes all taxes] 

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Arnold's Chicken in Yishun! @ Yishun Ten Complex [Beside Northpoint]

February 3, 2014, 6:01 am
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I like deep fried chicken and frequently mentioned to my friends that KFC is seriously overrated in this contemporary time we live in when there are just too many worthy competitors like Popeye and Texas.

My favourite, in case you are unaware, is still Arnold's Chicken. However, it only has a few branches in Singapore, none of which was near to my home or workplace. 

Until recently! 

There is now a new outlet in Yishun 10 that opened its business just a few weeks ago! Knowing that the queue would be crazy, i opted to visit during the supposedly lull period at close to 5pm.

The queue was as long as i expected; at least not on the same, torturing scale we often encountered at its original branch at City Plaza.

However, what we didn't expect was that this queue was only for us to make our orders. A number would be then be given for us to WAIT for payment at another counter; hence the significantly larger group loitering outside the eatery.

It was another delay of ten to fifteen minutes before we made payment (upon seeing our queue number on the LED display) and a table was assigned to us. Business must be roaring as the waiting game continued for an additional twenty minutes before our two persons combo meal was finally served!

Soup of the day was mushroom soup - despite its bland and watered down appearance, it had a thick texture and tasted pretty flavourful. For that pricing though, i would have anticipated more slices of button mushrooms. 

Arnolds fried chicken has two major selling points; one, its assurance that the farms chickens are delivered fresh everyday to the outlets. Two, the superbly thin and crispy chicken fat that was a big plus point for me.

I should have been satisfied. 
But, i am not. 

There seemed to be a significant thicker layer of fats with a soggier feel to it that kind of put me off. Was there something inherently wrong with the recipe or it has something to do with the outlet being too new (as my mom said, the fryer might not be "seasoned" enough)? 

Guess i have to visit City Plaza soon... :( 
After CNY, for sure. 

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Location
51, Yishun Central 1, 
#01-04, Yishun 10

Price
2 Persons Combo Meal - S$23.70
Soup of the Day - S$3.20
[Nett as GST is already included]

Menu
As above

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Original KL Hokkien Mee - The Real Deal (Lian Bee Hokkien Mee 联美福建面) @ Kuala Lumpur [Malaysia]

February 5, 2014, 5:58 am
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The great Kon was insistent that i have gone to the wrong place when i blogged about this supposedly authentic KL hokkien mee at Petaling Street, Kuala Lumpur known as Kim Lian Kee. 

He remembered clearly the shop he went to was extremely dirty and the environment was far from being a "restaurant" concept. I thought he could have recollected wrongly until a reader commented the same thing as well!

Hence, in my most recent trip, i was determined to find out the actual location of this original KL hokkien mee shop and came upon Lian Bee after checking with a few friendly locals in the Chinatown vicinity. 

At first glance, i admit i was almost hesitant to step further. 

It was nestled in the back lane, sandwiched between two rows of shophouses; one of which housed an eatery. That should not pose a problem; if not for the fact that i was nearly splashed with dirty water by one of the kitchen staff from that eatery! There were also quite a couple of black flies that seemed to have made the street stall their home. 

Thankfully, Dad didn't complain (a rarity) and i happily plonked myself onto the plastic chair after ordering two items; the signature KL hokkien mee and bee hoon.

Bee Hoon
I have no doubt the wok essence was intensely infused into the vermicelli but at the back of my tongue, it was a tad too dry for my liking. Most tze char stalls in Singapore would make it wetter coupled with a savouriness that was more irresistible!

KL Hokkien Mee
This was just EPIC!!!!!!

The noodles didn't feature that overwhelming alkaline taste detested by many friends, the texture complemented perfectly with the thick glossy black sauce and the wok hei was obviously a key player in upping the taste / smell factor! 

I did complain about the pathetic serving of crispy pork lard in Kim Lian Kee. It was another story altogether in Lian Bee; i had the good  fortune that day to bite into many enormous pieces of extremely yummy yet terribly sinful pork lard! Maybe that's why the mee tasted so so so so so good!

The best KL hokkien mee so far! 

=====

Location
Along Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lok, 
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Map
As above.  It's actually very easy to find; just remember Lian Bee is opposite the Chinese style arch along Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lok; cross the traffic light (if you are at the main entrance of Petaling street) and turn to your left. 

Opening Hours
Open daily from 4.30 till 10.30pm.
Closed on Tuesdays.

Menu
As above

Price
Small - RM 6.50
Medium - RM 11.00
Large - RM 13.00



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The Horse Year @ Loyang Tua Pek Kong Temple [洛陽大伯公宫]

February 7, 2014, 7:30 am
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The lunar new year is a huge event in Singapore and like many Chinese all around the world, it is celebrated for the first fifteen days, most of which are sessions after sessions of visitations to the houses of relatives and friends!

Another popular activity is to visit the temples and the first one i went to was the well known Loyang Tua Pek Kong, which moved to its current premise in 2007.

I had been to the temple countless times but i have never encountered a time when the open space next to the temple was converted into a huge carpark to accommodate devotees! There were even traffic marshals engaged to direct traffic! 

A few highlights were installed to celebrate the start of the horse year; one of which was this gigantic status of the fortune god who is always a great favourite among Chinese. 

It's a pity the statue wasn't given the mechanical component to sprinkle gold paper with 4D numbers. If it does, i can guarantee a much bigger crowd surrounding it and waiting patiently for the papers. 

Many people are curious on how they would fare in the horse year and you can find out via the panels that were sorted according to the animal zodiac sign you fall under! 

My fortune (i am a Monkey) seemed to be quite bad for career and wealth. :(

For the benefit of my Indian friends, you can share this with your family and friends borne in the monkey year! Sorry i was unable to take pictures of the write up for the other zodiac signs! 

Aim for good luck by ringing the bell using any coin you might have in your pockets. A fool proof way to beat the system is to change A LOT of coins and throw them all at the same time!

Panels lined the narrow road that led motorists to the temporary car park. I thought they were just for decorative purposes and provided a different "view" for drivers like myself.

They were photo backdrops!! I cannot understand why the committee would want to place them so near to the main ingress / egress to the car park! Tsk tsk tsk, no sense of safety consideration!

I mentioned one highlight just now. The other one came in the form of two living things in front of the big vertical banner (featuring galloping horses) to the left of the above photograph! 

Two live horses!!!!!! Oh my god, that's so bloody appropriate for the horse year and maybe that's the reason why there were so many people on the night i visited!

The Chinese character for horse is 马. The Chinese character for on is 上. The Chinese character for money is 钱. Those two aforementioned characters, when place side by side as in 马上, mean immediately. 

Hence, the Chinese came up with their own symbolic interpretation by literally placing money on the horses (马上有钱) which can be translated as "immediately have money"! 

Entering the main temple compound! I can so imagine the size of the crowd that stopped by the temple on new year's eve and it would definitely be a lot more than what you can see here. 

A bigger table was even set up to accommodate the expected increase in praying items! 

Devotees lighting up the incense sticks. The temple has "ten" stations in total with each station commanding a patronage of one to five incense sticks. 

What i totally didn't expect was the long queue of devotees, with their hand grasping a thick bundle of lighted incense sticks, trying to get in! Environmental activists would not be happy to see this sight. 

The internal section housing the central altar would likely have a PSI that exceeded the record Singapore experienced last year. Air pollution aside, it was the smoke that frustrated me; i was tearing quite badly!!

Another two pictures to show how bad it was! 

Tua Pek Kong statue! From my understanding, this deity can only be found in Southeast Asia, mainly in Singapore and Malaysia. You may check out the wikipedia page for more information.

Regular visitors to the loyang tua pek kong would know what this is for. Those who are unaware might have waved it off as a stone with no value and wonder incredulously why someone would put a stone on a pedestal.

Unlock its secret by purchasing a special incense and placing it right in front of the stone. Take a step back and observe. For those lucky ones, they would be able to see numbers appearing against the rough stone surface. What is the use of those numbers? Buy 4D or TOTO lah! The stone is supposed to be very efficacious!

There is another way to strike it big although it is not as effective; vandalise the poor horsey by writing down the numbers you wish to be the winning numbers for the next lottery and then, pray. 

Pray really, really hard.

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Location
20, Loyang Way

Directions
Once you exit from Tampines Expressway to Loyang Avenue, drive straight and turn left once you see adoring lights enticing you to do so. 

Note
I believe (no, i cannot guarantee) the live horses and gigantic fortune god statue would stay until the 15th day of the horse year which means you would have 14th February to catch them at Loyang Tua Pek Kong temple!

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Halal Certified Da Jie Niang Dou Fu (大姐酿豆腐) @ Clementi [Behind Masjid Darussalam]

February 8, 2014, 7:30 am
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I have quite a number of Muslim friends and it was often a challenge in the past to find a place where i can dine with my Muslim friends other than fast food restaurants; more often than not, a food court would be our best bet.

Times have changed of course and it is increasingly easy to find dining establishments with a Halal logo displayed right outside the shop. One such eatery is Da Jie (Da Jie means big sister by the way) Niang Dou Fu. 

Initially, i was quite amused to hear of halal niang dou fu since pork was freely used in quite a few items that you can choose to fill up the bowl and being the skeptical me, i was all prepared to be disappointed. 

Having said that, i was very impressed with the wide array of ingredients on display that you can add to your niang dou fu! It was, metaphorically speaking, similar to seeing a luxurious display of pleasing cakes that beckon you to try every single one of them!

My eyes were definitely attracted to the deep fried items; there were so many to choose from, including sweet yam, prawns and even chicken nuggets! 

Furthermore, unlike conventional non-Halal yong tau foo stalls / restaurants, Da Jie offered an incredible five basic styles; normal (soup), laksa, tomyam, hakka and ampang! 

Not sure what they are? Check out the above explanation!

Ordering was fuss free; choose whatever you want (so long you have the monies to pay for it), inform the cashier the style you want and whether you want noodles, rice or kosong, pay, collect the number plate and then wait for your food to arrive!

My friends' order; soup and laksa. 

Mine; Niang Dou Fu Ampang style! As you can see, close to 95% was my favourite deep fried stuff drenched in that savoury sauce that was said to be mildly spicy! 

No complaint about the fried items; the assortment was already a plus point and the quality was in fact much better than many average ones in the market. Top on my list was the deep fried yam!! 

Sauce wise, it wasn't that spicy and unfortunately, could not match the one i had at 922 Hakka Ampang Yong Tau Foo.

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Location
354, Clementi Avenue 2,
#01-253 (Behind the mosque)

Map
As above

Website

Price
I paid less than S$7.00 for my Ampang order but it really depends on what you choose. The items are priced on average S$0.60 per serving / piece. 


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Suckling Pig & Roast Goose @ Restoran You Kee (有记XO烧腊之家)

February 10, 2014, 5:55 am
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After that scrumptious meal i had with the Kon-Tan couple at You Kee in January, i made it a point to ask my mom and sisters to join me for another short trip to the Malaysia where i could once again partake in the best char siew ever in my whole life! 

Twenty days was all it took for me to be seated in the Chinese restaurant, surrounded by my family. Frankly, this was already an achievement; should the restaurant be located in Singapore, i bet you would see me in the same premise within a week! 

Cantonese Roast Goose
[广州烧鹅]
My aim was obviously the epic char siew although i could not say the same for my family members who embraced a much healthier lifestyle. 

Hence, this roast goose order which turned out to be plump, juicy and honestly, tasted beyond my expectation. So much so that i preferred this over the signature XO roast duck. 

Suckling Pig
[乳猪]
I shall not be talking about the oh-my-god-that's-delicious char siew but you may wish to note that i ordered the large serving for just the four of us! 

Kon had mentioned that the suckling pig in You Kee was another must try (we were simply too full the last round) and i was determined to place an order this time round! 

They were as sinful as they should be and featured crispy pork skin that was as usual, addictive to a suckling pig lover! Having said that, i pondered for a while after the meal if i would travel all the way from Singapore just to have a piece of that suckling pig.

Answer - nope but i would do that for the char siew! 

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Location
83-83A, Jalan Dedap 7, 
Taman Johor Jaya, 
81100 Johor Bahru, 
Malaysia

Price
Cantonese Roast Goose (top quarter) - RM 48
Suckling Pig - Minimum RM 30

Additional Information
For information on the menu, map showing the location of this branch and addresses of other branches, please click my first post on You Kee HERE. 
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Day Four (Down the Highlands to Kuala Lumpur): Ipoh - Cameron Highlands - Kuala Lumpur Trip 2013

February 11, 2014, 6:31 am
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6am - Rise and shine! Not that i have much of a choice since the parents have the tendency to wake up very early in the morning! I am only thankful that Cameron Highlands didn't have much of a night life and i managed to sleep relatively early the night before. 

After the complimentary hotel breakfast, it's time for us to take the pre-arranged shuttle to the capital of Malaysia; Kuala Lumpur! As you could see, it was drizzling and the weather was so chilly! 

Whenever friends ask if it is recommended to stay in Cameron Highlands for more than one night, my standard reply would be "only if you have signed up for tours"! Otherwise, it would be pretty boring unless your purpose is to relax with minimal disturbance. 

Drove past the small town of Ringlet which was still around 45 kilometers away from the Tapah exit of North South highway.

Friends are aware i am the type who would like to make full use of my time to travel within a country. If i am going to spend over 10 hours to get back to Singapore, i might as well stopover somewhere along the way; hence, the visit to Kuala Lumpur before going home. 

The first time i did that at Cameron Highlands, i had to take a taxi (sorry, there wasn't any meter) to a bus station in Tanah Rata where i had to endure a 4-hour journey on a 40-seater bus. The most memorable part was when the bus pulled up at a rest station and there were literally hundreds, possibly thousands of black flies! 

My apology; i digress. This time round, i did a bit of research and found a much better option via Kang Holidays. I forked out only RM35 per person (similar to what i paid for the 40-seater) that came with a hotel pick up!

It was a direct trip with only a short 10-minute toilet stopover and the best part was we practically had the whole 13-seater van to ourselves; saved for a quiet Caucasian tourist who was at the back! You may click HERE for booking and more information on the available transportation services.

Spectacular view of the mountains along the highway! 

8.00am - Shuttle left Rosa Passadena hotel. 11.15am - Reached Times Square (Bukit Bintang). I am so grateful to have found Kang Holiday! Given my last experience, I was fully expecting to reach our destination earliest by 12noon.

KWC Fashion Mall
This was our first stop after exiting the hotel because i have heard it was comparable to the Platinum Mall in Bangkok! Frankly, it was a tad disappointing and prices were not exactly economical.

You may refer to the above for a rough gauge on what to expect. 

Some pictures for your viewing pleasure too. Of course, i could be biased since there were a lot more lady wear. However, it was a Saturday yet the mall wasn't packed. Try walking into Platinum Mall on a Saturday.

Berjaya Times Square seemed very near right?! I had the same impression too but my attempt to walk from the hotel to Kenaga Wholesale City mall was a failure! We eventually took a cab...

KL Chinatown
A trip to Kuala Lumpur is never complete without visiting Petaling Street (Chinatown), especially when i am bringing along my folks! 

It was teeming with people; both locals and foreigners! As i have always said, i don't have a problem with navigating in KL Chinatown, so long i don't deviate beyond the touristy section. 

The daily night market was still in the process of being set up but i am not that interested; knowing it was just a lot of stalls selling fake branded goods.

Food for the win! Must try number one: Air Mata Kucing!

Must try number two: the nutritious Gui Ling Gao (Herbal Jelly) from 恭和堂. You can find the shop at both ends of Petaling Street. By the way, despite the word "jelly", it wasn't vegetarian and had tortoise shell as one of the ingredients. 

In my recent trip, i chanced upon must try number three: KL hokkien meet from Lian Bee! Please click HERE for my review. 

Hm...... Why is this phrase so popular?! 

Dad was complaining we had eaten way too much, again! To appease him, i suggested walking back to our hotel which was essentially a straight road down along Jalan Pudu

Walked past the imposing KWC Mall.

Arrived at Times Square shopping centre in 15-20 minutes where the Christmas atmosphere was in full force. Damn, it was almost three months and i have yet to finish blogging about the trip. 

Uniqlo was having their opening sale! 

After resting for an hour at our now-tidied hotel room at NS Golden Green Serviced Suite @ Berjaya Times Square, we hit the street again to check out Pavilion shopping center.

Christmas decorations along the street at Bukit Bintang; KL shopping belt.

The crowd was incredibly huge and i don't think i have seen something even close to this in Singapore; save for special festive periods like CNY bazaar. 

Pavilion was amazing and truly a shopping paradise! I went at the right time i guess with many stores having discounts and the whole place was immersed in the Christmas mood! 

It was almost like Christmas wonderland.
Without the snow. 

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For Day One (Ipoh), click HERE. 
For Day Two (Ipoh), click HERE. 
For Day Three (Cameron Highlands), click HERE. 

For an overview of my trip, 
Click HERE.


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Ah Piaw Wanton Noodles (阿標雲吞面) @ Johor Bahru [Malaysia]

February 12, 2014, 6:26 am
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Since the unfortunate 'demise' of Ah Biao wanton noodles in Singapore a few years ago, i have been wanting to check out the original store that hailed from Johor Bahru. 

It wasn't that hard to find since the signature signboard can be seen whenever my brother in law drives to taman sri tebrau; a hot spot in JB where you are likely to find a high proportion of Singaporeans.

However, it took me a few more trips before i could finally step into the non-air-conditioned restaurant (honestly, it was more a kopitiam than a restoran). Can't blame me when there were so many food options in the vicinity!

Ta-da - here's what i had with my family! 

This was of the rare occasions i actually enjoyed the dumplings and the soup; the former was meatier than many of its counterparts back in Singapore and the soup was surprisingly light with a gentle pepperiness to it. 

My order - black style wanton mee! The noodles were as delicious as i remember them to be even though mom found them to be on the harder side (in her opinion, slightly under-cooked). My only complaint had to be the 'flakes' of hardly appetising char siew! What has happened to the smoky juiciness i experienced back in the Singapore branch?!?!

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Location
Jalan Keris, Taman Sri Tebrau, 
81100 Johor Bahru
Malaysia

Map
As above (red star) and super near to the hawker centre where i had the amazing butter crayfish!

Price
RM 6 a plate


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CNY Feast - Yunnan Garden 云南园酒楼 @ One-North [NTU Alumni Club]

February 13, 2014, 6:23 am
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Chinese New Year (or Lunar New Year as some prefer to call it as it is essentially not limited to only the Chinese) is coming to an end tomorrow. 

Fifteen days of celebration, many of which were spent on feasting and constant snacking! Let me bring to you one such feast that i had last Friday at Yunnan Garden @ one-North.

It was my first time to this restaurant that had its beginnings in the 1970s as a humble cafeteria in what used to be called Nanyang University (now known as Nanyang Technological University) and since i am clueless on its specialties, i have to rely on my trusted colleagues to make the order.

Yusheng
There is one dish that is a must-order for any feast during Chinese New Year; the prosperity yusheng (发财鱼生)! Its cultural significance is generally restricted to the Chinese community in Southeast Asia although i heard its popularity has spread to other parts of the world.

Most of us would know at least one or two of the auspicious blessings being said as ingredients like pepper, oil, peanuts, sesame seeds, fish etc are added; for example, 年年有余 when fish is added to signify a year full of abundance. As our server was a non-Chinese, her blessings were in English! Kudos to her effort! 

After tossing the ingredients as high as we could (instead of voicing words of wishes and blessings, we spent half of the time talking about work!!!!), we finally sat down and enjoyed the 'fruits' of our excessive arm exercise. The slices of salmon were so chunky!!! Me like!

Prawns in Mayonnaise and Broccoli
Boasting a crunchy exterior smeared in a fruity tasting mayonnaise, these prawns topped the yummy rating with juicy and seafood-sweet meat! Having the nutritious broccoli by the side kind of enticed me to have more to balance out the supposed "poison" of prawns! 

Tofu with Mushrooms
In my opinion, this was honestly a bit too bland for me and the tofu had a bitter aftertaste that didn't quite sit in. 

Yunnan Pork Ribs
Oh my god, this was heavenly!!!! Generally boneless, eating each piece was just such a blissful affair; imagine sinking your teeth into each piece with the juiciness literally bursting in your mouth, filling it up with an aroma of delicious flavour! 

Thinking back, it was almost like a sweeter and meatier version of the sweet and sour pork ribs i had in Melite Chinese Restaurant. Sounds like i have my wish come true! 

Triple-Egg Spinach
As expected, this didn't impress me. I believe i have mentioned somewhere in this blog (good luck in verifying since i have over a thousand posts) that i have tried this dish in many restaurants / tze char stalls and so far, only the one in Paradise Inn was worth a mention. 

Yam Paste
Similar to Western cuisine, a Chinese feast would require dessert to conclude the meal and nothing's better than to have yam paste! 

I liked the texture of the paste and it wasn't cloyingly sweet! The downside to this was that the coconut milk was a tad too overwhelming. At the start, i was under the impression i might be drinking more the milk than eating the paste. 

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Location
11, Slim Barracks Rise, 
#03-01, NTU Alumni Club
(Off. North Buona Vista Road, via one-North Gateway)

Reservation
Call 6665 8888

Website

Price
Yusheng (S) - S$58.00
Prawns in Mayo and Broccoli (S) - S$26.00 
Tofu with Mushrooms (S) - S$15.00
Yunnan Pork Ribs (S) - S$16.00
Triple-Egg Spinach (S) - S$24.00
Yam Paste (L) - S$30.00
[Subject to GST and Service Charge]

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Day Five (including review of Transtar First Class Solitaire Coach): Ipoh - Cameron Highlands - Kuala Lumpur Trip 2013

February 15, 2014, 7:30 am
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Phewwwwwww. It is with great relief that I am finally concluding the trip i took last year! Hopefully, i would not take THAT long to cover a 9-day trip that i am making in April!

Back to the last day of the Ipoh - Cameron Highlands - Kuala Lumpur expedition, i was once again dragged out of the lovely, comfortable bed by the parents at 6am! $%@^$%#^#$%#Y

We were out on the streets (to be specific, it was the famed Jalan Bukit Bintang) by 7 am; the appearance of lighted street lights was a simple testament of how early we were.

Knowing breakfast was of utmost importance to my folks, i brought them to Jalan Alor, where i am sure we could find some decent Chinese food. In the past, the budget hotel along this stretch was my favourite choice for accommodation; hence my familiarity with the area.

Sight of the homeless along the street; it's kind of sad to see such scenario but we are not at liberty to assume or dictate the "story" behind this man's plight. Every family has their own problems, their own story, including mine. :)

Restoran Gou Lou with its tagline of "famous fish head noodle" caught my mom's attention. 

She ordered a serving (RM 8.50) and following was her comment after cleaning up the bowl: the broth was delicious while the fish swimming in the soup (not literally of course) was fresh and chunky! *like*

Dad and i were not keen in soupy stuff and proceeded to have prata in a corner shop along a different street; they were pretty normal in my opinion although they did help to satisfy my craving that started in Cameron Highland the day before. 

View of the KL Tower.

Gourmet Bak Kwa! Under the watchful eyes of the dad, i had to forgo any intention of even buying a small quantity to check them out!

Notice anything amiss from the above photograph?

We checked out shortly after reaching the hotel as mom had an appointment for Thai massage while i wanted to do some last minute shopping! Dad was dumped at Krispy Kreme with two donuts and a Chinese daily since he wasn't keen on either! 

A snaking long queue was found outside an attraction within Berjaya Times Square.

It was none other than the largest indoor theme park in Asia! Ticket prices have almost doubled since its inception; i remember paying around RM 25 in the past (which, by the way, was a long time ago). 

Time to move over to the Transtar shop (135, Jalan Imbi) where we would take the 12 noon coach back to Singapore! 

One of the reasons why i chose to stay in the NS Golden Green Serviced Suite @ Berjaya Times Square was because of its proximity to the Transtar outlet. By foot, it took us no more than ten minutes. Picture above was taken right outside the Transtar.

Grand arrival of Transtar First Class Solitaire; their top range model that was often showcased in Malaysian travel fairs. I had the pleasure of checking it out in the last fair together with Vanessa and it was just so impressive; so much so that i decided to book with Transtar for the 4-5 hour ride back to Singapore! 

Instead of the common two plus one seating arrangement, this was pure luxury at one plus one for each row! There were cons of course; for example, i tend to spend my time talking to friends / family members when i am seated next to them, instead of being separated by an aisle in this new coach.

Every chair was fully reclinable and this is extremely important for me as i am the kind of travellers who find it hard to sleep if i am not on a sleeping-on-the-bed position. 

Compared to my coach i took (also from Transtar) to Ipoh, this was pure luxurious! There was even a massage functionality even though i had to admit it was a far cry from "real" massage chairs.

What i love most was how roomy the seat was; I can even turn to my side comfortably to catch a wink without the need to crouch like a baby!

I am not even halfway done! For those who could not stand the cold temperature on the bus, fret not! A cozy blanket would be provided for your personal usage should you feel chilly. 

Video on demand on a 10-inch LCD screen! I think i can spend a few days on the coach as there were so many options to select, including Japanese, Korean and even Hindi movies (yes, i enjoy Bollywood movies too)! 

The movie list was updated frequently and i could not wait to watch as many as i could! 

Unlike other coach companies, food was provided and there was even a stewardess stationed on board who would come by to pass you coffee / tea and check on your needs / wants.

The halal bento was seriously quite good! Please keep in mind that there is only a vegetarian option and i am not sure if you could request for other meat / carbo.

For S$36 per person, i am delighted with the service and comfort level and should have strongly recommended Transtar First Class Solitaire Coach to friends and family members. I am having second thought here because the "nothing's perfect in life" jinx decided to wreck havoc two hours into our journey; battery for the chairs and LCD monitors went dead. 



I would have taken it calmly in my stride but it pissed me when the stewardess didn't follow up promptly upon our checks with her! I had to check with her three times before she finally admitted that the problem could not be resolved. Hallo! At least tell me lah! From my conversation with a few frequent travellers, this is supposedly a common problem. 

Now, that's hardly comforting news! 

Reached Singapore Custom (2nd Link) in approximately 4 hours! If you are still interested to check out the Transtar First Class Solitaire Coach for your Genting Highlands / Kuala Lumpur trips, you may book online here.

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For Day One (Ipoh), click HERE. 

For Day Two (Ipoh), click HERE. 
For Day Three (Cameron Highlands), click HERE. 
For Day Four (Kuala Lumpur), click HERE. 

For an overview of my trip, 
Click HERE.

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