X'mas Gathering

Haven't met Siew Choo, Shirley & Seah for a while but when we do meet up, there's always so much to chat about! Had japanese food for dinner at Vivocity & took the opportunity to celebrate Shirley's birthday.
4 of us actually managed to finish an Awfully Chocolate cake after having our own main course & sharing some starters!



Very happy that both ladies are taking up running as a sports & progressing well. :)



Walked past this on my way to meet Seah & Shirley and without hesitation, I grab my iPhone for a quick snap & mms this to Gerald "Woohoo! Max Brenner is coming to Vivocity!"

Blogging on the GO!

iPhone is really great! There's apps for anything under the sun. From Facebook, instant messaging, cooking & baking receipes, to track running distance & pace, and Twitter & blogging within a few clicks of the button.

In fact, this posting was drafted as I was walking towards office on Tue morning.
Recently i started taking photos of interesting things using my iPhone & sending mms to either Gerald or frens.
It's really nice! Hopefully I can find another app soon that allows posting pics on the go!

Looking forward to NZ
 

Christmas is approaching & I'm getting excited.  Not just with the usual X'mas get-togethers with friends, the yummy X'mas logcakes & relaxed year-end atmosphere, but also the upcoming holiday to NZ with a stopover in Sydney.

Decided to head for Southern Island since it's reputed for the scenic sights.  Haven't done much planning for the trip yet.  Only booked the flights, hotel accommodation & car rental in NZ as well as the ice glacier hike.  This time round, I don't intent to plan too much.. just wanna relax & explore whatever our hearts & maps bring us. 

Super happy when I went to the NZ Tourism Office @ Faber House last week.  Managed to get plenty of informative brochure, maps & a mega thick & up-to-date guide book.  In the next few weeks, would at least work on booking the glow-worm cave & jet-boating to avoid disappointment & finalise the accomodation in Sydney.

The results are out!

It's official, Chip timing is 2hr 11 mins. Average 6mins 13 sec per KM. 
Next target would be how to reduce it to below 2hr.

 

 

SCM 2009
Did my 3rd half marathon today and achieved my personal best timing @ 2 hours 11 mins (based on own stopwatch). 14mins faster than my 1st & 2nd attempts (both 2hours 25mins) and within my target. 
I'm happy with the new record but definitely more happy that WJ was able to complete her 1st 21km.  Definitely sooo proud of her for not just completing the race on her own but also finishing with such excellent spirits.  We run together about 2 times a week mostly in the morning over the past months, not just to train but also to chat & spend time together. In fact, I was the one "psycho-ing" her to sign up & I know this race really meant a BIG deal to her. 
Well done dear!

Jennifer did well too for her first half marathon. She's definitely happy =)

Delicious Apple crumble from WJ, a great pre-race indulgence!

Preparing for the race

Live to Eat & never eat to LIVE...
Very into Caesar Salad right now... 2 of my favourite dining outlets

Prive @ Keppel Bay
We loved to go there for Saturday brunch.  It's not crowded, pretty laid back & food are served piping hot from the oven... yummy!

PS Cafe

Went to the Dempsey outlet on Thurs night for dinner with a gf and it was so packed we were almost shouting at each other just to chat.  In contrast, Gerald & I went to the Paragon outlet on Sat night & it was sooo peaceful.  The caesar salad tasted as good but was disappointed they had a smaller menu & didn't serve the cream pasta with giant prawns which I was craving for.

 

 

Deco was similar to the Dempsey outlet.   

 

Since I was craving for cream pasta with prawns, decided to whip up the dish myself & it tasted yummy. Was so motivated, I tried making caesar salad too. =)

Also started baking as a form of showing love to good friends.  Started with chocolate cake with kiwi stuffing in the middle..

Just made Hersey's brownie as well. My first "test run" for Christmas & it turned out to be quite a success.  It was chewy  & quick presentable after some "packaging".

Received some yummy treats from Waijia too.  Started with almond & orange cake, followed by banana muffin & banana cinnamon cake this week.  Such a sweet gal!

Due to my budding interest to bake, started to browse supermarkets too.  Always loved Bakerzin as they used Valrhona chocolate so decided to check out ThreeSixty Supermarket @ Ion.  66% dark chocolate with hazelnut @ $13... expensive but yummy!  Service was also fantastic we got to try different types of chocolate before deciding.  

Victor Victoria
Despite the lukewarm review, I actually loved it.  The costume & stage set was elaborate, Laura Fygi's voice was great & the male lead Jake Macapagal was absolutely charming.

 

 

Chillout at Esplanade rooftop prior to the show.

Got the compliation CD @ $19.95.

It came with 2 CD with personalised autographed by Laura herself... 2 thumbs up!

Love it partly also because it reminded me of beautiful Paris...

 

Countdown to X'mas... 

Yeah, my favourite time of the year is just round the corner!
Did some early planning this year. Started thinking about presents, cards, catch-up with friends for Christmas dinners and even started taking Christmas pictures early. =)

Couldn't help but want to put up the X'mas tree at home.. tis the season to be jolly!

Plenty of stuffs on my plate now.. work is hectic, haven't really got time to plan the details on our upcoming NZ trip, countless items on my to-do list & definitely still sleep deprived... wished I had more time! Who doesn't?!! Just hope December doesn't zip passed too quickly...

In love with COVA
pasticceria-confetteria of course!  Really loved the ambience.  Reminds me of Italy, especially Milan.

 

Yummy appetizer.. Piping hot mushroom soup

Anti-pasta starter was also delicious & we enjoyed our main course.

 

Of course, dessert was highlight of the night. 4 course set dinner includes dessert.. choose between a slice of cake or 4 petite tartlets.. nicely served on a silver platter...