1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #348 - Jessie J concert, Singapore Indoor Stadium

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #348

- Jessie J concert, Singapore Indoor Stadium

 

(Not knowing much about her, we decided to give her concert a shot. Turns out, she was excellent! Goodness..she has a powerful set of lungs, which came through with her "Bang-Bang" song, which she did with Ariana. But the song that really took the night to a new height was her Flashlight - the audience obliged blissfully with their handphone flashlights - see videos below. Her ability to tell her stories and connect with her audience sets her apart)

 

 

 

 

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #347 - Liao Fan Soya Sauce Chicken, Chinatown Hawker Centre

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #347

- Liao Fan Soya Sauce Chicken, Chinatown Hawker Centre

 

(Food this good, and this economical, should be made known to everyone. We got a terrific meal from Liao Fan Soya Sauce Chicken recently from Chinatown Hawker Centre at Smith Street. $2 for this chicken rice? What a steal! Their noodles were crispy and tasty too. Two other stalls that were recently discovered but gave great meals are Xiu Ji YTF and the Babas Peranakan. The YTF's claim to fame is their ikan bilis add-on, while the Babas's dishes were simply delightful, not exactly the Peranakan quality that a Bibik would approve, but still good enough. We are late to these 3 hawker-stall-gems, but hey, better late than never. Expect looong queues..)

 

 

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #346 - Honolulu Café Egg Tarts, Hong Kong

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #346

- Honolulu Café Egg Tarts, Hong Kong

 

(My soft-spot for pastries was left openly attacked here in Hong Kong. This time, the egg tarts from Honolulu Café took prime spot. Soon to be opened in Spore, I had to try them out first - and yes, they were special indeed. And for HK$8 each, they were a bargain - smooth, eggy, great fluffy pastry cup. Before heading home, the obligatory stop at Jenny Bakery was done. This time, with even more tins in our luggage bag. We managed to get their 8-type butter biscuits this time around - but only after being told off by the always-rude servers there :"you can only buy 1 tin!", she raised her voice. This time, hubby walked in again for our 2nd tin - we felt victorious! Goodness, this seemed really silly, with hindsight - but that's part of the Jenny Bakery experience - you just have to go with the flow)

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #345 - Tim Ho Wan Restaurant, Hong Kong

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #345

- Tim Ho Wan Restaurant, Hong Kong

(On our 2nd run to Hong Kong within 6months, we charged straight into the original Tim Ho Wan, a mere 2 MTR stops away from Mongkok, at the aptly-named Fuk Wing Street. This Michelin-starred dim-sum restaurant was true to form, giving us full and happy tummies for a mere $25 - something which would have cost us $50 easily in Spore. Their signature char-siew bun, with what looked like a fragrant egg topping, is hard to beat. Do they taste better here than Spore and KL? Yes indeed)

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #344 - Lady Tag Heuer, Formula 1, Qatar Airport

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #344

- Lady Tag Heuer, Formula 1, Qatar Airport

(My trip got even sweeter when the Tag Heuer salesman at the Hamad International Airport said, "This is the final night for our promotion at 20% off all Tag watches here, in fact, sales end at midnight!". With some remaining USD left from our trip, we took the bait and came home with a beautiful Lady Formula 1, black porcelain wristband. Great way to commemorate my 10years of being cancer-free. This trip also had us experienced the Airbus350 for the first time. Impressive plane, with more legroom - much needed, after 16hrs from Sao Paolo plus another 8hrs to go to Spore - nice going Qatar!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #343 - The Big One, Part 1 & 2, South America

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #343

- The Big One, Part 1 & 2, South America

(Our tour of South America, which we called The Big One : Part 1 & 2,  is now complete. The most memorable moments, those that will stay with me for the rest of my life, have to be these series of photos here, including the video of Part 2, below. No other part of this world look like them - astounding, jaw-dropping are words that come to my mind instantly. Both 36-hour long, butt-numbing journeys have been worth it. Perhaps, what can be the next possible and last South American destinations are Antartica and..yes, Cuba. I want to "feel amazed again"!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #342 - Middle of the World, Museo Intinan, Quito, Equador

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #342

- Middle of the World, Museo Intinan, Quito, Equador

(Latitude 00:00'00", yes - right on the Equator, splitting the world into 2 halves. This small museum outside Quito gave visitors the chance to straddle both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, as well as a few sensations you can only experience because one is at the Equator, like balancing an egg on the head of a nail. A 30m high monument 100m away was erected to mark the old Equator location, but with GPS, the new location was here at this museum. At the end of the tour, you will get a stamp on your passport to show that you stood right on the Equator)

 

 

 

 

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour #341 - Old Town, Quito

1001 Places/Experiences to See or Savour After Remission #341

- Old Town, Quito, Equador

(The Old Town of Quito is so reminiscent of Cuzco, especially its architecture. At 2850m high, Quito is the highest capital of a country in the world, with the Old Town registered as a UN World Cultural Heritage site. The San Francisco Cathedral stood out, with its huge brown and white entrance facade. Walking through this area was pleasant at around 20C for this time of the year, with no high-altitude side effects for us, unlike Cuzco. With the 7.8magnitude earthquake which happened on 16April, after our return home, we wonder if any part of this city was severely impacted. Eerily, it came after our local guide, Rodrigo, said one was due "anytime now")