last lah!

Just one more post on my Singapore trip - its just been so many years since I was last there. It mostly still looks the same - very manicured :) And it was probably especially manicured that weekend - as it was their National Day. Their flag was displayed everywhere! Here's a night photo of Istana Park (right across the President's mansion, which seemed to have an event that sunday night).


I remember during my stay there years back, the newest thing was the Esplanade - the "durian" theater where I got to watch "Raising the Red Lantern" with K. Jun and family on their visit. On my last few days in Sing, I took my newly purchased canon ixus 2.3 megapixel digital camera to snap some photos of this new piece of architecture.





Fast forward to several years later, there is yet another new building in the city - which sort of reminded me of the Esplanade - the ION. Its the newest mall on orchard that carries a lot of the highend brands (LV, Prada, DVF, etc); has a large Sephora store; and holds the first Uniqlo in Singapore. Not that a new mall really excites me anymore, but I thought that the architecture was very interesting. Its quite a standout on Orchard Road.




Its got those modern fountains in front and some interesting pieces like these mannequins (where everyone poses, including Singapore Salsa!).


One of the things that changed the most in Singapore for me was Boon Tong Kee, the hole-in-the-wall restaurant across my old apartment, that served the best hainanese chicken rice in town! And for a very cheap price! The cab drivers all knew this restaurant better than they did my building, so I always used it as a landmark. Thankfully, its still there on the same street, but is no longer a hole in the wall! The place has gotten bigger and "swankier"! They now have black and gold chairs and tables, hanging lamps, and now use these funky-colored place settings. I did love the bright salmon and apple green against the black tables.


I ordered the same thing as I always did before. The chicken still tastes good (but not as earth-shatteringly good as I remembered it), but the servings seem to have gotten smaller and the prices a lot higher. Still glad I ate there though :)


What really hasn't changed all these years? The fact that I still hate packing. Haha. Here's a photo Singapore Salsa took - of me on my bed (at her place), the night before flying home, with all the stuff semi-packed and semi-unpacked all over. HAHA!


p.s. oh in case you forgot why i was there in the first place....my frisbee team finished third in our second international tourney :) not bad! :)