Phuket part I,

I'm finally getting down to posting about my virgin trip to Phuket, finally got to experience the ravings of my friends of this sunny little island! I didn't bring my camera because my Dad took it for his Korea trip, so these pictures are from my friends' cameras (thanks Xiner Tianhon and Hasan!) I thought that it was a pretty good trip (with good company hehe so grateful for all of them) and we packed whatever we could into three days ♥

 It was also my first weekend after I started work, so it came as a timely escape to soak in the summer joy (Unfortunately I had to lug along my laptop to do work on the plane as I had an important presentation on Monday) The morning of our flight, I scrambled to do last minute packing and waited promptly for Hasan to pick me up in the a cab for the airport. We ended up reaching earlier than YM and TH who took the bus from their place; but in the complete haze of things, I messed up my packing and had to get bottles from Watsons to store my toiletries. And found out that I left my sunnies on board the cab. Alas, so much for living on the edge!

Thank goodness for the amazing turnaround of matters once we boarded the plane - holiday charm working it's wonders I reckon. I did a bit of work, slept for a while, took pictures and we squabbled over which Ben and Jerry's flavour to savour. We took Jetstar Asia, which wasn't too shabby even though it's a budget airline and the flight was pretty short. The guys were really kind to offer me the window seat on both flights ^^ Here's us being happy campers on our seats:

They say I look like a squirrel here, but I like the softness of my red highlights in this picture against the backlight - which I can't quite capture in many shots.

And after a short bus ride, we finally arrived at Deevana Patong Resort and Spa! We bought it from Groupon and it amounted to 55 bucks per pax for 2 nights, which was an extremely good deal. The surroundings were really pleasant, and they had an airy breakfast pavillion and 2 swimming pools; and of course equipped with many other amenities such as a gym, boutique spa and a cosy lobby with free wifi access.

 

After checking in, we washed up, and made ourselves comfortable in our respective rooms before meeting up again to discuss our day plans and coming up with a kitty (aka communal fund) to pool cash for meals and activities.

Being in a touristy mode and taking pictures on the streets of Phuket near the Patong Beach and the famous Tuk tuk. All of us also bought holiday Rayban sunnies hahaha

 

 

We were extremely hungry (no breakfast on board) so we settled quickly for a European Dutch Thai restaurant near the beach area. Didn't really fancy the Phad Thai there, it was disappointingly moist and seem to be drenched in tomato sauce; but YM's ginger chicken and our fruit shakes were awesome! Each dish cost about THB120 while the fruit shakes cost THB80.

Day one was pampering thyself day so Xiner and I did foot massages plus a full manicure and pedicure set for THB500 per person (the colours they had weren't very mainstream though), while the guys went for a full body massage for THB300 and fish spa for THB100. Ours was really therapeutic, both of us fell asleep after a short while...

 

Walked around and headed back to the resort to change out for a hearty seafood dinner and making our way down for the Aphrodite Cabaret show (ladyboy show) where YM had an amazing time onstage! I thought that some of cabaret stage sets they had were pretty interesting, and quite entertaining I must say - one of Thailand's landmark attractions to catch. (They don't allow videography for obvious reasons) After the show, they stood by the side walk and a picture opportunity cost THB100.....We didn't really wanted to take a picture, but they insisted to give us a free shot and grabbed our hands at inappropriate places so here goes:

After which, we headed back to the resort for bum around - it was indeed a long night. Till the next part, ciao!

Deevana Patong Resort & Spa
43/2 Raj-U-Thid 200 Pee Road.,
Patong Beach, Kathu, Phuket 83150 Thailand


Aphrodite Cabaret Show Phuket 
They hold 3 shows a day: 06.00 pm., 07.30 pm. and 09.00 pm.
For more information, click here

Phuket part II
Phuket part III

Rut,

Feels like I'm caught in a perpetual rut of stagnant quicksand. The past few weeks have been so uninspiring - and this lack of inspiration is pretty ex(zest)perating. I don't know if it's the office that has been sapping away my energy but I' m determined to get my game on and find that spark in me once again to do things I love and chase these dreams.

"So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done." 

Matthew 21:21

Rider's cafe,

Rider's cafe is still one of my favourite cafés on this sunny island of Singapore, because its rather secluded location gives a quaint countryside feel. If you're lucky, the stable gates are open and you can take your time exploring the vicinity and even catch a glimpse of horses strolling around for their morning walks. I've been there a couple of times but posted about it vaguely once here two years before. To my displeasure, the food standard seems to have dropped though (and my standard honestly isn't very high when it comes to food haha) We ordered the Breakfast platter and Scones set - the scones were too dry and tasted pretty stale...

Lovin' the peaceful atmosphere, with the lush greenery and occasional trotting horse on the open fields. Despite the slight rainfall, we explored around with our film cameras ^^ The area used to be the old Turf Club (which has since shifted to Bukit Timah) which explains the large areas of empty abandoned land. Being there kinda brings back fond (or not so fond) memories of Cross country training and mixing up the two Turf Clubs - only to end up at the wrong place for training and making my coach extremely worried. Good ole times indeed.

Rider's Cafe
51 Fairways Drive
Singapore 286965

Film: Kodak max GC (ISO 200)

Camera: Canon SLR EOS 650 (2nd hand)

Your fate hurtles down on you,

I've been good all weekend - waking up exceptionally early for a non-work day and wearing flats to put my battered feet to rest from its weekday torment. Oats for a healthy start of the day, and a pepper of household chores for the domestic goddess ideal. Although I did get ticked off by mumsie for saying okay a litte too hastily, hence a reminder for thyself to be more tactful. I'm typing this on a train ride to the East for Pepperoni's so I shall leave you here as I return to my train dose of literature joy and newfound love for Best Coast which is on perpetual repeat on my music player (Thanks to my office companion) Adios, amigos!

Edit/Pepperoni's pizzas are pretty awesome and the family-sized pizzas are amazingly huge!

Melbourne'11 part III,

Located direct south of Yarra River, Southbank is one of the inner suburbs of Melbourne, and you can catch the beautiful skyline and Princes bridge very well from Federation wharf on the opposite side of the Yarra River. It also holds one of the primary Business centers in Melbourne, with skyscrapers and office buildings and entertainment establishments such as the Crown Casino. In the midst of all these hustle and bustle, Australia's tallest tower (Eureka tower) stands. However, just like how Singapore has a green belt even in the Central Business District, Southbank has preserved many significant heritage buildings and Arts precinct on the eastern end and along St. Kilda Road. These include Victorian Arts Centre and National Gallery of Victoria.

By a stroke of luck, we found out about the Sunday Art and Craft market which occurs on the promenade at the Arts Centre. Home to many freelance buskers and pavement chalk artists, which are such a joy to watch, they bring together over 80 of Victoria's finest artisans. This happens every Sunday, from 10am to 4pm. The Arts Centre Melbourne Lawn will be filled with market stalls, selling handmade goods from art pieces to homemade enticing delicacies and even freshly baked goods!

Dined at Phone De Bortoli Winery and Restaurant before travelling down to Healesville Wildlife Sanctuary - a cosy place with all the llamas (seriously the cutest ever), kangaroos, wombats and other wildlife

(Stop looking at my frozen smile and laughable winter hair hahaha)

I simply adore the glorious countryside and the sunshine that envelops it, albeit the inaccessibility it really was very rejuvenating for soul - as you stand there in wide-eyed awe of His creations. The skies were relatively clear that day, and it's really fortunate to be able to see the horizon 360 degrees round :)

On a side note, I've done up the posts on my Phuket trip but I wanna go through with the Melbourne posts first. Office life has been pretty kind, although some days are really tiring the experience will be worth the effort, ciao!

Pictures taken by my trusty Canon IXUS 1000HS

Melbourne Part I

Melbourne Part II

Healesville Wildlife Sanctuary
Badger Creek Road
Healesville Victoria 3777


Sunday Arts and Craft Market
Along St Kilda Road and Arts Centre Melbourne lawn