Hello again, Singapore
After my Cebu stint, the trip back involved an overnight stopover at Singapore. There were aspects of this place that I absolutely loved before so I made them my first priority!
Another season, anther fixture! Last time it was the giant rooster, this time, a giant boat! It turns out it's mid autumn festival or whatever the mooncakey festival thing is, which is pretty cool! Not only was the main street lit up with bright fixtures, but there was also heaps of incense being burned on all the streets.
First stop, claypot frog porridge! I loved this place last time and I didn't even know frog porridge was its specialty! This time I ordered the actual item, instead of the ginger claypot frog and adding porridge to it. The porridge tasted so good, but I felt the frog may have been a bit overcooked compared to last time. Still delicious and a great treat, but I think I prefer the ginger claypot with porridge separate - the sauce of the standalone frog seeps into the meat better. And I'd love to eat the chicken feet from here again!I'd also deliberately undereaten because I decided that I'd take my chances at Burnt Ends too. The porridge was enough that I could continue eating, but also if I didn't manage to get a table, I'd be satisfied and not hungry again till morning. So after a short trek through Chinatown, I came upon a closed Burnt Ends. Oh, they're not open Sundays... which meant no extra feed, but my wallet thanked me!!
Instead I snacked on this croissant taiyaki since last time I had the mochi version. Not bad, especially as this was freshly made!
A quick scout of Chinatown also meant to opportunity to say hello to these adorable foxes!
Alright, hotel time! As this was an overnight stay and I'm not allowed to splurge, I decided to test out a capsule hotel! I chose one that wasn't quite budget and seemed rather nice and had decent ventilation according to reviews. I ended up at Cube, which had some cool and hip interior design. Just don't expect much in the way of their continental breakfast; the hawker fare 2 minutes away is so much more worth it.
How cute! It came with a towel and water bottle, a main light and a reading light, three pull out compartments, of which the largest doubled as a table and had a mirror installed, as well as a towel rack at the end of the bed.There was a secure set of doors located below this capsule to store luggage.
I actually found this quite roomy! There were also charging ports and a powerpoint tucked away, which was really convenient. I think I like small spaces like this, I wish my bedroom was this size!
And how the capsule room looked. Here you were supposed to place your shoes in the lockers just outside this room, but I guess most people ignored that. You can see the massive air conditioner that did really well to keep the temperature regulated, but also, the capsules had pull-down blinds. This meant there was a draft into my capsule though, and moving cold air prevents me from sleeping well. I managed okay, and it was better than being stuck in a place with no air movement at all.The bathroom was located across the lobby though, I found that setup a bit odd since you'd have to walk in your pyjamas through a public area. There were more bathrooms on the other floor, but I didn't venture or explore the full setup.Also, I didn't anticipate that because these were just capsules sharing a room, with the only privacy being a blind, that there's no way to tell the time and you can hear everything. So.... how does one set an alarm if they need to be up at a specific time? No idea. But if I was ever on the clock, I wouldn't choose a capsule hotel. My flight wasn't till midday so I let my body clock do its magic. However... that didn't stop me waking up to the sound of someone else's alarm at 2am!
Morning came around, and luckily, having had the same morning schedule 7 days a week meant that I got up at around 7AM - 8AM. Perfect time as most hawker shops should start opening soon! And here are more foxes!
I circled the stalls at Chinatown Complex, wanting the 1950s cafe I went to last time. I couldn't figure out why I couldn't find it, until after my third lap I realised it was closed. Maybe it's closed on Mondays? That meant I had to find some other food to eat. I also did a round of Maxwell Centre, and in the end went back to Chinatown Complex and tried out the vegetarian shop.Time to do the point and choose thing! I ended up with noodles, tofu, soy "chicken" thing? And hopefully that white stuff was radish cake. I said no to extra soy sauce, and I think the lady thought I was weird for saying so! However it had enough saltiness as is, and was actually rather enjoyable! Man, the food here is so simple, so cheap and so good!
My final mission was also supposed to be impossible. When I had heard Kurasu Singapore opened, I thought I wouldn't have the chance to try it since I hadn't planned a Singapore visit. But hey, when opportunity presents itself... I had to get this cafe when it opened at 9AM, try all the coffees I needed to, and then get to the airport as fast as possible to check in for a 12PM flight. Okay well, it was made slightly easier because I already had my boarding pass and my luggage was automatically being transferred cross planes.This is such a nice space! It wasn't too difficult to find Odeon Towers, but my GPS wasn't playing nice this visit so it did take some fiddling and old school map orientation efforts to get to all my places this visit. In addition, Kurasu is located on level 2 of an open office, rather than an actual shopfront.Like all Japanese cafes, Kurasu has a lovely and clean aesthetic. Lots of Kalitas and nice glassware! Single O's Reservoir blend was great as an espresso, and the filter by Mount Coffee was quite nice too! Would have loved to spend twice the time here to really take everything in!
But alas, it was airport time, where I actually had another goal. Last time I visited I had some great beef tendon noodles with a really good flavoured sauce, but I couldn't find it again. Maybe it was a different terminal? So I settled for this other cantonese place and ordered similar, but this didn't quite taste as amazing, but was good feed before my flight.Man, Singpore is so cool! I really should come back and explore things like the art gallery and surrounds. Maybe even pay more attention to Suntec City and Raffles. Plus maybe even actually save up to enjoy Burnt Ends!!But different adventures are lined up for me in the upcoming year, hopefully!
Cebu, Philippines 2018
My adventures this year have lead me to a place I didn't think I'd ever get to visit - the Philippines. Even rarer that I'd end up away from the capital city. But here I was, with a super short trip to Cebu.The way there wasn't overly complex, but did take some time. Also, I confirmed that flying budget isn't my thing. There's actually nothing wrong with the flights themselves, which were quite pleasant. It was just that I was used to all the mod-cons of full service - inflight entertainment, USB charging ports, and a constant offering of free water. Time sure crawls when there's no distractions in a restricted space!One quirk I was bemused by was that my first leg from Perth to Kuala Lumpur had a plane decorated both inside and outside, with anime style girls - an ad for a Chinese mobile game called "Girls Frontline" apparently.I had a five hour stopover at Kuala Lumpur airport. In order to save money, I didn't opt for lounge entry. Instead, I'd planned ahead and packed myself a good book to pass the time.
There was a decent selection of food at the airport, and the first thing I decided to try was some beef ball soup. Not too bad, but nothing special either.
What did catch my attention though, was the durian McFlurry, and then also a "Milo dinosaur McFlurry party"! Both were probably unique to Malaysia/Singapore, so it was hard for me to decide which I wanted, but I ended up choosing the stinky option. Yep, just like the artisan durian gelato I had last year in Singapore, this also tasted like raw onion to me. I certainly appreciate the sweetness that did come through; I can taste the deliciousness, but it's just so tucked away behind a really strong unpleasant flavour.Several hours later, and finally landed in Cebu!
The ride to the hotel was interesting. Everything was poor, old and dusty. There doesn't seem to be any kind of modern public transport (trains, large buses), instead, just small open air vehicles about the size of a large van/small bus, taxis, and motorbike taxis. Most intersections also didn't have lights, instead relying on human traffic controllers.While stuck in traffic (I feel the roads are congested since it seems to be the only mode of transport), individuals would walk up and down between the lanes, selling bottles of water. For some reason this didn't seem all that unfamiliar, though I can't recall where I may have encountered it before. I feel my adventures in China and Cape Town meant that I kind of knew what to expect in non first-world places.Crossing the road was also a rather daunting activity since even in the city, traffic lights were few and far between. The locals were used to casually walking across several lanes of traffic, wheras I, in contrast, ran across in panic for fear of becoming roadkill. I'm pretty sure there was nothing to worry about though!What was a bit of a surprise for me, was the state of the street shops. So many stray dogs and really dingy looking shopfronts. Most of the area had incredibly old looking shops which I imagine sold super cheap street food, but given that tap water isn't safe to drink here, I wasn't allowed to experience local life. Instead, I had to play it safe and stick to hotel food, which was interesting enough for the couple of days I had - dried fish, adobo chicken, vegetable stews, and lots and lots of rice. Turns out pandan sticky rice is amazing and I should figure out how to make some myself!
Well, I was here for a specific reason, so I attended a group dinner at a place in Beverley View. It was a super nice place and heaps of food prepared, home cooked style - with some delicious beef soup! - as well as this gorgeous suckling pig! I really wish I could have asked to take the head and eat it, but this wasn't a foodie trip and I had to remain lady-like the whole time.
Here I got distracted by a kitten!
There was a performance for us by the local dance group who had performed internationally too. They were adorable and had so much enthusiasm for what they do!Then it was a big day as there was a dance competition on, so my camera got a small workout. There's a much larger and more enthusiastic audience here than compared to Australia!
The dancing and partying continued all night!! The people there were all super friendly and what was really funny was that everyone's a fan - if you're in costume, passers-by will ask for a photo taken with you!I was only here for the competition so I wasn't able to get a full feel of the place, but I'm also way too used to built up cities that I don't think I'll end up back here. Instead, it was onward to my overnight stopover in Singapore on the way back home!
Melbourne 2017, the post I never got to make
I can't believe it. Finally, a Melbourne trip that I'm going to write up properly. It must be Christmas! Or shortly thereafter. It also took a lot of planning and a 4 day weekend to get to this stage, so here goes nothing! A blog about my second favourite city in Australia.
My trip to Melbourne starts on the plane. I have a thing for flying full service, and here is my lovely meal to show for my money.
Okay, it's the worst aeroplane meal I've had in a while. Those scrambled eggs weren't nice after a while, and the potato gems tasted like they'd been thawed then kind of warmed up. Ick. The sausage thing was okay though, so I ate all of that, and the tomato.It's also been forever since I've had a fruit yoghurt. Real mango bits? How do they not go off? Is it dried mango that's been put in yoghurt???
I actually had a purpose in Melbourne other than just food and coffee. I was off to do some dancing, and my dance partner had taken a different flight. I had to wait for him, we went to our hotel, then, with precious little time to spare, I dashed off, and got to my favourite ceiling-chair cafe with 8 minutes to spare. Oh, chairs. You're so lovely.
And look, I finally got a window seat! Yay! This place is usually packed out the doors, but going at closing time has its benefits. Next time, I would love to just chill here and stare out the window.
Even though I wasn't supposed to be consuming coffee, the opportunity was too good to pass up. So it was espresso and flat white for me. Both were delicious, and the espresso was tasting super yummy!
A tinselly shot of BBB :)
The next day, I decided that I'd go to Operator 25. I actually had a whole schedule set up of which cafe to go when, but I was never very good at following instructions, even my own. So I did everything in my own order. Their batch brew was okay, but not terribly exciting.
I didn't really want a sweet breakfast, but it sounded interesting, so I went with the tapiocoa pudding with fruit and matcha coconut cream. That cream was really yummy! And I loved that there was some freeze dried fruit in here too! However my body wasn't used to the time difference yet, so it was difficult to muster up the appetite to eat it there and then. I hate adjusting to new timezones, but I know that food and sleep are the two most important things to assist with time shifting.
The next day would be action packed, so I picked up some donuts for breakfast, since I'd need to be up horrendously early and had to be well fed at the same time. I also treated myself to this adorable star donut at Shortstop, which was eggnog flavoured!
Swung by Hisense Arena to watch my friends. Yep, this was what I'd be doing on the weekend. How exciting! And nerve wracking!My Friday, Saturday and Sunday were blocked out, so there's not much of my own adventures over these three days except for a cheeky lunch at Cumulus Inc on the Friday, since it was my least busy day.
Had a bit of spare time on the Sunday morning, so I went to cafe that I managed to spot while walking near the arena - Fifty Acres! They served up a tasty Duke's coffee.
Their breakfast was delicious too! These weren't just any old scotch eggs, these were chorizo scotch eggs, and that made them the most delicious version I've eaten yet! My dance partner chose the pumpkin pancakes, which were amazing too.Then, with dancing over, it was time to move out and start hitting my cafes and restaurants hard.
Lune. The best croissants in Australia. I love their little sign and the fact that they're tucked away in a garage in some out of the way street. Luckily, there's no queue on a Monday morning, compared to the massive queue I had to endure when I last visited on a Saturday.
Behold the might and glory of the traditional croissant!!
While the godliness of the traditional croissant was obligatory, it was the ice cream sandwich that I was after. Ice cream for breakfast, I love myself! A kouign amann cut in half, chocolate sauce and a perfectly shaped hazelnut gelato. The price tag of $15 was pretty hefty, but it was so delicious, especially as I've not had a kouign amann before, and the hazelnut gelato was so amazing! Yes! I'm so happy I got their special!
Now to visit my other old favourite - Patricia. I managed to get a cool shot of something other than their windowsill and plants! I called this one Sunshine in a Coffee Cup.
Okay, so I took a picture of the plants and window sill anyway. Mostly because the flowers had dropped into the sugar bowl. I also joined a great discussion about the Rowsaan spoons that they serve. About a year back, I had one of my Sydney baristas ask me about the spoons, so I took a picture, and then looked into it a little bit since he said that they cost $190 each. I thought it was a typo because I thought I'd seen them for $90 on their website, but no, today the barista confirmed they were indeed $190. Ouchies! What kind of a cafe can afford to stock $200 spoons?!?! Haha.
I knew, then forgot, then remembered that Shannon Bennett now has a Benny Burger. I've tried Neil Perry's burgers, so it was time to see what Vue de Monde's executive chef's vision was. Also, I remember ages ago there being a joke about eating at the restaurant and then being left hungry so that people bought burgers at McDonald's shortly after.I hadn't done any research into the joint, but apparently they still had specials running! It was half price burgers for a good while, but when I got there, they were doing free chips and drink with every burger purchase. Nice! I wanted to try their chips! I didn't need the drink so I helped myself to the tap water.I chose the Cheesy Burns, which was their cheeseburger. Yep, it was cheap and tasty, just how I like it. The sauce in this one was really nice, and my conclusion is that it was on par with the likes of Burger Project and Shake Shack. What did intrigue me though, was that apparently they used wagyu in their burgers? But to be honest my favourite beef patty still come from Burger Project's Cape Grim beef. That stuff is just too good.
The picture makes the cafe self explanatory! A lot of baristas talk highly of Everyday Coffee, so I had to pay a visit. I had a Kenya Kiamabara PB, which had loads of blackberry flavour! I took my time to sip away at this, watching the other two people in my view working away at laptops.
That night was dinner at Embla, which has its own post. Even though the waiter had recommended that we go eat gelato from Spring Street Grocer, I did promise my friend that we'd go to the creperie. I changed my order this time, usually I get lemon sugar, but I figured, change is good, so I opted for chestnut paste this time. Quite nice, though a bit sweet for my palate (but it wasn't overly sweet).
Aah, Proud Mary. I can't help but come here since I know their food is as good as their coffee. I didn't get a good shot of my espresso, and I only had the one coffee, since I had plans to geek out at Aunty Peg's instead.I also wanted the blue swimmer crab omelette for breakfast, but apparently the crabs that came in weren't right so they didn't have it available that day. The waiter did recommend the salmon pate and devilled egg instead, so I said yes! What a colourful looking and tasty breakfast!
Ooooh I got here during a geisha party! Woohoo! There were three geishas on offer today, and I learned (by asking) that what happens is that Aunty Pegs gets a 2 week showcase, before rotating it onwards to Proud Mary. That's how it works! So I will always get a different coffee unless I clip the wrong Sunday + Monday visit haha. I had already tried Bambito Estate and Hacienda La Esmeralda, so this time, I chose Elida Estate. It was very very bright and fruity as an espresso, and when it cooled down as filter, it was so floral and delicious!The baristas here are always so knowledgeable and chatty, and were describing the estate as being part of a natural reserve, and that it was very picturesque with its rolling mists, since it was so high up. It makes me want to visit!
Yes, I finally ate a Butterbing! This was at Aucuma cafe, where one of my barista friends was working, so I popped in and said hi. We walked around South Melbourne, but I didn't realise the markets were closed, but that was okay since we were happy to walk back into the city. When I talked about Spring Street Grocer, it turns out that she loved it too and also spoke highly of the pistachio ice cream! So of course, now I had to go get one.Well, after Minamishima, that is. There was no way I was going to enter a super sushi place without an empty stomach!
While there was definitely enough food at Minamishima and I was full, I had to get gelato. If two people both recommended it, then it must be good. And they weren't wrong. The gelato here is kept under the metal lid things, just like Chicho back in Perth. And when the scoops came out - pistachio at the bottom, and white chocolate, yuzu, blackberry on top. Both flavours were amazing! The yuzu and blackberry were very prominent, and the pistachio one tasted exactly like pistachio! Yep, I'm glad I tried it!
Next morning, I took my friend back to Brother Baba Budan since she tried to go before, and it was packed. We were early and it was quiet, but there were still enough people that the only seat we got was at the counter, staring at the machine. I decided that it was close enough to Christmas that I would treat myself to this lovely fruit mince pie!The picture of my piccolo came out horribly, so no post of that one.
Look at this place. How sleek! I was told this was the best place to go by both the Aunty Peg's barista as well as my barista friend. It's a super white, minimalistic space with a roaster at the back! They also have a cute looking snack called kolache, which is basically stuff in buns. I tried the herbed omelette one and it was quite nice!
As always, I went for the spo milk filter trio. All three were great. The Rwandan Kivu belt was what they had on filter, and the tasting notes were blueberries and blackcurrants. Those flavours definitely stood out, but I felt that it was at the expense of acidity, because I didn't get a lot of that. The espresso was Ethiopia Adado, which was nice, but not as tasty as the filter. Then the flat white for prettiness!It's a great little cafe and I'd love to visit here again and try more of their coffees!
Finally, I visited 8 Bit, which is a little burger joint in the city. I always find this place so cute looking, and my friend was eating one of these the day before and it smelled so good, so I had to get a hot dog too - I was starving, wanted something small and tasty, but wouldn't weigh me down as I was about to enjoy the most epic meal I've had in a while.Then at night, I had a blast at Kisume. Oh yeah. That place was awesome, and I walked out feeling like a superstar.
The superstar feeling carried on to the next day, when my time in Melbourne was finally up. Because of my recent mass of travelling (especially premium economy to Japan!), I managed to get some lounge passes. So I figured, I may as well use them since I won't maintain my status when it expires.The Virgin lounge in Melbourne is pretty cool, and has its own little express customs area so that you don't have to go back out and line up again with all the "commoners". What was really caught my attention after scanning the buffet tables, was the 1 press pancake maker! There were a couple of these machines. All you had to do was press the GO button, and it would start making pancakes inside. There was even a little progress bar that showed you what stage readiness your two pancakes were at, and then when done, out they popped from the side! It was so entertaining!I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to eat, so I just piled on some blueberries, maple syrup and cream. But I also grabbed a sausage, some ham, and a boiled egg. On the same plate. Because sweet and savoury together is cool. Or something. Not too bad considering it was free! Also, while I was initially bewildered, I quickly realised that most of the people here were business people, so everything could be left unattended so that they could get food and drinks. Cool, it was nice not having to drag around my luggage just to get my breakfast!
The view from the lounge is pretty cool too. I didn't realise it at the time, but that was actually my plane!
Keeping those windows squeaky clean :D
Bye bye Melbourne, I love you! But only almost as much as Sydney.Onwards we go!!!