Travelogue - Perth, Western Australia February 2013 (2)

Back with my risotto recipe!

Tried to follow the ingredients as closely as I could. Badgered Tex to bring me to the supermarket! Went to Morley Galleria; alas, the mall was closing.. bah! Super sonic grocery-buying speed.



Nando's?!

Super curious about the taste, got a bottle! See the price tag above? Notice they insert information like "$1.22 per 100g" etc? This is super useful for comparison across brands! Like if you see similar products with different volume, you would want to calculate which one is more value for money. And their pricing makes it difficult for you to decide at one glance. For eg, $1.50 for 500ml is better, or $1.65 for 620ml? Hence the per 100ml comparison makes it so much easier! :D *housewife in making*

Scored a big bunch of celery for AUD$1!

This bunch of celery fed us for DAYS. In Perth, weather is so dry so food don't rot that easily. I could leave leftovers on the table and I still do not see ants or it moulding as fast as I thought it would.

Tadah! My Risotto. It turned out more like dried muay - also known as Teochew porridge that has been overcooked. Should have added butter to give it a creamier and ang moh taste. Garnish was the leaves from the $1 celery bunch, hurhur.

Mel's Risotto with Marinara Mix topped with $1 Celery Leaves

Breakfast the next morning! Love the bacon in Australia too, value for money and not as fatty.

Breakfast Muffin with Omelette & Salad Toss

Experimented with the Nando's Peri-peri sauce that evening!

Baked Chicken with Onions & Celery in Peri-Peri Sauce

We went King's Park for a date after dinner. Had a night picnic there! There were so many people but still enough space for everybody! Tex brought along his ukulele and we had a very relaxing time. :)

Short post for today! Gotta watch my Running Man now! Have a good day all!

Choice Of Words

The bestie is very annoyed (and impressed) with my choice of words.

When talking about pay increment in my company -
Me: The pay increment here not scary one. Like pissing. A bit a bit. Not the 'urgent' kind.
She: ...

When talking about her neighbourhood area -
Me: Your Hougang Mall there got Cotton On?
She: Yar, have. Why? Tex is back? If not, why you coming to Hougang?
Me: No la, trying to look for something. So decided to check ulu places.
She: What do you mean by 'ulu'?!
Me: Sorry, I meant 'neighbourhood'.

Travelogue - Perth, Western Australia February 2013 (1)

Aloha! I am back with Perth photos finally! It's my fifth trip to Perth and by now, I've gotten used to living there for a longer time around. Need to get used to limited shopping as well, hurhur. Well, without shopping, that leaves me with more time to explore my other interest - cooking!

I love Aussie supermarkets. It's my favourite place to go in every mall I went there. Each suburb I visited, I made it a point to go to the supermarkets. The products are always displayed nicely and all of them look so fresh, you just wanna buy them all! Even if you don't know how to cook, they sure make it tempting enough for you to try!

Eating out can be really expensive in Perth, so Tex and I made sure we cooked as much as we could. Besides, we love eating home-cooked meals and I love to cook (while he love to wash up, okay that's not true), so why not? Luckily for me, one thing I can be finally confident about - cooking isn't a problem for me at all. No one has lao-sai-ed from eating my food yet.

The purpose of my trip this time round was to stay (bum around) in the house and help him settle into the environment as he was starting school after a two and half years hiatus from it. Also, to help him move into college and be his maid! Hahahaha.

Tex left ten days just after we solemnised. Such a 负心汉 right?

Hahaha, I arrived a week later than him and he already got himself a car! A nice vintage BMW 1990 318i series. Mad loveeeeeeee it. He knew I would love it.

One feature I super adore about it - it's MANUAL. Fuck yes.

Definitely a sucker for manual vintage cars. And for $3000 - his red packet to all those back in Singapore during the CNY period.

Flight wear for the day!

Still went to work for half a day before going to the airport to catch my flight in the afternoon! It was my last working with my buddy, Cassandra (same person who was the photographer for my solemnisation), as I would be away for about 3 weeks! Her last working day was during the period that I would be away!

Gonna miss you buddy.

So sweet of her to still give me a present! She understands me so well. We were randomly chatting one day when I said I wasn't sure what my blood type was (don't judge) and look what she got me!

Mad sweet of her!

Kinda forced my folks to grab a photo and give me a hug because I was going to be away for close to three weeks. The last time I was away for that long, was during my first trip to Perth too in 2008 but even that, they joined me and Tex in Perth for ten days.

When you fly budget, plain water is your best friend.

I hope everyone knows this by now. You CAN bring an EPMTY bottle with you into the boarding gate. Inside the boarding gate, there will be potable drinking water station which you then can fill your empty bottle with, unless you are willing to part with $4 for a bottle of water inflight, then go ahead.

Met a fellow passenger who was also having a LDR. Didn't feel so lonely anymore. :)

Meet my buibui!

Crashed into bed early that night and woke up early the next morning to check on Rosie proper. Yes, our car has a name, Rosalie, Rosie for short. It creaks a little when we corner, during the most unexpected moments. Tex and me can be talking and turning round the bend and she goes "eeeek!" in the most gentle way possible, hence the gender. SO CUTE.

I like to think the husband was happy to see me.

And YES! WE CAN HAZ A SUNROOF! But so not as pleased as I thought I would be because the week that I arrived in Perth, there was a heat wave passing through. Forty degrees Celsius, not very funny.

Keeping myself occupied - respite from technology

Accompanied Tex to one of his trials for soccer. Enjoyed the me-time tremendously.

Got a little cold so went back into the car, hai. I bluff. There were too many dogs running around and I was super scared. So I hid.

Caught a super pretty sunset while waiting in the car - which reminded me why we yearn to travel as much as we can.

When Tex was done, we went for dinner. It was Valentines' Day that day, all we wanted was a simple meal with each other. I would have very much rather cooked but we didn't go to the supermarkets to stock up that day. Supermarkets in Perth close really early at around 5:30PM.

Tried an affordable pasta place called Riley's.

I loved the risotto that I had, which Tex encouraged me to cook it myself. And so I did. Will share with you guys how it turned out. Hahaha! Till the next! :)

Parenting the Nordic Way

I was first introduced to Finland by my Mom who only knew the Scandinavian country by its Chinese name, 芬蘭. (Pardon the traditional Chinese strokes, I am in love with it.)

I was taught that was where Santa Claus lived and came from and only knew that it is a very, very cold country. My knowledge of that remained that way because I am not a very curious person and I am very lazy, until Tex and I visited Helsinki last autumn.

It was clean.. and simple. I tried so hard to think of an adjective to describe but "simple" hits me hard. I'm not going deep into their social structure because I'm no expert to comment but I'll just describe what I saw, as a traveller.

All their tram platforms were level to their tram carriages. It was practically effortless to wheel a pram into the tram. Adults who had season tickets need not whip out their cards to tap that often - only during their first leg of the journey. The fare that they pay initially would sustain for, say, about one and a half hours? So even if you are changing trams, just alight and board again, no more tapping. Don't find fault with my accuracies, I'm just saying it's rather hassle-free to take public transport. Besides, being cheapo Singaporeans, we winged our way through and forgot to pay for many trips. I don't think at Helsinki, anyone worried about not having enough space in a tram to bring a pram, much less to collapse a pram before you can hurl it onto the tram.

Ask a parent to wake his/her sleeping child up. The last time I did that to my niece, I got a cold hard stare from my sister that could turn me into stone and was made to babysit my niece for the next four hours. Let's just say I will never do it again.

Collapsing a pram before you board a bus? Not as easy as you think, CEOs of bus operators. Wake a child up, carry him, carry the bags, collapse a pram, board and squeeze into the bus with many other commuters and THEN fish out your EZ-link? I'd like to see the CEOs do that. Of course, it's not like there isn't a choice. We can also adapt and make do with the cards that we are dealt with. Hence many resorted to buying cars and.. the rest is history.

I've digressed. Truly a Singaporean at heart while I complain happily away. I just wanted to demonstrate how EASY Helsinki made commuting for parents. Even with my super big bagpack then, we had little trouble entering and exiting the trams and subways.

Then I came across this little article - Why Finnish Babies Sleep In Boxes. Apparently, "for 75 years, Finland's expectant mothers have been given a box by the state. It's like a starter kit of clothes, sheets and toys that can even be used as a bed. And some say it helped Finland achieve one of the world's lowest infant mortality rates." Every year, mothers look forward to receiving The Box as the rest were left curious about the contents of the box. It was easy to know what year the babies were born in as the design of clothes changes a little every year. Well, to me, that sounded a lot more like checking out what your NDP goodies bag contained this year. Same same but different, you get the idea.

Now, isn't this AWESOME?! Talk about meaningful gifts, it's like someone from the government cares. So I gave this link to Tex, thinking he would enjoy it tremendously. And so he did. He countered me with this even awesome-r article - The Babies Who Nap In Sub-zero Temperatures. We finished the article with one common memory - there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing.

As you can see, I am deeply fascinated with the Nordic way of parenting. Resilience to them is in-built right from a very very young age and in many aspects. Leaving the kids to nap outdoors? I think I like that idea already.

Erm, not in this haze lah.

One House Rule When You Are Travelling

Be open-minded.

This is really important. If you have no idea what you are getting yourself into (by entering a new country), stay open-minded. Other wise, read up on what that place has to offer before you complain that it does not meet your expectations.

Don't come to Singapore if you are going to complain that there is no nice mountainous regions here. THERE ISN'T.

Don't complain there is nothing to buy in Hanoi. They are not famous for shopping.

Don't complain that there is no exciting night life in Perth when they offer awesome beaches and pretty vineyards.

In a nut shell, know where you are going and expect the appropriate things. Just like you'd read up on the weather before you travel to a new place, read up on what that place has to offer. Don't make noise when that place fails your expectations which were unattainable in the first place.

NEA Publishes Incorrect PSI

Seriously, does it really matter?

Does it matter to you that NEA publishes the wrong index as for example, 105 if it was 118? I was just musing over it that people are complaining that the index was inaccurate and were complaining about it.

I have my own gauge - from the view of my house, if I can see Marina Bay Sands, PSI is good. If I can't see beyond Suntec City, the PSI is not bad. If I can't see the Oscar-like building near Bugis Junction, the PSI is bad. If I can't see the blocks behind beyond those opposite my house, the PSI is fucking unhealthy. So just drink your water and wish for the best. Does it matter if it is 105 or 118? What do the numbers do for you?

Adapt to find your gauge or are we too pampered to just rely on governmental statistics that we have lost our own bearings? Unfortunately, I kaopei-kaobu now but I just checked on CPF website how much money I have in my OA. My money, they don't say, I don't know. Sad.

I don't give a fuck about how many degrees it is in Singapore. It's just hot to me. I don't check if it rains today. There's an umbrella in my bag everyday.

Surprisingly, as I was drafting this post, I came across one post from one of my favourite bloggers, A Singaporean Son. He doesn't label himself as a blogger, but fuck yes, he blogs. Nearly same sentiments over there, bro.

I Amuse Myself

Was reading another girl's Facebook status  - she got proposed to and said something along the lines that she still felt very surreal and something in her changed.

My man-stincts came on and the first thought I had was, "Well, that can't be good?"

I always thought when a man proposes, he would like you to stay where (what/how) you are for as long as possible.

No?

Skeptical me, hai.

Underestimated My Weight Gain :(

Looks like I underestimated my weight gain. :(

Selling these from F21!

 

Abstract Floral Print Shorts

Size M

Brand New with Tag

$26 mailed

 

 

 

Striped Denim Shorts

Size 28

Brand New with Tag

$26 mailed

Shorts are mid-waisted hence do take note!

 

Hit on the links for more details! Got them from a spree and are definitely cheaper than getting them from another spree organiser yourself! Selling at a loss since I can't fit in them. :(

 

Feel free to email me at blackocea@hotmail.com if you need more measurements! :)

 

 

 



"How I Know My Wife Married The Wrong Person"

I am fully aware that my blog is now skewing towards one that is full of marital rubbish but I kinda like the way it is now. After all, it serves as a virtual reminder to myself about my own life so if it bores you.. too fucking bad.

Hahaha.

I recall there was a moment in my teens when I told a close guy friend then that I wanted a "轟轟烈烈的愛情". That was a result of watching too much 古惑仔 shows where 鄭伊健 seemed like the perfect bad boy lover. I did end up falling in love with one when I was 14, not that he was a bad boy lover kind, but he was definitely bad in the end - he cheated.

Truth be told, I was devastated but I am so relieved it happened. We could have never ever worked out and I was relieved that he gave us a chance to let all this go. I am a queen of cruising - I can cruise on in my life forever but thankful to that incident, we were done. As I speak, I feel no resentment, just indifference. Just like coolness is the absence of heat, indifference must be the absence of feelings. Well, that last sentence is a moot point which I am sure Tex is happy to debate with me.

I could go on about how a partner is supposed to be integrating into your lifestyle but not overtake as a whole, but that's for another entry later. (See what I meant by my first paragraph?)

Okay, here's another article that I found highly interesting and realistic. It talks about highly overrated publicised relationships that leads people to pine for THE perfect soulmate. There might just isn't one. You may think you are the exception. You are probably not. Let me know if you are finding the articles I am sharing full of rubbish. I will then.. advise you to get the fuck out of my blog. Hahaha, kidding but no, really.

Till then, enjoy!

http://crossshapedstuff.com/2013/06/04/how-i-know-my-wife-married-the-wrong-person/

First Married Day

It's something worth commemorating since you only (are supposed to) get married once in your life time right?

Well, nothing special happened.

Hahahaha!

Crawled out of bed and checked out on time because Tex had to go for a match! Yes! Soccer resumes even though you got married the day before okay? Dedication 500%.

Bright bright sun at Khalsa.

The boys!

And when the match ended we were greeted with a surprise - the boys brought sparkling wine to congratulate us on our union! Definitely 喜出望外. :) Tex got so excited that he decided to spray the sparkling wine -  AT ME! INTO MY EYES!!!

This spells definite excitement into marriage. =/

First meal as I cooked for him as a missus.

It was quite an interesting weekend, eh? Hehehe. Will be doing up Perth travelogues next! Stay tuned! :D