Lounging around

In September (I know I'm very backdated, I'm still trying!), D got us a room at Studio M for a staycation together which we were blessed enough to get at a much discounted rate. Yipppie!

I think this is probably the first time my pink luggage is making its appearance here on the site! It's the cheapest bargain ever when I visited Shanghai last year, and after much skilled haggling of the mom, I got this for about 20SGD or less! Also, loving the two luggage tags that I purchased from Taiwan.

Cutesy nails credit to the talented Simplicity Nails! Do check out her works (:

The whole point of this photo is...... the nails.

We spent the first half day in the room shooting for a blogger/friend- Shanice! I'll share her portraits in the next entry! (:

After wrapping up the shoot and preparing to head out for dinner, we spent a little bit of time in the room just fooling around with both my cameras which is evident in this photo here. D wanted to try his hands on being a photographer and mastering it.

I obviously, was the guinea pig.

I cannot reiterate how much I love the concept of Studio M hotel despite having been here a couple of times, but this being my first time staying in here. I'm always climbing up and down everywhere and walking on the table beside the glass window. I love how wide and tall the glass windows are and the entire white concept. Exactly how I love my room to be, without the glass windows. I hope that happens for my future house. (:

Mandatory OOTD shot because I loveeeee how the entire outfit looked altogether, and also a little bit of a shameless advertising for my dear friend who owns www.eleventhparade.tumblr.com. If you like this top, that is where you should head to to purchase. Thank you my dearest Tinglei and Florence for gifting it to me as a birthday present. Would have looked better if I lost some weight.

But well, it's pretty impossible for me to lose weight. Look where D brought me for dinner! (:

Our favourite Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck Restaurant!

Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck Restaurant

Paragon, #05-42/45

290 Orchard Road, Singapore 238859

paragon@imperialtreasure.com

Looking at this at 11:55pm makes me salivate. We will never ever, ever tire of this. Every single time this dish is served, we literally pounce on it like we've been starved. So juicy and the skin is so crispy. I do not take duck dishes usually, but this is the exceptional bomb.

We usually order the duck and then asked to have the remaining served with fried rice. So they will dice the remaining portion into tiny bits and serve it to you with the fried rice. It's way more than enough to fill both our tummies usually. You have to give this place a try if you haven't. Like it's name suggested, it's indeed famous for its peking duck!

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It's always always a dread checking out the very next day. Hate having to peel ourselves out of the bed and facing reality and the impending monday blues.

It was drizzling and we decided to take some time out and roam the pool area. We haven't had the time to swim during our stay. It's a great place for shoots too actually..... if you can evade the staffs I guess; unless you have the permission. I've shot there twice and I loved how the photos turned out.

My baby holding my other baby. <3

Right after we checked out, we were hit by hunger pangs. The nearest place I could think of was..... Five and Dime! Been here a few times, and I love the food but I wish the menu was a little more extensive.

297 River Valley Road. Singapore 238338.

Tel: 9236 5002

- OPENING HOURS -

Monday - Thursday : 12pm - 10pm

Friday : 12pm - 12am

Saturday : 10am - 12am

Sunday : 10am - 10pm

- SERVING TIME -

Lunch (Mon - Fri) : 12pm - 5pm

Brunch (Sat - Sun) : 10pm - 3pm

Dinner : 6pm - 9.30pm*

Supper: 10pm - 11.30pm*

Happy boy with his Eggs Benny!

I had the Mentaiko Pasta and I like it! (:

Fried Calamaris. Always the boy's favourite (:

Eggs Benny, which I thought was pretty decent but evidently not the best we've had before.

That was a weekend well spent in September! Weekends are utmost precious to me because of the little time we get to spend together on dates due to the clashing of the nature of our jobs. I tend to be busiest during the weekends, whereas he is holding an office job. Even before we checked in to Studio M (and even after checking in), I had shoots to go for and I was drenched in my own sweat. Despite having really little time together, I think we are lucky enough to be in Singapore together so I try to not lament about the lack of time together. Having shot so many couples who have endured the LDR before they can settle down together, I honestly am ashamed of how I complain that D stays at the other end of the island from me. Moreover, he has been the most accommodating boyfriend ever in the world in fitting into my schedule so that I do not have to forsake work.

I am a crazy workaholic, and it stretches to the extent I find myself impossible at times. I work everyday and burn all my weekends working, only having time for us to have dinner together and that's about it. Therefore, we make it up by travelling and indulging in stay cations every now and then. It forces me to abandon my work (well, as much as possible), and just allow myself to rest and for us to have quality time together. Which also means, unlike most couples out there who have the luxury of weekends for themselves, we basically sacrificed all of it in exchange for a short getaway once a month or once every two months. It feeds the wanderlust spirit in me as well, and I'm thankful that D is very much into travelling like I do.

We are lucky, but not to be envied because we work hard for every bit of fun we get to indulge in, and along with it comes many unseen sacrifices that many do not know of. But I honestly, wouldn't want to have it any other way. (:

xx

You're the closest to heaven I'll ever be

I'm a little late (maybe more than just a little) for about 3 months, but it's better late than never. This is the second trip that the boy and I had embarked on since we got together. Genting is a place.... I was trying to avoid all these years because it encapsulated so much memories for me and I wasn't sure I was ready to step foot back into this place. I've been here countless times, with so many different groups of people as I was growing up and with someone who once held an important place in my heart.

But as far as I can remember, I've been here almost every year with my parents since I was 4. Not only do I know this place like the back of my hand, this place held a sort of significance because I feel that it watched me grow up.


A day before we set off, I rushed down to purchase my new handy camera Fujifilm X100s! It costs a bomb... but really the images are so stunning. They will speak for themselves. All photos here are taken with it. I'm glad I didn't settle for any other cameras despite the x100s being a little bulky for a compact still.

Look at my cutie pie! All excited while going up the mountains :D

The view from our room



Our couple watches. I love it to death, I love how manly it looks/feels and that it's automatic.

You might have already known/ noticed my crazy love for beanies and head gears and I'm on the mission to collect them all. It is therefore mandatory that I bring them out to play whenever possible! :D Couldn't make the boy wear it for more than ten mins. I love Genting because it is possibly the nearest cold place that is near to Singapore, and it is also ridiculously cheap and easy to travel there. The best part was that the boy and I went over when haze shrouded Singapore. Lucky us we had really much fresher air and we got to escape the heat.









Funny though, that despite having been to Genting for so many times, I've never been to the Lavender Farm. So it was pretty delightful that I have somewhere new for me to explore a bit. Our first destination was the farm area after having checked in to the hotel.



I wish I could put into words just how happy I am in the cold.

You can't see here but my crazy boyfriend was in shorts and slippers all the way. Most of the time he doesn't even have his jacket on. On the contrary, I look like a christmas tree. But nehhhh whatever, it's on rare occasions like this that I get to dress up and be happy.







We visited the strawberry farm too and had the cheap thrill of secretly plucking some strawberries because we were too late and passed the opening hours to pluck them.

After which, we paid the temple a visit and prayed for ourselves and our loved ones. It's a customary act for us both now, that we pay a visit to temples that we come across. I'm not bounded by any religion at the moment... but I wouldn't call myself a freethinker just yet. I used to attend church since I was 11, but it's been a long while since I last went back.







Then D bought me chocolates! :D We roamed all around in the cold and then he brought me for a really scrumptious tze char dinner which we ordered a whole hell lot and stuffed ourselves silly.



When night fell, I dragged D out to do one of my favourite things ever- smoking in the cold and just enjoying each other's company. When it got a little unbearable, we went all the way back to the older buildings to play in the arcade before retreating back to our room to call it a night.


Day 2

We set out to play the outdoor theme park! It's my favourite place to go to, and despite having played all the rides there so many times. I love itttttttttttt. It may just be the cold weather but my love for roller-coasters is... incomparable. I made the boy sit on it with me over and over.



So cute... Wanna pinch you!



I don't know if anyone of you ever remember these old Genting mascots... They were so well loved back then but I hardly see them around now. This is Allie the Elephant!

After we were done with the rides, I dragged the dog off to the Dinosaur land where we could enjoy the view of Genting. We went all around snapping pictures and being amazed with the new X100s .

I know he is really skinny... I know.

And!!! The best part is eating Baskin Robbins in the cold! :D Basically, I love anything to do with the cold. The outdoor theme park also has the best tea eggs ever. They are cheap, and so so so fragrant! The nice aunty even shells the eggs for you so we could eat with ease and I think I had about 8 eggs in 2 days? /: I can't remember but yes that's how much I love tea eggs. The stall is located right next to the escalator, somewhat beside the Cyclone.



Hehe. I made him sit on the Carousel with me too. ^_^ I think I saw the staff there chuckle to herself when she saw me happily skipping to the ride.





Well, another mandatory thing to do in Genting is to sit at Starbucks and attempt to use its lousy wifi that has almost never worked for me. Nights at Starbucks in Genting always end really late for me because I'm reluctant to return to the room. I would rather sit there and idle my time away than sleeping. Eventually we returned home on a Sunday evening, all recharged and ready for the new week ahead and we know that we have so much more to look forward to.

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I've been really trying my best to keep up with this space such that the photos here are up to date but I'd need a bit more time to clear whatever backlogs I have. Also, I've been trying to keep to my promise of updating this space more regularly with more insights into my personal life instead of just purely work related posts.

Last night, the boy tells me it's the 76th consecutive day that we are seeing each other. That is considerably remarkable considering that we almost stay on different ends of Singapore. Last night was also the 14th consecutive night that we have slept together. He makes the effort to travel all the way down to see me, even on nights when I'm swamped with work and I can't even keep him company. I am beyond blessed. I've never believed in a couple having to see each other every single day, but it is the case for us now. However, I do not see that as a necessity, I see that as a privilege each day we go on without having to break the streak and knowing that whatever unpleasant things we are experiencing at work wouldn't matter when we get to see each other at night.

Beebs, I will stay by your side these few days to tide you through this ordeal and I promise that everything will be okay in the end. I won't leave your side. So fear not, because I promise you that when you wake tomorrow I'll be with you. It has always been you taking care of me, now it's time for me to assume the responsibility of taking care of you. Be brave, it will be over before you know it.

I love you.

xx