First Valentine's Day Celebration ...

Tonight was our first Valentine's Day celebration! Technically, it was our second Valentine's Day, but since last year Valentine's Day fell on the first day of the Lunar New Year, this was our first celebration.

He brought me to the same restaurant where we had our first date - a classy French restaurant happened to own by his friend, situated at the Indoor Stadium. Coincidentally, we sat at exactly the same spot too! (For a review of the food, please refer here.)

Today was crowded and noisy because Eric Clapton happened to be having his concert at the Indoor Stadium upstairs. We ordered the set which consisted of soup, main course and dessert. I ordered french onion soup (what else?!), a beouf burgignon and vanilla peach tart and he mushroom soup, a lamb shank and creme brulee (which came in three different flavours).

The best part is that, whilst other places jacked up their prices on this day, the price for this place remained constant. We did not even have to pay any extra and there was no special Valentine's Day menu. Overall, it was worth it! Food was secondary as compared to the ambience of love and great company!

Oh, and the gifts? These came to me in my office and I love them! Darling, I love you too!

Of Wine And Spirits

I am more a wine person than a beer person. While my dear will douse beer after beer (especially his favorite and limited Erdinger White), I much rather drunk wine (red wine) than beer.

I do not really have a big threshold for alcohol so I always have to watch myself. Sometimes even after drinking just one glass of white wine or red wine, I will start to get high.

Until I discover Brown Brothers' Cienna red wine. When I first drank this wine, I find it sweet, fruity, clear and not much trace of alcohol. Actually the alcohol content is not that low - about seven percent - but because the wine is so sweet and refreshing, I do not feel high.

Soon I was addicted. Then my whole family got addicted. My dear got addicted. My mum's colleagues got addicted. Last I heard, my close friend loves this wine too.

The thing is after drinking this wine, somehow all other wines taste horrible to me. From now on, I am only taking Brown Brothers' Cienna red wine whenever I drink!

I heard the Moscato is nice too, but I have yet to try it. One day I must try the Brown Brothers' Moscato white wine as well as the Moscato Rose. Then I can have the complete collection and not take any other kinds of wine anymore!

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A Black Tie Affair

My new colleagues said I am very lucky to join the company at this time because I came in just in time to attend the company's Dinner and Dance earlier on. Due to this, all those who were attending were able to be released from work at three in the afternoon.

The theme is Black Tie / Evening Wear, so I wore my black strappy gown with a cross back, together with crystal earrings and necklace.

When I reached the ballroom, I was served canapes and cocktails in the reception area. I noticed that everyone was dressed to the theme, ladies were in formal gowns and four-inch stilettos and some even went for a makeover and hairdo session, and the men were dressed in suits with bow ties.

When it was time to enter the ballroom, I saw that it was nicely decorated. We had a menu of western fine dining dishes with alternative entrees. The emcee was really great and the entertainer was good too!

As with any company event, the dinner started off with the awards ceremony, followed by the entertaining show, and the lucky draws. Food was served along the way.

The lucky draw prizes were highly sought after - four iPod Touches, two iPads, two iPhone 4s, one MacBook Air and three travel vouchers of one thousand five to two thousand five. To the disappointment of my dear, I did not manage to win any of the iPads. To the disappointment of myself, I did not manage to win the MacBook Air.

The door gifts consist of twenty dollars worth of taxi vouchers and ninety dollars worth of shopping vouchers. Great, I can get my Christmas shopping done already!

The whole event ended near to midnight. After that I called a cab back and used up two of the cab vouchers. It had been a fun and interesting event, I only hope all other Dinner and Dance can be just as fun and classy!

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River View ...

Two weeks ago, I went for a family lunch with a magnificent view over the Central Business District and Singapore River. I managed to take some photos of the skyline, which is not something we can see everyday, unless one happens to be working in one of those skyscrapers around the business district.

The Singapore River, flanked by the bridge, conserved shophouses and City Hall

The Padang in the background

City Hall area

The City Hall area with Benjamin Sheares Bridge and the Esplanade on the right

The Singapore Art Museum at Empress Place

The new Supreme Court

City Hall Building with the old Supreme Court (and St Andrew's Cathedral in the background)

The famous "durians" - Esplanade Theatre and Concert Hall

Suntec City and Convention Centre

Cavenagh Bridge (front) and Benjamin Sheares Bridge (back)

The Marina Bay floating platform

The building with the colourful windows is the Ministry of Communication and the Arts (the former National Police Headquarters)

The Padang with the Singapore Recreation Club

View From The Top

On Friday, we met some friends at this restaurant that overlooks the sea. The restaurant is really nice and cosy. What I love is the scenery - it faces the sea on one side and a golf course on the other side. I cannot resist taking photos! (For a review of the food, please refer here.)

Against the backdrop of the sea

View of the sea from the restaurant

View of the Golf Club from the restaurant

View of the golf course

The night scenery overlooking the beach area

Of Communal Dining

What is communal dining? My understanding is that it consists of several diners at the same table, eating all together from the same dishes instead of individual dishes.

Or so I thought. Apparently I was not far off. Communal dining is essentially like what a normal Chinese family does at dinner - cook a few dishes and everyone takes from the same dishes instead of each individual's share.

This has always been a typical Asian concept. Go into any Chinese, Indonesian or Peranakan restaurant and one will notice that these places go by the concept of communal dining.

Hence I was quite surprised when I found out that one of the high-class Western restaurants also have communal dining. In my mind, I was wondering how the Western crowd take to this concept.

Out of curiosity, I took a look at the menu and was intrigued. It is a full Western menu but consisting mostly of main courses. The appetizer is a platter, followed by a variety of main courses where diners can choose from, up to a maximum of four main courses. So the diners will have a variety and not just one main dish.

Cool! Now there is communal dining in a Western restaurant too! Then I realise this concept is starting to slowly gain popularity in the West.

Hopefully I have a chance of going there one day and see if the food is any that good!

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Mid-Week Family Reunion

My Aussie aunt and uncle are in town these couple of days for their Easter break so we had a gathering last night at a restaurant. It was really great seeing most of my relatives again after a lapse of a few months, especially since my maternal grandma was away in Australia and just came back recently.

I find that I seem to be having less family get-togethers nowadays. We (my relatives here) used to see each other so often when we were young. As everyone grew up and the elders started aging, we saw less of each other except on occasions like Lunar New Year and birthdays. Most of my cousins have married, some have uprooted. If we were not brought up with good family values, I think we would not even get to meet.

Which is why my mum always ensures she tries to get the extended family together once in a while, for both my dad and her side. I will sure follow her tradition when I have my own family in the future!

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Attending A Dinner And Dance

I have not gone for any Dinner and Dance for quite some time. Nowadays quite a few companies are doing away with the traditional concept of "dinner and dance" (what dance? There is only dinner since everyone starts to leave after the last course without staying to dance!) and organise activities like Amazing Race or Festive Gathering in lieu of a dinner and dance.

Last night's Dinner and Dance was for his company and I went along as partner. The theme was "Movie Night" but no one, except for one table, dressed according to the theme. Everyone else was in normal office wear. I wonder why?

The best-dressed table rented costumes and dressed according to the theme of "The Last Emperor" in full Qing dynasty royal regalia! I wore my yellow evening gown which Kate Hudson wore to "How To Lose A Guy In Ten Days" complete with sparkling jewellery and he wore a suit a la Matthew McConaughy (but Matthew McConaughy carried it off better! ;-p).

It was a normal dinner (sans the dance) with table games, lucky draws and live band made up of some of the employees. There were movie quizzes on theme songs and quotes. Although the songs and quotes were from popular movies. To make it challenging, the quizzes should consist of songs and quotes from lesser-known movies or shows which not many will like to watch.

Even when the band was playing and the floor was opened for dance, no one made a move. We wanted so much to dance and swayed to the music being played but we did not wish to be the only two "idiots" dancing and swaying so continued sitting at our table in the end.

All in all, it was fun. The best part was the Master of Ceremonies who happened to be a rather prominent performing artiste here. I love his sense of humour and his fantastic one-man-show! I wish I can hire him to be a Master of Ceremonies in some events too, but I am pretty sure his charges are ske high!

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Eating The White Rabbit

On Saturday, we went for dinner at The White Rabbit. I have long wanted to try this place after hearing reviews of it. The White Rabbit is actually converted from an old chapel. That whole area used to be owned by the British army, so consist of British barracks. But those barracks have since been converted to eating places, where now the yuppies hang out for food and drinks and where you can find some of the best places for fine dining.

When I stepped in, I realise why The White Rabbit is a popular place for wedding ceremonies. The church ambience and stained glass windows are still around. There an enclave which used to be an altar. It is not too big as well, just enough for a hundred people. The places makes a nice and cosy venue for intimate weddings.

The food is not too bad. It is mostly modern European fare of pasta, macaroni and cheese and appetisers of finger food. The surrounding areas are grassy and makes a nice scenery out of a movie. The alfresco bar, called the Rabbit Hole, is a great place to chill out for drinks after a good dinner.

It was a nice dinner overall. The staff was helpful and the service was good. After that, we all went to the Wine Cellar for drinks and supper. It was a great night of feasting!

Masquerade!

The ball last night was a smash! It was held at the Tower Ballroom of Shangri-La hotel, and we were put in a table full of old couples. Masks were provided, but wine was not, so if we wanted to have wine, we would have to buy it. And if we wanted fancy masks, we would have to buy them too. Hmmm... makes me wonder why we spent so much on the entrance tickets if everything was not provided!

Anyway, the start of the dinner was speeches by the organising committee and chairman, then dinner commenced. It was a buffet spread outside the ballroom. In true Eurasian (European) tradition, ladies went first. The men went later.

It was a big spread, there were nine courses, plus carving station, plus soup and roll, plus dessert. So all in all, everyone had a feast!

Then there were lucky draws, which were not so lucky for us. The dance floor opened around ten and dancing started. I must say, the two differences between a typical Chinese dinner and an Eurasian dinner are that :

One, people are more dressed up in an Eurasian dinner. If we go to any Chinese dinners, especially wedding banquets, somehow people deem shirt and jeans as appropriate wear. Even when the dress code indicates "Formal", people would somehow still come in shirt and jeans. Or shirt and pants.

But for an Eurasian dinner, everyone was dressed up. Ladies in elegant evening gowns and bling blings, men in suits. As in long-sleeve shirt, tailored pants, jacket and tie. Nothing less. There was even one in a bow tie!

Two, people like to dance after the dinner. I heard that in an Eurasian wedding, dancing is a norm. Whether they are young and old, everyone would dance after dinner. But for a Chinese dinner, everyone is just there for the food. They would leave after the food, without participating in anything.

Just like the dinner and dance of companies, I always wondered after the sumptuous dinner, where is the dancing? Nobody would bother to stay back to dance, everyone would just leave after dinner. So whenever I wanted to stay back and dance, in the end because no one else would be dancing, everything ended just after the dinner.

So I really enjoyed myself last night. Since it was a ball and the dress code indicates "Formal", I wore a black strappy evening gown with straps down the back, which was bought from Macy's in Los Angeles, paired with a crystal necklace and matching earrings, and a gold silk shawl.

When we reached the ballroom, we chose our own masks. So I got a red one with feathers on top, and he got a silver one which I remarked made him look like the Phantom. I even saw one that looked like Zorro!

Me in my new hair (he said I kind of look like Cleopatra here)

Me with the mask

My apologies if the photos look blurry, as they were taken with the iPhone in dim lighting. We started dancing after dinner. A variety of songs were being played, so we did the salsa and the cha-cha-cha.

Then the countdown started. Everyone popped the party poopers and blew whistles the minute 0000 was reached. Then ballads started playing and slow dancing started.

I have never had so much fun on New Year's Eve before. All the accounts I read of balls, dancing and partying, now I got to experience it for myself! If only more locals are interested in things like that, life would not be boring after a while!

Pre-Christmas Celebration

There is this place around the western area of the island called Mount Faber. It is a favourite haunt for couples and families, especially when the cable car was still functioning. From the hill, it overlooks Sentosa island and the harbour on one side, and the hilly trees on the other.

I have always wanted to go there but never had a chance. Without a car, it is a bit inconvenient to go up there. And with cable car, it is a bit pricey. Hence, I never had the opportunity. Until last night.

The group of restaurants on top of Mount Faber, The Jewel Box, is having its annual Christmas show, consisting of the lighting of the world's tallest Christmas tree (as claimed), and a snow and light show. Now that the cable cars are being upgraded, free shuttles are provided at the harbour front up to Mount Faber. So we reserved a table for dinner yesterday.

It took less than ten minutes to reach the top. The exterior of the Jewel Box looks like an underground bunk where the soldiers do battle. I almost thought I could see a cannon in front of it!

Entrance of the Jewel Box

The free shuttle - stopped outside the waterfall

Close-up of the entrance of the Jewel Box

However when we stepped in, the interior looked chic and classy. The ground floor consists of a small tea room called The Diamond Chateau, and a private dining room called The Diamond Palace. In between these two rooms is the iconic restroom, so-called because apparently the restroom became the world's best restroom according to one French magazine (as displayed on the walls).

The Diamond Chateau

The restaurant we were going was called Sapphire, the alfresco casual dining place of The Jewel Box, where we can dine in open air in candlelight. Next to Sapphire is the more formal glass-enclosed candlelight dining area called Black Opal.

Entrance to the Black Opal

Christmas tree outside the Black Opal

The view from the second floor is spectacular!

Some views of the harbour from the second floor of the Jewel Box

The Sapphire restaurant leads out to a lawn behind the dining area. There is a shed that is the washroom, a decorated tree with thrones and a bell during Christmas and an open area consisting of a pavement and koi pond.

The Sapphire restroom

Decorative tree

The bell and thrones

View of the harbour at sun set

The Sapphire restaurant

Table setting

The Sapphire menu

My Jewel Club Sandwich

His Prawn Aglio Olio

We were there at seven, and the food came around half-past seven. The show started at eight - the lighting up of the tree, thrones and bell, the fake snow falling down, and the lighting up of the world's tallest Christmas tree (which unfortunately we were not able to see it from where we were sitting as it is outside the Jewel Box).

The "snow" falling down

Playing with "snow"

The decorative tree after it was lit up

The thrones at night

The bell at night

The thrones and bell together

We left around half-past eight. Since it was very crowded, we decided to hitch a cab. The staff at the ground floor was very helpful, he helped us call for a cab by texting it, and the cab arrived within five minutes.

While waiting, I took the opportunity to go into the iconic restroom, and I must say, it really does not look like a restroom!

The Christmas tree at the second floor landing

The Jewel Box at night

The waterfall at night

Can you believe this is a restroom?!

Sinks of the restroom

The toilet cubicle in candlelight

The sinks flanked by the night view of the harbour

Corridor leading to the entrance of the restroom

Unfortunately I missed the lighting up of the tall Christmas tree, but my dear managed to snap a picture of it. The tree is actually a telecommunications tower, and Christmas lights were put all over it, lighting up every few minutes. However the cab arrived then so I could not see how it lit up. :-(

Maybe next year I may come back for the Christmas show again, and dine at another restaurant, perhaps Black Opal!

The world's tallest Christmas tree (as claimed)