Hiatus

Going to be honest, I've been talking about closing this blog for a long while. I've not got the energy, nor the will or the focus to run it ever since I got back in college to continue my degree studies. I’m a ball of stresses and mixed emotions and there are goals that need to be prioritized. However, I still think that it has potential. Although my motivation to blog is slowly fading off but I'm trying to find that passion and inspiration back. Right now I'm all fat and happy, fully charged to be back on writing! Stay tuned for posts coming in. I'll be writing on what happened in half of this year in a nutshell (pictures + description) as my 'come back post'. xx

30-Day Minimalism Challenge

Stumbled across this post and I find it interesting.

What is minimalism? 
To sum it up in a single sentence, Minimalism is a tool used to rid yourself of life’s excess in favor of focusing on what’s important so you can find happiness, fulfillment, and freedom.

Minimalists don’t actually avoid material possessions; they avoid excess. Paradoxically, by owning less, the things we own bring greater joy to our lives. In other words, all of our things are our favorite things. Otherwise they are in the way. This is so true and also something I have to remind myself on my journey to becoming a minimalist. It is okay to buy something, but it has to have a true value and need for me. Not just because of money, but because I have really thought about it twice if I need something. When I was younger I bought a lot of unnecessary stuff because it's cheap, after a while often even directly after buying I did not liked them anymore. Right now I’m sorting out a lot of this stuff. I feel happy and relived.

This 30 one-day assignments will help you dip your toes into minimalist living, discover lots of new things about yourself and get a big head start. If you want to live a simpler, more intentional life with less stuff but more time and energy for the people and things you love, make this your month of change!

The rules for the challenge: Do one assignment every day, the order is your call, it can be completed in any order whatsoever. Don’t skip a day. That’s it.

I’m on a journey of letting go of stuff and this challenge above is really my way of being a minimalist. I'm going to start this from tomorrow onwards and for each challenge I'll write a post about it. xx

What the duck

Visited this restaurant twice in a week for duck flavors because it's that good. Me and one of my food hopping companion - Jia Ying are truly amazed by its wallet-friendly price and well presented scrumptious food! This cozy restaurant offers a menu with a variety of duck inspired dishes in both Asian and Western delights. Service is friendly and orders were served promptly. Only set lunch is offered on weekdays, you'll get a starter-choice of soup or salad, a main course, and a drink. 

Quack Chowder . Crispy Duck Thai Salad // Duck A-La Orange // A-La Vodka Grilled Chicken Pasta // Chocolate Brownie

Her Soup of the day was Quack Chowder with croutons. The richness and thickness was served just right, can never have enough of it, it's so comforting. My Crispy Duck Thai Salad was very appetizing because of its sourish light dressing with lemon grass scent and some bird's eye chili.

My main -Duck A-La Orange was served on potato rissole with blanched vegetables. The best part will be the salty crispy skin that complements the non-seasoned succulent duck meat. The mild orange sauce is sweet and tangy which gives the duck a hint of fruity taste.

Her main was A-La Vodka Grilled Chicken Pasta, its tomato-based cream is different from the usual ones as it has a nice acidic taste.

Believe it or not, I only have to pay extra five bucks to get their dessert of the day - Chocolate Brownie. A slice of chocolate cake with crushed walnuts and topped with caramelized banana sauce, banana slices and strawberry. Plated with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream on a bed of crushed biscuit with chocolate syrup and a red bean mochi. The dessert was not too sweet and indeed a very worthy ones.

Candid x 1

Candid x 2

Candid x 3

Meet one of my closest friend in college - Ms.Chang Jia Ying. She's an overly-shy person, and that explains why she's awkward on facing the camera yet I got some nice shots of her you see. She's a friend that has got a few common interest with me, she's one of my cafe hopping companion, she may have bad days at times but all I have to do is to give her some space, and the next day she'll be fine, who don't have flaws right? xx

Chubby hunny bunny

A second simple night out date last Friday at Ben's Paragon with my chubby hunny bunny after 6++ years of separation. She's the closest friend of mine at primary school. On our first date she almost didn't recognize me at first because of my weight-gain and change in hair part I suppose. But the best part was not having to be humble and getting to finally cure our misses, because she’s as excited and happy as I am. It feels like we've not seen each other just for a while only. The minute we sat down we started talking non-stop for hours, about our good-old memories, how we used to spend hours sleeping at each other's shoulder during our school trip, sleep at the same bed, bath together just because we're afraid, share foods and drinks, fan girl towards our school's senior, ditch how we used to look and silly acts we've done. Nevertheless we updated each other what we're doing currently and problems we're facing right now. One night seems to be too short for us to spend, the time seems to be ticking extremely fast.

Hot Gorgeous Geisha tea // Macadamia Caramel Cheesecake  // Berry Basil Lemonade 

Look at her chubby cheeks and bunny-like cuteness.  There's a reason why I address her in such way you see.

Sometimes your best friends aren't the ones you spend slumber partying Saturday nights with. They’re not the ones who are necessarily to know all your secrets, all your quirks or even your birthday- your always-stick-together friend isn't the only good friend to have. Sometimes your best friends are the ones you can see them with your messy hair pyjamas on, picking up late night calls without getting mad, sacrifice sleeping time to accompany them just because they can't sleep even though you have to wake up at 6am, not just because they're nice enough, it's because they're willing to do that for you. Your best friends aren't always the ones holding your hand through difficult times, or the ones with pictures of you in your awkward phase. Sometimes they’re the ones giving you room to breathe, to grow, to find you once in a while just to see you. They’re not always the ones to pick you up, sometimes they’re the ones who sit beside you. And there is nothing wrong with that.

A windy Friday night, both of us, cozy couch, big pillows to cuddle, relaxing music, tea and cakes, deep conversations, endless laughters, perfect date. xx

Edo Ichi

Friends that know me well would know I have a thing towards Japanese food, I can go for it all day everyday. Raw salmon and Unagi (eel) is a must on my table, they are my best-loved fishes. It's difficult to find a restaurant that serves good fresh raw salmon and melt-in-mouth unagi, but I have to say Edo Ichi has never let me down, it's my favorite place to dine for Japanese cuisine so far. 

Raw salmon and avocado salad with goma dressing // Unagi with cheese roll // Gyoza // Salmon Belly

A meal wouldn't be complete without dessert. Their goma ice-cream is simply irresistible, the smooth creamy texture, the aroma of sesame and the just nice sweetness, definitely a must eat! xx