2011 has been an exciting year for me. I changed jobs though the new one is just 2 floors down from my ex-company. The environment and culture are totally different and the experience is brand new but challenging. I have also traveled (too) heavily and my job brought me to places such as India and Germany I have never thought I would go, not in 2011 at least.
Jan: To Kochang for the English camp
Feb: Taiwan this time covering Taichung and Tainan
March: Sanya, Hainan Island (and the familiar Hong Kong)
April: Hong Kong again
May: Kuala Lumpur
July: Shanghai - same city but I strengthened the friendship and bond with 2 persons and fell in love with the place a little better. Really hated it when I went in Sep 2007.
Aug: Sarawak. I like the home visit experience.
Sep: Chennai. Love India and the food!
Oct: Germany
Nov: supposed to go shopping in Bangkok but then came the flood and the frustrating encounter with the travel agency Focal. The trip will hopefully materialize next week, i.e Jan 2012. And yes, I met a princess here in Singapore.
My target destinations for 2012 include Japan (Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto) and Seattle+ Vancouver, and perhaps a short trip to Tainan. So if you're looking at these places, drop me a note:) Very little business travel which is so fine now. Met up with a friend this week and he said I looked radiant. The last time he saw me was in Shanghai in July and I looked really haggard!
With that, happy new year and may all our wishes come true!
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Not seeing stars
I'm enjoying my afternoon here at l'etoile cafe located at Owen road (where the infamous kidnap case of 2 school boys happened some 20 years ago). Etoile means stars in French. The cafe is said to be inspired by a cafe in Nagoya, Japan after the owner stayed there for some years. I came this afternoon to avoid rowdy students who would hoard the seats for hours, according to reviews. No students, no stars either (I saw photos of Pierre png hanging out here etc, on blogs).
My first order was of course a skinny latte. Then came the cake which I asked the quite cute waiter to recommend. He suggested strawberry shortcake, brownies etc and I eventually went for blueberry cheesecake which was probably a leftover and he was slightly bemused. Anyway, nice cake if only the base crust was more...crusty.
Cosy ambience with ikea furniture which sets apart from the environment and now the drilling sound made by a nearby construction site which adds some noise to the quiet afternoon. Many blogs also recommended seats upstairs but i got sleepy the moment i went up and headed back to the first floor. No signs of Japanese influence except for some Japanese wording on the signage and songs.
Cafes like dome and orange thimble are my preferred choices. Overrated cafe but not a bad place to spend a lazy afternoon reading (reading bloomberg business week recommended by a colleague which is quite good) people watching (including at the waiter) and nice coffee!
My first order was of course a skinny latte. Then came the cake which I asked the quite cute waiter to recommend. He suggested strawberry shortcake, brownies etc and I eventually went for blueberry cheesecake which was probably a leftover and he was slightly bemused. Anyway, nice cake if only the base crust was more...crusty.
Cosy ambience with ikea furniture which sets apart from the environment and now the drilling sound made by a nearby construction site which adds some noise to the quiet afternoon. Many blogs also recommended seats upstairs but i got sleepy the moment i went up and headed back to the first floor. No signs of Japanese influence except for some Japanese wording on the signage and songs.
Cafes like dome and orange thimble are my preferred choices. Overrated cafe but not a bad place to spend a lazy afternoon reading (reading bloomberg business week recommended by a colleague which is quite good) people watching (including at the waiter) and nice coffee!
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