Update on Grandma

Grandma remains at the ECON Nursing home for special care. Though she opened her eyes more often, she is still unable to speak nor able to take solid food. Still on liquid diet and is fed through a tube. Being bed ridden, the bed sore is not improving and would likely need further medical attention at the hospital. She recently had a hair-cut. The care givers had to perform the hair-cutting task whilst she remains lying down. Indeed a challenge !!!

2 days of indulgences

As Aaron-James is away for camp and Clarissa-Anne is roasting herself over some Barbeque Party, the parents decided to give ourselves a treat. After having brainstormed for various places, we ended up at the Kopi Tiam for a large Fish Head Curry dish, complete with Sambal Kangkong. The dish was in a large claypot and the curry was "lemak sekali". Ate myself silly !!!! so much so that some buttons had to be loosen to make way for further expansion. That was dinner on Saturday nite. We were once again abandoned on the Sunday afternoon. Decided on Day II of food indulgence to go "foreign". This round was at a Korean Restaurant at the Amara Hotel. The usual dishes of pickles and Kim Chi started off the meal as we await the lean pork dish, the Korean pancake and the ever mouth-watering Ginseng Chicken. (Boy !!! Were the portion hugh !!!). Had to do the traditional "ta-pau" to bring the remainder home for dinner. Probably gained another few more KGs over the weekend. Need a treadmill to burn off some of the indulgence gained from that the two meals ... but that's another story !!!

3 chicks by the window

Aaron-James has been getting all the attention since Mama & Papa bird decided to build a nest outside Aaron's room window. 3 chicks have since emerged from the nest and had been happily eying on Aaron as he sleeps, work, etc .... Mama & Papa bird has been very protective. Anyone going near the window would be rudely interrupted by the parents who flies in from goodness knows where. Guess, Aaron has lots of attractions for birds ... particularly, younger ones .... !!!

A HCM Weekend

It was not an ordinary weekend. Up by 3:45am to start our journey to Changi International. Though we needed only to be at the airport by 7:00am, Aaron-James needed to be at T1 by 5:00am for his trip to Laos. After dropping him off, it was to T3 for breakfast and to catch a few wink before our programme starts at T2. We were therefore at all 3 terminals in one morning.
Met the rest of the Serangoon GRLs at T2. With a quick check-in, headed to the lounge where Mum had some 20 min enjoying the massage chair. After meeting Mrs Lim and the rest near the departure hall, it was the "Attendance snap-shot" at T2 before embarkation.

In a rather tight scheduled programme after the landing/custom ritual. We experienced the various modes of transportation in Ho Chi Minh. We had the bus ride, river boat ride, horse cart ride, sampan rowing and of course, on foot (plus learning the skill of crossing Vietnamese roads). "Eating", the Singaporean past-time was well emulated there too.

Following the Day 2 morning programme for the GRLs, which included a short Tai Chi session to start the day, we headed to Cu Chi to experience the Vietnam War where tunnels were crawled, booby traps were demonstrated and rifles were fired (Had a choice of M16 or AK-47). A water puppet show after dinner was a refreshing period in an air-con environment, especially after a day in the jungle @ Cu Chi. Whilst some headed for the Ka-ra-ok session after that, we had our "must-try" coconut ice-cream before calling it a day. An early start for a quick breakfast and off to the Binh Tay Market to grab a few boxes of coffee plus whatever goodies that we could bargain for and experience the PHO-24 Vietnamese noodles before the trip back to Singapore. Mrs Lim's parting gift was a bag of Vietnamese coffee powder and had a shot with the participating families. On the whole, not too bad for a short weekend trip.

Another Serangoon Garden Icon to go

After some 2 decades of providing breakfasts, lunches and dinners (plus all the quick in between meals), the CARDON CAFE & RESTAURANT at the junction of Serangoon Garden Way / Chartwell Drive will finally be closing its doors. With it, my favourite weekly prawn noodle stall, the BEE HENG PRAWN NOODLE & LAKSA will also cease their serving of the yummy bowls of noodles (be it MEE-POH, MEE-KIA or KUEH-TEOW-MEE combinations !!!). Hopefully, they will be successful in their bid for a stall at the Serangoon Garden Market. Its strategic corner location is a natural meeting place (Guess that's how the phrase ... "meet you at the corner", came about !!!). Looks like life in SG will never be the same again.

Familiar faces will have to find another eating venue soon. Likewise, the long queues for the famous roasted chicken at POSIN HAINANESE CHICKEN RICE will soon be a thing of the past. Was told that they will be moving closer to another family business (POW SING CHICKEN RICE RESTAURANT), along the same row of shop houses. Guess, Serangoon Gardens will evolve with time and these shots will just be fond memories.