Turning 29

I know my updates have been awfully delayed and even as I type...I'm tempted to call May a washout month and just hop straight to June.

As I contemplated doing this, realised that key milestones like celebrating my 29th year, my Love Dare struggles were blogworthy mentions and should be faithfully updated. Hence, I shall persevere and try to keep the momentum going including putting up this more than a month overdue post. *bleah*

Turning 29 for me was a poignant reminder of how blessed I am to have family and friends who know me so well that I was continually showered with good food and thoughtful gifts throughout the week.

Besides the satiated tummy, it was also a good time to catch up with friends. A summarized account of all the food and gifts as follows:

1. Always Coca Cola

The coke light team...

I was duly informed a day before my birthday that we would all come dressed in Coca Cola colours in homage to my favourite Coke Light. Hence, we dutifully dressed in grey, silver, red or black while I got my Island Creamery ice cream cake (such a decadent treat) and broke a knife in the process of the cake cutting.

2. Feasting

a. Reminiscing at Crystal Jade

Although it's been years since we all once worked together in the same division, these colleagues who have become friends were all an integral part of making my time in planning a more memorable one.

b. Catching up at Waraku

The food was moderate at best but it was the time I had chatting with a dear friend that really mattered. As it is, catching up with people gets harder as one gets older and work takes up a bulk of our time. Hence, finding time for each other becomes a more intentional affair since we no longer have those sit in the school tuckshop and chat days.

c. Indulging at Xi Yan

I have been eyeing this restaurant for awhile and when they developed a newer (and cheaper) menu with a credit card discount to boot, this was my perfect excuse to check out a new place all in the name of maximizing value.

While I was glad that I finally got to try their food, must confess I wasn't exactly wowed. Not too sure if this was one of those places where the hype exceeds the quality of the food OR I caught the chef on a less than stellar day OR perhaps I should have opted for the more expensive menu. *Oh well*

However, there were a few food highlights for me. I particularly liked the green tomatoes in wasabi sesame sauce which was deliciously light and the golden oyster nuggets in tarocurd sauce had a great crunch. The pregnant women's fried rice was also good "simple" fare although some might find that the price does not warrant the cost of the ingredients that went into the dish.

Other things that I appreciated were their little personalized touches - we all received a little menu as a dining momento (with my name on it!) - and cosy ambience. I also really liked their refreshingly Asian drinks (unlimited flow for a small top-up) which came in colourfully designed glasses. I was happily gulping down cups of their honey sea coconut which was simply lovely.

7-course Set Dinner [Starting from the top row, left to right]: Coconut chicken soup, Green house tomatoes in wasabi sauce, Golden oyster nuggets in tarocurd sauce, Pregnant women's stir fried rice, Steamed spicy pumpkin pork, Stir fried spinach with fresh chinese yam, Tang yuen with a twist (2 different fillings within each ball)

d. Enjoying Sun Moon Dining

Sun Moon never fails to disppoint...in addition to the usual kamameshi set meals, the sashimi, rainbow roll and ramen were wonderful lunchtime fillers.

In view there was a 30% discount off all items on the menu at the Central mall outlet, we wasted no time in heading down for my birthday lunch. Moreover, I was gifted with a pocket pen (see next section) as my thoughtful colleagues noticed that my current pen was badly scratched up and so unprofessional looking. *grins*

3. Gifts

Check out my bling bling pen (with "rubies") and matching pen holder to extend the shelf life of this pretty writing tool.

Ed's gift - a pink "bowling" bag to brighten up my outfits.

More kodak moments!

Thanks everyone for the food, love and laughter which made the start of my 29th year a more memorable one!