Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Scrambled Egg Tofu Recipe

Ingredients:

Firm tofu (crushed to small pieces)
Ginger (minced)
Green onions (chopped)
Carrots (cubed)
Cashews (chopped)
2 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 eggs
1 tsp rice vinegar
Chilli flakes
Sesame oil
Salt and pepper 

Mix rice vinegar and egg and beat. Cook the eggs in the pan with small amount of oil. While cooking stir it to break the eggs into small pieces.
Heat oil on the same pan and put the cashews, then ginger and green onion. Add in the chilli flakes after couple of minutes add the oyster sauce, carrots and tofu. Finally put the soy sauce, eggs and sesame oil. Stir until well combined. Top it up with green onions and serve.
Scrambled Egg Tofu 

VERDICT
WILL: I saw on Abbey’s to cook list, the scrambled tofu and egg. Without question, I just put it in our weekly menu. Haha! Never imagined that tofu can give you a good viand like this. All I know in tofu is to be steamed or fried but this is another level. 

Tofu is smooth and all the flavours of other ingredients were absorbed ny tofu! Nice Abbey! 

Who are running out of ideas for their menu? Check-out our recipes!

Tuesday, January 28, 2020

Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas - Singapore Departure

ABBEY:
Activities
Still we haven’t left the “hotel at sea” as there are a lot things to do.

We did wall climbing and this time the belay is automatic. I managed to reached the top. Make sure not to climb when the sun is at its peak else you burn your hands.
Next is Flowrider. I was afraid I will get another fall like when I was on skates but good thing is you can ride the waves in your belly. Balancing is hard but I enjoyed it. Being hit and wiped out by a jet stream of water is also part of the fun.
Bump cars are also there. This is the time that you want to crash into a car. Remember to turn the wheel for continuous movement.
Next is Laser Tag. Our team lost but my consolation is that I was the top scorer. This is workout in itself.
They also have game consoles and table tennis.
All these activities are for free. You either just make a reservation or queue in line.

Room
Our room this time has no physical balcony but instead a virtual one. There’s something in the water at night that makes me feel that something would just grab me and no one will notice. Haha. The room has enough space to store our clothes for the whole trip. The bed is comfortable as well as the pillows and the sheets are clean. Our attendant really pays attention to our needs.

Ship
Quantum of the Seas is definitely bigger than our first cruise ship Mariner of the Seas. What I like is the Solarium; a serene place for adults where you can lounge or dip in the pools. Yup, no kids. Hehe. We got a chance to alight the ship at Port Penang and really had a good view its massive size. It has 15-16 decks. They removed the outdoor basketball court though. An indoor area was allocated for it as same as bump cars and laser tag.



Quantum of the Seas | First Revolutionary Cruise Ship - Singapore


Activities, Rooms and FREE Dining 


Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas - Singapore Departure 
Jamie’s Italian



Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas - Singapore Departure 
Wonderland

WILL: Royal Caribbean is not contented with their previous services. Well, they gave a huge effort to exceed every cruisers expectations. Bigger ship, high tech rooms, more exciting activities, and add up a fabulous entertainment. 


Let’s go with the bigger vessel. The quantum fleet is humongous. It has 17th floors. Floors that holds a room, restaurants, activity floors, pools and gym. 

How can I say high technology rooms. Because I do not like to look on a black emptiness every night outside through balcony’s glasd door. I requested Abbey for us stay at inner— stateroom. No windows. But this doesn’t stop Royal Caribbean ingenuity. They install a 72-inch tv beside the bed for  witness what us happening outside the ship. Well, I feel more comfortable on that. 

Quantum of the Seas do really have an array of activities. I enjoyed the bump car, laser tag (reservation needed), the Vitalis gym, Solaris’ (adult only area) jacuzzi, and quite diffucult wall climbing. For the Flowrider, I hated it. Tried once and I will not do it again. Haha! Put some hoops at the basketball court too. 

Please indulge in their complimentary restaurants. The Windjammer which is open from breakfast to dinner. Please look out for their juicy grilled porkchop. The Solaris Restaurant have the almost same food with the Windjammer but that place is quieter and serene. There’s a timing for the hotdog and ice cream booth. Do not miss those out. Main Restaurant’s waiters are absolutely cool. They will treat you like a king and queen. The menu changes every night and there’s a live entertainment by your very own waiters too. You want a sandwich for your lunch? Go to The Cafe @Two70. The best!  Italian cuisine? Sorrento's Pizza is open to serve you. Craving for sweet pastries? Cafe Promenade is there! Do not hold yourself. Just eat! You are in holiday! And it is FREE! 

Abbey and I decided to have our first dinner at Wonderland Restaurant. I can only describe it in one word.. WONDERFUL! Gosh! All the dishes are bursting with uncommon but delight flavours! Yummmm! The dinner costs us USD98 per pax. Please alot 2-hours to enjoy the magical presentation and explanation of dishes and it’s every bite. Haha. If you want to double up the serving, do not hesitate to request. They will sure give you another serving. 

Jamie’s Italian is present in most of malls in Singapore but someone told us that the food on board of Royal Caribbean tastes different. Oh gosh! We pigged out! Please watch the YouTube video of Abbey here. There’s a warm hospitality from the crew of Jamie’s. Everybody is checking on us if we are enjoying our time. Well, yes it is everybody because even the Sous Chef went to our table to see if everything is fine. The food? Delizioso!  

The shows are highlighted for Chinese speaking cruisers. Still acceptable as there’s only one language for smile and laughter. Oh! The performers are interacting more with the audiences. 

Bravo! Royal Caribbean! 5-days is not enough to enjoy all amenities in your ship! Of course! We will book and book and book again with Royal Caribbean on our next cruise!


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Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas - Singapore Departure 
(W) https://www.royalcaribbean.com

Monday, January 27, 2020

Singapore Condo - Lipat Bahay | Buhay Expat

ABBEY: We recently moved to a new place as our previous contract expired. It was a nice and peaceful 3-year stay as the unit is closed to anything I like; mall, grocery, park and airport. There are few things that were brought up upon moving out. Partly my mistake for not clearing things up. First is the professional cleaning. This is the first time we were asked to have the unit cleaned with receipts. Our previous landlords were satisfied with only us cleaning it. We even got a feedback that the unit is so clean as if nobody occupied it. Next is the dry cleaning of curtains. The agent told before the unit is handed over to us these two were things done. Third is the parquet sanding and varnishing. I get it but if it’s a normal wear and tear then no need for us to pay. I felt that I’m held “hostage” as I my security deposit is withheld until all the damages will be repaired.
I understand the point of the landlord but we also need the deposit in full for the new place.

Anyways since that happened before the holidays and I  want to finish the saga before my vacation, we caved in. Thanks to my understanding housemates.

Our new place is great; out of the hustle and bustle of busy neighborhood. But the catch is it is somehow remote. Grocer shops are there but of limited items. A mall is 10-15mins of travel which means my fastfood fix is thru delivery only. They provide free shuttle service to and from MRT station and also have the usual condominium amenities; bbq pit, gym, steam room, tennis court and pool.
We had a difficult time finding a new home that fits our budget and preferences but I can say I’m enjoying my stay. This is also the first time for us to have housemates from different part of the world.



WILL: One of the challenges of being an expat is looking for a house that you can call it a home. For 10 years of stay in Singapore, we changed house for about 6 times. The reasons? Well...

Compassvale: July 2009- end of contract 
Punggol Central: November 2009 - end of contract 
Ridgewood Condo: October 2012 - Cheating Main Tenants 
Compass Heights: April 2015 - Unit was sold 
Parc Centros: Dec 2016 - Landlord needed the unit 

Imagine, packing and unpacking, disinfecting the house and everyting. Oh my gosh! It is quite tiring specially when th last flat we rented deducted to our deposit the curtain’s dry cleaning and professional cleaning which is not indicated in the contract. Varnishing the parquets even they are admitted that is a fair wear and tear. It is indeed a hostage as we can’t do anything but to agree for us to avoid any arguments and headaches. Whew! First time our deposit got deducted. Unforgettable experience and learned a lot on that. 

Now here in Singapore, the new trend is co-living. It excites us. Means the agents is renting out per room and not by whole unit. The monthly rental fee includes everything.. water, electricity and aircon cleaning, oh agents also hires people to clean the whole flat weekly. Yes, even your room. It is a worry-free living in Serangoon. Oh! First time to live with different nationalities too. Our housemates now is a Japanese Chef and Brazilian IT. 

Please do take note of the lesson we’ve learned and be more inquisive on what are to dos when ending the contract. 
Happy Room/Flat Hunting!

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Aeroline Bus - Luxury Bus From Kuala Lumpur To Singapore





WILL:  One of the issues in getting from Singapore to Malaysia is travelling by bus or by plane. If by plane, you may hit an expensive flights and almost an hour train (pricey) ride to the city. If by bus, you need to spend almost 6hours travelling and if you get striked by unluckiness your bus may have cockroaches, delay and not so friendly drivers.


Who doesn’t want to experience the comfort of long travel? If you have the luxury of time and on a good budget, Aeroline is a must try.

Aeroline bus has a lounge area for you to seat, have a cup of coffee while waiting for your ride. A driver and an attandant is the team that will accompany you during the journey.

The best thing in Aeroline, well of course is their very comfy, not smelly and clean leather lazyboy seats. It can be reclined perfectly for your sleeping needs. There’s a tv, desk and even an usb for you to charge your gadgets. Their food selection offers vegetarian meal too.

Worried about your washroom routine? Well, don’t fret, the bus also has a clean toilet!

Hope everyone can experience this! 🤗

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Aeroline Bus
https://www.aeroline.com.sg