The Chewys’ First Family Trip to Phuket

Posted on February 18, 2015 by missuschewy

WHOOHOO! In mid January, The Chewys went for our first vacation of 2015 and it was also our very first family trip with Little misschewy! We have always wanted to bring Chanelle overseas, especially after our last trip to Taiwan without her. It was a huge mistake back then when we booked our air tickets during my third trimester, thinking that we needed to spend some couple time without the baby immediately after my confinement! Needless to say, we missed Chanelle terribly during the trip and swore to ourselves, never again. Fast forward a few months later, we felt that Chanelle is ready and is quite adaptable, and as parents, we are also pretty confident about bringing her overseas. However, we weren’t sure how she would fare for the first flight so we decided to be safe and chose Phuket as our holiday destination because of its close proximity and also, we wanted a relaxing time at one of the Phuket villas. 🙂

And so, the day came. We were very excited and a little bit nervous. Had to take a photo at the Departure gate before bidding my in-laws goodbye!

We flew with Singapore Airlines for obvious reasons. Didn’t manage to get bassinet seats for the flight to Phuket so the hubs and I took turns to let Chanelle sit on our laps with the infant seat belt securely fastened. A family wefie before take off! 🙂

In no time, we were high high up in the sky! The curious girl peeped out of the window a few times. Chanelle was tired, yet she wasn’t exhausted enough to fall asleep on her own. She fussed and cried a little, but was soon entertained by a Caucasian couple sitting behind us.

Slept as soon as the plane touched down!

Our resort quoted us 1300 Thai Baht (THB) for a one way trip via a Toyoto Camry from the airport, which is about 50 SGD. I found it exorbitant for what is estimated to be a 30 minute car ride and didn’t proceed with the transport reservation. We couldn’t believe what we saw upon stepping out of the airport. Taxi meter! We asked for an estimate and were quoted 700 THB including 100 THB airport surcharge. Hurray!

Little misschewy slept soundly throughout the entire journey and woke up promptly when we reached the resort of our choice – The Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa! I joined the Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) programme late last year and decided to stay at one of the Starwood properties for this trip. Out of the 3 resorts currently available, we decided to stay at The Westin Siray Bay because the private beach appealed to us.

We received a very warm welcome as soon as we got off the taxi. If my memory doesn’t fail me, we were each served a refreshing glass of orange juice topped with crushed ice as a welcome drink. Certainly needed one to cool off in the sweltering heat!

Situated on the exclusive east coast of Phuket, The Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa, Phuket offers a rejuvenating tropical haven overlooking the magnificent Siray Bay with all you need to be at your best. This luxury five star resort boasts contemporary design and the renowned warm Thai culture, welcoming guests into this respite of tropical elegance. The resort is just minutes away from Phuket Town, cultural attractions, local markets, restaurants and shopping.

The Westin Siray Bay Resort is quite big, hence a buggy is required to get around the resort, especially if you room is located a distance away from the reception or restaurants.

Each of the 257 contemporary guestrooms, suites and pool villas offers ocean views of Siray Bay. We were really lucky that our room was upgraded to a Sala Pool Villa!

We were really ecstatic!

Our pool villa was definitely the epitome of comfort and coziness! The hubs and I couldn’t stop gasping at this and that, and behaved like little kids. LOL.

The Westin’s signature Heavenly® Bed.

Here’s a glimpse of our bathroom.

We didn’t use the tub at all because it was impossible with Chanelle around. Haha!

The Westin is very generous with their bath amenities! They have almost everything!

The resort’s mini bar items are chargeable, except for bottled water with tags. They are pretty generous with the bottled water! We found at least 6 bottles in our room and they are stocked daily.

The mini fridge does not have a freezer compartment so I left my freezing panels for my cooler bag with the resort’s kitchen. The drinks inside the fridge are not complimentary.

Sooo.. What did we have planned for our first day in Phuket? Nothing! Just wanted to take a dip in our very own private pool! Chanelle was like.. Mummy can you please hurry up I wanna play with water NAO. Hahaha! Just look at that face.

Chanelle enjoyed the pool so much that we felt bad carrying her out of the water >_<

We were invited to a cocktail reception at one of the restaurants at the resort, EEST, where we enjoyed free flow drinks and canapes! It was very nice of the hotel managers (I think) to mingle with guests and it made us feel right at home. We hung around for about 15 minutes before moving off to our dinner venue within the resort.

Dinner was at Prego by the Beach. SPG members are entitled to 15% off! Here, you will find Italian cuisine served in a fun, lively and lighthearted atmosphere featuring an open kitchen and bar overlooking the beach.

Honestly, I wouldn’t say that the food was fantastic. In fact, my risotto was way too salty. After dinner, we headed back to our pool villa via the buggy and called it a night!

I can’t remember what time it was when I sneaked out in the morning to snap the sunrise. I was too sleepy to linger any longer and crawled back to the comfy bed.

It was the hubs’ turn to take this photo while Chanelle and I were still sound asleep. When the little bub woke up, we went for a casual photoshoot within the compounds of the resort and had to skip breakfast. Will share photos in another post! 🙂

Little misschewy was simply too exhausted after the photoshoot and fell asleep. Both misterchewy and I were feeling ravenous so we didn’t hesitate to call room service to deliver food to us!

Phad Thai and Minced Basil Pork with rice! Sooooo yummy! The food was also surprisingly quite cheap but we didn’t order more stuff to share because we were planning to go to Patong! The resort provides shuttle bus service to Phuket Town and Patong Beach at a small fee of THB100 and THB200 per person per way.

As soon as the little one woke up from her nap, we went around to take some photos by the pool before the shuttle bus came to pick us up.

On the shuttle bus! The journey took almost an hour because of the heavy traffic.

We were dropped off at Jungceylon which is a shopping mall but we were not very keen to shop there even though it was air conditioned and a great respite from the heat. Didn’t know how to walk to Patong Beach so we took a taxi and paid another THB 200 for the short journey.

You know what? It’s actually a pretty bad idea to go to Patong Beach with a baby in tow. Firstly, you cannot enjoy any of the sea sports activities and secondly, the weather is too hot, making it quite ridiculous for you to babywear your child. We had to cool off at the air conditioned food court nearby! Good thing there is free wifi there.

There was nothing for us to buy at Patong, save for a couple of souvenirs. Decided to have dinner around the area before returning to our resort.

I don’t usually drink coconut but when I do, I make sure I take a selfie. LOLLLL.

Yeehah! Chanelle’s first tuk tuk ride! 🙂

Kaab Gluay Restaurant is located further north of Patong beach, along 58/3 Phrabaramee Road. This is one of the places that we had shortlisted from our online research. If we had known that Kaab Gluay doesn’t have a proper high chair for babies, we definitely wouldn’t have come here. It was tough having to take turns to eat!

As I’m writing this, I can’t believe we travelled all the way there just to eat 3 dishes! 🙁

Phad Thai with seafood.

Green Curry with chicken.

Tom Yum Soup with seafood.

Even though we only had three dishes to share, we were really full by the time we were done. Food was exemplary and well worth the visit! Highly recommended! On a side note, the tom yum was fiery hot and I developed a sore throat overnight for wiping the entire bowl clean! The hubs only had a few mouthfuls because he can’t take spicy food.

Our last night in Phuket!

The next morning, I told the hubs that we must let Chanelle have another round of fun in the pool before leaving the resort!

It was a quick one before we prepared ourselves for breakfast!

The breakfast buffet spread was quite sumptuous!

Our check-out was smooth. This time, our journey to the airport cost us THB 1000 which is slightly more than what we paid for to travel from the airport to our resort, inclusive of airport surcharge. The rate was quoted by the resort so we had to go along with it.

Chanelle fell asleep while she was latching, even before the plane took off! #achievementunlocked

Our light sleeper woke up when food was being served. Didn’t have a choice but to place her in the bassinet so that we could eat in peace!

Papa and mummy are so glad that you enjoyed your first overseas trip, darling!

Hope you guys had a good time reading about our holiday experience with a baby in tow! Happy Chinese New Year and HUAT AH! Stay connected with us on Facebook www.facebook.com/missuschewy and on Instagram @missuschewy and @misterchewy 🙂

W Singapore Staycation Review

Posted on January 15, 2015 by missuschewy

Our last family staycation for 2014 was spent at the very sophisticated W Singapore! We planned it on one of the weekends in December when my parents and brother flew to Taiwan for a one-week trip. Usually, we will stay over at my parents’ place over the weekend but this time, it was only the three of us! We had the pleasure of test driving the newest Toyota Altis and it really came in handy for the staycation! More on that in a separate post. Anyway, we were in high spirits when we left home but then it started to pour as we drove to Sentosa.

We reached 15 minutes before the check-in time at 3pm. Had to queue for a bit before being told that our room wasn’t ready and we would be contacted once our room was available.

I expected our room to be ready by 3pm sharp so we popped by Woobar for some light bites.

Truffle fries.

Sashimi with wasabi dip was very interesting!

We were almost done with our food at 3.20pm but nobody contacted us. The hubs joined the queue again, only to learn that our room was actually ready. Why didn’t anybody inform us?! Obviously, I wasn’t too happy about it and we were paying so much for such standards.

We booked the Fabulous room which is about 40 to 42 sqm. It comes with a balcony with pool view. W Singapore’s 240 custom-designed guestrooms are more spacious than city hotels, with more room for vivid interiors, state-of-the-art technology and dreamy amenities.

Bringing a baby along can be rather tiring! Chanelle wouldn’t stop crawling and we had to be on our guard at all times to make sure that she doesn’t fall off the bed.

40 inch LED TV.

The bathroom is gonna appeal to dating couples, but probably not family and friends.

See what I mean?! LOL. But at least it’s a stand alone bathtub.

A separate rain shower facility is available.

I’m also somewhat surprised that W Singapore provides Dasani bottled water. I was half expecting to see Fiji water instead.

You make me happy, when skies are grey 🙂

The view from our room.

We hardly swim when we go for staycations but since Little misschewy loves being in the water, we packed our swim wear and her float along!

We got out of the pool as soon as Chanelle started to protest. Headed back to our room and she fell asleep even before I could give her a bath!

The husband and I didn’t have any concrete dinner plans so we walked to Quayside Isle before deciding on Oyster Bar & Japanese Cuisine. And guess what? The little bubs fell asleep again! Hahaha.

It didn’t look like we had a lot for dinner but we were actually quite full! Took a leisurely stroll and reminisced about our dating days before Little misschewy came along! The last time we were at Quayside Isle, I wasn’t pregnant yet! Hehe.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Here’s Chanelle eagerly biting into diced watermelon after she had her first taste of lemon. Check out our previous post!

It was a pity we didn’t manage to squeeze in time for another dip in the pool before checking out. By the time you are reading this, we are on our way to catch our flight! Stay connected with us on Facebook www.facebook.com/missuschewy and on Instagram @misterchewy and @missuschewy 🙂

Hotel Jen Orchardgateway Singapore Staycation Review

Posted on December 29, 2014 by missuschewy

– Sponsored Staycation –

The recent opening of Hotel Jen Orchardgateway Singapore in September 2014 marked the launch of the new Hotel Jen brand by Shangri-La International Hotel Management Ltd, which seeks to be fresh, friendly and fuss-free. The Hotel Jen brand is inspired by the virtual persona Jen, a professional hotelier who loves life, travel and the adventure of discovering new places. Hotel Jen takes care of guests with efficiency and care, while also giving them informed access to the best a particular destination has to offer. The location of Hotel Jen Orchardgateway is just perfect, giving direct access to Orchardgateway shopping mall. It is right smack in the middle of Orchard, where all the other vibrant shopping centres are.

There are a total of 502 rooms within Hotel Jen Orchardgateway with a choice of four room types – Superior (27 sqm), Superior Cityview (27 sqm), Deluxe (32 sqm) and lastly, Premier Panorama (41 sqm), which we had the luxury of checking into. When we first stepped into our room on the 17th floor, we were blown away by the floor to ceiling glass window, which is very unique because it leans outwards, thus enabling you a better view of Orchard Road.

The layout of the room is also rather uncommon. The work desk is actually quite hidden from view, unlike in most hotels, the work desk and bed are placed so closely together. I guess in this case, it demarcates the boundaries between work and play (or sleep). Most business travellers should appreciate this!

If you notice, our Premier Panorama room is surrounded by plenty of windows, making the room look really spacious!

This is the super comfortable King-sized bed which gave all of us a great night’s sleep. My only gripe is that the pillows are filled with down feather. As much as I enjoy the cushiony pillows, the smell of the down feathers was a bit too overwhelming for me.

Hotel Jen Orchardgateway’s 46-inch Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) system is something to boast about. And if you are lucky, you might even have one in the bathroom!

Apart from the usual coffee and tea making facilities, the fresh cut fruits and my favorite childhood iced gem biscuits were a pleasant surprise.

There isn’t a separate rain shower in the bathroom, which means that there is no way I can avoid having to climb in and out of the bath tub even when all I wanted was a shower and not a bath. However, I’m glad that there is plenty of space around the tub for me to place my toiletries. This is very important, considering the amount of toiletries I have!

Baby Chanelle enjoys hotel staycations too! Here’s a photo of her testing out the firmness of the bed. See how upright she is sitting up?

Look, Papa and Mummy! I can chill here all day!

A mandatory family photo before we head out! We had been granted access to the Club Lounge but did not manage to make it for cocktails from 5.30pm to 7.30pm because I had an eyebrow embroidery appointment with Browtisan. By the time I was done, it was time for dinner.

Dinner saw us having a feast at Makan@Jen! The variety is really remarkable; they had everything we could think of, and more!

The automated WineStation has got to be the coolest thing around at Makan@Jen!

I love buffets because it’s a good time for me to get my salmon sashimi and oyster fix!

Very yummy curry chicken and pork knuckle.

Yay to having prawn noodles for dinner!

I like the baby chairs provided at Makan@Jen because they come with food trays, which are great if you wanna let your baby self feed.

Gave Chanelle different types of bread to nibble on.

It was our first time having buffet togther as a family! Bread and cucumber buffet for Little misschewy but towards the end of the dinner, she started hurling food everywhere because she got cranky.

After dinner, we took a leisurely stroll along Orchard Road to enjoy the Christmas lights.

Good morning! All of us are well rested and ready for breakfast!

Decided to check out the Club Lounge on the 19th floor and also avoid the morning crowd at Makan@Jen.

I would expect the variety at Makan@Jen to be much more impressive, but this one at the Club Lounge is also adequate. Most importantly, there are waffles and eggs!

Here’s the gymnasium if you desperately want to squeeze time out for some exercise before check-out!

Gotta love Hotel Jen Orchardgateway’s very own infinity pool!

Very nice place to lounge around with a good book and a glass of beer.

Alas, all good things must come to an end. Felt very reluctant to check out after such an enjoyable stay at Hotel Jen Orchardgateway! Room prices start from S$215++ per night. There are various promotions that cater to the needs of different travellers, so be sure to check them out here!

Hotel Jen Orchardgateway
277 Orchard Road
Singapore 238858
Tel: 6708 8888
Email: hjog@hoteljen.com

Hotel Clover The Arts Singapore Staycation Review

Posted on October 15, 2014 by missuschewy

– Sponsored Staycation –

Having stayed in a number of hotels in Singapore, our recent staycation in an art-themed boutique hotel was a first for us. Hotel Clover The Arts, situated in Chinatown, is a 6-storey and 44-room hotel which opened in April this year. This new hotel builds on its conviction to create a unique arts experience through its individually-themed rooms. Designed in styles as diverse as retro kitsch, urban street art, Pop Art vibrance and line art minimalism, each room in Hotel Clover The Arts creates its own distinctively unique experience.

In a bold move to lend a voice to the Singapore’s brand of creativity, Hotel Clover The Arts invited students from different arts and design schools in Singapore to participate in a mural competition for 19 rooms. Independent professional artists were also commissioned to create art for Hotel Clover The Arts, including local artist Ceno2, who has his own distinctive brand of aerosol art, otherwise known as ‘Graffiti Fine Art’.

Ceno2’s work can be found in the lobby of the hotel. The idea behind incorporating Singapore’s iconic attractions onto public spaces of the hotel is to create a talking point to encourage guests and staff to mingle by sharing stories, experiences and memories of subjects which they hold dear to their heart.

As strange as it may sound, we felt that we could very much connect with the hotel because of all these paintings of Marina Bay Sands, Singapore Flyer and the like. It certainly gave us a sense of home.

Love the cute idea of having a little sneak preview of each hotel room.

We took the lift and checked out every floor of the hotel. Interestingly, you will be able to find the painting of a black cat on most levels. Kudos to the artist who managed to cleverly incorporate unsightly elements into the murals across all lift lobbies, transforming different corners of the hotel into a visual feast.

As mentioned previously, each of the 44 rooms feature artworks which are strikingly different, ranging from stunningly picturesque mountainscapes to vintage-inspired comic art.

Because each room is different, you will be guaranteed a whole new experience and an element of surprise each time you stay with the hotel. Perfect reason to keep heading back!

Photo Credit: Hotel Clover The Arts

We had the privilege of staying in this beautiful Arts King room, the highest of the 6 room categories available. Once again, Ceno2 lends his signature touch of creative genius to a breathtaking mural of Mount Fuji, depicting nature at its best – amidst clear blue sky, crystal waters and inspired forals. We were simply blown away by the magnificence of our room, not so much in terms of its space, but the dazzling beauty of Mount Fuji and cherry blossoms.

All rooms come with a postcard featuring the design of the room, for guests to bring home as a momento or keepsake. It might seem as a small gesture but I think it’s a really nice personal touch.

The 3 Arts King rooms at Hotel Clover The Arts include the following:

– Fully air-conditioned with individual control
– Laptop-sized safe
– Branded bathroom amenities
– Hairdryer
– Laundry & dry ceaning service
– Nescafe Dolce Gusto coffee machine
– Daily housekeeping service
– LED HDTV with satellite channels
– Complimentary Internet & local calls
– Iron & ironing board (upon request)
– Secured key card locking system

We took a little tour around the hotel and guess what we found! A giant tea cup!

There is a roof terrace garden where guests are welcome to unwind with a book or even do yoga. Hotel Clover The Arts does not have a swimming pool but guests can hop over to its sister property Hotel Clover 5 Hong Kong Street and utilize its swimming pool there.

Art lovers will appreciate the striking scenic view of a larger-than-life waterfall which literally cascades down the external facade of the hotel, bringing a charming and quaint feel to the quiet evening. The best time to check this out is early in the morning or late evening before the sky turns dark.

I checked that the hotel does not provide baby amenities, so we brought Little misschewy’s inflatable tub along. Doesn’t she look like she’s having a whale of a time soaking in an onsen with an awesome view of Mount Fuji? 😛

According to Hotel Clover The Arts’ Facebook page, their comfortable and fluffy guest room beds have 350 thread which will make you feel like you are sleeping on a cloud. We couldn’t agree more!

There were only 3 to 4 tables but thankfully, the table turnover rate was high. Even though the breakfast selection was limited, the food surpassed my expectation! Even misterchewy who doesn’t usually have much of an appetite in the morning, went for a second helping.

We certainly had a very memorable stay at Hotel Clover The Arts. Waking up in the Mount Fuji room made us feel like a million bucks! It is definitely something that we want to experience all over again. Stay connected with us on Facebook www.facebook.com/missuschewy and on Instagram @missuschewy and @misterchewy 🙂

Hotel Clover The Arts
58 South Bridge Road
Singapore 058689
Tel: 6439 7088
Email: enquiries@hotelclover.com

Trick Eye Museum Singapore Plus Giveaway!

Posted on October 8, 2014 by missuschewy

– Media Invite –

Wassup everyone! I had a super duper fun filled long weekend at Trick Eye Museum Singapore at Resorts World Sentosa! The name “Trick Eye” comes from the shortened form of the term Trick of the eye and refers to an art technique that turns two-dimensional paintings into three-dimensional images. It is through the use of optical illusions that three-dimensional paintings on the surfaces of the museum walls, floors and ceilings come alive. The museum offers various themed galleries where visitors are more than welcome to be part of the creative experience and are encouraged to explore with their eyes, hands and cameras too.

There are many artworks at the museum which are perfect interaction between parent and children, which makes Trick Eye Museum the latest family-friendly attraction in Singapore. Apart from family outings, it is also a great place for double dates too! So glad that we asked PR and J along, and we had double the fun! 🙂 Hope you enjoy the photos that we took and please take part in our giveaway contest!

Together with Dumex and Dryers, Trick Eye Museum Singapore is running a “Happiest Baby Contest” now till 9th November 2014! Take the most creative and happiest photo of your baby (6 months – 4 years old) at any artwork in the museum. Submit your photo entry to trickeyemuseumsg@gmail.com before 9th November 2014, 23:59. All photo entries will be available for public voting and top 5 entries with the most number of ‘Likes’ and ‘Shares’ win one of the 5 sets of fabulous prizes!

One lucky reader will walk away with THREE tickets to Trick Eye Museum Singapore!

1) ‘Like’ Trick Eye Museum Singapore’s Facebook Page www.facebook.com/TrickEyeSingapore

2) ‘Like’ Missuschewy’s Facebook Page www.facebook.com/missuschewy

3) Share this blog post on your Facebook wall and answer “Which is the latest family friendly attraction in Singapore?” in the comments box. Set your post to Public and paste the link HERE

Contest closes on 13 October, Monday. A winner will be randomly picked. Good luck!

Trick Eye Museum Singapore
Waterfront @ Resorts World Sentosa
26 Sentosa Gateway
Singapore 098138
Tel : +65 6795-2370 / 2371

Opening Hours:
Daily
10am – 9pm

Park Hotel Clarke Quay Staycation Review

Posted on September 15, 2014 by missuschewy

– Sponsored Staycation –

It was more than half a year ago when misterchewy and I last went for a staycation in Singapore. Very long ago right! I still remember I popped 18 days later. Hehe. Our recent staycation at Park Hotel Clarke Quay was our very first one as a family of three. Really glad that we brought Little misschewy along because our wedding anniversary and misterchewy’s birthday was a few days later, so we wanted to celebrate the occasion together. I was thrilled about staying at Park Hotel Clarke Quay because I love its classic architecture which is inspired by Singapore’s colonial past. Besides that, I like that the hotel is strategically located in the heart of the city and the nightlife at Clarke Quay is very vibrant. Perfect for party goers and foreigners who want to experience the nightlife in Singapore.

There are 336 well-appointed rooms and suites at Park Hotel Clarke Quay which all showcase modern baroque furnishings, elevated ceilings, as well as floor-to-ceiling windows that offer guests sweeping views of the Singapore River and the city skyline. Our Club room located on the 9th floor wasn’t too big but there was space for our small luggage, baby playpen and stroller, with room to walk around comfortably.

Baby Chanelle was just as excited as Papa! She was in a bright yellow summer dress, courtesy of Aunty Mag 😀

Do you know that children under 12 years old stay for FREE at all Park Hotel Group’s establishments? Kids meals are also complimentary!

In-room amenities tailored for little ones are also available at no additional charge. A bottle sterilizer in the room makes things much more convenient for us.

Very impressed with the wide selection of snacks!

As a breastfeeding mother, the first thing I did when I opened the mini fridge was to check if it’s cold enough to store my expressed milk and not what’s inside the fridge. Felt that the fridge wasn’t cold enough and there wasn’t a freezer compartment to freeze the cooling panels of my cooler bag 🙁

It was Chanelle’s nap time so we let her have the queen-sized bed.

Little girl woke up about an hour later and we simply had to show her the view from our room.

Before dinner, we pushed Little misschewy around in her Maclaren Denim Quest Stroller. For an extra cushy ride, I got her a Skip Hop Memory Foam Stroller Liner from Agape Babies. They are currently having a diaper bag sale and also 15% off playmats!

I really love the stunning pool that overlooks the panaromic city skyline. With state-of-the-art audio and visual equipment and superior standards in service, the hotel is an ideal venue to host wedding solemnizations, events and conferences. In fact, there was a wedding ceremony that took place that day!

We were treated to a delectable weekend seafood buffet at Brizo Restaurant & Bar.

Brizo offers contemporary Asian and Western cuisines with seafood specialities. Helmed by Executive Chef Wilson Shum, guests may embark on a voyage through a menu of well-executed fusion creations.

We enjoyed the wide selection of fresh seafood and hot cooked food.

We had to scrap our initial plan of taking a stroll around Robertson Quay because it started to rain after our dinner. Baby Chanelle was in good hands while I took a quick shower 😛

Behind-the-scene action. Hahaha.

Pigeon baby bath amenities and bath tub are provided.

Little misschewy was probably scared when we left her to sleep in the playpen given that the environment was an unfamiliar one.

When she was finally drunk (on milk, not wine!), we transferred her back to the playpen. Hehehe.

Our little bubba is clearly a morning person! 😀

Thanks to Chanelle, we never really had to set our alarm on weekends because she would be the one waking us up by 9am. Lol. We were in time for breakfast at Brizo! It was Chanelle’s very first time on the high chair, which was too big for her. Anyway, we didn’t have much appetite so we only grabbed a few bites. The egg station is not to be missed!

Someone was interested in the bacon. Lol.

It was a nice family staycation for us and we are looking forward to our next one!
Do check out the hotel’s website for the various ongoing staycation promotions that suit you best!

Stay connected with us on Facebook www.facebook.com/missuschewy and on Instagram @missuschewy and @misterchewy 🙂

Park Hotel Clarke Quay
1 Unity Street
Singapore 237983
Tel: +65 6593 8888
Email: info.phcq@parkhotelgroup.com

Third Wedding Anniversary and Misterchewy’s Birthday!

Posted on September 9, 2014 by missuschewy

Happy Chewsday! It’s misterchewy’s birthday today and we will also be celebrating our third year wedding anniversary! With a baby in our lives, priorities have changed. I admit that most of the time, I put Chanelle before my husband. I guess it’s a mothers’ thing? I also don’t approve of couples leaving their kids to their parents or in-laws while they enjoy their own couple time. I mean, once in a while it’s ok I suppose but I still want to do things together as a family. If not, what’s the point of setting up a family and having kids right? Haha. Perhaps it’s only the beginning for us, so it’s easy for me to say, but we shall see! For now, I’m just thankful that it is fate that brought the three of us together 🙂 Lastly, happy birthday hubby! :333

Chikuwa Tei: Best Chirashi in Singapore

Posted on July 31, 2014 by missuschewy

Happy birthday to me and cheers to our 4th year dating anniversary! 🙂 I think too many things happened within these four years, so much so that I thought we were together for five years already. LOL.

Here’s a quick recap:

– We got together on 26 July 2010.
– Successfully balloted for our BTO after dating for 3 months in October 2010.
– Got engaged on 26 June 2011.
– Solemnized our marriage on 9 September 2011 on his birthday.
– Held our customary wedding on 3 March 2013.
– Little misschewy came into our lives on 18 March 2014.

It’s really nice to reminisce about the past and to know that we have come a relatively long way. It’s the second time that misterchewy wasn’t able to celebrate my birthday on the actual day itself because this time, he’s in the States for a two-week work stint. The first time was when we just got together in 2010 and he had to help out at his hall’s freshman orientation camp in NTU.

We celebrated both occasions before he left for his trip and we finally decided to go for my favourite cuisine of all time! I think I can eat Japanese food everyday without getting sick of it. Haha who’s with me? 😛 Actually, misterchewy wanted to bring me for high tea at Ritz Carlton but the place was fully booked as it was a pretty last minute decision. With a baby in the house, most of our decisions are made out of spontaneity. High tea at Fullerton also no space. And then we wanted to try Mikuni at Fairmont Hotel, also fully booked.

In the end, we were left with Chikuwa Tei at Mohamed Sultan Road which was started by Chef Peter Ho, who was also the former chef of Wasabi Tei. I wasn’t too thrilled about the ambience but all I wanted was to relax and have a good meal. We reached when it just opened for dinner so it was pretty empty but there was a queue forming outside when we left the place. Yes, you are strongly advised to make reservations.

I never step out of a Japanese restaurant without ordering Sashimi Moriawase ($38)! I just don’t understand people who do not eat raw food (like my mum)! They have no idea what they are missing out. Just like Wasabi Tei, Chikuwa Tei is also very well known for its thickly sliced sashimi! It’s a party in my mouth YO!

We were highly recommended to try this particular Chirashi Special Set ($68) which is only available every Sunday and Tuesday. The sashimi slices are the freshest of the lot and are not kept frozen. Every mouthful was so delightful and our favourite was the otoro. We were given three thick slices of otoro which were very high in fat content and brought the term “melt in the mouth” to a whole new level.

Our Chirashi set also came with Chawanmushi, a bowl of miso soup and two slices of watermelon. The Chawanmushi, albeit a little watery, was smooth and chock full of ingredients such as mushroom and prawns.

After the sashimi moriawase and chirashi, we wanted to order uni to share but they ran out of uni by then. The hubs loves scallops so we went for the highly recommended Nama Hotate ($30). It was a refreshing way to eat scallop with a drizzle of lemon juice and a dash of chili dip.

Jowl Buta Yaki ($12) tasted pretty decent, especially with some beer! I think we will order more yakitori on our next visit.

Chikuwa Tei’s menu is pretty extensive and I wanted to try the Fugu Mirin ($15). Tasted a little bit like bak kwa and it was exceptionally good with some mayonnaise.

We spent about $270 in total, inclusive of 4 bottles of Sapporo beer. My parents and brother had dinner at Liang Court with Little misschewy in tow so that misterchewy and I could enjoy our dinner together. A big thanks to them!
Stay connected with us on Facebook www.facebook.com/missuschewy and on Instagram @missuschewy and @misterchewy 🙂

Chikuwa Tei
9 Mohamed Sultan Road
#01-01
Singapore 238959
Tel: 6738 9395

Opening Hours:
Mon to Thu
11.30am – 3pm
6pm – 10pm
Fri & Sat
11.30am – 3pm
6pm – 11.30pm
Sun
11.30am – 3pm
6pm – 10pm

{ Taiwan Travelogue Part Two } Taipei Day 4: Mr J French Italian Restaurant, Addiction Aquatic Development, Jin Feng Braised Pork Rice

Posted on June 18, 2014 by missuschewy

We have finally come to the end of our Taiwan travelogue! On our last full day in Taipei, we decided to chiong finish all the places that we wanted to visit (actually not many.. LOL) and our first stop was Jay Chou’s Mr J French Italian Restaurant (Mr J 義法廚房)!

We actually came here the night before, after returning from our day trip to Shifen. BUT it was pouring like crazy, the taxi driver dropped us off at the wrong location, my slippers broke, we were totally drenched and to make matters worse, when we finally arrived.. Kitchen closed like 10 minutes before! ARGH. Talk about ultimate suayness! At least we succeeded in the end cuz we are Jay Chou fans! 😀

The theme of the restaurant revolves around Jay Chou’s award-winning directorial debut movie “Secret” (不能說的秘密) which was shot in a school setting and hence, the restaurant is aptly located within Taipei Medical University. I love this movie so much that I watched it at least a few times and I can never get sick of it. It’s such a clever movie but that’s not surprising given that Jay Chou is really talented.

In the movie, this old piano in the old school building is actually a time machine which brought Ye Xianglun (played by Jay Chou) and Lu Xiaoyu (played by Gwei Lun-mei) together even though the latter was living in the past.

Please refrain from playing the piano to avoid being transported 20 years back.

As compared to what we had at Jay Chou’s Fujiwara Tofu Shop, the food here is so much better!

My Mentaiko Pasta had a very rich umami taste. I enjoyed every bit of it!

The hubs’ Mushroom Risotto was also quite good!

Can’t believe we finished checking out all of Jay Chou’s restaurants already! We asked one of the service staff and she said that the other restaurant had ceased operations.

Our stomachs 70% filled, we left for Addiction Aquatic Development which is like an unconventional and modern fish market. I know that this might not best describe it, but I thought the concept is kinda like Singapore’s PasarBella except that you find mostly fresh seafood here.

You can even enjoy a leisurely meal here although you gotta stand throughout.

Not wanting to load ourselves with any more carbo, we ordered only sashimi to share.

Thickly sliced raw fish.

Melt-in-the-mouth goodness! The husband’s favourite.

We decided to go for Jin Feng Braised Pork Rice (金峰魯肉飯) even though we weren’t exactly feeling hungry because quite a number of people favors this over Formosa Chang. Wanted to compare!

Honestly, Jin Feng’s braised pork rice tasted as good as Formosa Chang’s one la. I couldn’t really tell the difference.

We departed Taipei the very next day. The hubs bought this Hello Kitty Chang Kai Shek edition mobile phone strap to add to my collection of ONE. LOL. I have this floating market one which we bought at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport. Hehe.

Took this selfie on our way to the airport while eating Ah Chung Mee Sua on the bus! Looking forward to our next holiday, hopefully with Chanelle this time! 🙂 Stay connected with us on Facebook www.facebook.com/missuschewy and on Instagram @missuschewy and @misterchewy 😀

{ Taiwan Travelogue Part Two } Taipei Day 3: Releasing Sky Lantern in Shifen

Posted on June 16, 2014 by missuschewy

I would advise you against travelling to Taipei in May. It rained without fail every single day of our trip! The hubs wanted to have breakfast at Yong He Dou Jiang Da Wang (永和豆漿大王) so we took the metro and alighted at Da’an Station. Had to walk quite a fair bit but thank goodness we had an umbrella with us and misterchewy’s navigating skills are good if not I would have whacked him with the umbrella 😛

Eating dou jiang (豆浆) and you tiao (油条) in Taipei has never once crossed my mind but I just went along with misterchewy’s suggestion.

Obviously, we over ordered! I was already quite full when I was done with just the dou jiang and you tiao lor. Haha!

We made a trip to Long Shan Temple to give thanks for the smooth delivery of our baby. My parents visited this temple last year and prayed for the safety of both mother and child 🙂

Our highlight of the day was releasing sky lantern (天灯) at Shifen (十分)! As with Jiufen, we had to take a train to Ruifang in order to reach Shifen. We didn’t get to board the express train this time so the journey was excruciatingly long because the train stopped at every single station! By the time we reached Shifen, I low batt liao. Old already. HAHA.

The name Shifen came about because there used to be 10 families living in the town. It has this rustic old charm just like Jiufen.

If you had watched the romantic flick “You Are The Apple of My Eye” (那些年，我們一起追的女孩), you would know that Ko Ching-teng (played by Ko Chen-tung) and Shen Chia-yi (played by Michelle Chen) released a sky lantern in Shifen in one of the scenes. The hubs and I loved the movie and naturally, we were excited to be able to do the same right here in Shifen, along the railway track! 🙂

Apparently, the act of releasing sky lanterns had been made even more popular by the movie and of course, it’s not surprising that others would want to capitalize on this as a source of income.

There were so many shops selling souvenirs and sky lanterns of various colors! We randomly said ok to one of the sellers who approached us because we were too lazy to compare prices. By and large, the prices should be similar.

We paid NT$200 for a particular multi-colored sky lantern, meaning all four sides are of a different color and each color represents a different aspect of life. There are various color combinations available for you to choose from. We chose Health (red), Wealth (yellow), Education/Work (blue) and Love (orange). Simply unleash your creativity and write/draw your wishes on the paper lantern. Once you are done, the shop assistants will help to light up your lantern so that you can release it into the sky and your wishes will be carried to heaven.

We were given a calligraphy brush to write with which can get pretty messy if you are not careful. Some of what I wrote was contributed by misterchewy! HAHAHA.

It was pouring intermittently and once it slowed down to a slight drizzle, the both of us rushed out and told the guys that we wanted to release our sky lantern NOW!

It was fascinating to be able to see our lantern drift off into the sky.

I know that our prayers will be heard and our wishes will come true! 🙂

Next blog post will mark the end of our Taiwan travelogue for this year! We ate so much on the last day of our trip! Stay connected with us on Facebook www.facebook.com/missuschewy and on Instagram @missuschewy and @misterchewy 🙂

missuschewy

Singapore Lifestyle and Travel Blog

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{ Taiwan Travelogue Part Two } Taipei Day 4: Mr J French Italian Restaurant, Addiction Aquatic Development, Jin Feng Braised Pork Rice

{ Taiwan Travelogue Part Two } Taipei Day 3: Releasing Sky Lantern in Shifen

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