Place: Nooch Noodle Bar
Location: City Link
Food: Curry Udon, Thai Curry Noodles, Japanese Tofu with sauce & Thai Fishcakes
Beverage: Fresh Lime Juice with Soda & Fruit Juice

I met up with my friend for dinner at City Link. It has been over a year since we last met, and it was 2 of his birthdays ago to be exact. I didn't manage to catch up with him last winter holidays, because it was a rather tight month for me. I was flying back and forth between countries. I got back to Singapore and flew out to Bangkok in the next few days for a shopping spree and food indulgence trip. And not long after my Bangkok trip, I need to fly back to Perth in a hurry, due to some hiccups in university. Anyway it was about time I catch up with him again, and we sat at Nooch for two long hours chatting non-stop.

Here goes for the food review:
I was torn between ordering the curry udon and thai curry noodles, because both were stated as Nooch best sellers. So I managed to get Sean to order curry udon, instead of his usual katsu don, and I can have the thai curry noodles. Heehee.

The serving portion is rather huge by Singapore standard, hence value for the money paid. The noodles in the thai curry is a little over cooked and it was soggy. The curry is rather mild, and it has a good serving of chicken pieces. The curry udon taste is alot more pleasing to the palate, however the serving of meat is lesser compared to the thai curry. Hence I ended up exchanging my thai for the japanese with my friend.

The thai fish cakes had a serving of 3 pieces which is rather odd, cos mostly it's even numbers. The texture of it is nice, it could have fair better with a little more spice. The Japanese tofu was yummy, and it has to be taken when it's being served. It is because prolonged soaking in the sauce makes it soggy for the deep-fried skin.

The beverages were pleasant and refreshing.

Overall, I would go there once in awhile, but not often. Cos I do not like the seats, as sitting in the seat made my butt stick out from behind the seat - not comfy at all. and the food ain't that fantastic.

I have always seen the advertisements for World Vision when I was back in Perth. It was about sponsoring a child for a dollar a day, and I would always wanted to it. Syikin and I was chatting on msn, and she told me that if it wasn't for the loan to payoff, she would have joined some voluntary work. I trust that she will do a great work in volunterring; she has this big personality with a wonderful soul in her. Though I only stayed with her for a couple of months, it was the best time I had with her as my housemate. She has the most patience that I can find in anyone else I know.

Indeed doing a voluntary work takes a lot of mental and physical preparation on an individual, and I know I am not ready for it. The closest I can do is to sponsor a HopeChild, when I start earning a decent amount of salary. Looking at the pictures of the children, the tinge of hope in their eyes and their innocence, they deserve to live in this world like any other child. These children are robbed of the necessities and amenities in their home, all because they are living in poverty. I must confessed that I do have all the material and physical needs well-provided for me since I was a child. I had a decent roof above my head, food provided for me every meal, education was compulsory to me and I get to travel overseas from a toddler onwards. To these third world children, it is a priviledge to be able to have all these. Yet most of us are complacent of what we have in our lives.

Place: Sheng Li Restaurant
Location: Temporary market in Tampines
Food: Zi Zhah - Deep-fried butter & milk prawns, Chicken with apple sauce & Sambal Kangkong

Firstly there isn't any available menu given, and the lady who served wasn't too helpful to recommend dishes. She claimed that all the dishes on the menu are nice. (This sort of response usually put me off, cos I'm pretty sure there are some dishes which are not as sellable.) Though there are two newspaper articles from the chinese papers that have given a review on the store. I am not convinced till I tasted the food myself.

It wasn't long before the first dish, sambal kangkong was laid on the table. The colour of the dish did not appeal to my sight; it look like the cook had used some vegetables that had lose its freshness to serve to his customer. It was a little too oily, but the sambal tasted was alright.

The second dish was deep-fried butter and milk prawns. The prawns used were not really fresh, and the shells of the prawns were not crispy enough. The taste of it was slightly average.

Lastly is the chicken with apple sauce. I was rather curious how apple would taste in a dish like this, hence I decided to give it a go. But it was a disppoinment to my tastebud. The first mouthful of it, the distinct taste my palate picked up was the taste of food turning bad.

Overall, don't go there unless the rest of the stores are closed.

i spent the entire late afternoon clearing and cleaning my bookshelves, and my cards and letters drawer. i spent some time picking up letters and cards randomly to read. i really enjoyed writing letters and cards, but now i am caught up with technology - damned the internet and email! i still enjoy receiving cards by snail-mail as a matter of fact. somehow i love the personalized touch to a handwritten piece of mail as compared to an email.

reading through my pile of letters and cards, brings back lots of memories i had years ago - some of which happened to be dissolve with time. most of those memories brought me back to old school days. not to mention i found my autograph-cum-diary book; this book has been with me since i was primary six. gee, that's what i called old school. i flipped through the pages of the book, and i realised from the date i penned down those entries till now, i have grown so much. gasps! it reminded me of my child likeness.