A "Fool" Print

This was the first time I have ever tried on a trail run, not to mention to run for a distance of 50.25km. The thought of running at least five loops around the Macritchie reservoir would discourage me from attempting the event. At the night before the race, I had only 2 hrs of sleep.

Against my agenda to wake up at 4.30am, I had overslept and nearly missed out the start time at 7am. At the starting point, I saw the familiar faces of MF runners and Xuanjing who often likes to take photos for any race events. This year, there were around 200 participants and the weather was kind to us for a marathon race unlike previous year. My plan for today run was to try to cover as fast as possible for the first 30km before my legs could fail me again.

During the first round, I greeted some of the MR runners, and caught up with PS and Michael. I had taken the wrong route to Tereniang trail and overtook them twice. At the exit point from the forest, I saw XuanJing and made some funny posture to be photographed. The first loop took 1.15 hrs which was much later than my usual pace. Never did I expect the terrain of the trail has such a significant impact to the timing.

Before finishing the second loop, my stomach started to grumble perhaps due to the acidic drinks (100plus). It was weird to run with noises coming out from your stomach. The second round took nearly the same time as the first. However, I could not feel the cushioning of Asics GT2110 during the second loop and changed to my New Balance shoes at the transit point.

The third round had turned into a floury experience. At 25km, I suffered a terrible cramp at my right calf and dropped onto the ground suddenly. I couldn’t raise up my right leg and lying there helplessly. Luckily, there were 2 runners offered their immediate assistance. The young chap helped me to pull my calf muscle while the lady applied her Yoko Yoko on my calf. Feeling relative recovered, I jogged slowly and walked whenever I felt the cramp was coming back. The Yoko Yoko worked in an amazing way. It was more effective than the deep heat I applied usually. However, I could feel the burning sensation on my right calf, and the color of the skin surfaced with red. It took me 1.30hrs to complete the third round and I saw PS was behind me at the transit point. I was puzzled by her performance since this wouldn’t be her usual timing.

My strategy was to listen to music for the last 2 laps. For the fourth round, I still felt the cramp kept coming back. I walked on the up slope and ran during the down slope to shorten the time coverage. It was a recovery run for me and it took me around 1.45 hrs to complete. The heel and outsole of my New Balance shoes, which served me loyally over all these years, had came off totally. I needed to change back to my Asics GT2110 again.

In my last lap, I had relied on my thigh muscles to move my legs instead. I was running with Ronnie for a relatively short distance and undecided if I should make one last dive to complete the entire experience. However, the lurk of my past experience at four years back where I nearly couldn’t walk after suffering from a cramp still haunting me. At the first water point, I inquired for any deep heat offered at the last water station of the loop, hoping that at least I could make it there and savage the situation if the problem occurs. But it was not available. Subsequently, I saw PS behind me at Raffles Range and decided to have a one last try. After a short distance of run, the cramp stroked again!! I kneel down on the ground for a moment attempting to recover from the sudden pain. My face must be showing with great pain as the volunteer from the race advised me not to run anymore. Nevertheless, I still continued and delivered more power to my thigh muscles. PS and me were not far from each other and we came across Trevor. Trevor informed me that Michael, Chin and Freddie was not far away. I left behind PS and Trevor and managed to catch up with them. We were walking and chatting along the way. When Freddie spotted PS was catching us soon, he warned us to begin our run. We were picking up our pace quickly. I couldn’t help it. The event was rather funny as if PS was some horrible monster trying to eat us up. :P Along the roadside of the route, I attempted to pace PS. I sensed that she couldn’t like the idea. I still continued and kept praying the cramp would not come before reaching the end-point.

Eventually, I finished the five loops at a total timing of 8hrs.When I reached the finishing line, my whole energy seems to have vanished into thin air immediately. I was feeling giddy in my head perhaps due to lacking of sleep. Vincent from MR was complaining about me for dirtying the finishing t-shirt. Well, this was liked him. Sometimes, he would be nice and while times he would be very grumpy. PS continued to go for her sixth loops. I was resting at the finishing point, waiting for my certificate and chatting with Freddie, Chin, Michael, Trevor, Ronnie etc. They encouraged me to go for one more tried. I did consider but remember doctor’s advices not to run for long distance for the time being. There would be another race next year. Before I left, I took a picture together with Trevor, Alber, Michael, Chin.

On my ride back with Michael, the weather began to rain heavily. I was worrying for Lai Chee and PS (Presumed she would attempt for the seventh round somehow due to her regret at Mt Faber Ultra-marathon) would be caught up in the rain. Again, it was seasonal rain and did not look like it could extend to Marichite. Later, I was totally thrilled to learn that PS had completed her seventh loops and broke her record. It was amazing and I admired her perseverance, as I wouldn’t be able to run for nearly twelve hours surrounding with the same scenery repeatedly. :)

In the end, it was a good closure for this year. Although I haven’t made any plan to stay or leave for next year yet, I wish I would have a new fresh start and opted for a better change to the things happening around me.

This was the first time I ever listening to music while running. Seriously, I am lacking of hill trainings. However, I could not yet able to turn up for the Safra run. Whenever I come back to this place, old memories flow back.

Never do I believe running is an individual thing. Even the greatest runners in the world have to work hand-in-hand with their coach to achieve amazing results. However, at this moment I chosen to run alone. As I was running along the Mt Faber loop, I was totally lost in the midst of my thought. I could not remember how many rounds have I ran but definitely be more than six. At the Mount Faber, there was the music, the hill and me only. Although I hate to admit it, but I know that as I run more often alone. The running experience is longer than simply an exercise for me anymore. It has transformed to be a place of my sanctuary. I am lost but never have I known I am so lost in thought that I have lost my house keys…….

What would you want to do on a windy and cloudy afternoon?

For me, I cycled o East Coast MacDonald, which took me about 1hr 38mins to complete the round trip journey. Made a stopover at Vivo city and surprised to find the mono-rail had commissioned.

This is perhaps the quietest Christmas Eve I ever been through. Hmmm.. What did I do in the past, apart from Christmas party, Discos, Countdown, Get-together Session and Singing Christmas Carol? Ha.

At 11pm, I took a walk along Orchard Road to feel the Christmas atmosphere before it fades away. As usual, the street was crowded with people. It had somehow turned into battlefield with youngsters spraying snow foam at each other. I had also become a victim in one of those duels. Nevertheless, the whole scenes had made the festival mood livelier. Also, there were some shops hadn’t closed. Among them was Taka Jewelry, else there were workers still working at the building opposite Centerpoint. By the time I reached Raffles City, it was 12pm. I heard the Church bell rang. Christians were gathering in the Church singing the Christmas Carol and in memorial of the arrival of Jesus Christ. The scenery seems so peaceful.

For me, I was feeling content being a bystander watching the crowds with one hand holding my “Kit-Kat” ice-cream cone….

I could not remember when was the last time I ever go for trail run at Macritchie. I was overslept this morning and arrived much later than my usual timing.

Despite the shower from yesterday, the beginning of the trail was relatively dry. After running for 5km, I was surprised to discover a toilet at the junction between Pierce trail and Sime track. That was totally something new to me!! (That shows how long I have not been to Macritchie Trail Run). J Since Sime Track was closed, I took the Pierce track and made a detour to Tree-Top, which located within 2 mins run on a steep slope. Although I knew the bridge is safe, but I naturally reduced and lightened my speed and footsteps when running on it. At the Petaling Trail, it made up of staircases and somehow transformed the whole running experience to staircase training. After bypassing the golf course, the trail was getting muddier and slippery. I nearly skip a few times. I hope before and on the day of Ultra-marathon, there would be no rain or else I have to seriously consider getting a pair of trail running shoes. About 500m away from the Macritchie toilet, I bypassed Jane and Yihui from the Singapore Women Everest team. When I was considering whether to make another loop, I saw Soh Huan and Eng Hwa. Soh Huan was asking me if I am joining the Safra Run. Ha.. :(

While waiting for the bus, I felt a pain at my left thigh. Perhaps I strained it during running or so. Back home, I used the Flexi-Hand Massager, which KC had rejected, to massage my left thigh. It sure felt good..

The plan: To cycle from my house to East Coast again. The result: An on-and off shower and 2 stopovers at Tanjong Pagar Old train station and Raffles place. Finally, I decided not to inflict any more damages than caused by the rain and clean up my bike instead. Therefore, I made a return trip back from Esplandane.

The cleaning up had taken much more efforts than I expected, partly due to my negligence to maintain the bike for all these years. First, I used a damp cloth to clean the body part of the bicycle. That was easy and quick. Next, I had to disassemble the rear wheel to clean the chain portion. The chain was full of grease and rust after years of exposure to sun and rain.( I left my bike on the balcony) I resorted in using a sandpaper, filing or craving tools that I could find to clean out the obstinate rust. It was a tough battle and needed a lot of patience. Like a good lady stitching a broken trouser, I sanded and rubbed the rust away each and everyone of the roller chain. It took me at least an hour to finish the task. L Subsequently, it was my pedals turn. It didn’t look good either, and stained with rust. I took my craving tools to scrub the rust away from both inside and outside of the pedals. I promised after today, I won’t ill-treat my bicycle again. Ha After finishing the 2 most troublesome parts, I began to clean up the front and rear bracket. It was full of dirt, grease and contained sand. After removing the dirt and grease, I utilized a brush to get rid of the sand hidden in the deep corner side of the brackets. Finally, the last part was the gear portion and it took me a while to finishing it off.

By the time I done with the “Spring” cleaning, it was 10.30 pm. I went to the newly opened 24hr Malay food shop and ordered a “Maggie Goreng”. Not really fantastic but would be enough to fill up my small stomach.

The movie tells it all. :)

A pouring wet experience!! This was the adventure I gotten on this ever Hara Raya Haji holiday. Nevertheless, it was fun and full of laughs. I wouldn’t miss for a second chance. :D

We all gathered at Changi Jetty around 7.30 am. There were 20 totals of us. The weather seems to be kind since it had been raining continuously for the past few days. It looked like we could enjoy a dry morning and afternoon after all. I had decided to rent a bike with the rest instead of using my own. (I am too lazy to clean my bike if it caught hold in the rain.)

Setting Off
The cost of renting a bike was $10 for a whole day trip. It was those mountain bikes with fat tires, wide seat and heavy body weight.(*Disappointed*) Surprisingly, when I sat on the seat, it was relatively stable, and not using too much strength to peddle the wheels. After a hassle of adjustment made on the equipments here and there, we were ready to set off.

At the jetty station, I saw a few cyclists crossing the sea to the same destination as us. Their bicycles were mostly those MTB equipped with semi-slick tires. At the sales counter, the staff member told us that we needed 13 people to fill up the bumboat full before it could depart. Since we had 20 people and not wanting to waste time waiting, we decided to pay for the extra 3 empty seats not taken by anyone. After the staff member recorded our names, we loaded our bikes one by one onto the bumboat. And guess what!! The staff member turned out to be the bumboat driver too!!

After 45mins ride, we had reached Pengerang, but our blessing had vanished to the thin air. The weather started to pour immediately when we touched on the Pengerang jetty station with the wind growing stronger. We booked the bumboat driver to meet us back around 3.45pm by paying off our deposits first. The station closes at 4pm. (see left)

The Ride
After an half an hour wait, we decided to cycle in the rain while those without raincoats would catch a cab and meet us in town instead. The road was relatively flat with few up and down slopes. The whole route was straight with only one right turn heading towards the town. During the ride, the raindrops had been splashing on my eyes. (My cap had lent to Hwee Li). I wouldn’t open my eyes and been blinking them on and off. I did try to wear my shades and naively to think it might block the water coming to my eyes. It was not effective and I better off without the shades. The raincoat that I bought at Bali did help to keep my shirt minimum dry. After a stopover for photo session, we arrived at 11/2 hr later for a distance of around 17km.(see below)
The Town
The Sungei Rengit was a relatively small town. We met the other 5 whom took a cab down there. The cost of arrival was RM18. Apparently, they had started their feast. (see left) We split into two tables and our table ordered a “Lobster Set Meal C” which cost RM280. I fond of the vegetables and the soup particularly. The butter lobster and chili crabs also smelled good too!! Contrast to what I pictured, the lobsters were those small ones and the chili crabs were in mid-size. My friend told me that the crabs were caught from nearby shores. Overall, the whole dishes tasted super!! My stomach was too full and lazy to ride back. Ha.. The rain hadn’t been stopped yet.

The Ride Back
It was a non-stop ride back to the jetty, which took me around 1hr On our boat ride back, the rest couldn’t stop taking photo shots on this memorial day. We disembarked to Singapore at 4.30pm. I was completely exhausted and slept in the MRT train…..

A Christmas poem i sent to Beth.. (my so-called Wife from US) :p ..

A Christmas Card,
Represents my missing of you,
Loneliness am I in SG,
My heart belongs to the winter land of Seattle,
Every single drops of rain,
Reminds me the moments we been together,
Yet so far but feels so near,
Here I now,
In the middle of this drizzling night,
Wishing you a Merry Merry Christmas,
And an ever best coming New Year.

It has been a while since I last ran at MR. I decided to do a slow and steady run alone from Macritchie to Seletar reservoir in the morning. During the run at 13km mark, I saw Yuen and informed that Soh Huan, Eng Hwa, Goole and Uncle Chua was doing a 20km run too. I managed to catch up with them at the Seletar reservoir toiler. We had a quick chat and I continued running on my own. On the way near to Macritchie, I saw some of the MR runners and they gave me a good thumb up. In the end, estimated to complete the distance within 2:10 hr. Ok for a slow and steady morning run. :)

In the afternoon, met my cheerful cousin and we chit chatted and joked with each other for 2hrs. Ha.. At night, I met up with Partrick and we had a dinner together exchanged our views about BG relationships. Tomorrow, most likely I had to give my response to reject another job offer. And lastly, I have received an email for allowing to take my PMP certification test.

At 4pm, the Christmas party started. It was raining heavily outside still. To begin with, we had our usual singing and gaming session. There were many unfamiliar faces, mostly because I hadn’t been to Church for a long time and the party was organized by another cell group. Still, after a period of games and laughter, I am able to mix with the group. The catering was late due to the heavy shower outside. It arrived at 6pm but without the desserts. After an indecisive moment whether to have the desserts delivered, FengQing requested the delivery woman to send it to us around 9pm.

Before our Christmas feast, we had our usual gift exchange. It was a simple arrangement for this time round. Each of us picked up a number and passed the present to the person who holding the next number. At the same time, we needed to express our wishing to the receiver when giving the present. In my plot, I sang a wishing song to my fellow sister. :p Judging by the crowd response, I must say I done rally well. Hahaha,

Subsequently, we had a taste on the food. The catered food was rather good and I liked the curry chicken especially. Despite of taken my lunch at 2.30pm, I finishing 3 plates of rice. The last event was a short inspirational movie clip. Finally, I helped up with the packing and cleaning before going back home. It was 10pm at that time…

Not much has practically done today. I went to the Safra gym to do some body training in the late afternoon. After the gym, I took a slow run from MF Safra to Kent Ridge Park bypass the curving South Buonea Vista Road. It was a slow jog which took me 1.45hr to complete, 15 mins behind my usual pace. Last, I decided to drop off at the Border reading some books to nurture my mind…

A poem that i thot of while running on this drizzling night..

The night is red,
The sky is drizzling,
No sight of life,
Few sight of cars,
A white figure,
Slowly taking its shape,
His running steps,
Rippling through the silent sphere,
Puddles of water,
Pulling his soaking shoes,
Struggling is he,
Raising his strained legs,
And alone he sprints,
Dashing to the darkness end.

Today it rains for the whole day. I can’t remember when have I started to fond of rainy days. Because of the cool weather (Singapore is a tropical country)? At this moment, I would look out through the window and watching at people scurrying around to look for a shelter for escapade. This is the time when everyone stops his or her footsteps and stay closely together to avoid the raindrops. The barrier or defensive wall built between people seems to vanish in the midst of the rain. In my mind, I would wondering if those pedestrians on the street are rushing back to their cozy little house sitting closely with their families watching TV programs. Laughters and joys fill the room. There is a feeling of warmth and closeness in the atmosphere despite the cool temperature.

Every time, it rains.. Memories keep flowing back through my mind..

Tonight, I went down to Chinatown looking up for any good dinner around as I tired of the food near my house. As I walking down the street, I saw a number of unfamiliar shops selling China Cuisines setting up at there. Chinatown has not failed its name as one of the best food paradise in Singapore. The photos of the Cuisines hanging out of the shop are alluring. One of the shops that caught hold of my attention is “Feng Bo Zhuang Jiu Jia” (www.ahfbz.com).

The decoration of the shop resembles those in the martial art movie of ancient China. Sadly, there was no customers inside. Still, the unique names of the dishes were interesting. Every dish takes the name of a martial art. Two shops away, there is a desert stall packed with customers which was a total contrast from “Feng Bo Zhuang Jiu Jia”.

As I walking in a circle, I discovered another vegetarian restaurant newly opened at the cross junction of Havelock Road and South Bridge Road. The vegetarian foods remind me of those I had in Chengdu.

Next, I headed towards the newly open temple. The temple was dazzling and beautifully lit up. I entered and there was a huge Buddha status sitting in front of the hall surrounded by countless mini-size Buddha status. I took 3 joss-sticks and prayed for my family’s safety. The temple attendant told me that I needed only burned 1 joss-stick. It is the thought and sincerity that really matters. How true…

In the end, I had a glass of “Tek Tarih” at the Maxwell Market and took a bus back home.

This is my third Marathon race.. but my 4th time participated in Singapore SCM.

Feeling not well, I took some medicine before the night of the race. As usual, I couldn’t able to fall asleep the night before any of the race event. The effect of medicine had caused dizziness in my head. I could feel contraction in my hands and left leg muscles at 3am and my heart was pounding.

This afternoon, a small helping hand to the Church Christmas decoration has been liked a wind that blown away my dismay for the past few days.

There were about twenty of us. We gathered all the items at the Church hall from the 5th Floor. HweLi, our “Chief Commander”, communicated her ideas and gave instruction on how the decoration should be done. Some of us responsible to saw the wood, some sew the clothes to make a curtain, others started to make little ribbons etc to hang on the wall, while the rest and me were supposed to decorate the Christmas trees - a total of three at different floor level. The task to decorate the Christmas tree was harder than I expected. Discounted the fact of the weight, me and another buddy had to keep shifting the tree of one place to the other. Each of us had different opinions on where the tree should be put. After 4 shifts, we decided to place the tree near to the stage. FengQing taught me on how to make ribbon so to hang it on the tree. It was quite fun and the finishing product was dazzling.. Next, we needed to decorate another Christmas tree at the ground floor.

Today, I official out of my student classification and fall back to the category of unemployment. I must admit there are difficulties for me finding me what I want. Interviewers being telling me I so good in my previous line that I shouldn’t have attempted a new career.. In fact, many of them were encouraging me back to my old job.. Truth, I listen but it is between the fine line of reality and what I want to achieve in Life.

Life, the simple four letter words but with profound meanings. Wait!! Isn’t this blog about friends & Food, all the good stuffs without any serious note!! Well, got to forgive me since this is my blog. :P

Ha.. I admit, there’s no simple solution and it’s simply don’t!! And we all just have to hold on to our values and beliefs to make every possible step – Faith.

Faith has failed me times to times but are we going to let go? No, the answer is not. Without faith, life would be meaningless with nothing to believe or live on. Looking back, I have three turning points in my life , including the coming now, and be fighting all my fate ever since.

I won’t bored you all my details and sorrows whatever. We just have to look ahead.. no matter what. I ever chanced upon a Hallmark Channel’s “Life is drama” blitz with Tan Keng Hua talking about Midlife Crisis. It is inspiring and seeing how she has achieved “change” to push her to live better. Is not liked climbing “Everest”, but what would be more commendable than fighting on and overcoming all the obstacles in life? I would say it is much tougher when compared climbing a mountain. The mountain will be there forever, but goals tend to shift as time flew and lost forever. Just liked doing a climb, you need good stamina and health. As for reality, the truth sense of enable “change” is your FINANCIAL means resembling those of your stamina. The trek would be treacherous and weather would be bad. A shelter is where your LOVED ONES, FRIENDS and FAMILY are there providing you. And well, if summit could not be reached, don’t lose heart as there always be another summit to reach for. And who knows, by chance it will come by again and you may reach a greater height. Everest does rise every year hor..

In addition, it needs the will and mental strength to reach a Summit. What this has transformed is your FAITH. The faith is the mental strength that inspiring you to move on..

In the every last, it is also a matter of luck of having good weather etc. That would be translated into THANKFULNESS. Without thankfulness, we tend to attribute our failure to someone or some events. But, thankfulness helps us to see a better light of everything even things do turn sour. The positive energy of thankfulness will transform into good Karma and tends to change our luck into better sense.

In conclusion, before anyone would make a “change”, always assessed these four elements – Financial, Faith, thankfulness with friends, family and loved ones surrounding you. Without any of these, reaching a summit would be nearly impossible. Or it would be fake summit which in fact there is a greater peak rests ahead.

I congratulate all whom have able to achieve their goal and treasure what you have (like enjoying the scenery) before making back to the base camp. :) God Bless..

What a same day of PS's bday that I have received 2 gifts from U.S. at the same time – Rachel and my dear wife, Beth. Even though we have not known each other for too long, but it is too kind, and delighted to receive gifts from them so far out…At least, kind of making you think that somewhere in the middle of nowhere, you still feel a sense of existence.When I opened Rachel's Bday card, I am amused by her writings on it.. Ha, Her card sure knows how to comfort people and never fails to make you feel a generation older. Hmmm.. Better not celebrating my bday too much, else getting older more soon (See left)

As for my beloved wife from U.S., she has sent me a Mush Mallow Candy.. Yup. Those types which you given out during Halloween night.. Well, all rite, I can’t complain much since it is Halloween over at U.S. The candy tastes really sweet, and guess I have to develop some bad tooth after finishing off.. She’s so full of surprises…Inside the Bday card she has sent me, I dropped a piece of paper on the floor… My jaws dropped when I saw the picture on it.. Gosh!! It was giving me nightmare and not for the frail heart to see it.. See the pic and you will immediately KNOW what I meant…And Wait. .Is she in her wedding grown or what!!!

Last but not least, this year has been much difficult for me, emotionally and physically.. Still, I treasure much from all the friends whom sending me wishes.. HuiLi, WeiMei, Dave, BeeHua, Eddie, Tania, Henky… and lots of many of my MBA classmates & Buddies of my secondary school friends. Special thanks to them whom made the occassion so much memorable..

It has been quite a while since I last celebrate my birthday. To be honest, I am elated of able to rejoice this joyous occasion with good friends around me – Alvin, PS and KC.

After an hour of waiting for PS and KC, we drove down to Robertson Quay as suggested by PS. Coincidently, this is the same venue I have mentioned in my previous posting. The choice of restaurant for selection is not difficult. There are a number of decent Japanese restaurants around there. Finally, PS wanted to get a try on “Menya Shinchan Japanese Noodle Restaurant”. It is a small restaurant that hides at one corner of an alley, which is a short walk opposite the funny looking bridge. There were two or three waitress serving the customers and the Chef was once the President of Ramen Society. Is that such a society??? The restaurant looks like those traditional type Japanese food stall we often see in those Jap Drama with a bar located right opposite to the kitchen. The place was crowded and we had to wait for our seats under the hot afternoon sun. ( http://www.oishii.sg/banner/shinchan/site.html )

Address: Menya Shinchan Japanese Noodle Restaurant
30 Robertson Quay
#01-05 Riverside View
Singapore 238251)

As we were waiting, I had noticed there were quite a number of native Japanese customers. Somehow, the ability of the food to fulfill their taste bug should indicate a good standard and quality of the restaurant. The waitress told us that they actually served three kinds of noodles for different dishes, the slim, medium and thick size. PS ordered Tonkotsu Miso – one of their renowned dish. Well, no need for me to describe.... The picture tells it all. Is humungous!!!

Alvin and KC ordered those Ramen with Soup. I ordered a Tsukemen. The soup of theirs tasted good but the best choice still fall back to PS’s Tonkotsu Miso. It was not that salty as compared to the rest of what Alvin and KC were having. I would recommend friends coming here for some home-cooked Japanese Ramen. The taste is quite traditional...

After finishing the noodles, we opened up the box contained three slices of cakes from Centre Ps Pte Ltd, 78 Guan Chuan Street, #01-43, S(160078). It is a new shop locates at Tiong Bahru area. The cakes ordered were Mont Blanc, Cru Royale and Gateau Opera. The packaging was good. I plucked a candle in one these small little cake and had the rest reluctantly singing a birthday song for me..... Felt like childhood memories coming back again!! :P

For the cake, it is 7 dollars a piece – hotel price. Must really thank Alvin and the rest for buying me the cakes and gift, plus his IceWine imported from Cananda.

My birthday present??See below:

1. PMP Certification
2. JLPT 4
3. National Certification in Mountaineering

It is one of those days that you do not have the spirit and feelings of achieving anything. Probably, it could have been the lack of exercise that been killing me all this while. (Many of you know I suffering from knee pains for weeks and cut down my running mileage).

Feeling bored, I decided to cycle my way along the Singapore River during the evening. The night of Esplanade was beautifully lit up. Groups of runners could be seen along the runway.
Hmm. In my mind, I wonder are they belonging to Blazing Outdoor Adventure Group.
( http://www.boac-online.com/ )

I continue all way aimlessly for another hr before deciding to head back. When I reached “The Quayside”, I realized the place is different from the weekends. It is blazing with life and noticed a few cafes that usually not opening. I decided to explore my way in. And guess what?? Immediately caught my eyes. is the “Laurent Café and Chocolate Bar”..(http://www.hungrygowhere.com/laurent_s_cafe_chocolate_bar_former_the_chocolate_factory) It is formerly called “The Chocolate Factory”. The café has the concept of separate chocolate room and bar offering a range of chocolates and desserts. Feeling a urge, I went in and took a look in their menu.. Well, scanning around, the business is looking good and the dark chocolate is so sinful. *Drooling*. Ha.. that along comes with a pricey tag.

Then I proceeded further and discovered a new Jap café decorated with second handed Japanese books. Feeling curious and allure by their decoration, I went in and poked my busy noise around. Apparently, the waiter told me that the shop is selling the concept of home-made Japanese food. I not especially attracted by the food and the books. Sure feel good!! Sitting at one of those lazy afternoon, facing the river and reading my Japanese comics. (Must tell my Jap friends of this great place) :P

http://www.bongout-cafe.com/index.asp

Some of the advertisements at the door caught my eyes when I was about to go. It seems a few magazines have recommended the café. But one of those that caught hold of my attention is the “Time Out Singapore”.( http://www.timeout.com/sg/en/ ) It is an online magazine featuring some of the coolest place or events happening around Singapore.

After a few more exploration, I spotted a few good pretty pubs and cycling back to home..

1. Meizu Mini Player