Seafood.. of East meets West!

Headed to Pasarbella at The Grandstand yesterday with a friend for dinner. And even though we had seafood the night before. It was seafood again yesterday! =)

Oceans of Seafood is a place where East meets West and we ordered a mix of both for sharing. 

Of course as the week passes. I have been having alcohol like daily. And yesterday was no exception. Japanese beers! The one in beige label is light but a bit sourish while the one in red tastes more like a wine than a beer. Bearing sweet yet bitter notes at the same time. 

So we ordered the sashimi platter where we had 5 kinds of fishes. Tuna. Blue fin tuna. Salmon. Sea bream and sworfish (if I'm not mistaken). Love the thickness of the slices! 

And we had makis too: California. Avocado. Soft shell crab.

And from the West we had blue mussels boiled and served with garlic butter sauce. I was saying that the sauce was good enough to spread on bread and toast it - garlic bread! =D

And miso soup of the day - fish!

And of course a lonely piece of unagi sushi!

One thing I enjoy about living in Singapore is the array of food across cultures and countries that are so easily at my fingertips. I can have local for breakfast. Jap for lunch and Mexican for dinner. Followed by Italian for supper. =) 

And I'm gonna have local zi char tonight for dinner! *yeahs*

Oooh lala!

I am a happy girl this afternoon! Coz I found my Philippines Mango right here in Singapore! 

Ok. So you all may be thinking I must be nuts talking about mangoes. Especially when it is not the usual mangoes but these from the Philippines! This box of 3 doesn't come cheap (S$5.99) which is almost $2 for 1 piece of mango. But let me tell you. It is so so so worth it! Even my mum who have never tasted Philippines mangoes before fell in love right after the first bite. =D

'There are many mango varieties in the Philippines. Champagne mango or Carabao mango is probably the most famous in terms of taste. This mango variety is the sweetest mango that I ever tasted. It is also the mango variety that the Philippines export to other countries.

There are different strains (breed) produced from Carabao mango — one of which is called Sweet Elena. If I am not mistaken, this breed originated somewhere in Zambales. Sweet Elena mango is the sweetest that I ever had. It is probably the sweetest mango in the world. There are also the well loved Cebu and Guimaras mangoes which are of world class quality.' (extracted from http://panlasangpinoy.com/2011/04/12/the-truth-about-philippine-mangoes/)

Every time I head home. There are 3 things I must have. Bananas. Beer and mangoes! =D The mangoes are really good. You should give it a try when you head over! =) 

Ok ok. I know my cutting sucks. =P

Horrors!

Horrors of horrors. 2013 is coming to an end. And I have yet to firm up my travel plans for 2014. =/

Picture taken in 2010 in Japan. =P

So I was thinking. I have a friend I met from my Tibet trip earlier this year who are asking me to go see the Niagara falls with her. But the trip is 14 days long. Then I have that 2 confirmed trips. 1 to Sri Lanka (7 days?) and Cambodia (5 days). And I haven't plan when to head home (Philippines - but usually 7 days). But I want to get to Perhentian (like 4 days?) as well! So if you do the maths. I'll end up using 15 days of leave. Do I really wanna go USA that bad? If I do go. That means I'm gonna subject myself to another year of torture of not being to head out at least once every 2 months. Which in other words means I'm gonna get a bad case of flu and possibly fever trying to work myself to death with minimum leave. =(

I wanna be happy travelling! Well. Who wouldn't? =P

I have only a month more to think and plan my leave out carefully. I wanna stretch them and cover new territories as much as possible. 21 days of leave. How should I plan? Hmmmz.

Alamak. I hate this time of the year when I have to start projecting my leave. *In Japan. It is known that people jump off this ledge here* =P

Liebster Nominations! My second Q&A

'The Liebster, which means “dearest” in German, is a nomination for up-and-coming bloggers with less than 200 followers.' Hahaha. And this's my second time doing it thanks to Sam from Beyond the 813! Thanks for asking! =D

So here it goes! 

1. How many stamps do you have in your passport and where are they from?

53. =) My most number comes from Malaysia (KL. Johor - many many. Malacca. Penang.) Followed by the Philippines (Manila - mostly in transit. Cebu. Puerto Princesa. Coron. Kalibo. Dumaguete.) I have Japan (Osaka and Narita.) Seoul. Brisbane. Indonesia (Batam and Bintan.) Thailand (Phuket. Bangkok. Krabi.) Luang Prabang. China (Shanghai. Beijing. Tibet. Chengdu.)

2. Do you consider yourself a backpacker or flashpacker?

More of a backpacker. I still pull my luggage along on some trips though! =P

3. If you won tickets to anywhere in the world, where would you go? You can only choose 1 place. 

Anywhere on the continent of South America! I can already think of the places I wanna go and how I'm gonna get around! 

4. What countries have you been to, this year?

Philippines. China. Malaysia. Indonesia. Korea. 

5. Do you have any trips plans for next year? If so, where?

Hell yes! =D Sri Lanka and Cambodia are confirmed. Still torn between heading to Philippines. USA. China and Turkey! 

6. Name 3 things, you always have to take with you on your trip.

Camera. My journal. Ipod! 

7. Do you normally overpack or underpack? 

Overpack I guess! I always come back with some excess (although it has gotten much lesser after all the practice! =))

8. When does your passport expire?

2015!

9. If you could go on a trip with anyone, who would it be?

Hmmmz. Probably that couple of friends who passes the 'travel test'! =D 

10. How far in advance, do you plan your trips?

Usually a year in advance due to work restrictions.

Have fun reading! =D

Liebster Nominations! My first Q&A

'The Liebster, which means “dearest” in German, is a nomination for up-and-coming bloggers with less than 200 followers.' This was the first I heard of it when Chelsea from Chelsea Postgrad Nomad sent me a nomination! Thanks for asking! =D

So here it goes! 

1) Would you rather (and why!)…have the ability to transport or fluently speak any language?

Ability to transport! Save me the hassle of thinking how to get there. Just go! =D

2) When have you felt most like a foreigner in your travels?

When I couldn't speak the language at all. And when all the words are in characters that are unknown to me. As long it isn't in Roman letters or Chinese characters I start to feel like an outsider. =/

3) Who has influenced you the most in your travel blogging?

The Drifters Blog. =D

4) What has been the most unexpected cultural difference (law, tradition, norm, etc.) you’ve encountered?

Hmmmz. This's a tough one. So far I would say none. Coz I respect all cultural differences with an open mind so nothing has surprised/shocked me so far..

5) What do you wish someone had told you before you took your first big trip abroad?

My first big trip was to Tibet: Wished someone had told me how dry the place could really be and how breathless I could get. 

6) TMI: Most embarrassing moment experienced during your travels?

When I was in Siquijor and riding a bike without a license and fell off the bike when going down slope. Not just 1 time. But 4 times. *super embarrassed* and when I got back to the place I was staying at. I was so worried about the cost of the rear mirror I broke and the condition of the bike that when the person in charge said that it was alright and the mirror cost only PHP100 (about S$3). I broke down in tears. So so relieved. =P

7) What is #1 on your travel bucketlist right now?

Getting a scuba diving license and swim with the whale sharks are in top spot with a tie of going Brazil for the carnival!

8) What are the top 3 must-have things you pack in your travel bag?

Camera. My journal. Ipod. =)

9) Best tip in budget traveling?

Plan and research well before going using different websites and books. And look out for those flash deals! =D

10) In a sentence, why travel?

It's my addition. =)

So here are the rules to the Liebster Nominations!

1. Thank the person who nominated you and link back up to his/her blog.
2. Answer the 10 (or 11!) questions which are given to you by the nominator.
3. Nominate other bloggers for the award who have less than 200 followers.
4. Create 10 questions for your nominees to answer
5. Let the nominees know that they have been nominated by going to their blog and notifying them.

And the nominees go to (drum roll, please…)

Beyond the 183

GlobeTrotter Mom

Pamilla The SoloTravelMuse

The Globetrotting Canuck

Wander2Nowhere

Foreign Sanctuary

Here are your questions!

1) Why did you start blogging?

2) Is there any country that you feel insecure/unsafe to travel to?

3) If you have a choice: swim with the whale sharks or sky dive?

4) What is your most memorable travel experience?

5) If you were stuck on a deserted island. Who would you wanna be stuck with? =P

6) Where are you heading to next? 

7) Compact camera or DSLR? 

8) Which country would you want to celebrate New Year in? 

9) When the clock strikes 12 midnight. Who would you wish to be standing next to you? =D

10) Do you believe in the travel bug? (I know I do!)

Can't wait to read your answers! Have fun! =D