Men (and Ladies) in Pink

As some of you already know I joined a really awesome social touch rugby group when Chris and I moved here.
A short while ago this awesome group planned something that was awesomely awesome: Midnight Madness.
MM as it's become abbreviated was a tourney style rugby game where we picked teams of 6, picked a team color, and stuck with it all night as we went head to head with every team until one was named champion.
Our team color? Team Pink.
Our team uniform? Tutu's.

Everyone that came was such a great sport.
Though team pink was the only one that showed up in fancy dress... with a fancy eski... and fancy pink cups to drink refreshing beverages out of... hey, I'm not complaining!
We played, laughed, pranced, ran, chatted and drank until the winning line-up was called.
We took second place (the tutu's gained us an extra 3 points... sneaky).
I have met some truly wonderful, unique, amazing people through this.

Thank you everyone for a great night, and for being great friends!!!

Haji Lane Brunch

We decided to explore Haji Lane on the weekend. 

Here's my opinion of it:

1. Funky, cool, relaxed, hip, artsy, casual/fun

2. Shop around for prices because a lot of the shops carry the same merchandise

3. Go in the late afternoon/evening - not many things are open in the early afternoon

4. Sit down somewhere and people watch

5. Explore every alley, nook and crevice - there are so many hidden gems here if you just open your eyes

6. Places to eat are a bit of a hit and miss I've noticed - go for the alcohol instead

7. Make sure to swing around to Arab Street as well!!

We went in the early afternoon (see #3 above), but luckily, happened to stumble onto this little gem of a cafe for brunch.

The place is called CAD Cafe. 

The people working there are great. The food was tasty. The decorations were clever, unique and nostalgic.

We were so happy with our little find.

CAD Florentine with a cucumber, mint, apple (if I remember that correctly) juice... mmmm.

Beef Bacon + Brie Sandwich with a tasty coffee to wash it down with... also soooo good.

We're planning a trip back here soon. Any recommendations of great bars, cafes, coffee shops, or anything else?

Singapore National Day

August 9th is National Day in Singapore.
This year was Singapore's 48th birthday and we celebrated it by watching fireworks from one of the best spots in the whole city.

We got up there just as the parade was starting (though you could barely see anything of the parade from so high up).
However the view of the city was pretty great.

Even though we didn't see the parade, we did get a very good look at the flyover, and while we waited for the fireworks we chatted up some new friends.

And then day turned to night...

...and the fireworks started.

I was a bit surprised at how short the show was... but then again I'm not sure it actually ended when we left because fireworks started going off again 20 minutes later.
If I'm still here next year I think I'll just catch the show on TV or go to a BBQ instead.
There were hoards of people when we left so we decided the best way to avoid them was to grab dinner at MBS, specifically at Carnivore, a little Brazilian churrascaria we've been eyeing up for a few months now.

  

What's a better end to a night than eating unlimited delicious meats, while fireworks are going off just outside, and there's someone playing the baby grand piano? Not much.
We avoided the crowds, had an amazing meal and didn't have to rush one bit.
Thanks for a great birthday Singapore!

SUP

I finally got to go stand-up paddle boarding (SUP) and it was amazing!

I've never surfed or done any water sports per say but this was easy enough to catch on relatively quickly. (And by "catch on" I mean I could stand on the board without falling over or sitting down for at least 10 minutes at a time.)
If you're in Singapore there's a great place in East Coast Park you should go to.
It's $30/2 hours, which is at least half the price of everywhere else (especially on Sentosa, that's really pricey).
They also teach a SUP yoga class... a bit advanced for my taste but maybe after a few more times on the board I'll try that out as well.

 Phone:9773 3045 | Address: 1390 E Coast Pkwy, 468961 (inside Windsurf shop in PA Water Venture)

Catalunya

I was extremely impressed by Chris's surprise for predinner drinks.
But when we got to dinner the stakes were raised even higher.

We walked along the waterfront and just as we were coming up the walkway towards MBFC the light show started.

We kept walking till we got to the restaurant,  Catalunya.
Having looked at the drinks menu before hand we had a slight idea of what we already wanted.
I had the Singapore Star to start. It was delicious and like nothing I've ever had before.

We were then taken to our private, cozy little booth over looking the CBD and given the dinner menu.

We looked and looked, and then we saw it...

Octopus a feira... The absolute best octopus I have every had. The sauce, the octopus, the sauce.
We could barely stop ourselves from licking the bowl clean.

And after the octopus came our main that we had decided on weeks ago...
The one, the only...

Suckling pig!!!! With a side of smoked mashed potato.
The piglet is so tender that the servers cut it up with the end of a small dish to show how easily the meat cuts (I give them an A+ for flair).

I had another cocktail with dinner, a Reverse Gin & Tonic.

It's a home made blend, comes out smoking, and only 50 of these a week are served. But I didn't particularly like the taste of it much.

The piggy is meant for 2-3 people, but Chris and I somehow managed to eat the whole thing ourselves (mostly Chris).

To top the evening off we had not 1, but 2 desserts. 1 that we ordered, and 1 that they brought out on the house.

We could barely move after dinner. We got home and couldn't even fall asleep from how full we were.
But, sufficient to say it was one of the best dinner's we have ever, ever had.