A Sunday at Suntec

When the sun shines on the mountain
And the night is on the run
Its a new day Its a new way
And I fly up to the Sun(Tec City)
                                       - George Baker, Paloma Blanca

Suntec City is huge. Five towers make for Suntec. Retail plus Convention Halls. It is the closest to Tanjong Rhu for H&M Kids wear, because they (H&M) have no kids' wear at Kallang Wave Mall. Options abound for Indoor Kids Playground. Polliwog, Cool de Sac are our favourites. You have a couple more I understand, but these two are where we frequently visit, and we came here to decide which of these would be our chosen venue for Tweety's birthday party. It is still a couple of months away, but since we could not get a booking last year, we wasted no time this year. Both of these have attractive offers for all-inclusive birthday packages but we finally chose one two days ago!

I previously published a few lines on the Swiss restaurant with a farmhouse feel to it, the March'e.
I finally got to give it a visit with A and Tweety. The first time I went there was with a dear friend, where we ordered rolled oats, potato salad and some juices. This time it was the popular Rosti with a variety of creamy sauces to go along. A simple dish, fit for us vegetarians minus any beef or seafood. Shredded potato cooked in butter and turned the sunny side up. Will be trying this at home for sure, with my own creative tweaks...

 I get the feeling of being in a market on a Swiss mountain, although only Baden and Zurich are as far as I have been in Surreal Switzerland. Maybe its the carefully controlled lighting and the air-conditioning too?



You can fill your bowl with all the salad you can!

 Heaps of buns of all grains imaginable, greet you. The usher hands over a card which is swiped when you choose food at any counter and you finally pay at the exit. Mounds of fresh vegetables, along-with bowls full of roasted potato, soups and and salad items beckon to you on the right side, while pasta and pizzas are sizzling on the left side.



I should try meats one day soon

You move along to the ample seating areas where drinks and desserts are displayed. The central place is for freshly cooked Rosti , rolled oats and  roasted meats.
When it comes to desserts, need I say more? There's your diet plan going down the drain, while you gorge on carrot cakes, chocolate cakes and fruit pies. They even tempted me with fondue but restraint prevailed and I settled for one piece of pie on each visit...




I saw potatoes getting grated and pan-cooked - Rosti

Our picky eater chose garlic bread and nothing else. I ate the bruschetta that you see along :)


Garlic bread and bruschetta - among the lower priced items



Sinful desserts, so European

Typical Swiss products you see in the Zurich Airport



Oops these poor fish drowned in ice?

They have even managed to tuck in a tiny kids' play area, with a cow that kids can milk!

 

Burrp...we are ready for some more shopping now :) Promotions are always on at H&M, and I know not when all the garments I bought will be used. But the surprise du le jour was the IT Exhibition at the Convention Halls where we won some free gifts and bought a Sound Box we did not need...We went home late in the evening but not after a cup of hot filter coffee and some piping hot Idli-Vada at Saraavana Bhavan at the basement, since we saw much and ate just a bit at the Swiss wonder :)

Thus went a Sunday at Suntec.

 

Feedback helps

As the nation slowly comes to terms with the loss of its Founding father, it is a good time to look back in gratitude at some of my experiences of the excellent work processes and ethics here.

The gloom in the air slowly lifts...

This Friday I was waiting for the postman.

Please Mr Postman look n see...

if there's a letter, a letter for me..[The Carpenters]

Waiting for a small registered article from India. How did I know he was coming on Friday? Because I got a note in my mail-box ten days ago, that we missed the delivery. We had a choice to either collect it, have it redelivered or have it delivered at any other Post Office of my convenience. Not having read the delivery note properly, I fretted for many days wondering how to go to the Post Office without spending twenty odd dollars in the cab, or without spending time changing buses to go to the PO. It was then that I decided to call up the Post Office, and the friendly assistants there bowled me over asking when I would want the item delivered again, and if there was anything else they could assist me with. And no, we do not charge you anything for redelivering it….what!!! Unbelievable.

It pays to give a feedback…

When I am impressed with a shop or a product, I compliment the store keeper. Similarly, when I am not satisfied, I give a feedback too.

Once I sent pictures of an item to a popular hypermarket, saying that it was expired on the day I bought it, meaning it should not have been there on the shelf itself. They promptly wrote back that that was an isolated incident and I would get a full refund. I did, on my next visit. Another time when I was not satisfied with a product, I had a discussion with the store and they dropped a $5 voucher in my drop-box, for my feed-back. This reminds me of another incident back in India…

 My favourite brand of Digestive biscuits turned out to be not as crisp as they were supposed to be. Since theirs is such a popular brand in India, I wrote to them. In a few days I got a phone call from them asking for more details which I gladly gave. Thanking me and apologising for the inconvenience, she took my address, saying she would send a representative to get more details from me. I was very reluctant to go on and on about it, but she played Santa! She sent me a gift hamper, full of their yummy products. But let me point out here that the representative simply said to sign on a piece of paper stating my comments, which I did. He was about to go away, and only when I asked him why exactly he needed me to sign, he produced the hamper which was rightfully mine…what did that mean? He wanted to take my signature of receipt and keep the hamper for himself? Ouch. If only he had asked me I would have gladly given it to him, thinking that his need was perhaps greater than mine.

There is a feeling that you are helping someone improve, by not being silent, by not simply giving up on a particular product. Do share some of the results of your feedback friends.

Of Prayer Meets & Tasty treats

Kitchen Disaster management skills learnt in 2013 , dear friends...
             
   My cousins wondered what had come over me, when I informed them of the prayer meets I attend and host, and of the Bhagawad Gita sessions I am attending. Well, I have the time now to get a little spiritual, combined with the chance to meet people in this country where I have no close relatives to call my own.

                So, yesterday I offered to host our weekly prayer meet at my humble abode. I wanted to host a brunch party for this group since Diwali days but could not, because I had other parties to host and attend. Much against yourself, you tend to count how many parties you have been invited to, or your child has been to. That, I guess, totals your popularity ratings, which I never measured in India! Too busy working, to be involved in such trivia!

                Also since my husband’s birthday was round the corner, I had ordered part of the brunch over the phone, on a hitherto unknown caterer. But two days prior to the event, he feigned ignorance when I asked him if all was well with my order. “Which order, I get so many”, he went on in a rather unprofessional tone. That made me so jittery, I did not dare to inform my guests there would be brunch awaiting them after the prayers hah!

                The day finally dawned, after a night full of dreams of me drowning in the sea. I awoke breathing heavily, wondering who would drown me…two names that came to my mind – my helper, my caterer.

Well the caterer only partially drowned me, by overcharging me. But the drowning done by my helper was more damaging. She drew a blank when I asked her why I was not informed that the flour I needed for preparing the offering was finished, why my tea was not prepared as usual in the morning, why even after demonstrating how the brinjals should be cut, they were not done properly, etc. In fact, I had a premonition the previous evening itself, when I asked her to post an envelope in Block N. It went thus :

 “Which block did I say?"

“M”.

“No. What’s written on the envelope?”

No response.  I repeat. Then again “N”. She giggles with pleasure.

Again I ask “which block?”

“M”.

I stood dumbfounded...It was a miracle how she finally managed to put it in the right mailbox. How do I know? I asked the recipient.

Like I said, at 9 am, one hour before the guests were to arrive, I went to the kitchen and found the flour was almost finished. Speechless, I prepared how much ever I could, out of the last bowlfuls of flour. (I am also known for making food enough for double the number of guests each time.) The sugar needed to be ground but since I was running out of time and patience was running thin, I poured coarse sugar into it, poured unlimited ghee and raisins and emptied it into the big silver bowl which my parents so lovingly gifted this time they visited. Then the other offering of yoghurt, honey, milk, banana and ghee was prepared, the Panchamrit (Nectar of 5 ingredients). The Mandir was decorated hurriedly with chrysanthemum bunches bought from my favourite Giant Hypermarket the previous day.

Okay, all done, myself bedecked too, in Indian clothes from top to toe, albeit I forgot the bindi. The silver lamps were lit, and the first guest arrived at 10 am sharp. We waited ten minutes more and then started the chants when more guests arrived.
Prayers over, time for brunch! We sat around the dining table and shared bisibele bhaath (hot spicy dish of rice, lentils and vegetables), Masala vadas (deep fried spicy snack) and kesari bhaath (sweet dish of semolina). Finished with cups of hot tea while it rained outside. Some left, some lingered on while we chatted about this and that. Time passed quickly and gaily, in-spite of a guest who wiped her wet hands on my cream-coloured sofa and my white cushion. No amount of hinting helped here.

                Finally the time came to bid them adieu, and I slumped into my chair, relaxed and relieved it went well, in-spite of two of God’s creations conspiring to ‘drown’ me.

                So! Like I said, should I keep the prayer and the brunch invites separate when my human resources are not so resourceful? Or carry on, because 'All is Well that Ends Well'?

A weekend of Indian goods & Thai foods

Horse for your display case 

Avoided all the exhibitions of Indian goods last season. Me thought it was a waste of money and since we are on foreign shores, why not invest in the local stuff? But the shopping bug and the marketing strategy they employed got the better of me, so went along with a friend to the Swimming Club "just to see what they have". Just that morning we discussed among friends that any amount of material goods will not give a person happiness till he is happy inside. Well I am happy inside, so I shopped wisely I daresay!










Useful zip bags for saree storing at SGD 10 each

An Indian kurti at a reasonable price

I remember the time when we landed here two years ago, when I shopped at the Singapore Expo Halls for gift items for Diwali. The prices were quite competent, contrary to our expectations. Looking forward to go there again to bring you more updates...

Friday evening was Cinderella time...A Family Movie package at Filmgarde Kallang costs SGD 56 with two bags of popcorn and a choice of two drinks. Though people would claim they are going for their kids, its heart-warming for the adults too, to see how a poor little girl grins and bears it all, with "kindness and courage". Two words that stuck to me for an entire day...

Then it was Thai time. Down the stairs at Thai Express. While the kids are not very experimental with Asian cuisine, we ordered our usual favourites, vegetarian of course.

The first order was tender coconut water, quite distinct in flavour from our Indian variety.
Followed with fried Taro with cashew nuts. Then came pineapple rice, finished with a dessert of Mango with sweet glutinous rice and coconut milk. We never feel overfed or bloated with vegetarian Thai food, what do you think, do write in.

Presented in style: The humble coconut water

I am reminded of my trip long ago, to beautiful Baden, Switzerland. There was a Thai restaurant opposite to the Hotel I stayed. The restaurateur, a pretty Asian lady welcomed me and I had a dinner of rice and piping hot Thai style curried vegetables in a coconut gravy. Slurp! And that too in the cold wintry Swiss evenings. But alas, it was only when I tried being more adventurous the next night and asked for a chicken dish that I had to tell her I was suddenly not hungry and could she pack it?
"Not nice?"
"Uhm, its ok..."
And her face fell...she packed the food and I ran out to the restaurant of my Hotel, and managed to get some dry bread and cheese. He charged me peanuts maybe because that was hardly a meal...oh the travails of Indian diners travelling out of India!



All our lives, we South Indians have had coconut water sold mostly on the roadside, where we parked our cars after hot journeys, waited while the coconut seller hacked away at the coconuts, put the straw in with his not-so-clean hands while we haggled for a discount based on whether the water was sweet or bland. He then hacked out a 'spoon' for us, off the shell, to eat the flesh of the coconut. Then for the first time in the stylish Alkapuri, Baroda, we saw chilled coconut water since Gujarat was mostly hot throughout the year.

Never thought Taro or our "Arbi" in Hindi was so versatile!  What you see here is Taro, roasted cashew nut and bell pepper, all tossed in a flavourful sweet-hot sauce, with fried red chillies.



Fried Taro with cashew nut: Pueak Himmapan

Pineapple rice: Khao Phat Supparod Phak

 We loved the combination of the Taro dish with the rice dish. The dessert was passable since the Mango was not sweet and we felt that the coconut milk could have been chilled instead of warm. Whenever we order their coconut ice-cream we wonder why we never make it in Mysore, with its abundant coconuts. We once had their signature dessert - a combination of coconut ice-cream, roasted peanuts, orange sweet-potato and glutinous rice. Yum. Do they still have it on their menu?

Our dessert of mango, sticky rice and coconut milk: Khao Niao Mamuang

 Sunday was a day of engagements after Tweetie's Gymnastics by the beach, followed by a rushed lunch and a birthday party where kids frolicked in the pool, inside what is called 'Hamster Balls'...oh what can they think of next, in the kids' entertainment world...remember our own childhood where birthday parties meant cake and snacks for most?

But the highlight of the weekend was a soulful rendering of Carnatic classical music, by a very talented lady visiting Singapore. Again a trip down memory lane since the songs were what we learnt as kids.
It was because of this revelry that I forgot that today they are going to hack down and renovate our kitchen, first thing in the morning...

 

Navratri : Nine Holy Nights

Penned this post two years ago, reposting with some visuals...

Mysore, my normally calm city, would be bursting at its seams during Dushera or Dasara (October-November) with people thronging to indulge in the festivities. “Naada Habba” we call it. Meaning state festival.

Delhi observes fasting to please Ma Durga. Delhiites are also busy witnessing Ramlila (The story of Ram)and the Grand Finale on the Ninth night – Sri Ram burning down with his arrows the gigantic puppet of Raavan. Good triumphing over evil. (Since I have not witnessed Ramlila in Delhi, hope this play we saw in Bali would interest you...)

Ramayana (Kakawin) came to Indonesia around the 9th century!

 

     Singapore was not to be left behind in the festivities. It was Doll festival for the South Indians, which meant visiting a house every other day, for prayers, to see the display of traditional dolls and some yummy snacks. The dolls are handed over from generation to generation and are worshipped every day with offerings. We sang devotional songs. Should mention here that almost every traditional South-Indian family has its daughters trained in Carnatic music. 

Ram and devoted brother

             The eighth (Ashtami) and ninth day (Navmi) again were days of visiting Indian households, for young angels are believed to be avtars of the Devi and offered ‘prashaad’ and little gifts. They call it ‘Kanjak’. So, Saturday morning was spent in planning which house our little ‘Devi’ visits in which order of invitation, followed by lunch, by a dear friend who manages to have a very cosy and pleasant gathering each time she invites me!

Evening was spent with family and friends at a ‘Durga Pandal’. The idea was to witness the puja followed by cultural events. But the puja was delayed, so we offered our prayers and rushed to the near-by Kailash-Parbat famous for its Indian cuisine, before they shut shop.

            Having spent four years in vibrant Gujarat, how can I not mention their Garba/ Dandiya dance during Navratri? Every year while in Delhi, I longed to attend a Dandiya event but never got an enthusiastic soul to join me, not even my husband.  So again in Singapore, after having given up trying to convince my friends to join me for a Dandiya event, I finally got a call from a kind acquaintance, who accomplished the daunting task of gathering a good three families for the event! Oh how we enjoyed the gentle swaying to divine music in front of the ‘Devi Ma’, how the traditional outfits glittered, how the music flowed mellifluously - traditional Garba music which also adapted some movie songs very efficiently. The gentle clicks of the dandiya sticks while the crowd danced in two concentric circles had a feeling of bonhomie because you dance with everyone in the circle, turn by turn. I sweated myself out and forced the husband to dance along, reminiscing our Baroda (Gujarat) times where we did our first Garba dance with our friends. Later we gobbled luscious rasgullas and pav-bhaji. And finally a reluctant me was pulled out by my family, even as my favourite “Dholi thaaro” was playing, and pushed into the cab home.

            People argued on whether this past Sunday was Navmi or Dushera. We were not bothered. I did the same prayer daily and lit the same lamp. Except that today I got kheer made for the offerings in the evening prayers. Plus a festive treat of chana and puris for which the kids are waiting…

I get ready to worship the Goddess with friends

The week ended with another rapturous event – An evening of Magic show, Ventriloquism and Shadow puppetry organized by the Kannada Society. Watched with family and friends, more specifically, my childhood friend, followed by Mysorean delicacies – bisi-bele-bhaath (a spicy concoction of lentil, veggies and rice), potato bonda, Curd rice, balushahi (sweet dish) and boondi. Slurp!

I went to i12

 Just listened to the song on S-H-O-P-P-I-N-G by Pet Shop Boys, my old favourite.

 I do not go to Katong Mall every week just for shopping. Wednesdays its Ballet 'ceremony'. Yes, its a big deal for me and my younger one. She's just back from school and has no qualms getting ready for ballet. I hurry her through her evening glass of milk, fruit and egg. She gets into her tutu and we rush to get the cab to the Katong Mall, aka i12 (read "I want to") or 112 Katong. Once her ballet shoes are on and she's sent in, my weekly rounds of this 'Premier Mall of the East' starts.
 I have an hour's time to look around the Mall to see what is new, compare which shop is giving the best price for which items I need, check what stationery the kids need at my favourite Du Yi Bookshop which sells stationery for cheap.

 I feel that shopping for little things gives me greater joy than for expensive stuff. Once I got two pairs of Disney sandals for SGD 20, in pretty pink and clear blue. There is quite a choice for toys and gifts too. Bored of always gifting the same Board Games for birthdays, last month I chose a pretty pink lacy skirt with matching top, with the picture of a Ballerina, with a patchwork tutu on! The birthday girl loved it. I was happy too.



Easter goodies displayed tastefully

Supermarket Fairprice Extra near my home does not stock my favourite cereal Choco Crunch by Familia. So its time to go to Market Place, a sister concern of Cold Storage. After the alluring display of gifts and snacks for the Chinese New Year, its time for them to deck up and beckon to the Easter shoppers. I usually pick up TWO BITE Cinnamon Rolls along with Choco Crunch Muesli. 


The Market Place at the Basement

A quick round of Guardian Pharmacy in the basement just to stock up on Hello Kitty Plasters or Foot cream. Before that its a hunt for deals on toiletries and cosmetics at Watsons.
Lo! Its about time to pick Tweety. She usually has a play-date with her ballet-friend, who stays close by. "My best ballet friend" is what she calls Tweety. Their playtime starts right in the cab which we share on our way back home, if not in the ballet class itself! Many moms agree that their girls go to ballet mostly because they get to meet their friends.
    I mentioned Katong Mall in my previous blogs also. Its become so much a part of my routine. A few months ago, some shops shifted and of course, I made the maximum use of their Clearance Sales. But I miss the shop selling macarons at the basement. It was more expensive than MBS too, but was there when I wanted macarons so!

   Singapore is celebrating its Golden Jubilee this year. So this wednesday there was an exhibit of some of the famous personalities of Malay/Singapore, as a part of the ongoing SG50 celebration. Tan Kah Kee, called the Henry Ford of Malaysia and Tan Chay Yan, the first Rubber Planter of Malaya to name a few.

A girl there invited me to get my photo clicked on a Tablet, and then trace over it, pour out my feelings for the country and key in my details.
Voila! It got approved and I got an email stating so. Waiting for what happens next, whether it will be incorporated along with other entries in the link-way to the country's national Museum.

Portraits of the People

I want to bring you more juice on the happening i12 soon.
   

 

Holi Eve

 Holi has been a big thing for six year old Tweety. She readily agreed to come along with me to Little India, for two reasons: To get her favourite snack Kurkure and to buy colours for Holi, which we celebrated in our Condo this Saturday.
      
       Those who want to buy typical Indian stuff like garlands, prayer paraphernalia, typical Indian vegetables, spices,  food joints and festival specialities like coloured powder for Holi (Gulaal) visit Little India. And there are others, who want to buy Handicraft from the Little India Arcade.

        While hunting for colours in the line of shops along Buffalo Road, I picked up some Chaat Masala, Tamarind Rice masala and Kurkure (crispy spicy sticks). The fresh green vegetables looked alluring but since I had no trolley-bag in which to carry them, I stuck to the essentials. We met A and proceeded to Bikanerwallah for some chaat.



Bikanerwallah: A big name in India for chaats and sweets

     The name Bikanerwallah brings to my mind a contest I won in Delhi, several years ago, where Bikanerwallah asked their customers to pen a slogan for them. And whaddayaknow, a basketful of their sweets, cookies and savouries arrived!!! I was away on an assignment in Paris, but my family got to enjoy the spoils.
The slogan went thus: "Rajasthan ki shaan. Bharat ki jaan. Bikanerwalla....ah". We never thought that a few lines quickly penned and put into a drop-box could bring surprises like that.

Bangles & Bindis for that Desi look

     You get garments for cheap in Little India. We bought a pair of shorts at S$5 to play Holi in! I would not say that the bangle-shops can compare to what Karol-Baag in Delhi boasts of, but you have some variety here too.

    My appa can have a great time shopping for flowers here for his daily prayers, though he may not stop comparing the prices in his country...

.




Flowers remind me of home in Mysore

      We then walk past glittering small shops selling knick-knacks, Electronics, jewels and many "3 for 10" shops and head to the ...

 

City Square Mall:
Slides and swings at the entrance make the kids happy. This Mall has been an old favourite but apart from the Hindi movies we have watched here, I have seldom shopped. But what I came to know about this Mall was really touching - its an environment-friendly Mall as the posters indicate.

 

 

 

Toysaurus beckons with its vast choice of gifts and games for kids.
      Other favourite brands like Osh-Kosh Bigosh and Iora to name a few are tempting me to shop but we go to Toysaurus since Tweety has a birthday party this weekend. We end up buying more than we need. They even gift-wrap your purchases, for free. Shopping done, we zip past the shops in our ZooMoov ride for fifteen minutes of unadulterated fun!

 

Zip Zap ZooMoov

 

It was nine and we went for dinner to Tandoor, adjoining Mustafa Serangoon Plaza. An Indian meal of Gobhi Manchurian, Peas rice, simple fried Dal and Roti, with complimentary Papad and mint Chutney. Simple ambience and not too crowded, we finished the meal with piping hot jalebis, freshly fried at their outdoor stall. Resolving not  to head to the movies as a usual practice on Friday nights, we headed home and retired early, for the Holi revelry the next day.

Tandoor has some Awards to its credit too 





 



A Weekend of Edutainment

The National Library at 100, Victoria Street is a great place to spend quality time during the weekend or any other time. The endless rows of books, magazines and newspaper come in English, Tamil, Chinese and I know not which other language. I understand this is a Green library for children.

Check out the Children’s section, where we have a “tree-house” that kids climb up and do their reading.

Beneath the Tree of knowledge...

At the entrance of the library at the basement is a book-shelf where you can donate your old books. Of course you can pick up the books which others have donated, the idea being that you too pass on these books after you have read them.

They have regular story-telling sessions for children. I even met my favourite danseuse Mallika Sarabhai there, whom they had invited for a talk, since she was in Singapore for a performance at the Indian High Commission. For my friends who do not know, she played Draupadi in Peter Brooks’ Mahabharat for five years. My sheer luck, we happened to be there that particular Saturday! I got to hear her speak and get clicked with her, one of my role models, whose performance I used to hear about in the newspapers in India, but only after the shows were over… What poise and what confidence she exuded, like some apsara come down from heaven! When will I ever see her perform on stage but?

Almost celestial...Mallika Sarabhai!!

          Another weekend at the NLB, we bought tickets to a play "Puss in boots", laced with humour and wit for kids to enjoy. Fifty minutes of uninterrupted family fun. I remember my stomach growling and me not able to do anything because eatables were not allowed. I also remember a lady in the front row surreptitiously chewing some snack…maybe we were in the same boat.
                                                                                                                                                             Numerous exhibitions and Sales take place in the open space adjacent to the building.

Artwork out of recycled material
at one of the exhibits

There is a café in the building itself, and one just outside. I once had spaghetti with pine nuts that I am unable to get now in the outside café. They can whip up some delicious coffee also, that can go along-with one of their carrot cakes or cheese cakes. Don't forget that there is also a McD close by.


 Posing with the Desigual mannequins

Get a whiff of this perfume

The Malls of Bugis beckon. Head to the Bugis Junction and enjoy the ambience, with well-arranged kiosks selling handbags, soft blankets and the like. Check out the Sale items at Desigual, take in the glamour of the Chanel shop. Eat. We did not,  coz we already ate at the café by the NLB remember?

 

There! That's a full day well spent!



A wow cado

Nagu aunty, our neighbour in Mysore, gave us bags full of ‘butter fruit’ which grew in her backyard. We used to cut them open, scoop out the mildly flavoured pulp, sprinkle sugar and savour them. They had smooth skin, like green apple, rather than the rough skin of the avocado we know of. Never knew they were part of the family of the popular avocado. Maybe because it was never that popular in India.

After many years when I saw avocados in the super-market here, I wondered whether to buy them and what to do with them. I even bought one but tasted quite bland when I ate it without any accompaniment.

Recently I bumped into a kind friend at the super-market and I asked her what she did with the avocado she was buying, to which she simply said “Guacamole”. Oh that did it. I did not want to look like I was copying her outright. So promptly the next time I went to buy my groceries, I picked them up. The same night, I scooped out the pulp, added a dash of lemon, salt, added finely chopped onion and tomato and served it alongside Tortilla chips. My teen took a dip of my first ever guacamole and said “Oh this is the best ever.”



Yesterday I could not resist photographing some other exotic fruit at the Super-market, tropical fruit which we tasted for the first time in Singapore, Mangosteen, Pomelo and the Pearl Jamu fruit.
The not-so-unusual pineapple seemed to be dug up along with its baby-pineapples. Why?

 

 
 



Mangosteen was supposed to be Queen Victiria's favourite

 

Dragon fruit and pearl Jamu



The pineapple is a Bromeliad correct?



Pomelos are grown in India too

But the one that looked a little spooky was called Buddha Hand!!

Buddha Hand is supposed to have a lemony taste

Since the avocado bought last week was not going to last much longer, I cut it, turned half of it into guacamole because I specifically bought tortilla chips yesterday.

But it was the other half that was my original creation. I cut cubes of the avocado, added baked cashewnuts, cranberry seeds and sunflower seeds and sprinkled sugar, perhaps to remind me of my childhood days. You could add honey instead. Or sugar and coconut milk.

Can you tell which is guacamole and which my recipe?

Bon appetite.
 

Playdates & Public Libraries

Dear Friends
I wrote this one when we were new to Singapore, a couple of years ago, when I felt that every part of this city-Country was built with love and thoughtfulness.

"Ridiculous" was my first thought when I heard the word "Playdate". Thought it was a term used where kids stay in houses isolated from each other. "Why can't the kids just drop in and play? We live in apartments and are so close to each other, so why the formality of setting Playdates?"

That was many months ago, when my preschooler came back from school at 1.30 pm and had not much to do, except watch TV and play with whoever was playing outside. That's changed now. Wednesdays I take her to her ballet class, Fridays to her sports club, Thursdays she is practicing for her Diwali dance. Weekends she has to spend time with her parents, father especially (Meaning I am home 24x7). So that leaves us with practically Mondays and Tuesdays, where she is free to have Playdates, to play at the pool, or by the play area and that's how the routine of almost all the kids here is!

"Oh she has classes on Monday so we could meet up on Tuesdays. Fridays is her swimming lessons so we should set a Playdate on Thursdays" is how it goes here. Unheard of in India, for me, being a working mother and having only weekends to enroll kids in co-curricular activities :o)
      I am not sure whether my children are going to be ballerinas or basket-ball players, but the idea is to make sure they have a fair idea about them before they decide their future. And of course, not forget to have fun doing such stuff.

Nina, pretty Ballerina...[ABBA]

While I am on this topic of enrichment (that's what they call extra-curricular activities here), allow me to talk of the state-of-the-art libraries they have here, in this tiny, ultra-modern country, which makes visiting libraries an experience in itself. No long queues for borrowing books. It’s automated, you borrow from a machine as against the older days, and you drop back books in a drop-box. You are tempted to have a cup of coffee and a piece of pie or curry-puff from the in-house café that's spilling out fresh aroma into the silent library air. So you could browse the beautiful collection of books for all ages, and read non-stop while you are sipping away, seated on comfortable chairs and benches. It just adds to the feeling of well-being when the raindrops outside are pattering on the long glass windows. As with most public libraries in many parts of the world, there's not a penny to be paid to just enter and read. Just the thought makes me feel blissful, that there is such a thing as free lunches…

 And this is just the neighbourhood library we are talking about. I shall pen about spending a day at the National Library soon!

.....Its the little joys everywhere that make life worth living.
   

Drive on, dreamer!

My dear friends
I wrote  this a few years ago in India, about my experiences on the roads of beautiful South Delhi, those days of commuting to work without a driver...

On a dark desert highway...cool wind in my hair...(Eagles)

In the four years we spent in the little city of Baroda, Gujarat, where I learnt driving, I used to think that driving was nothing but sheer fun, where twenty kilometres of steering would take us almost to the end of the city.

            But when we made Delhi our home in 2003, it was with a Lot (with a big L) of apprehension that I started driving. The husband warned me about the constant hurry Delhiites are in. Nevertheless I ventured out, first to drop the little one to school, amidst her protests that she wanted her ‘Driver Bhayya’ only to drop her. (No, I don’t think she thinks I am a poor driver…)

So, after taking all the wrong turns, I finally chanced to arrive at the right road, Kalibari Marg. It was 9.30 A.M, just one hour late for her school. The return drive was more adventurous. I never knew that there were such pretty sights around Lutyen’s Delhi – tree lined avenues, manicured lawns, the colonial bungalows where the ‘netas’ live, the works.

 

 I was taking it all in, when I realized I was at the gate of one of the President’s estates. Before the guards could pull up the suspiciously wandering woman in a car, I took a detour with a sheepish smile and asked the ubiquitous autowallah (but when most needed, they disappear too…) for the right direction towards home. Many angry honks and wrong turns later, I finally headed towards the gate to my society, when….

             BANG! My friendly neighbour rammed into my car. I was already too upset, so I said nothing, just got off the car, took his car registration number plus his phone number and sped off, leaving him with an apologetic grin on his face. Oh, nothing came out of taking down his numbers, but that’s another story.

(And if you do want that story, it so happened that he was a very understanding neighbour who readily admitted to his fault on the phone and agreed to pay the damages! Since we (I) had prepared for battle, we were so taken aback that we never called him back, maybe because like me, my husband also never thought it was his fault?)

 

Didn't think I'd find this pic of our beloved old car..one of our first

             Another day when I was driving back home along the one and only one route I knew, I just wondered what would happen if someday my route would be closed for repair. I had, in my childhood, heard of the ‘Astu’ God who said ‘so be it’ to everything we think. He was at work that fine Tuesday. The road did close, and the cop directed everybody to the next road. Only trouble was that he did not tell me which way was home – rather, which OTHER way…..

            Sigh! With sole concentration on the road, I drove on, on and on, till I reached a hitherto unknown part of our Mega city, to be greeted by imposing flyovers, directing me to ‘Ashram’ and another one to ‘Mehrauli”, while I was sure my home was at Chanakyapuri. A nearby ‘Truck-wallah Bhayya’, not too happy to have been addressed so, directed me to go on ahead, with no brotherly intentions whatsoever. Better road and safety senses prevailed; I took the nearby U-turn, thankful to chance upon it. More honks. Growling stomach. Late evening, clouds thundering, announcing a downpour any moment. Heavy traffic……….. Another stroke of good luck! Hit the right road. Voila!!



CNY 2015 Holiday : Day 4&5

 

Saturday's highlights were the sumptuous dishes A and I cooked along with the usual lunch. The Jacket potato was his own recipe, creatively cut and presented to our dear neighbours who dropped in for a while. I made kheer with some leftover rice added to coconut cream and jaggery (gur in Hindi). The heavy lunch made me sleepy...but I woke up in time for our weekly Mythological story-telling session for kids, at a dear friend's place. Had a long walk home after socializing over potluck dinner.

 

Jacket potato for lunch

The helper's day off on Sunday gives us freedom to uninhibitedly sing, yoodle, prance, dance all over the house and just be ourselves...
Sunday evenings have been reserved for cycling with the younger one. My teen is happy with the fact that we have only three bicycles, which means she cannot be forced to go biking with us...
We sped past the sparkling river lined with shady trees, halted when tired and gorged on some parathas, popcorn, sweet-corn and fruit juice.
                          Dinner was egg omelette, Maggi noodles with peas and carrots. A also concocted some yummy vegetable soup which I am sure he will not be able to tell the recipe of. Instantly created and instantly forgotten is what he claims...It always thrills the kids when they come to know they are having Maggi for dinner and not the usual fare of rice, roti, sabzi and dal.

Sigh! Monday again but isn't everyday to be enjoyed...




Cycling and a picnic by the river

 

 

 

 

 

 

Simple and delicious Sunday night dinner