Really Jialat

The sun rises everyday. Different everyday. Since the first day it rose. Schools should start at 8am. Families can have a short 15 min moment each and everyday just anticipating and watching this wonder unfold. A good way to start. I was reminded that today is the start of the new COVID rules ... we do not need masks for outdoor. I guess the world managed to pull through this one for now. 

Special dedication to my beloved daughter. This is for her. She liked this very much and would always asked me when I would make one. Unfortunately, I only managed to make a couple of times over the many years. Tastes great when heated up and a dollop of vanilla ice cream! Very simple to make. Toughest part is skinning and slicing the apples! Pastry is basically flour : butter at 3 : 2 ratio. Cold butter  Filling : mixture of Granny Smith and red apples, more granny will be better for the slightly tangy taste. Brown sugar, some cinnamon ... butter (I forgot this for this one!) 220C for 15 mins then down to 175C for 30 mins (added egg wash around 20 mins and back in for another 10).

Sunday short ride with riding buddy RK. Thought I just took him to Jurassic Mile ... a 3-4 km long stretch of park road with Dinos Ala Jurassic Park. There are even sound effects along the way. This is the 3rd time I've been here the last being with my boys at night a week ago. Really nice sunrise right after we crossed to road at the start of the path. There is a bike shop (for rentals) and a cafe serving nice kopitiam style food at reasonable prices. It was not crowded as it was still quite early but weekend nights, it can get pretty crowded. This route a popular one for cyclists.

Another weekend morning, another short trip.  This time with DS along with us as guide. DS has been trekking and exploring around Singapore for years in his spare time. This shows as he appeared in his 'exploration mode' gear! We were a bit under prepared with out tees, shorts and slippers .... just a short trek mah... Set out at 6am from the east and picked DS up at Toa Payoh before heading towards the entry point at Lor Lada Hitam (Black Pepper Lane .. ex black pepper plantation?) into a vast land parcel used heavily (lesser these days) for military training. The journey took about 35 mins as we parked at the end of the road, deep in the land parcel. We walked across to the Sembawang PCN and continued about 300-400m to an entry point that leads to a grassy clearing where many local YouTubers have posted their beautiful sunrise shots.  A good crowd was gathering as we waited. Some young couple with a dog, a lone teenage lady with phone prepared, some PCN cyclists and notably ...

Yet another quick decisive plan to check out this place (Sembawang Hot Springs). It is well known, quite possibly even very well visited.  Nestled within the grounds which were supposedly part of the armed forces area, the government sort of 'carved' a mini path and park to allow access to the public to this gem of an area. Many years ago (maybe 10?) there was no park but just a path to some water taps to allow the public to access the hot water. Back then people bring their own pails or rather there were pails for one to fill up, find a corner to sit and douse your weary feet into it.  Today, its a well made, but small wading pool like area with some seating around around it. To be honest, give the area there, they could have made this pool a lot larger and allow a lot more people to sit around and enjoy the hot spring water. Anyway Josh and me set out at 620am to pick up BG and the RK and took a 30 min or so drive to Chong Pang / Nee Soon area. There is a HDB estate with MSC...

Set out with Josh early in the morning to Willing Hearts @ Jalan Ubi. We volunteered for the first slot between 5am to 6.30am. Couldn't take any pictures here as we were so busy as soon as we arrived. Being first time kitchen volunteers, was a bit concerned that we sort of screw up the operations and expectations but no, the people are super cool, patient and friendly. As it was the early shift, not many people were around except for the cooks (probably regulars here). 4.50am - Virgin Volunteers Check in after parking with trace together app and then use the camera app to scan the volunteer check in and out QR. You will need to register with Willing Hearts prior or on the spot via the page. Basically when you scan this QR, it will log the check in time. 5.00am - Packing Boxes Prep First thing we did was to don an apron and hairnet (provided) at the packing area. Our first task : to prep the huge bags of styrofoam packs by placing them as the end of the packing tables, open the reta...

Impulse decision from last night. Set out with RK and JC at 6.30am ... arrived at Buangkok Crescent HDB carpark ard 6.50am. Thereafter it was a short 5 min walk to the entrance of the Kampung Lorong Buangkok. Bear in mind this entire area is considered private land so we were mindful and cautious not to stir anything! It was really a trip into 'another time' and was pretty surreal, experiencing this in Singapore. More so during the wee morning / sunrise hours, strolling on wet sandy paths with the ambience of crowing chickens and squeaking insects ... very very familiar to me and sounds kinda nice. Just a quick 10 mins but worth the trip and experience. Good for a short stroll back memory lane (if you have those memories, such as an older person like myself!).  There is a small mall close by with a well stocked food court and Macs; perfect for breakfast after out short stroll!  Until next time! Parking : MSCP Block 984 Buangkok Link Walking tim...