Amazing weekend

Hi friends.. it's been a while.. I had a busy rest of the week.. and a really great weekend.. It's Monday night, and I'm exhausted, but I wanted to pop in and share some words and some pictures with you guys and just say hello.

I spent this past weekend doing a collection of totally awesome things.. Friday night, I went to dinner at a great tapas restaurant near my house called Foodbar Dada.. it was delicious and cozy.. The amuse was a clam on a potato chip, and we ordered anchovies, grilled octopus over something creamy (polenta? potato puree?), and sea bass over potatoes.

Saturday, I went to the Laneway Music Festival!  This year it was held at Gardens by the Bay, and the weather was sunny and gorgeous.  I had a great time hanging out on the lawn and chatting with friends while we got to listen to some great music.

Beautiful day.. beautiful stage

All day.. all night

Sunday featured a late brunch, Djokovic - Murray, dinner on Arab Street, and Thaipusam.  I live near the temple where Thaipusam ends, so I wandered down to take a look.  It was pretty intense.  I saw some guys coming through the end of their march, and I actually watched them take all the needles and stuff out of one guy.  It basically made my stomach hurt the whole time.  It was hard enough for me to watch them take the needles out.. I can't imagine being at the start of the parade and seeing them put the needles in!!

One other fun thing to share with you from the end of last week.. I went to hot pot!!!  Over here, they call it steamboat, but it will always be hot pot to me.  Hot pot has always been one of my favorite cold weather meals to have with my mom, and although it is obviously not cold in Singapore, it was still a fun thing to do.  

We got to pick two different broths to cook our food in.  Basically, there was a buffet of ingredients set up in the restaurant, and you go and pick whatever you want.  The tricky thing was that nothing was really labeled, so we were basically just guessing haha.  Probably not the best strategy, but oh well!

Veggies, meats, noodles, and an assortment of fish balls :)

One spicy broth, one non-spicy broth

Hope everyone has a great week.. can you believe this is the last week of January?!  I know I say it all the time, but really - time is such a tricky thing!

Best co-workers ever

Today while I was at work, I got a call saying that I had a DHL delivery at my apartment.  I was a little puzzled because I hadn't ordered anything, nor was I expecting something to come in the mail.  By the time I got home, I had totally forgotten about it, so imagine my surprise when I had a big box waiting for me!  It was a care package from my co-workers in Nashville!!

Happy Valentine's Day from my old office!  I love you guys!

Such a pleasant surprise and a great reminder at what awesome co-workers I have back at home.  There were tons of treats inside!  Company swag, good office supplies, copies of my favorite Nashville alt-weekly magazines, delicious treats (including lots of Starbucks VIA packets!), and a cookbook from one of the most delicious places in Nashville.

Right on top of my stack of favorites

Not to be all cheesy and whatnot, but it really does make such a difference when you are working with people that you legitimately enjoy and that you develop real relationships with.  I definitely can attest to that even more now than ever before.  It really is true that the reason I loved my job back home was because of the people I worked with.  I miss you guys so much.  You are the absolute best.  See you in March!

Puzzled

Happy Monday.  Quite a few things have been happening over the past few days that have me feeling very puzzled.  It's weird when certain things that you take for granted aren't always what they seem.  Can you believe that we will have a Harbaugh Super Bowl? I am in shock. I hate Mondays.

This past weekend was a lot of rain, but it was actually kind of cozy, which is definitely unusual for Singapore.  Aside from the usual activities of work, yoga, and friends, I spent some time reading, so I was able to finish The Lemon Tree.  Guys - this was a great book, and I learned so much from it.  Highly recommended!  The Middle East is fascinating to me right  now. Between Argo, The Lemon Tree, and a trip to Abu Dhabi later this year, I am all over it.  (Does it say something about me that my global curiosity is driven by media?)  I know I've said this on the blog before, but I am constantly amazed at how little I know about the rest of the world.   

A rainy Sunday morning.  Latte and literature.

In this part of the world, the notable thing right now is that Chinese New Year starts in just a few weeks, and everyone is gearing up.  We've been eating lots of pineapple tarts at work (apparently there are different kinds!), and Chinatown has been decked out since Christmas was over.  I strolled through there after dinner last night, and it was totally packed!!  (Side note - I have a fun Chinatown game to play with any visitors who come!) 

Beginning of the street market

Red packets!

Random fruits.. not really sure what they are

 

The street is all lit up with these things!

Hilarious.

Aside from that, life is pretty standard.  Lots of work.  Lots of green breakfasts.  Lots of boring lunches.  Although, I guess a boring lunch in Singapore is different than a boring lunch in America.

Avocado toast with a side of kiwi

Spinach smoothie!

Economy rice for lunch

Man.. I really like to take pictures portrait style.. anyway.. hope all you have a great week. 

Pushing my luck?

Hi friends.  As I'm sure many of you know, I'm smack in the middle of my busiest time of year at work.  I've tried to be fairly honest about how work has been going for me since I got here (without complaining), so I thought I'd share a little update with you.

I don't want to jinx myself, but the truth is - things are going pretty smoothly right now!  Perhaps I have finally hit my stride with expectations, communication, etc, but I am shocked to tell you all that I'm doing okay.  Maybe all the stress and hard work that we put in during the fall is paying off now that it is January?  Or maybe there is a gigantic bomb that is lurking under the surface that is about to blow up in my face.  Or maybe I just imagined that it would be way worse than it actually is right now.  Either way, I thought you'd all be happy to know that I'm pleasantly surprised at how things have unfolded for the past week or so at work.

Other things that have been making me happy lately...
- I had a Sunday fun day!  I met up with some friends at 9am to watch the NFL playoffs, and while I wasn't too happy about the results, it was a great day.
- The return of The Mindy Project!
- Apparently, nectarines are in season in South Africa?  I picked up a bunch for only $5 this week!

And finally.. a funny picture.  This was displayed in my taxi the other day.. I guess it shows how many people can ride?  But this just doesn't seem realistic to me...

What I'm Reading Lately

You know how it's not politically correct to say "sit Indian style" anymore?  The other day at yoga, the teacher said "sit Japanese style", and I literally just stared in the mirror and watched what everyone else did because I actually had no clue what she was talking about.  Anyway.

One thing I want to do more of is to read more books.  I used to go through intense spurts of reading and then not look at anything but magazines for months.  Since I bought my Kindle, I've been a bit better about reading consistently, and lately, I've been trying to do a better job of reading more "real" books, instead of just fluff.  Here's a look at some stuff that has caught my eye recently.  Any other suggestions to add to the list?

The Marriage Plot: A Novel - I'm not sure what made me read this.. I think I saw it recommended on a blog, but I actually didn't care for this at all.  I forced myself to finish it, but I wouldn't spend any money on it if I were you.  I think the thing that speaks volumes about this book is that I can't even summarize the plot to you in a way other than this - it is about a girl and a guy and their weird relationship.  Anybody else read this and feel differently?

Born to Run - Great book about our natural abilities to run long distances.  As someone who has been an aspiring runner for more than half my life, this was fascinating and inspiring.  Loved it.

Fresh Medicine: How to Fix Reform and Build a Sustainable Healthcare System - Written by Phil Bredesen, the former governor of Tennessee, this book was really informative.  Unfortunately, the healthcare debate is not something that I am very well-versed in, so sometimes this got a bit dry, but this book gave me a lot of things to think about.

The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay - I totally got sucked in The Hunger Games series.  I saw the movie on a plane, and then I saw that the books were free on Amazon Prime, and I was hooked!  I tore through each of these books in a day or two.  I usually avoid any type of series, but this one was quick and entertaining.

Steve Jobs - According to amazon.com, I am the last person to read this book, but it totally lived up to the hype, in my opinion.  I absolutely loved this book.

How to Be an American Housewife - This book is listed as a story about mother-daughter relationships, cultural bonds, and family tradition.  I bought this one for my mom too :)

The Lemon Tree - This is what I'm reading right now.  It's based on a feature that was aired on NPR's Fresh Air several years ago, and it is the story of a Palestinian and an Israeli who each lived in the same house (at different times).  The book talks a lot about Arab-Israeli history, which is something that is rarely taught in the US (and when it is taught, it is presented in a very Western perspective).  So this book has been really enjoyable so far, as I've loved learning a bit more about an area of the world that I didn't know much about.

And this is what I'm reading next!

First weekend of the year

It's Sunday night, and tomorrow is the first whole week of work in 2013.  It is also the kick off of the busiest time of year at work.  To say that I'm not looking forward to it is an understatement, but hopefully it will go by quickly!

Many of you may remember my #10kRunStreak from last year and my infamous gold star calendar.  This year, I'm not doing the same run streak, but I am doing the gold stars!  (As soon as I buy a calendar.)  I've decided to try to incorporate more yoga into my routine this January, since I've hardly done any since I moved to Singapore.  I signed up for a one week trial at a hot yoga studio the day after I got back from Bali, and I've gone nearly every day since!  It's been good to get back on the mat, and I'm hoping to practice yoga most days of the week throughout the month of January.  I think it will be a good way to de-stress a bit during this busy time of year.

I did work Wednesday - Friday this past week and also had to spend some time in the office over the weekend, but I still managed to squeeze in some fun things (including yoga!).  Friday night, I met a friend for sushi and wine after work.  The weather has been a bit more mild in Singapore, so we were able to sit outside along the river, which was really nice.  Saturday afternoon, I went to Universal Studios with some friends!

Since I grew up about an hour away from Orlando, I had been warned beforehand that I should set my expectations pretty low, and I think that was good advice.  It's not that the park was bad, it's just that it wasn't as good as any park (Universal or otherwise) that I've been to in the US.  But I was surprised at how much Universal Studios Singapore looked like any other theme park in the US.

Mel's Drive In!

The most striking difference was the wait times at the rides.  The longest wait time of the day was 20 minutes.  Twenty!!  Most rides were only a five minute wait time, and sometimes, that was only because it took five minutes to walk through the giant maze that led you to the point where you could actually get on the ride.  Compared to what I've experienced at home, where wait times can be 2-3 hours, this was crazy!  The weird thing is that there were a ton of people at the park with us, so I have no clue how the wait times were so short.  Like, what were all the people doing instead of riding the rides??

The rides themselves were ok.  A couple of them were pretty cool, but (and there is definitely a nostalgia factor in play here) none of them were as awesome as Back to the Future, the Incredible Hulk, or Space Mountain.  But one definite bonus was that we got to ride all of the rides!  Since the park was a bit smaller than normal and there was no wait, we saw the entire park in a matter of a few hours.

Battlestar Galactica was my favorite ride - the blue track!

This cracked me up.  Giddiness?!

Universal Studios is located at Sentosa, which is sort of a resort-style island thingy.  It has a theme park, an aquarium, a ton of hotels, a casino, some beaches, etc.  It's actually a pretty cool area, but it is always super crowded.  We ended our day at the park with dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe.  Overall, a nice slice of Americana on a Saturday!

Now it is Sunday evening, and I'm excited for the Seahawks-Redskins game that is happening in less than 12 hours!  However, I am not excited to also have to go to work in less than 12 hours.. Only ten weeks until I come to the US for my home leave!!

Happy New Year

Can you believe it is 2013?  I know I've said this numerous times already, but 2012 feels like it absolutely flew by!  And fittingly, so did the holidays.  I was in a mall tonight and realized that the whole holiday shopping season absolutely passed me by without me noticing at all.  I guess because I don't really shop very much in Singapore?  (Not having a Target anywhere has definitely decreased my consumer spending.)  Anyway, it is January 2013 already.  This year, I hope to run more, do more yoga, and read more.  I hope to stress less, complain less, and weigh less.  I'm looking forward to my 30th birthday, lots of travel, and hopefully finding my footing a bit more at work.  Alright, moving on...

So as I mentioned previously, I rang in the new year in Bali!!!  (Seriously, if someone had told me two years ago that I would be in Bali for the holidays, I would've thought they were crazy.)  Of course, it was beautiful, but it was totally different than Krabi!  Much more tourist oriented, and much more spread out - traffic was insane, but luckily, we walked most of the places we went.

Black sand beach.. you can't really tell from this picture, but it's much more visible in the water.  It is a bit creepy though because it makes you think the water is dirty haha.

We spent a day on an island (Nusa Penida) with this beautiful white sand beach!

We didn't eat a ton of "local" foods.  Honestly, the food in Indonesia kind of reminds me of the food in Malaysia, so it didn't really seem all that special to me.

Condiments for champions and winners :)

Two really incredible things to share with you guys.  First, we did a sunrise volcano hike one morning!  Lena and Stephanie told me about this back when I visited Singapore in the spring, and I was dying to do it ever since.  I mean, come on - hiking a volcano??  How cool is that!  What's not so cool is the 2am pick up time haha.

Anyway, we were picked up at 2am and drove about two hours to reach the volcano - I don't remember the name, but it is an active one, and I think our guide said 1999 was the last time it erupted.  We hiked straight up the side for about 90 minutes.  It was a much different hike than Percy Warner - lots of loose rocks!  It was dark, so you could only really see what was on the ground right in front of you.  But you could look up ahead and see all the flashlights of the people who were climbing ahead of you.. sometimes that was really cool, but sometimes it sucked to see how far you still had to go :)  We reached top just before sunrise.  The view faces out over the lake with the mountains in the background.  It was breathtaking.

While we snapped pictures and enjoyed the sunrise, our guide cooked us breakfast using the steam from the volcano!  Then we headed back down.  The trek down was cool because we could actually see, and since we weren't in a hurry, our guide was able to share some fun facts about the volcano with us along the way.  But going down was almost harder than hiking up because all the loose rocks made me slip everywhere!  I fell down a few times, and Stephanie vowed that she wouldn't hike anymore mountains with me until I got some hiking shoes :)

Steam pocket on the left, crater on the right

View from below.. we hiked all the way up there!

All in all - a beautiful experience.  I thought that I had put it on my Singapore Bucket List, but I guess I never did.  Either way - I had been dying to do this hike, and it did not disappoint!

Me at the top!

The other really awesome thing was our actual New Years Eve celebration.  We just went to dinner and then headed down to the beach to watch the fireworks.  The beach we stayed near (Legian) has a ton of cool beach bars in the sand, and everyone was throwing a huge party.  And you guys, the fireworks were totally INSANE.  It's such a shame that pictures wouldn't do justice to what we saw, but let me tell you - the fireworks went on for hours.  Literally, they were already going off around 6pm, and went on until past 1am! And they were going off all along the beach!  It seems like Bali doesn't have the same firework safety precautions that we would in the US, so literally out front of every other beach bar, there was just someone crouched in the sand with a giant stack of fireworks that they were shooting off.  So we rang in 2013 with a TON of fireworks, the Indian Ocean, and dancing.  It was spectacular.

Happy new year everyone!!