Hello Singapore again!
This is before we leave for Japan next Monday. And I am now back in KL. It really does feel like I am living 3 lives at the same time.
I was trying not to fly too much since I’ve got another 5 flights to make (SG-KL-Narita-Nagasaki-Narita-KL), so we took a night coach from KL, so that Junya also can sleep throughout.
Zzzzz.
Anyway. Since I won’t be going out much (I am getting really, really heavy and walking really, really slow), most of the time I buy groceries and cook at home.
There isn’t any NTUC or local market near where I stay, so I always end up going Cold Storage or Isetan. And honestly I get a heart attack every time I see the price tags.
I posted this on Instagram saying that i was totally in shock, because in Malaysia the same broccoli (flown from Japan also, sold in Isetan also), is just RM8.90. This one is RM66. It is 7 times more expensive. T____T. It just. Doesn’t. Make. Sense.
Then got one Singaporean scold me la say if I like to complain so much please run back to Malaysia.
But wo bu yao worrrrrrr. 我要赖死不走 worrrr lolol. I love Singapore leh. How????? XD
This is how much I spent on groceries which probably last not even 5 days? T___T.
Ouch.
Ok la I did splurge on Nagasaki Ichigo which was $39 for two boxes. Which is maybe 4 times more expensive than in Japan. TOTALLY WORTH IT.
OMG Singapore also sell White Ichigo leh!!!!
When I posted this another commentor said “My dear, Singapore has (almost) everything”. Now I feel very silly. Indeed, Singapore has almost everything T___T. I just need to be a little richer lolol.
Our daily breakfast.
At first I was very gungho to make healthy wholesome breakfast – salad, avocados, Japanese ichigo, frozen prata reheated with tuna curry, Meiji yogurt with cereal…
But then as I ran out of grocery sooner than I expected, our breakfast became more and more and more shabby lol. Some days it was just a banana with milk XD.
In the end I just resorted to tapao zhap cai bng from nearby food court that was $3 XD.
And this is #lunchforjunya in Singapore. Prison canteen style.
Leftover tapao rice I could not finish from my lunch, instant baby food from Meiji, and shredded roast chicken from nearby chicken rice stall LOLOLOL.
HAHAHA WHERE HAS MY GLAMOUROUS BABY GOURMET FOOD TALENT GONE??
Bad mom. Bad, bad mom.
I do really enjoy eating out in Singapore though!
Yayoiken is one of my favorite because one wholesome set lunch is less than $10. And super yummy.
JunJun loves the salty preserved daikon which I accidentally introduced to him by mistake.
Another of my absolute favorite is Nakajima Suisan at Taka B2, the grill fish shop.
They have my favorite Kinmedai T_________T.
This is a perfect, perfect lunch. Less than $15 also.
And then there’s the hawker food. Which… I think after so long, I have finally come to a conclusion, which is that I agree to disagree with our tastebuds (Malaysian VS Singaporean).
A friend brought us to Chomp Chomp food court and I was very excited because a lot of my Singaporean recommended me to go there to fix my Malaysian food craving.
We ordered a few things. Orh jien was very nice!!!! Hokkien mee didn’t order because have to wait 45 minutes. And then my wanton mee I couldn’t eat because why so sweet wan??? Then grill fish also quite sweet.
And then there was the char kuey teow, which I really really looked forward to. I had one mouthful and I had the shock of my life.
WHY. IS. IT. SWEET.
And I don’t mean like you know a tad of sweetness to bring out the umami or whatever. No. It was taste-like-dessert kind of sweet. Why. Singapore why. T___T.
I spoke to a few Singaporean friends and they reacted huh?!? Malaysia CKT is not liddat wan meh?!?
And then I finally realized why I failed to like Singapore hawker food. Because most of the savory food is sweet wan. Mostly because of the black taoyou that they put in everything? Cai Tou Kuey, Pan Mee, Wantan mee, basically everything @.@
And I really really don’t like my savory food to be sweet (which is why I don’t like Osaka food like Takoyaki, Yakisoba, Okonomiyaki and Kushiage because of the sauce).
Singapore, it is not you. It’s me. I’m sorry.
Yes now I know you can order the “black” (sweet) version and the “white”(salty) version!!! But I still don’t understand why the black version existed in the first place lolol.
One of my Penang friend who worked in SG tapaoed this for us all the way from Penang.
After one whole day and then I microwaved it. But it was so good XD.
Hair pampering!
Long overdue for some maintenance!
With JunJun <3
JunJun’s favorite biscuit.
He was wearing singlet cuz he was sleeping when I brought him out. Hahhaa that was his PJ. Inside out summore XD *paiseh*
New color and after Ultrasonic Premium Treatment.
Whenever JunJun sees the 76 wave logo he says “papanomize” (Papa no omise: Papa’s shop) hahahha. And then danna would say “GOOD DISCIPLE!!!” lolol.
Loosened curls.
Went for hair set on a separate day. Styling: Danna.
Number76 company dinner!!!
Sorry about JunJun’s foot. Bad mom. Baaaad mom.
Catching up with Qiu and Meredith!!
Junya calls Meredith “Mandice” hahahhaha. He is so good with names now! Sometimes out of nowhere he would say, “Chewchew” (QiuQiu), “Miss Mandice” (dunno he is calling her politely or saying that he misses her). He also knows Qiu’s huskies by name!
My big baby <3
I really love my 3 lives now. It lets me appreciate all the things that could never before. I appreciate now the cheap prices in Malaysia and Japan. But I also appreciate how clean, safe and efficient Singapore is. I appreciate the haze-free clean air right now. Of course now I appreciate EVERYTHING ABOUT JAPAN MUAHAHHAHA.
I guess no matter where we go or live, just learn to appreciate the good things, and when it comes to the not so good things, we live with it. And sometimes complain a little bit. XD
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Taste of Tohoku
My support for Tohoku this month:
Migaki Ichigo from Miyagi Prefecture!
What’s more meaningful is that I actually have been to the exact Ichigo farm in Yamamoto, Miyagi and tasted their strawberries, as fresh as it can ever get, straight from the shrub/vine/branch (what do you call it??).
Will blog more about that!!
Another specialty of Miyagi Prefecture is their Kaki (oyster).
Every February in Matsushima city, there will be a Kaki Matsuri (Oyster Festival) as it is the peak of oyster season. You can stand in a long line for one free grilled oyster as many times as you can make it through (!!!!)
Hello did anyone say free oyster?!?!
They also give out free bowls of oyster soup kakinabe to those patient enough to make it through the long wait.
Speaking of Kaki, there’s another Tohoku souvenir you shouldn’t miss out, and it is the Kakinotane in Kakiyaki Shoyu flavor (Japanese pun opportunity!!! lol).
That’s all for today!
For more tips on Tohoku local cultures, happenings, gourmet and delicacies, you can visit Taste of Tohoku!
Cheesie, I’m Singaporean but I dislike the sweet cai tao quey and sweet wan tan mee…I prefer the savoury version if possible. I guess it is just different taste buds? =D Hope you enjoy Singapore!
Have safe trips!
Thank you!!! I will!! 😀
I’m going to Bangkok very soon and are eager to taste the japanese strawberries, just to compare them to norwegian which are cultivated on free land and won’t be available until june. The pricetag on your green is the most ridicoulos I ever seen. In Norway, which is a rather expensive country, you have to pay just $4 for that, or even less. Of course it’s not japanese, but tasty though. I’ve been in Singapore a few times, but do prefer KL and BKK. And you are the best mom ever, looking forward to the continuation..
Thanks so much!!! Yes you should try out Ichigo and let me know what you think of them :)))
In Kuching, Sarawak, they have the sweet and savoury version of chao lo bak go as well, which I found very, very weird. Yeah, maybe it’s just us, not them. 😅
I think so hehhe
Hi Cheesie, there’s an NTUC opposite Isetan, in the basement of Scotts Square!
Really???? Is it the same price as other NTUC? Or is it “orchard price” XD Cuz Scott Square sounds waaay atas XD
I also don’t like the black cai tow kueh. But apparently it’s the “original” version in SG.
yea i wonder who created that version lolol. Must have had a sweet tooth! 😀
SO TRUE! Why i don’t like Singapore’s CKT is because it is sweet. I only tried one time, first and the last. Never again order CKT in Singapore. hahaha..
I also really love Singapore even though i am not Singaporean. Never stay long time in Singapore, but Singapore feels like 2nd home! I think Singapore really has its charm!
Wish you have a good weekend 🙂
Thanks so much!!! Hahah i’ll continue to explore other nice food in SG!!!
Welcome to Singapore. Actually you can order with chilli. That what I do to counter the sweet taste.
Lol you sound so Singaporean. Ntuc…instead of fairprice. Hehe.
By the way you can go giant at suntec city
Cannot. Then it just becomes sweet and spicy. Cannot cannot lolol
Hi Cheesie! I’m a malaysian who works in singapore now. Your comment about the hawker food is totally relevant cos i feel the same ESPECIALLY THE CHAR KUEY TEOW lololol! Me too had a heart attack when i had it. Thats the only time i had CKT in sg and i told myself not to order CKT in sg anymore LOL. There’s this one shop at ION Orchard (cant rmb the shop name but its located at B4, opposite KOI) that sells penang CKT and thats where i always go to get my crave fix! Its definitely not taste as good as the real CKT in penang, but at least its salty not sweet CKT.
Ok i’ll go check it out!! Thank you! 😀
Hi Cheesie!
You can actually go online to buy your groceries.
Like NTUC has their own website.
But their range aren’t as wide as compared to their physical store.
But its still considered decent, i guess?
Or you can try out redmart too!
For 1st time customers, you got free delievry for purchase above $30.
Cold storage is considered a more atas supermarket hence their items are all more expensive.
That’s a great idea, thank you so much!!! 😀
Hi, do check out NTUC finest too, they offer a good selection of imported groceries.
Thanks for the tips!! 😀
Hi cheesie, welcome to Singapore! As a Singaporean myself I’ve no shame in admitting that I prefer Malaysian hawker food and that in general Malaysians do it better when it comes to that. Haha!
I highly highly recommend you try out this place called Penang Seafood Restaurant. Near Aljunied Mrt. Super good zichar and the char kway teow is totally penang style – full of wok hei, not sweet, and it always hits the spot 🙂 their other items are really good too. And definitely a lot more Malaysian tasting than the average Singapore hawker stall!
Alternatively you can tell your noodle uncle or aunty not to put the sweet soy sauce into your noodles and that’ll usually do the trick.
Hope you have more food luck here!
THANK YOU!!! Haha i come back to KL quite often so i’ll get my CKT fix. Thanks and i’ll explore those places :))
I really miss Singapore. But yeah, even me coming from Norway got quite the shock when looking at the prices of Japanese grocery items there (or imported Foods in general). Especially at Meidi-ya at Liang Court 0_o Luckily I prefer the hawker foods when I’m there ^_^ have yet to try Malaysian hawker cuisine in Malaysia lol seems like it really is quite different!
So nice to see you’ve settled down well in Singapore 🙂
Then you MUST come to KL and try our hawker food 😀
As an American who gets broccoli for 99 cents a pound…. 15 friggen dollars for one head of broccoli from Japan??? Does Japanese broccoli get watered with Fiji water and cure cancer??? This is really a culture shock.
In Japan it’s actually not expensive at all. It is the price it is sold in Singapore. Just like how durians/mangosteens sold in the US probably cost a bomb too 🙂
Hi Cheesie! i love SG and MY food, but MY Bak Kut Teh is black with black soya sauce too and Singapore is non-soya sauced… and penang prawn mee is also blacker and move savoury than Singapore’s one too… haha. Have fun in Japan!
Hi Cheesie~
I’m from SG and personally i don’t like the CKT or black carrot cake with the same reason. To me, certain food have to be salty and should not be sweet. Haha.
Please enjoy your stay in Singapore and explore more savory hawker food. Some are really great
Living in SG too and there are only few things I would order in SG food court, Yong Tao Fu and Fish Soup, they are the safest choice. I was brave once and ordered a chicken mushroom wantanmee, oily and tasteless at the same time lol, I was like “How?!!” T.T
Dear Cheesie,
I’m a reader of yours for many many years now 🙂 Am glad you’re in Singapore and enjoying your stay! Really understand your heartache that Japanese airflown goods are way more expensive than malaysia. It’s a little sad that you’re showing one side of Singapore- the same way how western media insistently portrays one marker of the Singapore identity to be the “most expensive country for expats” closely followed by the “this country bans bubble gum” title, but in reality there is so much more to Singapore. No one in Singapore buys Japan-airflown groceries. It’s extravagant and luxurious. We get our stuff from giant, NTUC, cold storage, or really, wholesale organic markets for a healthier option. Not many (no one that I know) buys 100% nihon imported goods 🙂 So Singapore isn’t that expensive, it’s just your preferred lifestyle may be more costly here. Cheers.