Sing chia pore !

What can I say about the kiasuland? Well, they certainly live up to their name, that's for sure, folks! Yup, the folks are snobbish, unresponsive and generally have deaf ears as music blast through their ears with the use of Ipod and what not! However, we do meet up with a few nice ones occassionally and that includes Pastor Lawrence and wife, Evelyn who came to meet us and had a meal at Marche [ We pronounced it as "mar chee" the singlish way-lor! If not, the Indians would have called it " ma char" ] Anyway, you may ask what was I doing there,right? Well, to be honest, my friends and I including our families just wanted to spend a few hours at Orchard Road, Singapore for some window shopping and it's the New Year spirit-lar! Kinda having some adventurous spirit to start the year!
Well, we started out from the CIQ complex to the Kranji station and lastly to the stop at Orchard Road via the MRT. I must say that it was smooth and efficient alright. [ Still having " The next station is _____ . Mind the platform gap. Doors are closing. " ringing in my ears and head. Sigh! ]But one thing I can't stand was the walking from CIQ to ascending the 170 bus to Woodlands and all the mad rush. Other than that, it was quite an enjoyable time for all of us. While travelling in the MRT , we had to wait 12 or 13 stops before reaching our destination. So, while in the train, we made full use of our humour and creative skills to pose for camera shots while we have a blast in the MRT. The Singaporeans who boarded the same train with us would have just winced and showed us their digusted/bewildered faces just like what we would do when they come over to our country. So, it's fair and square-lor! Anyway, laughing our heads off and having fun were the order of the day. Upon reaching Orchard Road, we started our walk to all the places we could think off. We entered branded and posh household names shop and drooled like mad but we managed to wipe off our drool when we saw the prices! After a short memory conversion of the financial exchange rate, it is better we drool than lose our pants later! There were definitely many interesting shops in Orchard Road which is actually the high end part of the country. I wonder if these branded shop names could actually survive in such a place. Looking at the packed departmental stores, I can only presume that there will be business afterall. For us, we were just out for fun and by the way, if you were to do the conversion of currency at some of the prices, you'll probably have a massive stroke or massive haemorrage leaving you to bled unendingly, actually in your bank account & wallet. I guess, if you work in kiasuland and earn kiasu dollars, the prices are alright. So, I am very adamant that my good cold cash could be put in a better place - either Haadyai or Bangkok! When you spent RM 3.05 or S$ 1.25 for a bottle of mineral water, it's time you travel a little further up north.

I guess, we are all here for the fellowship and fun. Spending lunch at Marche was really fun. Though the prices can be shocking for you if you convert but overall, the ambience and the food are really good. Shockingly, I am truly amazed by the food and the interior decor of oak wood timber which is very impressive indeed. Even the toilet door opens for you when you go near it. It gives me the "chuak" feeling when I went in there to put out a small fire in the toilet. Everything is sensor driven, from flushing to the washing of your hands and to the door. Again, the decor is pleasantly nice and conducive for a leak & tweak session! As for food , I ended up with cheese, ham and vegetables topping crepes and a bottle of Australian root beer which cost me a total of S$ 14.80.All in all, my family spent about S$ 85.00 for the lunch. Like I said, don't do the maths or else, you'll probably fly off the building and land squat on the tarmac! BTW, it is not that we eat this way everyday and so, I consoled myself that it is ok-lor. I could swear that my heart missed a beat when I saw the cashier punched in the figures with a swipe of the food card! Look, it is not that I am stingy or whatsoever. It is just that I am quite careful with how I spend my hard-earned money which comes with a lot of stress, hardwork, coughing of blood, stabbing and sometimes, vomitting of blood! [ Tsk!Tsk!Tsk! Clue for the bosses -lar! ] This is said with lots of humour and good cheer! On a more serious note, I really enjoy the variety of meals offered and the great fellowship together with Dr.Nevan ( Sathy's cousin ), Dr.Nevan's friend [ pathologist ] and Pastor Lawrence & Sis.Evelyn. It was a real fun time.

That day, I think we walked around Orchard Road and would tally at least about 7km walk, had loads of laughter before heading back to Bolehland! There were certainly a lot of things to see and to have a good laugh. Quality of life is simply much better here but during one of our pit stop rest, I realised that there weren't many elderly people around on the streets. The streets are crawling and swarmed by young yuppies, PYT and early 40's characters. There is hardly any old people around. I guess, life is different here in Singapore, huh? I wonder if the old folks home are full at this time of the year!

All in all, it was a good day but by golly, my feet hurt so bad from all the walking. All it needs is some hot water soaking, some foot pampering and some love. Pulai Springs Resort, here we come!~