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corpsentry · 4 years ago

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ao3 mirror

fandom: age of calamity, botw rating: g starring: prince sidon and mipha note: spoilers for both games

"You know, Daruk’s my idol,” Yunobo says. He pumps his fists in the air like a kid at a fun fair in line for the big pirate ship ride. “They say he was the coolest Goron there ever was. Plus he had a beard. I think beards are awesome.”

“Great,” Sidon says. He stops peeling the mandarin in his hands for long enough to look up blankly at him. "Mipha was my sister."

the age of calamity, side b.

The thing about time travel is, even if someone stands in front of you and tells you point-blank that there’s a way to bring your dead sister back to life, you’re probably not going to believe them.

“I don’t believe you,” says Sidon.

“Okay,” Teba says patiently, fluffing his feathers with an absent glide of his wing. “Try harder.”

Sidon stares at him. He tries harder, though he’s not sure what that entails and so doesn’t end up really doing anything. “I don’t get you.”

“Which part don’t you get?”

“I get to see Mipha again?”

Teba’s eyebrow twitches. “Let me put this as simply as I can, Prince,” he says, a little too loudly. The soldier stationed at the bottom of the staircase turns to look at them. “We’re going to go back to the point a hundred years ago at which the four champions were killed in their divine beasts. We’re going to save them. We’re going to make sure they defeat Ganon before he can send Hyrule into ruin. And then we’re going to leave.”

By now, they’ve caught everyone’s attention. It’s been a long time since a hundred years ago, but here in Zora’s Domain it still feels like the events of last Tuesday, to be recounted over salt tea and fish skewers, to be mourned over an empty coffin. Everyone’s staring at the big white bird with the angry eyebrows, a little curious, a little apprehensive. For what he’s worth, Teba is indifferent. This much will not faze him.

Sidon twiddles his thumbs behind his back, where Teba cannot see them and the guards at the bottom of the staircase can point and laugh all they want. To be honest, he heard nothing. His heart stopped when he heard ‘killed in their divine beasts’, at which point a watery monster punched its way into his skull and crushed his brain. The monster is nothing concrete, nothing crystal-clear, just what little Link has told him, bits and pieces of a history he was prevented from taking part in. It’s been several months since the kid dragged his beaten-up body halfway across Hyrule and kicked Ganon’s ass, though they’re still feeling the after-effects of that particular calamity today. Mipha’s statue still looms over their heads, a reminder of what it means to die alone and far away from home.

“So,” Sidon starts, hearing his voice echoing in his ears like metal slicing through air. “What you’re saying is, I get to see Mipha again.”

Teba looks like he wants to grab one of the guards’ spears and stab Sidon in the face, but for what he’s worth, he reigns it in. “Yes.”

“Okay.” He grins. “I’m in.”

He tried to fight a lynel when he was fifteen. The domain had been overrun with monsters who had arrived for the pre-party to Ganon’s return, including an outstanding number of wizzrobes, several moblins, and a tall, intimidating figure which spat electricity from its pink-tongued mouth and whose name he couldn’t recall. While his father, the king, and his sister, the princess, breezed through the area like a lightning strike, reclaiming keeps and stabbing moblins with silver teeth so their generals could forge a path ahead, Sidon reveled in the wonder of being left unsupervised at four a.m. in the morning. And then heard the familiar, haunting roar of a lynel. And then decided to go and say hi.

It was a mistake, of course. The lynel was so tall he couldn’t make out the gear on its back. Its face was all squished up, like a birthday cake that had been stepped on, and its horns were too big for its thick, blocky nose. This was funny for all of five seconds. Then the lynel extracted a bow from that unknowable space behind it and aimed the sharp end of an arrow at his face, and it became a problem.

“H-h-h-hi,” said Sidon, holding up his Kid Spear, which was strictly for Kid Use Only, and had the offensive capabilities of a stick.

“RHOOARHGHHGHH,” said the lynel.

He jabbed the Kid Spear at the lynel’s leg. The lynel spat at him, though probably unintentionally, as it seemed preoccupied with the arrow it was trying to send into his face. It was stuck. The big scary lynel’s bow was stuck.

Emboldened by the stupid scary lynel’s broken bow, Sidon decided to try again. “Please go away, Mr. Lynel,” he said in his best and most charming Kid Prince voice, twirling his Kid Spear like a sweet jellyfish skewer.

“RHOAHOARHAGHOGHHHH,” said the lynel, who sounded significantly angrier than before.

“I understand,” Sidon said politely, and then closed his eyes and sent a prayer to the goddess Hylia (the way he had been taught to since he was old enough to speak, the way every child in Hyrule knew that there was a place for them to go to after they left this world behind). He braced for impact, which he hoped would be of the violent sort, earth-shattering and brisk enough to break his bones and leave nothing breathing in its wake. He was fifteen, not five. This was Ganon’s era. Every living creature in Hyrule knew this, the way their ancestors woke up and knew which direction the sun would rise from. Not if, but when. When the Calamity strikes. When your people die. When the knight emerges from the woods with the sacred sword in his hand, and saves you all.

But none came. When he opened his eyes, and he did so reluctantly, adrenalin coursing through his veins like thunder, the world was pitch black. In place of the cool blue moon was his sister, her ceremonial gear glittering darkly, the Lightscale Trident glowing like a star in her right hand.

“Holy shit,” whispered Sidon the kid. Mipha stabbed the lynel in the face.

She hugged him when it was all over and they had put the moblins and the wizzrobes and the electric moblin (so that’s what it was! Terrifying) back to sleep. Their father was upset, but he was frequently upset at Sidon and so it didn’t bother him as much as it could have. Sidon was not Mipha. It was all right if he got things wrong, as long as his sister never did. Coincidentally, the Hylian princess had been in the area at the time of the attack, accompanied by a knight with blue eyes and a Sheikah warrior who looked like she would throw a knife at a fish for sport. It was a good thing Mipha had been at home, and not visiting one of the other tribes or hunting for crabs near Lurelin. It was a good thing she had intervened when she had, lest the pre-party become the real thing.

“Thank you,” said the Hylian princess, trying her best to smooth her brow and failing. She looked anxious, though she had only come to pass on her father’s word, though the word that she had brought was victory.

Mipha smiled at her with a face full of sun. “It is my pleasure.”

He wishes the egg could talk. If the egg could talk then Teba would have less reason to talk, and if Teba talked less then Sidon would have less of a raging headache, which which would make him less of an asshole, which would make their discussions go much more smoothly than the janky, sputtering mess they’ve been all week.

“As I was saying,” says Teba, continuing whatever train of thought he picked up on their way up to Goron City and then dumped unceremoniously by the side of the road. As he does this, Death Mountain spits a chunk of lava out of its steaming gaping top, which lands a few inches shy of his breastplate. He hops backwards without missing a beat and begins fanning himself with one wing.

Riju stops fiddling with the diamond circlet in her hands for long enough to give him a look of inquiry. “As you were saying?”

“I can’t wait to see Daruk.” Yunobo scratches his arm. It makes a sound like two large boulders grinding together. Riju drops the circlet.

“You’re only going to see him for a short while,” Teba comments over the sound of the egg blowing its top at Riju and Sidon plugging his ears with his fingers. “No point getting all worked up about it.”

“You’re just as worked up yourself,” Riju counters. Patricia barks. Teba flinches.

This is true. There are two things Teba won’t shut up about. In ascending order of importance, they are 1) when they should depart for the alternate timeline in which they will prevent their respective ancestors from getting their spirits trapped in giant mechanical monsters for a hundred years, and 2) how incredible Revali is. Because Revali was the most powerful Rito warrior that ever walked the land (or flew over it, or blasted bomb arrows at it, whatever). Revali singlehandedly invented an entire style of aerial combat which involves launching yourself into the air with an updraft that defies the laws of the universe and then setting your surroundings on fire. Revali killed god.

Teba looks like he wants to go back to his wife and kid in Rito village. Good for him. Not all of them have bodies to put in coffins. “I just want to meet him once,” he says quietly.

Yunobo laughs, and it sounds like two extra large boulders grinding together. “Me too, brother.” He picks up the diamond circlet from the floor and puts it on his head like some kind of weird hat. “I’m going to tell Daruk how great he is. And then I’m going to go home.”

One time when they were much, much younger, before he woke up one morning and Mipha was three times his height, one of the guards brought back some durians. The durians were misshapen and spiky and smelled intimidating, though Sidon wouldn’t go as far as to say that the smell was unpleasant. The guard had obtained them from a merchant in the Faron region. He hadn’t meant to purchase them, but they were the last of her stock and she said she could only head home once she had sold everything. He empathized her.

At first they tried to open the durians with their hands, but this only produced several pricked fingers and left ominous and eerily substantial bloodstains everywhere, so someone brought out a spear, almost drove it through the table, and someone else brought out a carving knife. Halfway through the spectacle of watching one of the guards, who was thirty-seven and enjoyed collecting glowing stones as a hobby, attempt to de-spike an entire durian, the crowd parted abrutpyl.

“What are you all doing?” Mipha put her hand absently on Sidon’s head. He had been watching the ongoing debacle out of some kind of morbid curiosity, standing on tip-toes so he could peek over the top of the table, though now he had apparently been relegated to armrest.

“Trying to open this durian, your highness.”

Mipha laughed. His sister’s laugh was a delicate, heartrending affair, like trying to pull weeds from the bottom of a lake without breaking them at the stem. The weather at home was always more or less divine, but whenever Mipha laughed, Sidon swore it blasted a hole right through the clouds. If there were no clouds, then the hole appeared in the fabric of the sky instead. Mipha, at her brightest, was a walking catastrophe of sun.

Still chuckling a little, like she’d been made privy to a secret that none of them knew about, Mipha stepped up to the cutting board. “You have to do it like this,” she said cheerfully, digging her fingers into a seam in the durian’s shell like she’d been dealing with danger all her life.

Cue gasping. Cue the horrors of childbirth.

The durian was sweet. It was also a little goopy, but Sidon was no stranger to things which stuck to your fingers and refused to let go (he was one of those objects when it came to his sister, who he could rarely be found more than an arm’s length away from on any given day), so he felt for the little spiky fruit, and decided that he would make an effort to bring some back home when he went traveling himself in the future. While he examined the inside of the durian’s shell, which had been hollowed of fruit and had the texture of rough sandpaper, the guards crowded around Mipha and demanded that she share her secret to not getting stabbed to death by the fierce and terrifying durian. But either she didn’t know how to explain it to them, or they weren’t very good at listening, because she remained the only one capable of cracking open a durian with her bare hands for many, many years, up until she died while fighting a watery manifestation of Ganon inside the divine beast she had been told by the king of Hyrule to pilot to victory’s end. Then it was someone else’s turn to take over.

Painkillers for fish are a tricky affair. To begin with, charmingly little research has been conducted into the biology of the fish-person because the Zoras simply aren’t interested in how their bodies work, and while others have offered to do so in their place, among them several enthusiastic Sheikah researchers and one Hylian with a thing for huge glowing orbs, his people have never cared enough to give their consent. It’s a unique kind of apathy, one which stems from a place of privilege, or denial. They are, as a general statement of fact, very good at both.

“This will help.” Yunobo hands him a rock roast. Where did Yunobo get a rock roast from? Sidon frowns. They’re in the middle of the desert.

“Thanks,” Sidon says. Smiles. Kind of, like, holds the roast up to his mouth and gives it a sniff. It doesn’t smell half as good as durian. He puts it down.

It takes him several days to make sense of the convoluted sequence of events that Teba presented to him that day on the front door of the world he had rebuilt from scratch, surrounded by mystique and glamor and promising, in a breath of cold air, to bring his dead sister back to life. This makes it sound like he’s finished making sense of it all and will thus never be confused ever again, but if he’s to be entirely honest, he still doesn’t get it. He wants to. He’s scared to. He won’t look Teba in the eye.

“We should get going soon, don’t you think?” says Riju, who is twelve and somehow more put-together than all four of them combined. She pulls another book from the shelf and leaves it on the pile on the desk.

Yunobo shrugs loudly. “Doesn’t make a difference when we leave, does it? We could leave for Hyrule in twenty years, and we’d still end up at the same place.”

“But I want to save them,” Riju says earnestly. The pile behind her has been growing all afternoon, and will soon overtake her in height if she is not stopped. Mission preparation looks like archaeological excavation when you’re traveling backwards in time, and not forwards to some yet unknown destination. Ancient Sheikah records. Research journals. The writings of people who were obsessed with the events of a hundred years ago despite having no personal investment to speak of, and whose words carry with them a hint of reverence, even as they choreograph the funeral song of the old king. This is all that’s left of those ruins, aside from Link, who they’ve all quietly decided to keep uninformed of the current proceedings. Hyrule itself has been kept in the dark. No need for them to know about the maybes and the what-ifs and the could-have-beens. No need for more people to go crazy.

Sidon shuts the book in his hands with a thud. “But why?”

Riju’s eyes go wide. Drama queen. “Why what?”

Sidon opens his mouth, closes it, and opens it again. There’s a heat rash on the back of his neck which he can’t quite reach on his own. The elders had warned him about the desert, but the charm he received from Link has proven to be effective in all areas except for maintaining good skincare. He blinks dumbly at Riju, who has begun to flicker like the glassy surface of a pond. His eyes hurt.

“I mean, why do you.” His eyes hurt. His throat hurts. There’s something large and horrible stuck in his chest, and he can’t get it out. “Why do you want to save them?” There’s a durian in his rib cage. It must have lodged itself there when Teba glared at him like he was an idiot as he came face to face with the cruel reality of the universe, and it dawned on him like a dead body falling out of the sky that he would get to see Mipha one last time, and then he would have to come back. To a Hyrule without her. To the stupid stuck-up world that had to try again and again and again, coughing up blood and dragging itself through the dirt on bruised knees, before it could defeat the monster. “It’s not like they’ll come back to life,” he says, each word a silver knife in his mouth. “They’ll stay dead here. They’re already dead.”

Silence.

Riju has let everything go, including the diamond circlet, the topaz earrings, and three volumes sheathed in gold. Yunobo’s mouth is open so wide, you could stick your head inside and take a look around if you leaned in close enough. For the first time since he met him, Teba is at a loss for words. His chest rises and falls erratically, his hand on the bookshelf quivering, his eyebrows doing a little dance on his forehead. He’s sweating. Of course he is. They’re in the desert.

Riju, Hylia bless her soul, is the first to speak.

“It’s the spirit of things,” she says softly. She looks sadder than any twelve-year-old should ever have to look. But then and again, Sidon was barely old enough to hold a spear with both hands when his sister died and everything went to shit. Then and again, everything goes away eventually.

Sidon stares at her helplessly for a moment, gulping the humid air of the library like a fish out of water, then gives up and walks out of the room. He spends the rest of the afternoon blowing bubbles in the pool beside Kara Kara Bazaar while the other three continue their work, and then buys a durian from one of the vendors and hacks it open with his spear. You can’t crack open a durian with your bare hands, unless you’re Mipha, in which case you can do anything. It’s a good thing, then, that she’s gone.

When they were children and they got into trouble, his father would always scold Mipha far more harshly than Sidon. Mipha was the older sibling, after all. She should know better. This dynamic remained firmly established between them even as Mipha grew into her role as princess, future ruler, and eventually, champion. Of course, the reprimandings grew less stern, but Sidon had a penchant for winding up in places he wasn’t supposed to be in and Mipha had a penchant for being with him whenever this happened. He secretly resolved to pay her back when he got older and was finally able to stand up to his father, and therefore explain that most of the things they got into trouble for were his idea. He would be the one to weep at his father’s feet while his sister looked on with a horrified expression, and in that moment she would understand how much he loved her.

Then she died. You can’t tell the story of Mipha without this part. Mipha was a humble, kind girl, and then she died. Mipha could crack open a durian with her bare hands, and then she died. Mipha was the pride of their people, and then she died, and she died, and she died.

You can’t change the past with the wave of a hand. You’re not a bird. You’re not a fortune-teller. You’re a fish-person with an empty coffin for a sister, and in a few weeks’ time, you’re going to save her specter.

“...What if I brought her back with me?”

“Huh?”

“Hahajustkidding. No way I’d do that. Not a chance.”

“Um. Do you need painkillers?”

“Thanks, but they don’t work on me. I’m over a hundred years old, you see. Us Zoras, we’re different.”

The day before departure. They’re back at Zora’s domain. It’s raining. Teba is running through a checklist of items to bring with them which is so long, he has to hold it above his head to prevent it from touching the floor. Riju is feeding Patricia mandarin peels.

“You know, Sidon.”

Sidon looks up from his mandarin. “Mm?”

Yunobo grins at him. “Daruk’s my idol,” he says proudly. He pumps his fists in the air like a kid at a fun fair in line for the big pirate ship ride. “They say he was the coolest Goron there ever was. Plus he had a beard. I think beards are awesome.”

“Great,” says Sidon, as enthusiastically as he can, because he genuinely wants to be happy for Yunobo who is finally going to meet his idol and has clearly dreamed about this moment for some time. He wants to be happy for all of them. He fucking wants to. This is a rescue mission, not the imprisonment Princess Zelda walked into in Hyrule castle, not the hundred-year nap Link took on the Great Plateau. This is a happy ending, even if it’s not theirs.

Daruk the idol. Urbosa the warrior. Revali the bird. Sidon pictures them in his head, the way Link described them to him once, his voice carrying across the water like beams of light.

“Mipha was—”

He stops peeling the mandarin in his hands, his nails still embedded in the soft skin of it, the white-tinged flesh peeking out like a wound. Outside, the rain keeps falling. A river of tears from the sky.

Yunobo tilts his head to the side. “Mipha was?”

Mipha was the pride of their people. Mipha was the first person he wanted to live forever. Mipha was the only one he knew who could crack open a durian with her bare hands, like she was peeling open the heart of a monster, only to reveal that it had been something soft and scared all along. Mipha was a flesh-and-blood person. Mipha was the light of their world. Mipha is an empty coffin with a name inscribed on the lid, a house with the lights off, a memory drenched in ocean.

Yunobo prods his shoulder, though he barely feels a thing. “Mipha was?” he repeats kindly, herding him along to the end of the line, to the boat at the edge of the water.

Sidon puts the mandarin away. He stares long and hard at Yunobo, and hopes that his eyes will convey the wound his body no longer knows how to carry.

“Mipha was my sister.”

Let’s say you’ve been entrusted with the future of your kingdom. There’s a bad guy coming, and everyone’s scared to death, so you learn how to pilot this big robotic elephant which shoots turrets of water like a machine gun, and you get really good at it, and when the bad guy arrives on your new friend’s birthday suddenly you can’t do it anymore. You’re trapped inside the giant elephant. You’re bleeding out all over the floor. Your chest hurts like something awful, and your vision is beginning to blur. Sensing your despair, the monster closes in on you, wielding that big blue trident like fury. It holds the sky up over your head, and as it does so you close your eyes. You send a prayer to the goddess Hylia (the way you have been taught to since you were old enough to hold your little brother in your arms, the way every child in Hyrule knows that there is a place for them to go to after they leave this world behind). You brace for impact, which you hope will be the gentle sort, a slap to the wrist that’s conclusive enough to break your bones and leave nothing breathing in its wake. You’re twenty, not five. This is the end of all things as you know it. Every living creature in Hyrule knows this, the way their ancestors woke up one day and knew that this world would come to ruin. Not if, but when. When the Calamity strikes. When everyone you’ve ever loved dies. When you walk into the mouth of the elephant, and the elephant changes its mind, and decides to keep you in its belly forever.

None arrives. You open your eyes slowly, hesitantly, fear a living memory in your bones, but you are not faced with the stinging end of a trident. In its place is a boy almost three times your height, his eyes glittering darkly, the spear in his right hand shining like a star.

He is not your brother. But, Hylia bless you all, he is.

So what can you say, when the evil has been defeated and you are standing on the balcony of the castle, smiling up at him through tears while this big overgrown baby stares at you like you’re the answer to the universe, except:

We’ll definitely meet again, won’t we?

He flinches, but you don’t ask, and he doesn’t say why. He pulls you into an earth-shattering, bone-crushing hug. It’s a beautiful day to be alive, the sun shining like sin, Hyrule’s beaten but stubbornly breathing carcass laughing up at you from the fields below. He takes your hands in his. He’s shivering. He’s shaking from head to toe.

Of course, he says in the kindest, saddest voice you’ve ever heard, though he has only come to pass on someone else’s words, though the word he has brought is salvation. From now on, I’ll always be by your side.

: : : : :

You smile at him with a face full of stars.

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moved-attre · 4 years ago

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here’s a little description of some of the bachelors and bachelorettes from Coral Island, via the Kickstarter email.

Eva is a bachelorette. She is a happy-go-lucky baker who works at the general store. She enjoys talking to the islanders, be it local, new, visitors, everybody! And is good friends with a lot of them. Currently, Eva doesn't have a lot of savings but when she does, has dreams to visit more exotic places. According to the islanders, Eva is always a delight to talk to— a positive ray of sunshine. A fan of red velvet cakes and cookies. Sews most of her clothes herself!

Loves: Cookies, Orchids.

Hates: Garlic.

Pablo: He and his brother, Rafael, are both blacksmiths and bachelors. Never been caught without a smile on his face, Pablo is a natural attraction for the locals—singles or not. According to his brother, despite Pablo's casanova persona, he is a romantic at heart and is ready to settle down when the right person comes along... When he isn’t smelting ores, he can be found around town, lending a hand to the townfolks, cleaning up the graveyard, or tossing anecdotes at the Tavern. Hates beaches—dislikes the sand in his shoes.

Loves: Sweet potato poutine.

Hates: Durian.

Leah lives her bachelorette life with her father and stepmom in an old massive house that the locals call “The Mansion.” She is a self-hired, yoga instructor at the community center and takes her online presence seriously. She spends her day wandering around the island with a camera on hand. Leah’s mother is an art dealer who travels the world constantly. So when her parents divorced, after long deliberation between the lawyers and what seems like a lifetime worth of legal fees, they decided that it would be best for Leah to stay with her dad. This was to retain some sort of stability in her life. She loves to be surrounded by nature, fine arts and a closet full of designer collections.

Loves: Pearl.

Hates: All fish.

Kenny, a part-time rancher, and full-time bachelor. He grew up in Coral Island and has fostered close relationships with other islanders—be it people, animals, trees, spirits from the beyond—all of them. Besides making friends, he loves having lunch outdoors, vegan tacos, and cold kombucha. Kenny lives with his parents at a cabin in the forest and goes to the Ranch every day to take care of the animals. After he is done working for the day, he would head to the Local Tavern, or blacksmith shop to catch up with his friends. He usually spends his lunch breaks in the forest, or by the lake, sitting on the ground; snacking on edamame, and playing the flute.

Loves: Vegan taco.

Hates: Cheese.

#coral island #Eva and Kenny are gonna be my favorites i think!

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liferoaming · 5 years ago

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Singapore

A futuristic country full of beauty, its here that you can find a country like no other. Ever since David Attenborough talked about this small country in his documentary, ‘Urban Wild’, I have always wanted to pay a visit.

Singapore is the most eco-friendliest country in all of Asia after establishing the Green Plan in 1992. The country is immaculate, full of stunning greenery and breathtaking architecture.

After becoming newly single, I needed to do something for myself. I love travelling, there is nothing better than visiting the unknown and discovering a new culture. I decided to spend four days in Singapore, staying at a hostel in Chinatown. I stayed at the hostel, ‘Beary! Best’, in an female only dormitory. When you get to my age, the last thing you want to do is share with other people because it can feel like returning back to being a student at university. However, staying in a hostel is a good way to meet other people when you are travelling alone. It is down to the individual on what you prefer but I do recommend that you give it a go because you can also save a lot of money.

My days were jam packed with things to do, I hope this inspires you to gain courage to travel alone if you haven’t yet done so.

Day 1

It was Tet in Vietnam otherwise known as Chinese New Year elsewhere. I woke up at 4.30am due to lack of taxis and heavy queues at the airport because my flight was at 9am. If you are travelling during this time then please make sure you allow enough time.

When you are arrive at Changi Airport , make sure to check out the Jewel Changi, this holds the world’s tallest indoor waterfall.

The subway is very easy to use and I did not find it to be overcrowded like other cities such as Tokyo and London. The trains are air conditioned, smooth and clean as they are regularly patrolled by the police. Make sure you get a visitor pass which is $30 (SG dollars) for three days, you can then top up afterwards. Make sure you return the pass also because you get a refund back of $10.

Due to it being Chinese New Year, I stayed in Chinatown after settling into the hostel. I met up with another traveler off the Singapore Backpack Group on Facebook. We found a restaurant that had some vegetarian Chinese dishes, she had some dumplings and I had some fried tofu with noodles. Not all Chinese restaurants have vegetarian dishes but it is possible as we found out.

Chinatown was packed and the smell of durian was everywhere and I am sorry guys, the smell still makes me gag. If you are sensitive to the smell of durian, then please be aware of this when travelling around.

After dinner, we had a walk around but because the other traveler’s hostel was on the other side of town, she decided to leave early to beat the crowds when getting home.

I waited around on New Bridge Road whilst a television show was being filmed, waiting patiently for the fireworks at midnight. It was good for a while but as I became more aware that around me were couples, families or people with their friends it was then that I felt lonely. However, it was the only time I felt lonely during the trip.

The fireworks took place at midnight and it was worth it, if you are travelling at this time then its a great celebration to be a part of because you get to experience it with the locals and other international visitors.

Day 2

Singapore is very small and it is very easy to get around.I managed to do a lot on the second day!

Fort Canning was a beautiful park with a spectacular view of the sky scrapers when you reach the hilltop. It was part of the British Army Barracks, it is here than you can view such landmarks as ‘The Gate of Fort Canning’ and the ‘Old Soldiers Marriage Quarters’. It is peaceful and a lovely place to take in the calm of the morning sun. Admission is free.

You can walk from Fort Caning to Marina Bay Sands but be sure to check out Old Hill Street Police Station on your way. Tracing back to 1819, it is one of Singapore’s oldest governmental buildings.

Marina Bay is the WOW factor of Singapore! The view of Marina Bay is stunning and there are many things to do within this area. Be sure to check out the Merlion of Singapore, Esplanade Theatre and take a walk along the Helix Bridge. On the other side of the Marina Bay Sands, you can find the ‘Gardens by The Bay’, I will discuss this later on. Please return to Marina Bay in the evening for the fireworks show!

Botanical Gardens was founded in 1859 and is home to a rain forest and even an orchid garden. My favourite area of the Botanical Gardens was Ethnobotany Garden, containing stingless bees, turtles and Malayan water lizards that roam freely.

Haji Lane is known for its graffiti, trendy shops and cool bars. This is definitely a hipster area which is great to drop by and do some shopping or chill out at a bar.

If you are are vegan (or vegetarian) like me, then you might have also found it difficult to find plant based Korean food. I have been craving to try Korean food for a long time but it is impossible to find plant based Korean food in Vietnam. However, in Singapore you can! Check out Boneless Kitchen, for just $9 I had a mushroom ramen which was delicious although could’ve had been spicier. It was packed with noodles, mushrooms, tofu, vegan pork, Korean dumplings vegan sausages and cheese. It was absolutely delicious and I highly recommend you visit during your stay.

Day Three

Sentosa Island is that artificial place that you are not too sure you want to visit...but you do. Home to Universal Studios and other attactions, I went there to visit the man made beach. Palawan Beach can be reached by the sky train and a ten minute walk. The beach is immaculate and you can walk across a suspension bridge where you can visit the outlook towers. It is a great way to spend the day relaxing, having a swim in the water and topping up your tan.

If you love Japanese food, like me, then look no further than Herbivore. This vegan restaurant has the most amazing dishes. This is a time when I would have liked someone with me because I could have shared some dishes. However, the katsu bento was just perfect. Katsu curry with vegetables, rice and a seitan cutlet accompanied with a salad, miso soup and lychee jelly. The dish cost around $19.

Gardens by the Bay is a wonderful place to visit and is probably the highlight of my visit. It is here that you can view the Super Trees, art sculptures, the cloud forest and the flower dome. You can get lost in the magic here..

Day Four

On this day I visited Little India but I did not stay for long. I think it might have been the only time that I felt a little uncomfortable in Singapore and it might be better to travel with someone else to this area. It is a great place if you want to buy beautiful material and eat some Indian food.

I visited the Bugis Centre to do a little shopping. I bought a boxy shirt and some shorts from UNIQLO for just $30 (SG Dollars). I ate at the Green Dot for some tradtional vegan Laska, however, it was carb heavy much like the majority of Asia. I always find rice and noodles too heavy to eat in the heat and ended up just eating the vegan prawns, fish balls and pork along with the soup. The dish cost $9.

In the evening, I ate at a vegetarian Taiwanese restaurant but I am unsure of the name. I had a three course meal that consisted of tomato and carrot soup, some truffle bake followed by a lava cake served with cider to drink. This meal was the most expensive costing $33.

After this, I visited the light show in Gardens by the Bay. The light show takes place at the super trees and it was pretty spectacular to watch, I highly recommend it and it also free for admission.

Flight: $160 (SG Dollars) , GBP91.00

Travel: $30 (SG Dollars) , GBP16.00

Hostel: $113 (SG Dollars) , GBP63.00

Travel money: $260 (SG Dollars) , GBP150.00

Total for the trip: $565 (SG Dollars), GBP316.00

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mozambiquedragonlloigor · 6 years ago

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A smol Cautic HC

Imaging Caustic has a daughter(original idea belongs to @apexlegendsimagines) · He once said he would never experiment on children, but now he somehow wants to do it against his moral laws; · He went to an orphanage, pretended to be a nice potential parent and sorting through all children inside the orphanage… “who will be the lucky one?” · He finally chose you, the “perfect, innocent”fit for a test subject; yet you didn’t know what will happen on you, you just ate a sweet candy from your new father and felt forward to your new life--you normally wouldn’t get any candy from the care keepers in the orphanage. · On the way home Caustic had been thinking about how to “experiment” you; which type of gas? He had so many ideas in mind, and can’t wait to test how deadly those ideas were. However the way you smiled at him, and the cute ask about “Can I have more candies, papa?” triggered something soft inside his stone cold heart. · He wanted to raise you as if you’re his daughter, though there were some fights between the angel and devil in his mind, he finally determined that he wanted a sibling. “At least for now, I can still do experiments on her later on, can’t I,” he confronted himself, “I’m still the deadliest, cold-blooded scientist on earth.” · Despite the fact that you misrecognized his gas bottles as magical spray and tried to spray it on yourself to become a fairy, he was quite happy about how you behave submissively like a test subject. He didn’t know you had been abused by elder orphans quite often in the orphanage, and his arrival saved you from “hell.”

· Nights are tough for both of you. Caustic often gets exhausted after a day’s work, with the extra burden of taking care of you, the stupid human cub, and he NEEDS THAT PRECIOUS SLEEP TIME while you’re scared of your nightmares and wants to sleep together. · Cautis then remembers he needs to take shower more often otherwise he smells like he’s from the dirtiest sewerage. He dragged his “malfunction” body and muscles to take a shower and unwillingly hug you to sleep. · Surprisingly, the milky smell of your hair shampoo he just bought quickly calms his mind and body, he falls asleep faster than usual, dreaming of unicorns flying in his poisonous gas with rainbows behind them. *He will prob wake up with some serious headache: WTF DID I JUST DREAM OF. · You often dream of yellow marshmallow clouds and invite your papa in a poofy white lab coat to picnic, but those marshmallows smell like farts-- “SHARP ODOR SMELL”, you papa correct you with a distant voice in your dream.

· You thought he WAS the best father ever in the world until you found out he used to want to experiment on you. · You were stunned · You looked at your “papa” with tears in your eyes, he quickly threw you an ugly and sinful smile and tossed you his nox gas grenade. · SMELLS AWFUL, you thought you were going to die. · BUT wait...it smelled like...condensed durian? · You kept coughing but still was able to breathe, and you found a handmade durian cake inside the grenade shell. · You smiled, tho still coughing, believing you have the best papa in the world.

#apex legends #caustic x reader #apex legends imagines #caustic #alexander nox

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levynite · 5 years ago

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1) Me: THIS NASI LEMAK COSTS HOW MUCH?! This had better be damn good especially it was voted as best nasi lemak in Malaysia by the Tourism Ministry *grumblegrumble*

2) And then my nasi lemak with chicken curry arrived and it was like a flying saucer landing on the table. That cucumber? Over freaking 2 inches across, I’ve never seen cucumber that big before, and the two chicken pieces are 3/4 the size of my fist each (I had to doggy bag one home). [Coconut milk boiled rice, chicken curry, half a hardboiled egg, sweet salty onion anchovy sambal, shrimp floss, world’s biggest cucumber slices and some acar aka spicy pickles on the side]

3) This is when the head waiter stopped by and put the little dish of acar onto the table, revealing the hidden shrimp floss and egg. Review: It was a big portion, taste is satisfying and tasty but absolutely NOTHING that makes it Malaysia’s best except in that the heat-spice is so mild that the rich coconut rice started giving me a headache cause I was getting overwhelmed by the richness with no spicy hot to cut it; where’s the spicy sambal yo? It’s just, inoffensive? It does its best to be inoffensive that sure, it’s got some deliciousness but I was bored? The chicken was plenty tender though so good job on that. Good big portion for 21.90 ringgit though. (Mall restaurant prices, what can you do)

4) The starter special featuring tender well marinated chicken satay and a nice thick satay sauce; prawn and chicken mince fried dumping and mayo, the skin was nice and thin and crispy; and dad’s favourite, of which he approved, otak-otak which is a type of spicy fish cake thing but they made it a bit more loosely and not anything like a Thai fish cake.

5) Dad’s otak-otak fried rice which he started attacking immediately to mix.

6) Mom ordered rice and a side dish since she mooched off our plates anyways; unsurprisingly lacklustre assam vegetables featuring tomato, okra and a too sweet tamarind sauce.

7) And then I went and bought coconut cookies and durian candy at the supermarket afterwards. Trufax, I’ve had durian and its many processed product versions but I’ve never had durian candy until now. It’s okay, not very hard on the odor/aroma and flavour.

#food #my photos #madame kwan's #not my vote for best nasi lemak in malaysia #nasi lemak #chicken satay #otak-otak #fried rice #tomato #okra #assam vegetables #fried dumpling #coconut cookies #durian candy

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mariolandavid · 2 years ago

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Stop 2 : Penang! I didn't know much to anything about this island off the coast of Malaysia before entering the country. A bit of cursory Wikipedia research labelled this part of town as The Silicon Valley of the East, but simultaneously a backpackers paradise of unspoilt old town and charm filled cheap cafes. Like if Starbucks moved in but was best pals with your local neighbourhood cake shops instead of mercilessly grinding them to dust. I was excited for this; sounded like a vibe.

Arriving we've been greeted much more by the latter old town sort of thing, given we are staying in that part of town. This is the only kinda place where i've seen the "people on bikes" graffiti genre veer as far one way as Bansky and as far the other way as "just put mr Bean on the bike and more people will stay at the hotel". It's a beautiful place. Slow. Feels almost too quiet right now but this is a world only just post COVID. There's some way to go before what's 'normal' is back I guess. Places like this got hit bad by having to close their business for 3 years. It shows, there's a lot of shut up places. Man, it's not even just Covid, you can see the effects of the 2004 Tsunami out by the beaches. It's dumb to expect recovery from this stuff quickly and I'm glad they're open up again and the money comes back to rebuild. I'm kinda grateful to be here at all.

One thing I am not grateful for. Durian. I once left a bag of potatoes in a cupboard over a kettle for close to a year in a student flat. Over time the steam liquidised the potatoes as they gradually putrefied naturally. The smell at the end of it was close to something between death and a deep wet mould. Durian is the only thing close to that smell, and it is everywhere. It's actually banned in many public places yet appears so delicious inside that despite these things being on every street corner, & this making you appreciate how bad the whole world must smell in the Walking Dead, everyone love the taste too much to choose not to have corpse stench lightly permeate the air at all times. Good for them. I admire that mental strength. I hate durians.

We did domestic duties early on arrival. Getting the washing done, scouting around and sitting down at Tek Sen for some really good Chinese food. The adaptation from Singapore dollars to Malaysian Ringitt has taken some brain adjustments that's hard to demonstrate without reconverting everything into pounds and realising a beer now costs £1.80, not £7. A meal £2.82, not £20+. The budget might be ok after all. It's taken a lot of work and heart rending "oh god, we need a cheap day tomorrow, this is going to tip is past our average" before realising that a 90 ringitt meal is £16 and no, it's fine, you probably spend that on an aperol Spritz on a bad day back home. Chill.

Day 2 was eventful. We took the bus out to the national park via a breakfast stop off at the Toh Soon cafe. Toh Soon was a lovely little spot, but with a hell of a queue early in the morning. I felt a pang of home-sickness in that queue when the Malaysian man in front of us shouted "FUCKS SAKE" all of a sudden, apropos of nothing. It's a curiously English phrase when I think about it. I don't think i've ever heard it in another accent before.

We got a portion each of Nasi Lemak and Kaya Toast on a couple of different breads, washing everything down with the customary condensed milk laden coffee that I still can't shake the feeling is going to give me diabetes by the end of this trip. All excellent, still not a bad meal here. Because South East Asia is possibly situated next to some great cosmic steam vent, I immediately needed more fluids before the hour long bus ride so we dropped into 7/11. The door played what, on first listen might sound to the corporate morons who decreed this inflicted punishment on the poor staff who have to listen to this song everyday, to be a 'cheerful welcoming melody'. I heard this cheerful welcoming melody 6 times while in the shop buying one drink for something like 5 minutes. Some quick sums; and the poor man working behind the counter is probably there for a minimum of 8 hours a day. He must have heard that welcome jingle a minimum of 576 times in a day. If he works all week, even if it's a 5 day week, he will hear that jingle 2880 times. The suicide rate is remarkably low when considering this.

We hurtled onwards to Penang park after this interlude at 800 mph on the public bus. Seeing corners only as challenges to travel faster. When arriving, we geared up for a big hike (1 hour 15!!) to Turtle Beach, or Pentai Kerachut. We booked a return boat trip, because we're all allowed our little luxuries (and they take you to see the monkeys, come on). Walking through the jungle, you're hit by a wall of humidity and ants. You experience that true sweat that is only reserved for humid climes. The kind where things like your lip and the top of your arms even start sweating when you forgot they could. It's a lovely hike all things considered though, not too strenuous and some gorgeous beach and jungle scenery before you reach the meromictic lake where freshwater meets salt and the two are too different in density to mix. The colours are gorgeous and if you're lucky you'll see them form whirlpools twirling, ever twirling towards freedom.

We got out past the lake onto the beach and played our new favourite beach game "why can't I swim here", is it something that can kill me? Raw sewage? Perhaps lethal waves or a small undersea cliff? Well today it was multiple of these, so we stayed out of the water and continued on to the turtle sanctuary, seeing and reading about the egg laying cycles of the giant turtles on these beaches who need utter quiet, calm and peace, without any bright light to lay their eggs, or they'll simply turn back around and return to the see if they're disturbed. If you lived 100+ years, you'd think time was on your side too.

One of the things I have noticed dating a Spaniard, is that, there's a hell of a lot of Spaniards. I have found them as far aflung as the Premier Inn near Birmingham International, Westminster, local bakers in small english towns, and now here, on a boat in the middle of Malaysia, a group of 5 Catalonians became immediate best friends with Mariola because this is what Spaniards do. They were great company on the way to Monkey beach. Much friendlier than the second boat where I was nearly turfed off by a lady who insisted she had booked the entire boat privately for her family. Ah well. If Brits can do anything well, it's obstinately stand your ground when a small piece of official paper tells you you're in the right. So we stayed on that damn boat.

We had however spent all of our bus money on crisps on Monkey beach. This was a mistake & one I do not encourage. We needed to walk 5km to various hotels imploring people to try and call us cabs and furiously refreshing Grab. After multiple tries, an argument with 2 bus drivers eating dinner and a short rest in a 5 star hotel car park, we were saved by the lovely valet staff of the hotel Ansanga who managed to find us a cab home. This was 10x more expensive than the bus. Please learn from our mistakes and resist those island crisps. Keep some cash handy at all times!

We rounded off the day once we got back and showered with a late dinner at Tem Xim (Penang surprisingly has pretty limited food options past 9pm.. the local population prefers rising early and eating earlier.. look to eat between 6-8pm for the best options!)

The woman who owns Tem Xim, a thai charcoal bbq joint, is likely on some sort of wall somewhere alongside Mother Theresa, Marie Curie & Florence Nightingale. The woman's an artist at hospitality. She saw two floundering hangry westerners staring at chili sauce in beffudlement as to whether it would blow our face off or not and took pity. She was particularly informative and nice in helping us around the menu and it's one of the better dining experiences I think we'll have all trip not just for the quality of food, but also how genuinely kind everyone was. You can tell she does this a lot by the fact she's racked up 300+ 5* Google reviews, most of which mention her explicitly. Good on ya love, you've got one more from me. Hit up Tem Xim anyone reading this and visiting Georgetown.

Our last full day took us from our original plans to go to Penang Hill onto the Kek Lok Si temple instead because, oh boy, when it rains here, it rains. We had a pretty fantastic trip around all things considered and it's a stunning temple, only recently built in the 19th century, but built to impress with grand enormous 70ft tall statues, 7 story pagodas and seals of approval from Beijing about its status amongst Chinese temples. It's well worth a visit and if you want to you could combined it with a trip to Penang Hill to get the views quite easily for a jam packed day. We then did the customary 'eat absolutely everything' food tour, hitting up all the local favourites of Wanton Mee, Char Kaoy Teow, Apom, Lok Lok and Cendol because we are those people, and try and keep me away from weird novelty food. I will eat you.

It's been hard to get away from a fact that Penang doesn't feel quite recovered yet. There's people here, but it feels a bit stunted. Like the energy is yet to return fullly as the place isn't quite full. It's wonderful for a bit of pece and the lack of crowds is something we should be happy about but Georgetown is definitely somewhere I could feel like you could appear, without a purpose, without a clear sense of anything, and have a wicked time simply being. Come for 2 weeks, forget about everything, eat like a king for £3 and forget life happens outside this island. It's back to city life in Kuala Lumpur after this, but i've liked this sleepy little town and recommend it to anyone.

Signing off - DW

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noelynbocaling · 4 years ago

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bald as coot

in a nutshell

A screw loose

stiff upper lip

Time flies

put all your eggs in one basket

kick the bucket

head over heels

shadow of your former self

pull up your sock

piece of cake

cherry on the cake

walking on egg shell

on bended knee

cold feet

The cat's got your tounge

Got the cat by the tail

no room to swing a cat

tie the knot

keep your card close to your chest

heart on your sleeve

Born with a silver spoon in your mouth

spill the beans

something fishy

Big cheese

bird brain

1.ALLUSION:

“Don’t act like Romeo in front of her”-Romeo and Juliet-William Shakespeare

2.ANAPHORA:

“It was the best of times,it was the worst of time,it was the age of wisdom,it was the age of foolishness-A tale of Two Cities-Charles Dickens

3.EUPHEMISM:

“Royal wench!She made great Ceasar lay his sword to bed.He plowed her,and she cropped”-Antony and Cleopatra-William Shakespeare

4.EPIGRAM:

“To see a world in a grain of sand,And a heaven in a wild flower,Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,And eternity in an hour”-Auguries of Innocence-William Blake

5.LITOTES:

“I am no prophet and here’s no great matter”-The lovesong of J.Alfred Prufrock-T.S. Eliot

6.METONYMY:

“MARCELLUS:Something is rotten in the state of Denmark”.-Hamlet-William Shakespeare

7.OXYMORON

“As for believing things,I can believe anything,provided that it is quite incredible”-The Picture of Durian Grey-Oscar Wilde

8.MERISM:

“She bought the whole thing, lock ,stock,and barrel!”Lock,stock and barrel Sir Walter Scott

9.ANTITHESIS

“Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heav’n”-Paradise Lost-John Milton

10.IRONY:

“Nobody heard him,the dead man,but still he lay moaning:I was much further out than you thought and not waving but drowning”-Not Waving but Drowning-Stevie Smith

ROMEO AND JULIET

BY:WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

The story of Romeo and Juliet is somehow good and different from the book that we read nowadays.The style of the author that used to write “Romeo and Juliet “is very passionate and poetic.The author spoiled his reader in a prologue part because even if I just read the prologue part,I can predict what will happen.The tone that the author used is very sympathetic because it proved by the two couple character who’s Romeo and Juliet.It gives arousing symphathy and a sexual desire to the readers.The book contains a lot of figure speech but most of it is metaphor and personification.When Benvolio said “Alas that love,so gentle in his view,Should be so tyrannous and rough in proof!”it shows personification.When Romeo said”Juliet is the sun” it shows metaphor.”It is the east,and Juliet is the sun”That quoted also shows metaphor.The author used diction in so many parts of the book .For example when Juliet said “ O shut the door!and when thou hast done so,Come weep with me;past hope,past cure,past help!.”And also the author used diction in this part but its far more moderate in the line of Friar Laurence said “It strains me past the compass of my wits:I hear thou must,and nothing may prorogue it,On Thursday next be married to this country”.Actually overall the story is good but its just the ending is very unexpected and the first time I read this book,I cried because of the ending.It so tragedy.

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love-takes-work · 5 years ago

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I’ve recreated every food in Steven Universe

OKAY I THINK I FINALLY DID IT

I FINALLY RECREATED EVERY RECIPE FROM THE SHOW

Sooooo . . . what did I miss?

Now it’s your turn to help me be sure I got them all. Your mission, should you choose to accept it:

Reblog this post suggesting a food from the show (with or without screencap; just enough so I can recognize it). The weirder the better.

I will respond to you with my photo of when I made that food.

If I can’t deliver, I will like send you $10 or draw you a SU fanart or something. (We’ll negotiate.)

I will accept asks instead of reblogs if you prefer.

It’s fine if you have a fairly common or easy suggestion and you just wanna see it. ;)

I’m offering this incentive because I really want some help combing the show for foods I might have forgotten! Your help is appreciated!

Edit: Adding responses. :D

Dog-Nut (Pilot!)

Classic Hot Dog (Intro)

Fry Bits (2 - “Laser Light Cannon” & others)

Together Breakfast (4 - “Together Breakfast”)

Popcorn for Onion (7 - “Bubble Buddies”)

Giant Strawberry (8 - “Serious Steven” & others)

Large Pizza, Extra Fishy (10 - “Steven’s Lion”)

Cereal to stop the Foot (11 - “Arcade Mania”)

Aqua Mexican Burrito (13 - “So Many Birthdays”)

Movie Snacks (17 - “Lion 2: The Movie”)

Crystal Lizards (17 - “Lion 2: The Movie”)

Hot Dogs & Hamburgers (18 - “Beach Party”)

Lars’s Lunch (20 - “Coach Steven”)

Fire Salt & Fire Salt Donuts (21 - “Joking Victim”)

Big Fat Zucchini with Linguine (22 - “Steven and the Stevens”)

Chaaaaps (23 - “Monster Buddies”)

Mi Torta (23 - “Monster Buddies”)

Durian Juice (24 - “An Indirect Kiss”)

Fish Kebabs & Giant Fish (30 - “Island Adventure”)

Cheeseball Cake (32 - “Fusion Cuisine”)

Breadsticks (32 - “Fusion Cuisine”)

Shrimp Appetizer (32 - “Fusion Cuisine”)

Onion Rings (33 - “Garnet’s Universe”)

Baby Melon (34 - “Watermelon Steven”)

Nice Spicey Pretzels (35 - “Lion 3: Straight to Video”)

Mama Sadie Lunch (35 - “Lion 3: Straight to Video”)

Garnet’s Chocolate Chip Cookies (37 - “Warp Tour”)

Mayo Sandwich (39 - “Future Vision”)

Bindle Lunches (40 - “On the Run”)

Marshmallows (42 - “Winter Forecast”)

Waffle Egg Sandwich (42 - “Winter Forecast”)

Caprese Salad (47 - “Shirt Club”)

Three-Way Sub (55 - “Say Uncle”)

Pizza Steve (55 - “Say Uncle”)

Tea and Cookies (55 - “Say Uncle”)

Pile of Food (57 - “Reformed”)

Snack Sushi (Season 2 Short - “Cooking With Lion”)

Biscuits & Jam (58 - “Sworn to the Sword”)

Smoothie & Orange Slices (58 - “Sworn to the Sword”)

Best Breakfast in the World (64 - “Keystone Motel”)

Noodles and Butter (65 - “Onion Friend”)

Potato Steven (65 - “Onion Friend”)

Lion Lickers (68 - “Nightmare Hospital”)

Amethyst’s Hoagie (79 - “Super Watermelon Island”)

Fresh Big Donut Donuts (84 - “Steven Floats”)

Guacola (85 - “Drop Beat Dad”)

Pepe’s Burgers (86 - “Mr. Greg”)

The Finest Steak and Brie (86 - “Mr. Greg”)

Corndogs (87 - “Too Short to Ride”)

Pizza Bagel & Fantastic Fries (90 - “Restaurant Wars”)

Fancy Orange Juice (93 - “Alone at Sea”)

PROTES Protein Bars (95 - “Gem Hunt”)

Pine Needle Tea (95 - ”Gem Hunt”)

Sugar Shock Shut Down (109 - “Last One Out of Beach City”)

Apple Sidra (109 - “Last One Out of Beach City”)

Gem Harvest & Wedding Cake (111-112 “Gem Harvest”)

Korean Lunch (114 - “Steven’s Dream”)

Zoo Fruit (117 - “The Zoo”)

Pumpkin-Shaped Pumpkin Bread (126 - “The Good Lars”)

Ube Roll (126 - “The Good Lars”)

Cool Kids Potluck (126 - “The Good Lars”)

Jungle Moon Alien Carcass (140 - “Jungle Moon”)

Meal for Stranded Humans (144 - “Lars’ Head”)

Everything Pizza (148 - “What’s Your Problem”)

Together Breakfast Wedding Cake (151-152- “Reunited”)

Bixbite’s Pizzas (SUF 2 - “Guidance”)

Snow Cones (SUF 2 - “Guidance”)

Crystal Drinks (SUF 3 - “Rose Buds”)

Carrot Bean Meal (SUF 3 - “Rose Buds”)

Tomato Soup on the Go (SUF 5 - “Bluebird”)

Clams, Peanut Butter, & a side of fresh-cut grass (SUF 5 - “Bluebird”)

Bluebird’s Cake (SUF 5 - “Bluebird”)

Fried Eggs (on Amethyst’s face) (SUF 7 - “Snow Day”)

Protein Shake (SUF 7 - “Snow Day”)

Spicy Chili (SUF 11 - “In Dreams”)

Together Forever Cake (SUF 13 - “Together Forever”)

Cookie Cat Ice Cream (SUF 14 - “Growing Pains”)

Cocoa (SUF 14 - “Growing Pains”)

Ice Cream a La Pie (SUF 15 - “Mr. Universe”)

Caveats and Rules (read if participating):

It counts as a recipe for the show only if it is eaten or to be eaten by a character (onscreen or implied to have been) or otherwise prominently featured. (e.g., Together Breakfast would count even though it was not eaten, but random food sitting around incidentally in a fridge or bake case does not count as a recipe.)

Food items that are only mentioned but not pictured don’t count.

Food items that are part of the background art don’t count unless they are significant or interacted with at some point. This includes mentioned or pictured items on restaurant menus.

Note: I HAVE actually made some things that have only been mentioned or pictured on menus! So feel free to suggest them if you really want to see if I made them! But for purposes of qualifying for a reward, I can’t commit to making the entire bake case, pizza joint menu, Spacetries display, or commercial cooler full of food if they’re more scenery than snacks.

If I have made an item once and it recurs, it doesn’t count as a different recipe if it appears in a different configuration in a later episode. (e.g., if I made an ube roll for “The Good Lars,” I don’t have to make a new one for Steven Universe: The Movie.)

Non-food items eaten by animals, monsters, and Amethyst do not count as recipes. (e.g., I do not consider it a recipe when the Big Bird from “Giant Woman” ate a goat and Steven. I do not consider it a recipe when Amethyst eats wrappers or garbage. Weird food she eats is OK. As long as it is food.)

YES, I count all qualifying food in Steven Universe, Steven Universe: The Movie, Steven Universe Future, and any official shorts as fair game.

NO, I do not count food in the comics, the video games, the official or tie-in books, Ronaldo’s blog, or the Crewniverse’s celebratory food as recipes I have to make.

There is a lot of generic popcorn, chips, and soda in this show. I don’t count it as a new recipe every time someone munches one of these as an incidental snack.

Very minor variations on common snacks don’t count as new recipes. (e.g., I don’t have to make every donut or flavor of Chaaaaps anyone was ever seen eating. Including variation options in my recipe is enough.)

Random messes made with food do not have to be recreated as recipes. (e.g., Onion smearing condiments all over the kitchen is not a recipe; pizzas that get destroyed or thrown around are not new recipes; Greg and Steven scattering food leavings around their Empire City hotel is not a recipe; a seagull with a banana peel on its head carrying pizza does not count; Steven scattering the contents of his kitchen on the floor while making Together Breakfast is not a recipe, etc.)

Yes, the foods will be prepared/arranged by me. In most cases they are homemade creations but in some cases store-bought elements will be used and that is also OK.

Food-shaped items that aren’t actually food are not recipes. (e.g., game controllers shaped like ham do not count. Crying Breakfast Friends are characters, not food.)

Things made out of food do not count unless they are eaten. (e.g., Fish Stew Pizza is required; Jenny made out out of pizza in Kiki’s dream is not.)

Vegetarian alternatives, facsimiles designed to look but not taste like certain foods, and ingredient substitutes are permissible. (e.g., vegetarian pepperoni on a pizza that was REAL pepperoni in the show is allowed; a non-fish substitute for a real dead fish is OK; dishes representing disgusting food that are secretly delicious are all right, etc.)

Thanks for your help. :)

#steven universe #steven universe food #su food #food #long post #myblog

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pinkguacamole · 7 years ago

Photo

Singapore: Finding the City Amongst the Malls

I almost wasn’t let in to Singapore because the Customs Agent was convinced I was not the same person from my passport photo. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but did you get work done?”

“No but I have spent the past 3 years baking in the sun and I don’t really comb my hair anymore…”

Finally, after an excruciating interview and a lot of tense waiting, they stamped me into a country I have been curious about ever since I read about it in National Geographic, maybe 10 years ago.

I have met some Singaporean friends while traveling and I was excited to reconnect with them! One of my friends, Matt whom I met in Macedonia and spent a Christmas with in Istanbul, Turkey (he is Muslim and I am Jewish), set me up with his friend Hafizhah who likes to host travelers. I stayed at her home with her family while I was in town and it was wonderful. Hafizhah and Matt took me to all of the places they like to go to and thought I would enjoy.

They brought me to cool neighborhoods and Malaysian restaurants. They made me try Durian…but it was in the form of a cake. That was really nice of them to give me a pastry instead of the fruit, but the smell of durian will haunt my dreams for the rest of my life. Cake can’t save everything. I was also excited to check out the Harry Potter themed cafe Platform 1094. It was cool to dress up but I think they could have done a lot more with the theme. One morning, we went on a treetop hike through one of Singapore’s nature reserves.

When I wasn’t with Matt or Hafizhah, or my other friend Shalini whom I met traveling almost 4 years ago in Scotland, I was exploring by myself. I took the underground train and walked all over the neighborhoods I had heard about beforehand. Marina Bay is where the giant man-made trees are and they do not disappoint! They drape across a skyline of oddly shaped modern sky-scrapers. Every building I passed left me in awe. Singapore is trying very hard to look fancy and it is working!

I went to Little India so I could try some of my favorite food: Vegetarian Indian! Unfortunately the curry was a bit cold and it went right through me. This happens with Indian food sometimes. I love curry but sometimes my body says: “no.”

Luckily, Little India was not too far from one of Singapore’s most prominent treasures: a giant mall (where there are typically nice toilets).

I swear, Singapore is mostly malls and then some streets and trees in between. Every Singapore Mass Rapid Transit Station seems to end in a Mall. Downtown- “oh what’s that gorgeous building?”

A mall.

There are malls across the street from malls.

I got overwhelmed a few times when I was trying to exit the underground station and landed in a mall. Sometimes it was really hard to find the exit…to the outside world. I had a few panic attacks trying to escape. I don’t do well in malls after spending 2 years in Madagascar. All of the consumerism and things I have no interest in purchasing (because I am a poor traveler) just overwhelm me.

I am so lucky I had Singaporean friends to show me around because I am afraid I might have been sucked into a mall and never sprung free if I did not have people to guide me.

The best part of staying with Hafizhah is that she was spending a lot of time celebrating the cultures of Singapore and I got to tag along! One night we went to her Indian-Singaporean friend’s house to try on Punjabi Suits. Her and her friend are teachers and it was a cross-cultural day at school where people were supposed to dress in one of the various Singaporean Cultures that wasn’t their own: Chinese, Malay, Tamil or …other. Her friend’s mom was so excited for me to try on their dresses too. The sweet little old lady ran all over the house grabbing all of the colors she thought would look good on me, pulling the garments over my head, and continuously telling me my hair was a mess. It was one of the most hilarious “dress-up” montages I have ever experienced. She wanted me to keep a Punjabi Suit, but I just don’t have room in my small bag. Also in America it would be very offensive for me to ever wear it. I do understand why cultural appropriation in America is such a problem, but it was honestly so refreshing to be in an Asian country surrounded by people sharing their culture with me in such exuberance. It would have been completely rude for me to not try on these dresses. And they are absolutely gorgeous.

These past few weeks, Muslims have been celebrating Hari Raya, a post- Ramadan series of feasts and family time. Hafizhah cooked up a traditional Malaysian meal and throughout Saturday her cousins, former students, and friends came to eat, drink tea, and celebrate. I had so much fun meeting them and learning about Muslim customs specific to Malay culture.

I have only been in Singapore for a few days and I am leaving tomorrow because it is so expensive, but in my short time I have had so many beautiful experiences. Singapore is an interesting place because it is a city-state on a series of islands. Singapore is just Singapore. And it is one of the most economically powerful countries in the world. Since it is so small, it is easy for the government to maintain control over certain things, but it did not seem as intense as I expected.

Thanks to globalization and the resolve for Singaporeans to be united by learning English in school, I feel like I have so much in common with my Singaporean friends. We all come from different backgrounds but the internet and pop culture spread far and wide and despite our different religions and ways of dress, we are all so similar and it is gloriously beautiful.

#singapore #travel #seasia #muslim #culture #harry potter

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ireviewuread · 5 years ago

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Go traditional with your Mooncakes this Mid-Autumn Festival

Mid-Autumn Festival | Mooncake Festival

Time to worship and pay homage to the moon for a good harvest. If you are confused about what I’m talking about, then you might have to take a peek back at your history textbooks. Although Mid-Autumn festival is more known for Chang’e’s story, there are various other version as well.

Either ways, the most important factor of Mid-Autumn Festival these days is not the part where you are staring at the moon but the part where you are consuming mooncakes. Fun fact! Did you know back in ancient China, mooncakes were used to smuggle messages to orchestrate the uprising against Mongolian rule at the end of the Yuan Dynasty by the Ming Revolutionaries.

These days, mooncakes were not used to smuggle messages anymore. Instead they are mainly shared during the festivities of the Mooncake festival with people of all ages. Which brings me to the point that I’ll be sharing next.

Singapore’s Award Winning Freshly Baked Traditional Mooncake | Bing Liang Bakery

Bing Liang Bakery was set up in 1998 by the Ang family of Muar, Johor. It is a popular seasonal Chinese pastry bakery in Malaysia that use to close their seasonal orders as early as 2 months before the actual date. This year Bing Liang Bakery have expanded their services and pastries all the way from Malaysia to Singapore to give Singaporeans the opportunity to taste the unique mooncakes. Aside from mooncakes, Bing Liang Bakery also produces Chinese New Year goodies like pineapple tarts and Kueh Lapis.

The mooncakes comes in boxes of fours with a cool design that has a pull out drawer on the bottom which makes for a very nifty and trendy desk decoration. Personally, I like how sturdy the box is and one may upcycle the beautiful pink boxes as storage space.

Pure Lotus Mooncakes

The more commonly known pure lotus mooncakes are filled with lotus paste accompanied with the salted egg yolk right in the middle, the perfect combination of sweetness and saltiness.

Pure Lotus Double Yolk Mooncake

What’s better than one yolk, two yolks! The mooncake speaks for itself with every bite of the best of both worlds. The thin yet sturdy layer of crust around it helps make each and every single bite of the goodness we know as the Pure Lotus Double Yolk Mooncake all the more satisfying.

Pure Lotus Golden Emerald Mooncake

Sometimes we wonder, is life really that boring? If you answered yes to that, have i got the best thing for you!

Imagine the vigorous mixing of pandan leaves and lotus paste and lotus seed all the ingredients slowly merging to take form and present itself to you as the Pure Lotus Golden Emerald Mooncake. For this I would highly recommend it to people who loves digging into their pandan cakes as the aroma of the pandan leaves perfectly melds with the lotus paste and seed, leaving you with the aftertaste that makes you want to go back for more.

Durian, Mao Shan Wang Mooncake

How could I simply miss out on the Durian Mao Shan Wang Mooncakes, cautionary note to those who do not like durians, this might be one to steer away from. For those who enjoy getting their mouths stuffed with the aromatic scent of the king of fruits, this one is the mooncake you can’t miss! The lingering aftertaste of the durian mooncake paired with the crunchy lotus seeds puts this easily as one of my favourites.

Pure Lotus Mooncake Variety

Pure White Lotus Single Yolk

Pure Lotus

Pure White Lotus

So for those of you wondering what are the different types of Pure Lotus Mooncakes available, do have a look and be sure not to miss out on giving your tastebuds a treat!

Low Sugar Mooncake

Pure Lotus

Pure White Lotus Double Yolk

Of course, I wouldn’t forget about those who are more health conscious. There are two types of Low Sugar Mooncakes that you can immerse yourself in without having to worry about your health.

Other types of Mooncakes

Pure White Lotus Single Yolk

Red Bean Paste

Pure Lotus Green Tea

I could go on and on about how each and every single one of these mooncakes just keeps getting better but that would make this an essay. If you’re someone who doesn’t have too long of an attention span like myself, I implore you to take a look at the crust.

The intricacy of the carvings would make one hesitate to bite into these pieces of arts. But who am I kidding, they all taste and look amazing! As much as I do know that these are made in molds, it almost feels like you’re one of the ancient Chinese royals who had each of these carved out for them by the chefs.

Exclusive Discount Code

Did you think that would be it? Just quote IREVIEWUREADSH10 at bingliang.com.sg enjoy a 10% off on your orders, don’t miss out!

#mooncake #food #collab

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altughuner-blog · 5 years ago

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When you talk about the best cuisine in the world, Thai food is right up there. Along with Italian, Chinese, Indian, Japanese and Mexican, Thai food makes it to the top 10 list of popular cuisines in the world. However, most of the popular dishes include meat, often pork, chicken, beef or seafood, as an ingredient. Because of this, if you’re vegan or looking for vegetarian Thai food you need to know and plan about it during your trip to Thailand. I have got some good news for you. You can still take a foodie trip to the ‘Land of Smiles’ and feast on some delicious vegetarian dishes.

The Thai combination of herbs and spices create ‘to die for meals’ that are spicy, sour, sweet, crunchy and chewy. That’s why a lot of people love Thai dishes because of all the flavors it presents in one meal.

Read to know more about the vegetarian Thai food dishes you must try during your trip, the best places to get them and how to order the food.

Remember to travel to Thailand from India you’ll need a Thailand eVoa from India.

Irresistible Vegetarian Thai Food Dishes To Try

1. Som Tam (Spicy Green Thai Papaya Salad)

Som Tam Green Papaya salad spicy and delicious. Image Shutterstock

This is one of the popular Thai vegetarian dishes you can try in Thailand. The mouthwatering meal is prepared using, galangal, juicy tomatoes, carrots, shredded green (unripe) papaya, lime and tamarind juice, long beans, palm sugar, and peanuts. The ingredients give the meal a sweet, spicy, salty, sour and savory flavor. The salad usually has fish sauce and prawns included, so when ordering you make sure to say you’re vegetarian/vegan for these ingredients not to be included in your dish.

2. Pad Thai (Stir-Fried Rice Noodles)

Pad Thai the stir-fried rice noodles with tofu and mixed vegetables. Image Shutterstock

A vegetarian Thai food cuisine menu cannot miss this dish. It is one of the national dishes in Thailand and is also very popular among tourists. Mostly it is cooked with eggs, bean sprouts, tasty tofu cubes, onions, lime juice, groundnuts, and shrimp or chicken. However, you can ask the chef to omit the meat products. The famous Thai dish is just as tasty without them. Pad Thai is sold everywhere in Thailand from five-star restaurants to the street food stalls.

3. Pad Phuk Tong (Stir-Fried Pumpkin)

Pad Phuk Tong – the stir-fried Pumpkin. Image Shutterstock

You’re probably used to seeing pumpkins begin carved out during Halloween. In Thailand they have a much better use for pumpkins, they use them to create this vegetarian dish. Other ingredients used to prepare Pad Phuk tong are spring onions, coriander leaves, sugar, garlic, water, white pepper, celery, and soy sauce. This is one of the best vegetarian dishes in Thailand and you should try it with Thai fragrant rice.

4. Pak Boong (Morning Glory)

Pak Boong the stir-fried Chinese Morning Glory or Water Spinach. Image Shutterstock

This is one of the healthiest foods you can take while you’re on vacation in Thailand. The delicious salad which is salty, crunchy, spicy and sour has soy sauce, chilies, soybean paste, and garlic. Oyster sauce is often added when preparing morning glory, so again tell the cook making it not to include the sauce to keep it vegetarian.

5. Pad Pak (Fried Vegetables)

As the name suggests this is an all-vegetable Thai dish. Some of the vegetables used to make it are mushrooms, cauliflower, and broccoli. When you go to a food stall you’ll see the different vegetables used to prepare it displayed and you can choose what you want or don’t want in your Pad Pak.

6. Vegetable Noodle Soup with Lemongrass

Should you visit Thailand during the cold season this noodle soup is what you should have to keep you warm on a chilly day. It is known to be a good remedy for a cold or flu and is also said to help boost your mood. To make it lemongrass, several vegetables, thin rice noodles or noodles of your choice, coconut milk is needed. The soup is quite filling and can be had as a meal on its own at any time of the day.

7. Vegetarian Thai Green Curry

Thai cuisine has a wide variety of curries with Panang and Massaman curry being some of the most popular ones. A lot of curries are made with meat but this can be removed in your order. The Thai green vegetable curry, for example, has meat in it but you can substitute this with tofu or wheat gluten. Whichever you choose will be mixed with kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, galangal, coriander seeds, green chilies, and coconut milk.

8. Pad Phak (Stir-Fried Vegetables)

This is another all vegetable meal that will ensure you stick to your vegetarian diet. It will also leave you full but wanting for more. Ingredients required to make this meal are vegetable oil, coarsely chopped garlic, broccoli florets, cauliflower florets, shallots, carrots, bell pepper, snow peas, mushrooms, soy sauce, spinach leaves, Thai pepper powder, and lime juice. These are all mixed together to give your food several different flavors. You can enjoy this meal with Thai jasmine rice.

9. Tao Hoo Song Kreung (Mixed Tofu)

If you don’t know tofu, it is soya milk coagulated to create curd. It is an excellent source of protein, iron, and calcium for vegans and vegetarians. To make this Thai meal different types of tofu are fried with the basil to make a tasty stir fry. Like most of the other dishes, we have talked about mixed tofu is usually served with some steaming rice.

10. Laab Jay (Vegan Laab)

In Thailand, most Laab salads have chicken, beef or pork but you can have a vegetarian version. Simply replace the meat with tofu and you have an amazing meal. The tofu is mixed with lime juice, Thai roasted chili paste, green onions, coriander leaves, roast rice powder, lemongrass, etc. The spices used to make this meal make it very hot and spicy, so if you don’t like spicy food ask for it to be prepared moderate or mild.

11. Thai fruit

Fruits in the streets of Thailand

If you have had enough of Thai vegetable meals on your trip switch to some fruits. Fruits are very healthy and in Thailand, you can try some of their rare fruits. You can but a bag of fruits from street vendors for 40 Baht (Baht is the official currency of Thailand), which is about $1. Mangosteen, rambutans, banana, durian, pomelos, rose apples, dragon fruit, lychee, coconut, and guava are some of the fruits you’ll find available at the fruit stand on the street corners of Bangkok.

Read More – Parallels in Indian and Thai Cuisine

There are so many more vegetarian Thai food dishes you can try while in Thailand. I’ll just list other options you can taste without going into details about them.

Heavenly pineapple fried rice. This is rice fried with cashews, peas, curry-flavored sauce and chunks of pineapple.

Thai Vegetable Spring Rolls. These make for a good snack as you travel around Thailand sightseeing. Stuffed with vegetables try them with sweet and sour or hot sauce.

Thai Mushroom Fried Rice

Khao Niew Ma Muang (mango sticky rice)

Thai Peanut Noodles

Chao Kuai. This is a Thai dessert prepared using sun-dried stems and leaves of the Chinese Mesona plant which are boiled to make a jelly.

Top Vegetarian Thai food Restaurants in Thailand

Roasted Bananas from streets of Bangkok

You can get Thai vegetarian dishes in most cities in Thailand you go visit. However, to make it easier for you here are some of my favorite vegetarian restaurants you can visit around Thailand:

1. Broccoli Revolution, Bangkok

This vegetarian Thai food restaurant located in downtown Sukhumvit was first opened in Bangkok in 2015. It now has two locations. It not only serves vegetarian dishes from around the world but also has a juice bar, which makes some of the best organic juices you’ll ever drink.

The Restaurant is open daily from 7 am to 10 pm so you can head on there for breakfast, lunch or dinner. I recommend you try the pad thai, mushrooms and basil on rice and green curry. This will cost you about 150-200 baht.

2. Greenlight Cafe & Bar, Koh Samui

This is not an exclusively vegetarian restaurant but their menu includes a wide range of Thai vegetable meals you will enjoy. Most of the ingredients used to make their dishes are organic and come from their kitchen garden.

It is open throughout the week 8 am to 10 pm. You can find the Greenlight Cafe & Bar at 3/28 Moo 1, Fisherman’s Village, Bophut, Koh Samui.

3. Atsumi Raw Cafe

This restaurant located in Rawai, Phuket is well known for its raw vegan and raw vegetarian menu. It also serves an amazing selection of smoothies, desserts, and juices made from organic ingredients. Going through its menu you may be overwhelmed by the large number of vegetarian dishes to choose from. However, the tom ka soup and zucchini pepper wrap will blow you away. Atsumi Raw Cafe is open from 9 am to 8:30 pm daily. The last order taken is at 8 pm.

4. Tien Sien

At this simple Thai restaurant, you get to choose what you want to eat as the food is served buffet style. You simply get in line and point out what you want on your plate. The restaurant has very friendly staff who will explain to you what the different Thai meals displayed on the counter are.

Meals are affordable and for about 70 Baht you can enjoy a large plate of vegan food. Situated at 439 Khwaeng Silom, Khet Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500, this restaurant is closed on Sundays but from Monday to Saturday it is open from 7:30 am to 3 pm.

5. May Veggie Home, Bangkok

Their motto is ‘Tasty vegetables amazing dishes. When you’re here, you’re family!’

The all-vegetarian restaurant food has got many tourists taking and it has been dubbed by some as the best vegetarian restaurant in Bangkok. Looking at the reviews made by those who have been there that assertion could be true.

If you visit May Veggie Home try the Tom Kha mushroom soup, yellow curry with tofu, pad thai tofu or Penang curry with tofu, I guarantee you will love these meals. For dessert, there are several vegan cakes and ice creams you can order.

The restaurant is at 8/3 (Asoke-Sukhumvit Intersection) Ratchadaphisek Road, Khlong Toei, Bangkok. It is open from 11 am–10 pm daily.

6. Ethos Vegetarian

If you’re looking for a relaxing place to grab a late supper after a long day of touring in Bangkok this is the place to go to. Located near Khaosan Night Market, the market that never sleeps, Ethos Vegetarian is open until a few minutes to midnight every day. So you can pass by here for a meal before heading back to your hotel to call it a day.

Try the yellow curry with potatoes, spicy glass noodle soup, vegetarian Thai spring rolls and don’t forget to ask for some of their fresh fruit juices.

7. May Kaidee

This restaurant has two locations, one in Bangkok and another in Chiang Mai. Both serve mouthwatering vegan and vegetarian meals, such as tofu green curry, banana flower salad, Pad Tai, and som tom.

If you would like to learn how to make Thai food, to cook for yourself or family once you get back home, May Kaidee offers cooking classes you can attend throughout the year. There are open every day from 9 am to 10 pm.

Read more – Street Food in rural Thailand

Conclusion

As you can see there are many Thai vegetarian dishes and places that sell these meals in Thailand. So you don’t have to worry that you won’t stick to your vegan or vegetarian diet when you travel to the country.

However to be on the safe side always tell the chef or waiter serving you that you are vegetarian or vegan. You can do that in Thai by saying “gin jay.” Because most restaurants prepare your food after you make an order. The chef or waiter will take extra precaution not to add meat to your meal.

For a vegan to ensure no fish sauce or oyster sauce is added to your meal say “mai ow nam bplaa” or “mai ow nam man hoy” This way you get no meat or animal products in your meal.

Let us know which of these meals you have tasted/tried during your trip. How was it? We would also like to taste them if we haven’t already done so on our next trip to Thailand.

The post Vegetarian Thai Food Guide For Thailand Tourists appeared first on Inditales.

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poolenick-blog · 6 years ago

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Singapore is not only known for its world-class airport facilities, heart-pumping theme parks and awe-inspiring city skyline but also for its finger-licking dishes — after all, much like what the famous show of ‘Crazy Rich Asians‘ had shown us, Singapore food is a wonder of its own!

As time has it, Singapore’s seaport history surely gave way to a diverse culture with various Asian and Western influences, and this has been perfected for years. No matter where you go, you can enjoy a myriad of options: from cheap hawker centre fare to heritage restaurants serving fresh seafood and hearty rice and noodle meals.

Traveling in Singapore is definitely a delight and in order to help foodies like you, I’ve put together a list of some of the most flavorful Singaporean dishes that you must try as you eat your way through this mega city!

RELATED READ: – Things to Do During a Singapore Layover – Singapore Tours – Best Hotels in Singapore

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Top Singapore Food

#1 – Chili Crab

Photo from bonchan/Shutterstock Ask any local about Singapore’s national dish and chili crab is bound to be a clear favorite! Truth be told, it was even voted as one of the world’s 50 most delicious foods in a survey by CNN.

So while in Singapore, make sure to enjoy these juicy crabs soaked in a sweet & spicy tomato and chili sauce and then pair it off with steamed or fried mantous (buns).

Where best to eat it? Try out the spicy chili crabs at Long Beach Seafood Restaurant found in East Coast Seafood Centre, 1202 East Coast Parkway. This place actually serves a variation of the chili crab: the black pepper crab. Instead of the chili sauce, this signature dish is created with black pepper seasoning.

#2 – Chicken Rice

Photo from showcake/Shutterstock Another contender for the nation’s most popular dish is chicken rice — also called as Hainanese Chicken. In this Singapore dish, the chicken is cooked in a blend of pork and chicken bone stock for a flavorful bite. After cooking, it is sometimes immersed in ice water to create a glazed look. The rice is then cooked in chicken stock, ginger, and garlic. Now of course, don’t forget the garlic and chili sauce before digging in!

Where best to eat it? Brave the long queues at Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice found in 1 Kadayanallur St, Maxwell Food Centre.

#3 – Char Kway Teow

Photo from wong yu liang/Shutterstock Savor these wide flavorful rice noodles that are stir-fried with crispy bean sprouts, Chinese sausage, clams, dark soy sauce, and shrimp paste.

Relish in the filling meal with a distinct smoky or wok hei (‘breath of a wok’) flavor.

Where best to eat it? Hill Street Char Kway Teow found in 16 Bedok South Road, Bedok South Market & Food Centre.

#4 – Nasi Lemak

Photo from Ariyani Tedjo/Shutterstock Delight in the different textures and flavors of the Malay dish: nasi lemak. The term translates to “rich rice”, perfectly describing the rice steamed in creamy coconut milk.

This national dish of Malaysia comes with fried chicken, ikan bilis (dried anchovies), roasted peanuts, egg, otah (grilled fish cake), and of course, sambal (chili paste). Switch up your meal with add-ons like ikan kuning (fried yellowstripe scad) and paru (beef lung).

Where best to eat it? Boon Lay Power Nasi Lemak found in Boon Lay Place Market and Food Centre, 221 Boon Lay Place.

#5 – Kaya Toast

Photo from bonchan/Shutterstock Start your day at a kopitiam (traditional coffee shop) and order a delicious kaya toast. This dish might seem simple at first but it’s a well-loved Singapore food. It basically consists of sweet kaya (pandan-flavored coconut jam) and a slice of butter that are sandwiched between toasted slices of bread. Typically, this is dipped in a mixture of soft-boiled eggs, pepper, and dark or light soy sauce.

To complete the authentic experience, sip on full-bodied kopi (coffee) with condensed milk!

There are also variations on this breakfast staple such as round buns, a baguette, or even crackers instead of the usual sliced bread. Other coffee shops, like Good Morning Nanyang Cafe, puts their own unique spin with the addition of caramelized orange peel.

Where best to eat it? Ah Seng (Hai Nam) Coffee found in 7 Maxwell Road Amoy Street Food Centre for traditional, char-grilled bread. Otherwise, Good Morning Nanyang Cafe found in 14 Scotts Road, Far East Plaza and 32 Maxwell Rd.

#6 – Satay

Photo from szefei/Shutterstock Any trip to a hawker centre will not be complete without your fix of satay. Relish in this delectable skewered, grilled meat, that’s typically served with ketupat (steamed rice cake), peanut dip, and sometimes cucumbers and onions too.

The meat can vary: pork, chicken, lamb, beef and so on. Personally? I like pork satay best!

Where best to eat it? Haron Satay found in 1220 East Coast Parkway, East Coast Lagoon Food Village.

#7 – Bak Kut Teh

Photo from Sirisak Chantorn/Shutterstock Bak kut teh, which translates to “meat bone tea”, gets its name from the Chinese tea that’s typically paired with this pork rib soup dish. Basically, pork bones and meat are boiled together with a delicate amount of herbs and spices.

Afterwards, it is served with tofu puffs, mushroom, rice, and you tiao (dough fritters).

Where best to eat it? Song Fa Bak Kut Teh found in 11 New Bridge Rd. (Upp Circular Rd,

#8 – Sambal Stingray

Photo from Fariq Amin/Shutterstock Another well-loved hawker centre or Singapore street food fare is sambal stingray, also known as ikan bakar (barbecued fish) in Malay.

This Singapore invention is quite a treat as it is originally grilled in banana leaf in order to retain its natural flavor. To complete it, top it with some spicy sambal paste made from chili peppers, belacan (shrimp paste), shallots and spices. Balance your meal with the salty chinchalok or cincalok, a dipping sauce made of fermented krill/shrimp, lime, and chili.

Where best to eat it? Chomp Chomp Food Centre found in 20 Kensington Park Road.

#9 – Laksa

Photo from richardernestyap/Shutterstock A highlight of Peranakan cuisine, combining Malay and Chinese influences, laksa is a creamy coconut curry sauce that is often served with cut-up noodles and fried bean curd.

As a delicacy, laksa is offered in many variants and much like the other famous Singaporean dish, fish head curry, the Assam-style has hints of sourness from mixing tamarind.

Where best to eat it? Katong Laksa, a street food stall found at 328 Katong Laksa, 53 East Coast Road, Singapore.

#10 – Bak Chor Mee

Photo from Hatchery Design Studio/Shutterstock Chow down on the hearty bak chor mee, which translates to “minced meat and noodles”. This is a delicious bowl of noodles topped with sliced pork, dumplings, pork liver, and salted fish or fish cake slices coated in a spicy vinegar sauce.

You can also choose from different noodle types such as the mee pok (flat noodle), mee kia (thin noodle), bee hoon (rice vermicelli), mee sua (wheat vermicelli), and mee tai mak (rice pin noodle).

Where best to eat it? Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle found in Blk 466 Crawford Lane.

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OTHER TOP SINGAPORE TOURS & ACTIVITIES

Singapore Food Tour Sample the best dishes at famed hawker centers.

Universal Studios Singapore Friends and family fun!

Gardens by the Bay Singapore’s iconic attraction!

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Overall

There are obviously a lot of other amazing Singapore food such as fish head curry, hokkien mee, oyster omelette, chwee kueh, durian, roti prata, popiah, and so many others!

But hopefully, this list is already a start to treating yourself to these delectable eats.

How about you?

What do you think of these Singaporean food?

Would you like to try them out? Why or why not?

Or have you tried any of these before? How was it?

Did you like this article? Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or YouTube and be notified about my newest posts and updates!

The post Singapore Food: Top 10 Must-Eat Local Dishes appeared first on I am Aileen.

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cnfhumss12a-blog · 6 years ago

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BinondHoe

By Alfred Keegan S. Bernardo

It’s really ironic that I was born without an ounce of Chinese blood but all the things I prefer are Chinese. The food, history and of course, the guys. And when I heard that we were tasked to go to Binondo for a writing activity, you bet that my little chinito loving heart was internally screaming in excitement.

Our expedition for hot chinito guys, I mean for an authentic chinese experience rather started along the busy sidewalks of Vito Cruz on one Tuesday afternoon as me and my friends Dana, Emiliane, Lianne, and Trisha waited for our ride which was provided by our opulent friend Trisha. As the big black SUV arrived we quickly hopped in and much to our surprise Tita Jasmine (Trisha’s mom) was by the passenger seat and cheerfully said that she would be accompanying us all throughout our whole Binondo Escapade as our tour guide which I was very grateful to her for. The trip took about 30 minutes with the usual Manila Traffic. Our vehicle passed through different eskenitas and shortcuts to expedite our trip and save time which actually worked because we arrived at Binondo sooner than we expected.

Binondo is the oldest Chinatown in the world and has been standing for 425 years strong. From far away it almost seems like a mixture of modern high rise condominiums and old baroque style buildings that reminded me of the buildings in old Europe There were also oriental style buildings with red roofs that resembled Buddhist temples. This urban sprawl was teeming with Chinese owned businesses, authentic Hokkien restaurants, and various kinds of vendors selling all kinds of goods and produce. But I’ve heard that there are also Traditional Chinese Drugstores selling illegal animal parts, shops that sell all types of charms and bracelets, and of course, cute chinito guys that you can take home to your parents.

The driver dropped us off at Quentin Paredes street and which I’ve noticed had banks scattered all around throughout the area. BDO, EastWest, BPI, you name it and they’re all here literally a few meters from each other. But then I remembered that Binondo was once the Financial and Banking district before Makati and Ortigas we’re even established and so that explains the prevalence of banks and different financial institutions along Quentin Paredes.

Our ride dropped us off at the entrance of one tiny street. Carvajal was definitely a street that had a lot of stories to tell. With its orange-tiled pathway with specs of white and diversity of the vendors, you’d think that it was a wet market on the street.

As we walked along Carvajal, there were different scents and sights all around but the most overpowering came from one particular fruit, the durian. The smell was obnoxious as it wafted all around and to our noses which I wasn’t really happy about. Aside from Durian, the fruit stalls also had pineapples, papayas, bananas, mangoes and other varieties of fruits. The vibrant colors of the fruits almost created a sort of a mural of tropical colors of yellow, green and red. The street also had vendors that sold all kinds of seafood in baby blue buckets with cardboard squares where their prices were written on. Snails, eels, sea cucumbers and different types of fishes were being sold all along Carvajal. It was hard to not be impressed by the variety and selection of produce and products sold along one measly narrow street.

Among the stalls and vendors was a wooden door with glass windows that offered you a sneak peak inside one of Binondo’s hidden gems which was Quik-Snack.

As we opened the door we were greeted with the aroma of spices and different scents that we could not quite distinguish. Quik- Snack is the restaurant if you want to be served with the most authentic and tastiest Hokkien food in all of Manila. But surprisingly the design and decor of the restaurant was not quite, er Chinese per sé. It had plain white tiled floors that were squeaky clean and the wall on the upper half was a cream colored white while the bottom half was made of exposed brick. It almost seemed like one of those restaurants from the spanish colonial era that was misplaced in the middle of Chinatown.

The restaurant had a variety of dishes to offer us. From noodles to soups and appetizers you can see that there’s a wide array of ingredients that they use and they even had vegetarian options! There were some recognizable dishes such as Lumpiang Shanghai, Chopsuey and Leche Flan but there were also some Hokkien Dishes such as Kuchay-ah, Stir-Fried Mi Noodles and Oyster Cakes. The prices ranged from 150 to 300 pesos depending on what the main ingredient is. Tita Jasmine suggested that we try the Iced Coffee with Ice cream since it is one of their best sellers so I opted to order one for myself and Dana decided to get one too since we both love and adore coffee. It took us quite a bit of time to choose what to order but eventually after some questions I’ve decided to get the Stir Fried Mi Noodles that had Pork and Shrimp. My friends decided to order noodles as well but in different variants with different ingredients.

While waiting for our food to be served I was curious to know about the history of Quik-Snack so I asked the cashier who was a middle aged guy with a receding hairline and he told me about the owners of the restaurant which was actually from Cebu and and they moved to Manila in the 60’s where they established Quik-Snack and it was passed on from the owner’s grandson in the 80’s and he was still managing it up till today which was quite fascinating since the restaurant had different generations of management.

After about 10 minutes our dishes were served to us and surprisingly they all looked quite appetizing and unique. The first one to be served was Emiliane’s dish which were long thin white noodles served on a bowl with a broth that was almost clear and hers had different toppings such as spring onions, leeks and parsley which was quite an attractive garnish. Me, Dana and Trisha ordered the same dish but with different ingredients. Trisha’s noodles had chicken and Dana’s had Beef Sate Sauce. But I’d like to think that my order looked the most sumptuous with the different colored toppings that were on top of the noodles. The pink juicy shrimp, crunchy green cabbage, perfectly sautéd pork and crispy bits of garlic.

As i took my first bite of the dish, I was greeted with a strong savory taste that instantly impressed me. The combination of the different textures and tastes of the toppings with the well-cooked noodles and savory sauce created this symphony of flavors and textures in my mouth that was almost too good to be true. I did not hesitate to tell the whole table on how good the noodles were and everybody seemed to agree with me. The oyster cakes that Tita Jasmine ordered were also good. The contrast of the eggs and oysters with a bit of ketchup was just the bomb dot com and it paired well with everyone’s noodles. As we were in the middle of our feast our Iced Coffees arrived and boy did they look good. Two of my favorite things in one? And as we expected it was the perfect dessert/drink that complimented all the dishes we ate perfectly.

The best part of the lunch? Tita Jasmine paid for everything and I wanted to protest and tell her that we’ll pay but she told us that it was her treat and we just could not argue with her because who doesn’t want a free meal right? After Tita Jasmine paid for our meal, we left Quik-Snack with full bellies and satisfied cravings for a full on authentic Hokkien meal.

We turned left to the other end of Carvajal towards Ongpin which was the main artery or passageway of Binondo. We went to check out the flagship store of Eng Bee Tin one of the most popular brands of Chinese treats and delicacies. As we approached the facade of the building you can already tell that it’s gonna be an explosion of yellow, red and purple and boy I was not wrong. Everything in the store was either yellow and red. The red pineapples hanging by the ceiling, red dragon statues by the entrance the shiny foiled yellow walls that were almost blinding. As we were checking the stuff up in the second floor we came across a barrel man. If you don’t know what the barrel man is, it’s a wooden carving of a man inside a barrel. Sounds innocent right? But what you don’t know is that you can remove the barrel and a surprise will be springing into life. Let’s just say that it’s big, long and hard as wood .

We traversed through Ongpin and we specifically stopped at this one store that was selling different types of Chinese snacks and drinks that I could not recognize since all the labels were in Mandarin. The store also had keychains and bracelets made up of different colored stones. There were also these weird paper like stacks that had white paper and red chinese characters drawn on them. Trisha told me that these were sort of offered to your dead ancestors and when you burn them, it serves as their money in the afterlife which was quite an interesting story and showed how much the Chinese respected their ancestors. As I glanced over at the counter I saw Tita Jasmine buying several circular containers that had dark wrinkly circles in them which I guess was dried fruit and to our surprise she handed one to each of us which shookt me to the core because she’s just so nice and generous.

As we left the store stepped back into Ongpin something caught my eye. On the opposite side of the road was a tall Chinese guy that seemed to be in the middle of a phone call. He was definitely taller than 6 feet and had a good physique (yikes!). He had small thin eyes, an average sized nose and lips that looked so juicy. He didn’t have the sharpest features but whatever he had going on with his face was working. All of his features were sort of symmetrical and balanced everything out. He was neither too thin nor too fat he was in-between with a lil bit of muscle definition. I literally can’t even remember how I memorized his looks but I did. But well, I couldn’t really do anything about it so I just mustered all my willpower and moved on along to our next destination.

Walking along the streets of Binondo didn’t really scare or bother me since I was with a group but also since the locals are not really sketchy so I didn’t have to worry about snatchers and holdapers which were usually present all around Manila. As we traversed through Ongpin, we arrived at an intersection where we transferred to another street named Sabino Padilla Street. It was lined with stores on both the sides of the street selling various things from charms to traditional Chinese medicine that were sold in strange looking pharmacies.

On the way back to Trisha’s place, we passed by this Noodle and Siopao restaurant named Ling nam where they serve the freshest and tastiest siopaos in the whole of Manila. Tita Jasmine got about 8 pieces of Siopao and no doubt that she’ll probably give each one of us a piece. The inside of the restaurant was quite steamy and humid probably because of the steamer that’s used to cook the siopao and other dumplings. The steamy atmosphere created this veil of mystery that have the restaurant an almost ethereal feel which was cool to be honest.

Trisha’s place was just by the end of Ongpin near the Carriedo LRT Station. It was almost sunset as we were walking along Ongpin towards Trisha’s place. The dwindling orange light shone all throughout and Ongpin and to the rest of Binondo giving the area a timeless glow. It was an eventful day indeed. We had class and headed to Binondo for a one-of-a-kind experience and boy did we get one (for free). From the diverse and authentic food to the cute chinitos just waiting to be discovered, and to those hidden charm shops and traditional pharmacies it was like any other ordinary day in Binondo but for us it was a feast for the eyes, ears and mouth (literally). We didn’t get a Chinito boyfriend but that’s okay because we got a wholesome experience in BinondHoe. Gallery: https://cnfhumss12a.tumblr.com/tagged/Keegan

#english #Keegan

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