Turning 29 in Singapore
Last month, as many of you know, I turned 29 just a couple of weeks after I arrived in Singapore. I was pretty bowled over by the cards and gifts I received from back home; clearly I’m not out of sight and out of mind just yet!
Alex was over, so we had a fun week being tourists in Singapore. What’s better for curing jet lag, than getting up early for a rainforest hike in the sweltering heat!? We took the bus north to MacRitchie, one of Singapore’s nature reserves and did a 6km circular walk. The highlight of the hike is a 250 metre long suspension bridge, 25 metres above the forest floor. From here we got a bird’s eye view of the tree canopy, and slighly terrorized by some inquisitive monkeys looking for food!
We spotted lots of birds, as well as several monkeys and a few lizards. Judging by the warning signs en route, it’s also possble to see snakes! It was a great walk, but it’s best to go early (before 8:30am) to avoid the crowds.
The next day we attended a half day cooking class at The Food Playground, lead by the delightful Lydia - a Singaporean Mum. We started by making boxes out of pandan leaves to hold our Hoon Kueh, a kind of set sweet. We then made the mung bean flour, sugar and coconut mixture to pour into our boxes and left them to set. Next we started on our Nonya Laksa paste, by chopping and grinding all the herbs and spices including ingredients I’d never used before like Candlenuts, so called because of their flammable high fat content.
Finally we learnt how to make and roll vegetable spring rolls, before adding stock and coconut milk to our Laksa broth and plating up with sliced fish cake, prawns and cucumber. Delicious!
On my actual birthday we took a trip to Gardens by the Bay, which had been on my hit list since day 1. They have, hands down, the best biodomes I’ve ever been into, even though its a bit weird as a european walking around the Flower Dome thinking “this is all stuff I see in the UK or on holiday in Europe”. The tropical stuff is all outside! On the plus side, it’s a rather pleasant 23 degrees inside and without the 80% humidity!
However, the Cloud Dome which explores the cloud forest environment is truly stunning, with the world’s tallest indoor waterfall as it’s centre piece. I actually enjoyed it so much that I talked myself into getting an annual pass as a birthday present to myself!
That evening I’d booked a table at Labyrinth, recommended by a colleague at work. I put on a dress and brushed my hair, so it was clearly a special occasion! The food was outstanding! We ordered the 11 course tasting menu, with a wine pairing which happily kicked off with a glass of LP.
Labyrinth is a fine dining place, which takes Singaporean classics and gives them the michelin make over. It’s definitely a better experience if you’ve had the opportunity to sample a few Hawker delights ahead of your trip, but fear not, if you haven’t the staff will happily whip out iPads to explain the original dish. Quite handy if you don’t know your Hokkien Mee from your Char Kway Teow. Ahem.
My favourite had to be their signature dish, an interpretation of Singapore chill and black pepper crab, made with soft shell tempura crab and a chilli and a black pepper ice cream. To die for!
Definitely a birthday (week) I’ll remember for afew more years to come!
More updates coming soon, as I’ve been a bit slack recently!
