Age is just a number - birthday rants

so i tell myself, age is just a number.

yeap, a number that hopefully doesn't ever change from this moment on
please thank you very much!!!

Truth is i never thought much about my youth,
because i constantly live in a timeframe that is 5 years older than my actual age.
I had been mingling around with older people ever since i was 19 because of singing,
and since then i had this illusion that i'm always younger than people around me.

This illusion was shattered last week on my birthday,
and in fact it was shattered long ago when people start to ask me and my sister - who's older.
It's heartbreaking given that we are a further apart in age than we seem to be.

So i started to have a lot of thoughts about changing my life,
how i can be a better person,
how i can step up as a singer/songwriter/performer,
and i ended up feeling worse than ever because i felt like
i'm drowning in a quicksand of time; the more i struggle, the faster i sink.

So perhaps the best way out of it,
is not to avoid it,
but accept it as it comes,
go with the flow.
SINK WITH IT.

I firmly believe sinking can be enjoyable though,
maybe the peaks of my life will come at a later age
(this hope is ignited when i realized that carly rae jepson is freaking 27 years old!! *shocked i thought she's 19 or something).

Well, i sunk happily during my birthday that's for sure!

The weekend before i had a showcase 

with the team from Sparkle Live Music at the Esplanade Waterfront (:

Intensive rehearsals with Ein on keys, Fatt on guitar/footdrums, 

& fellow singers Leon & Alfred!

Before showtime!

I took the 2nd set of the night,

thanks to all who came to support!!! 

Here are some lovely shots by Benny Loy (:

Finale song, WE ARE YOUNG!

Yeah 演出成功！！It's a wrap!

The Sparkle Team with performers of the night! 

Our 庆功宴 at our favourite dimsum place 126!!! 

I'm a fan of their barley!

Went kite-flying @ Marina Barrage with my favourite ppl the next day (:

Saw alot of super adorable kites like the penguin ones!! 

My favourite green-tea tiramisu!!!

Had the good opportunity to travel for 2 shows in bangkok during my birthday week

Birthday surprise came knocking at my door at 12am,

fatt said he wanted to "rehearse", 

then in came everyone with a sara lee cake complete with pocky stick candles :D

earliest soundcheck at 730am.. 

my voice was barely warmed up! 

 The huge stage with 4 LCD panels..

Gala Dinner emcee was Guo Liang! 

Off gigs, we checked out the Thai nightlife scene..

the band at club funky villa was super energetic,

plus cute lead singer looks like leehom! 

Got to celebrate my bday with my love too

with authentic Thai cuisine!! (:

It was a nice change from Thai Express haha 

So busy wolfing down all the goodies didn't really take pictures..

this was fab, simple but mouth-watering pomelo prawn salad :D

Romantic interior...

Baan Khanitha Thai Cuisine

36/1 Soi Sukhumvit 23, Sukhumvit Rd., Bangkok 10110

And a lousy but cheap & romantic ferris wheel ride at Asiatique!

$8 only, you pay for a lookdown carpark view haha

More good years to come! 

Ima ENJOY SINKING!

Thank God It's Singtel... In BANGKOK!

A few months ago, the virgin tv-host me interviewed The Wanted...

Next thing i know i was off to Bangkok for my first ever travel-hosting experience!!!

I felt like i was swept on a whirlwind of action over the 3 days in bkk,
thank god for SingTel Bridge DataRoam,
i was able to share my moments on all my social media platforms,
else i would have totally forgotten what had happened over those 3 crazy days!

Watch the webisode here!

Say hello to my adorable travel partner, Joanne Marie-Sim!

She's been hosting TGIS for a while and it was really a joy having her around to kill time, 

especially in between scenes when we are waiting for the cameras to set up! 

DAY 1 began with an early morning flight to destination Bangkok!
Took a ride to our hotel upon touchdown!

And helllooo to my comfy bed at Aloft Hotel!

Comfort food next to fuel the rest of our hectic day at shoot! 

Though i was kinda disappointed it wasn't the same 

tom yum goong and mango sticky rice i had at the old suan lum market...

Post-meal, all made-up and ready to go!

Some highlights of the trip 
You'll probably see more footages on the show
but here are some of my fav moments during the 3 crazydays!

Khao San Street-market

The last time i was in bangkok was for work as well,

but i made sure i had the chance to hit the streets because seriously,

Bangkok is all about the street-side coconut ice-cream, teh-tarik and cheap eats/buys!!!

I was at the all-famous Chatuchak market the previous time, 

and this time, we took a stroll down Khao San Road! 

Welcome to Khao San, 

ang moh paradise ala Holland Village in Singapore.. 

I posted our picture on fb while making my way through the busy streets of Khao San,
and received a recommendation from a friend to make fake IDs!
so i continued along the streets to find... this!
hahah amazing!

Bargaining can sometimes really be a pain in the ass,

and i was surprised to find the Google Translate app so easy to use! 

All i did was to speak into the phone what i wanted to say, 

and it was translated into Thai almost instantly! 

Some shots taken along the streets.. 

 

RCA Go-karting

It was my 2nd time go-karting, first being when i was 12?

So it was fun to kart now that i'm actually a licensed driver, 

i knew how to test my speed limits!

The production crew member mounted some cameras on the kart

to capture our excited and adrenaline-filled faces haha

I must be the smallest-sized driver ever.

The suit could fit 2 of me, both horizontally and vertically, i swear!

Alright, maybe it's not so bad? Karting chick much? lol

Come on everyone looks cool with a helmet!

All set and ready to go! 

Excuse our oily-matted hair, we needed to put on shower caps 

beneath the filthy helmets doused in thousands of karters' sweat.

Yeah all pumped-up!

I admit i didn't dare to bump into others fearing we'll all crash spectacularly, F1 style, 

but later Leonard knocked into me and it was really like a bumper-car ride! 

I forgot i was actually driving at less than 50kmph hahaa oops..

Go-karting, success!

GraveYard Dining

I really don't like to mess with the netherworld,
so this task was particularly creepy to me.
In auntie fashion, i was prepared with my own spiritual protection,
the crew also prayed to pay respects and avoid stepping on "anyones' toes".

The street-side dining area was actually a wall apart from the graveyard,
but we had to take a scene WITHIN the graveyard.
It was a path laid with grand tombstones on the sides,
i didn't really dare to see them, i just kept talking to joanne,
we were even saying funny ghost stories to distract each other.

Both relieved to make out of that graveyard alive,
we proceeded to a wall apart for a superb meal!
Despite the dirty location with huge geckos on the wall,
this was really my best meal in bangkok for the trip!

HUNGRY! 

Evidently, the roasted chicken wings were fab...

Bugs are nutritious, so they say..

I chewed a freaking maggot/silkworm/idontcarewassitcalledit'sGROSS

and i ain't proud of it. 

It was this harmless-looking roadside stall,

and we decided to make a go for the out-of-the-ordinary. 

Afterall, what's a travel documentary without some fear-factor eating challenge?

How about a platter for your gustatory pleasure?

 How much would it take for you to eat something like this?

Ok, these kinda looked like cockroaches,

they were the length of my finger,

and i was later told they are actually insects found in the water.. 

Whatever they are, i will not for the life of me put this thing in my mouth!!!

I think these are crickets, i'm not sure..

but no, still not for me...

ok maybe a million dollars will seal the deal..

I picked.. these. 

They are the least gross in my opinion, and honestly, they looked crunchy....

until i took a bite and was traumatized for the rest of the night 

because it turned out to be disgustingly chewy and soft!!!!

So grossed out i couldn't have supper happily like the rest at the end of the night, 

cos i couldn't get rid of that feeling in the mouth!! 

Most of my pictures were taken and edited on instagram, 

then instantly shared on my social media platforms!

No i didn't use data roaming (that would've costed me a bomb), 

i was using SingTel Bridge DataRoam applied with My SingTel Account app,

and it costs only $15/day for unlimited usage! 

I admit i'm pretty much a social media slave and SingTel Bridge DataRoam

allowed me stay socially connected, sharing moments while on the road!

Being connected also made our BKK trip a breeze 

(e.g Google translate for easier communication, google maps for easier navigation) 

Best of all, i received plenty of 'live' recommendations from my social network on facebook 

when i posted our photo at Khao San! 

Those great recommendations saved me plenty of trouble on researching beforehand,

a great plus for busy city people like us who doesn't have time for much planning! 

Travelling soon? Apply now, it's really easy! 

To set up Singtel Bridge DataRoam in SG using My SingTel Account app, 

Download My SingTel Account app

• for iPhone users: https://itunes.apple.com/sg/app/my-singtel-account-3/id472906810?mt=8
• for Android users: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.singtel.mysingtel&hl=en
• for BB users: http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/reviews/43515/?lang=en

Find out more about Bridge DataRoam here: http://info.singtel.com/roaming/travelling-overseas/data-roaming