Today...

Travelogue: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (Day 1)

June was a good month.

A very good month. Now that I'm almost through July, I can say that with conviction.

Traipsing beyond the borders of our sunny isle through Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, for a relaxing, pampering 4D3N stint was just part of it - albeit a big part.

My June visit to HCMC was not my first. I've been there twice before: once in 2007, next in 2009.

Not many people would think of HCMC as regular destination to visit in South East Asia, especially when you consider her alongside her more high-profile, more happening neighbours, such as Bangkok, Bali, Phuket, or Kuala Lumpur.

For me, my reasons for the multiple visits are mostly to visit family rather than to visit the city per se.

Nonetheless, HCMC has enough charm in itself, and I'm only beginning to realise that with age and through the lens of a more seasoned traveller.

You might ask what makes HCMC worth visiting (or you might not..)

Regardless, I think every travelogue worth its salt should include a list of "Top 3 Highlights", so here we go!

Kelly's Top 3 Highlights of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

1) Food!!

Have you ever tried Vietnamese cuisine? It took me a while to really appreciate it for what it was, but it was only on this most recent trip that I realised how much I liked it.

Fresh herbs, meats rolled up in delicate rice paper, and sweet chili sauce with drizzles of fish sauce have to be the main accents of (Southern) Vietnamese cuisine, from what my taste buds tell me.

Wrap n Roll is a great one-stop place to sample a huge variety of rolls!

(If you couldn't already gather from the name..)

A variety of spring rolls that I sampled - everything can be wrapped!

Fried spring rolls, even seaweed!

The Vietnamese pancake, Banh Xeo, is a lightly fried crepe filled with minced pork, shrimp and A LOT of beansprouts.

Vietnamese food aside, other cuisine options are plenty, and their standards pretty high as well!

What's best are the reasonable prices as compared to Singapore. A fine dining experience in a lovely top-notch French restaurant cost me approximately $100SGD for a 5-course meal.

I felt as though I'd eaten my way through the city by the time I left after four days!

  

2) Wandering around the streets

It's really quite an experience that's quite unlike any other, trust me.

For one, taking in the architecture that seems confused between its French colonial past and its own local trappings is something in itself.

For another, crossing the road in HCMC is totally in a league of its own. Picture a wall of motorcycles, some with a family of four squeezed together, some with a piece of bulky furniture teetering precariously albeit being secured to the vehicle with a string... And some completely disregarding traffic light signals...

 You gotta cross with eyes wide shut and a stare for the motorcyclists, or you'll never get to where you wanna go.

3) Getting pampered and living the good life

Yeah that seems like a pretty sweeping statement, but I do mean it in every sense!

Pampering myself was what I did a lot of: Getting a Thai massage for approximately SGD$45, getting foot massages at SGD$15 (although Clem will say he had a terrible experience!)... The last two times I visited was similarly spent this same way.

So anyway, reminiscising about happier times, in my bid to survive til November! 

Private spa that we visited for our Thai massage. Which made me feel like a contortionist, by the way.

Trying to enjoy cheese.

We are seriously not high-brow cheese people.

My littlest cousins whose company and cheer (and sometimes plenty of fighting) we came back to every night.

Too cute!

Til the next post...

We're almost at the weekend, everyone!

Not electrified & enkindled, but tenderly drowsy

"A man reserves his true and deepest love not for the species of woman in whose company he finds himself electrified and enkindled, but for that one in whose company he may feel tenderly drowsy."

I came across this, and you know what? I believe the converse is true as well.

I need to speak to Clem every single night to get to sleep, or I feel like something's missing. So I can safely say for sure that he's the one in whose company I feel "tenderly drowsy", when I can be at my most vulnerable and my guard is totally down - the moment just before drifting off to sleep.

I know, I'm terrible.

Initially, I couldn't believe just how dependent I'd become, but I've come to accept it now and have given up fighting that. Believe me, I've tried attempting to assert my independence in this manner by deciding to not speak to him before going to bed, but trust me when I say that insomnia is not fun, at all.

I had so much trouble falling asleep last night, I think I have to stop taking afternoon naps on Sundays. 

As much as I love spending my Sundays in and catching up on some shut-eye, my habit of napping is just screwing around with my sleep cycle a wee bit too much.

One of the things I hate about working life >:( 

Flashes of another weekend that went by all-too-bloody-quickly...

Friday was spent with the church people; initial plans were to get cosy at Timbre @ The Substation, but cos our reservation screwed itself up and the place was just too darn packed, we had to make our way down to our usual watering hole - Grapevine! Anyhoo, Clem and I didn't stay long at all cos our Saturday was gonna be super packed. So we just had our dinner and left shortly after.

Was feeling a little grouchy on Friday so in my bid to cheer myself up, I dressed up in super bright and cheery colours!

What I Wore (WIW) on Friday:

Orange Chiffon Top from Hollyhoque

Striped Skirt from Zara

Saturday was so haps, I'm still recovering from it!

Three major things that happened on Saturday.

First was parents-meet-the-parents lunch. I was quite nervous for that cos I wasn't sure how both sets of parents would interact with each other... Thankfully, everything went more than fine! Pretty funny though, when both dads were trying to out paiseh the other. Hoho.

Next on our exciting day was house viewing!

Yes, we may be shifting house in the near future, and I don't mean myself shifting to Clem's bedroom.

Just seeing how things go and keeping our fingers crossed!

Lastly, was choosing the wedding gown. The gown, to be precise.

And I'm so super excited about what I've chosen!! I wish I had some pictures to show you all here, especially since I kept cooing about my choice to anyone who would listen to me. Hehe.

I was much blessed to have Trina (and a very patient Andy), Carol, my dear parents, and of course, the fiancé with me as I made my tough choice.

Let me tell you something: having so many pretty gowns in front of you, each especially beautiful in delectable lace, delicate chiffon, or luxurious duchess satin, is enough to stir the heart of the sternest female. :P

Stay tuned for the lucky gown in a few weeks, hopefully I manage to sneak a pic when I go for my next fitting!

Someone crashed a picture! Hee!

My beautiful mom - I hope I look just like her when I'm her age. 

Yar, I know my face is damn big. :D

Yummy cinnamon waffles

I make it a point to stroke Snooze - the cat who lives at Clem's void deck - every few days.

She's just adorable! Clem says she's a ponderous cat. I might agree with that.

WIW on Saturday:

Salmon Basic Tank from Topshop

Purple Scallop-Hemmed Chiffon Midi Skirt from Little Red Heels

Coral-Violet-Scarlet Suede Sandals from Zara

Black Bag from Tianfenlan

So Sunday was pretty uneventful. Slept most of the afternoon away, before heading to the airport to see Shaun off. Made a quick trip down to Ikea after that for dinner and to browse for ideas for doing up Clem's room. Excited about that, but there's SO MUCH TO DO!!

WIW on Sunday:

Coral Maxi from Catwalkclose

Gold Grecian Sandals from Zara

Black Bag from Tianfenlan

Every weekend is so eventful, the rest of the weekdays feel so bleah and muffled in comparison.

I can't help but feel there's something wrong there, that I need to live the rest of my week more meaningfully.

My determination to write more has not taken off - perhaps I shall make this week the week to be firm in that particular resolution!

Monday, Monday, so good to me

Monday mornin' - it was all I hoped it would be!

So bring on Tuesday!

Felines I'd love to own

One day, I'd love to keep one of these beautiful creatures at home.



Savannah cat - a cross between a domestic cat and a serval.
Apparently, they greet people with a head-butt or even a friendly pounce. How cute is that!

Bengal cat - a cross between a domestic cat and an Asian Leopard Cat.
I love the beautiful distinctive rosette markings on the coat.

No idea how I'm gonna find these rare felines in Singapore, though, so good luck to me!

On a separate note, this week has been dragging terribly, and I can't wait for the weekend.

I'm tired already, even though it's only mid-week.

My dream gown is from Elie Saab - still.

I was looking through the newest Fall 2011 couture looks today, and I came across Elie Saab's latest offering. I have only one thing to say about the entire collection: BREATHTAKING. I love the colour palette, I love the delicate fabrics, I love how the gowns bestow on the wearer an ethereal feel that looks and feels so romantic and fairy-like.

I know it wasn't a bridal collection, but I'd love to wear something like that for my wedding.

The hem is exquisite, and I am so in love with the boat-neck which would make it a very decent gown for a church wedding. And the embroidery + lace... Absolutely gorgeous.

I really hope I find something I like as much as this when I visit my bridal studio next weekend.


*EDIT*
More Elie Saab Fall 2011 Couture gowns I'd love my own to take a leaf out of the book from:




On a not very related note, don't you think Karlie Kloss has made the gown on the bottom left amazing? She oozes so much effortless attitude and totally owns the gown she's wearing. Every single gown. Mmmm.



Another week!

Another crazy weekend has just come and gone, all too quickly!

Drinks with the boys @ Grapevine on Friday after Triduum Mass saw me drinking a tad too much a tad too quickly. Made it hard for me to get out of bed at 6.30AM on Saturday morning to accompany the parents to the market. Though I managed to in the end, the drama didn't end there cos my car started to flash all the warning lights on the dashboard en route to the market!! Had to drop the car at the workshop so as to avoid being towed away, then cab down to the market. Sigh. So eventful right.

Sang for Mass on Saturday night and screwed up plenty while at it. Hurhur. That's what a hangover - even a teeny weeny one - does to your faculties. My headache dogged me the whole of Saturday into Sunday.

Spent Sunday with Clem :)

Went to AMK hub after lunch to get my Koi and walk around a bit. Got me quite excited thinking and talking about the renovation plans for his room in anticipation of my married life that will see me moving into his place in December. We're gonna get a teevee at the next IT fair in September, as well as a PS3 and other electronic gizmos!! :) Gonna refurbish his room a bit too with a nice coat of rose white paint for the walls and pretty, patterned curtains to keep the sun out in the day. And we get to go cupboard, dressing table, shelves and linen shopping too! As you can tell, I'm quite excited at the thought of building our little exciting love nest together - even if it's a temporary one.

The later half of Sunday was spent painstakingly drawing up lists of guests for the church wedding, and sending out facebook save-the-dates.

Which, by the way, caused me to not be able to sleep the whole of last night cos I kept waking to check the RSVP list in excitement. I seriously need to uninvite myself from my wedding event so I'll stop popping by every time I receive a facebook notification. -.-

But as you can see...........

I'm so excited cos this means our big day is coming really soon! So thankful for being so blessed so far :)

I seriously need Instagram by the way.

It makes capturing pictures so much quicker and easier. Not to mention, the pretty effects that're bundled in it as well!

Some random pictures of the last couple of days, just so my blog won't be a wall of words.



A very hungry and pouty me waiting for my dinner at Putien last night.

If you wanna go there, the food is fab but the wait time is meh - we waited almost 20 min for our first dish to arrive!

... which were these!

Very delicious sugar-coated deep fried pieces of yam (which I couldn't eat more than 6 pieces of in the end), and superb spinach cooked in century egg and salted egg superior broth. YUM.

The previous weekend on our way to Clem's dad's birthday lunch at Nex.

WIW (if you're interested):

Magenta 3/4 maxi from Hollyhoque

Light camel ballet flats from Topshop

Woven summer tote from Charles & Keith

One weeknight having steamboat at the Holland Village Crystal Jade!

I look so happy here cos I love steamboat, but you should know that both Clem and I suffered from food poisoning the morning after this. :(

Dinner at Crystal Jade Kitchen (omg we are so boring?!)

This is a really delicious hot stone pot of beancurd and salted fish. Mmmmmmm :)

I'll try to blog with more photos from now on cos I know how boring a text-filled entry can be. TRY.

Midweek randomness

I had my lunchtime kickboxing session today - the third one I've attended out of eight so far :X - and I'm both exhausted and happy. My muscles ache but it feels like a right sort of pain, if you know what I mean.

I'm determined to try to lose 5kg before my wedding in November.

Or, look like I lost 5kg of fat, I'd be okay with that too.

There's just too much loose flab hanging off me at the moment, and I'm having some body image issues with ballooning about a size up for bottoms. :(

Not to worry though, friends! I am not dieting or starving myself - I'll try to shed the pounds with exercise and healthy food. I don't believe in dieting, anyway.

I've had enough free time lately to think about some things, and I've made up a list of games I want to play again / complete.

1) Final Fantasy X-2, XII and XIII

2) World of Warcraft

3) Sims 3 (and all the expansions after World Adventures)

4) Mouse Hunt

That means I need to buy the approximately 8 PC games I'm currently lacking, which would set me back by about $500, and the one PS3 game. AND. The PS3. Oho! That'll be the big ticket item.

HOKAY BYE. It's Friday tomorrow, so hopefully I get to play some of my games + buy some of the discs over the weekend! :)

Write, I must.

I can't believe I've only been back at work for FOUR days since I went on my week-long leave last week.
It feels like forever and everrrrrrrr ugh!

I'm not sure what I can say in this space to make my life seem even remotely interesting at this point.. But I'll try. Haha.

In the midst of all the flurry of the work week, I have been squeezing in precious time with Clem, doing what we do best: eating!
I also try to drag him to shop with me, and the result is my fabulous haul from the MNG sale last week: 3 pairs of work pants, 1 pair of jeans, and 2 tops - all for less than $150! I can't resist good deals, and my only regret is not getting more stuff. Hur. But maybe it's good cos I can save up for the upcoming Zara sale! :D:D

Work-wise, I'm pretty much trying to will myself to just be zen and not let unimportant things bother me.
I tell myself the plan is to stay for as long as I can, and learn as much as I can from here as well. I don't think it's any big reason that's making me unhappy, I'm just restless and dissatisfied in general - but what makes me think leaving right now is the best solution?

I thought long and hard about why I'm so unhappy, and I've come to realize that the main reason for my unhappiness stems from the thought that I'm wasting my time here. I ask myself what I'd rather be doing, and I think what I'd really like to be doing is to write for a living.

So with that, I think I'll be trying to write a lot more from now. Articles, blog posts, chapters of a novel, short stories... I'll try to write something every day. I think at this point, it's not a matter of a good practice anymore - I need to write to keep me sane and happy. I've been feeling so out-of-sorts ever since I started work in March, so hopefully my new resolution will serve as a healthy dose of optimism and hope in life. :)

A random picture of me looking happy at my Crystal Jade dinner last night to end this post, because I'm random like that. Hur. On a separate note, I love instagram and I wish to God that I had a device which supports that. This was stolen off Clem's iPhone. HA.

Oh, oh! And one last thing before I go back to scoping out the latest Resort 2012 collections, I need to announce that I've updated my livejournal sales page with some of my pre-loves and brand new items that I've bought but never worn before. I'll keep updating it as and when I put new things up for sale from my wardrobe/when things get sold - I'm anal about being up-to-date that way.
So do check this out if you'd like to give some of my pre-loved clothes a new home!
http://kellyswardrobe.livejournal.com/1273.html

BYE.

"It's a wrap!"

Holla chicas! 

I'm back from my blogging hiatus after a super happs week that's seen me doing so much more other than work. Spent 4 days in Vietnam over the weekend, and came home to find out that my wedding shoot had to be rescheduled cos my photographer was quite ill :( Was a mad rush to co-ordinate all the rescheduling since there was the shoot location and make-up artist to take into consideration as well. But it all ended up well and the shoot went on as planned yesterday, hurray!

I'm not sure when the real deal will be ready for viewing, but I'm crossing my fingers that it'll be soon cos I CAN'T WAIT!!! :) 

It was truly a mad-cap adventure across Singapore capturing the essence of who Clem and I are as a couple and as individuals, with our shoot beginning at this quaint little restaurant cum private movie theatre at Club Street, The Screening Room. You might be able to guess why we chose a private cinema for one of our locations, but for those who don't, it's cos we love watching movies together. We catch a movie practically every other week - and before I began working, we could even watch a movie a week! Heh. 

Our next location was at Fort Canning for the historical and cultural lovers in us. That place was scarily infested by ninja mosquitoes though, so if you ever plan on doing your shoot there, brides-to-be, please remember to bring some repellent! 

Our final location for the day was Orchard Road, in homage of the area we frequent every single week out of love for shopping, city life, and a lot of what I love about Singapore. Being in Orchard just energizes me, and it happened again yesterday - since I was feeling really down and out with the flu bug right about to blow up in my face as I was shooting and my energy levels were really low since I didn't get to eat lunch and dinner was awful. But we ended our shoot in the fountain outside Ngee Ann City and John showed me some of the sneaks from his camera, it was awesome!! :)

Crossing my fingers that the actual pics will look as lovely as I hope they will be.

In the meanwhile, I have some sneak pics here that my wonderful bridesmaid Cheryl took for me while on location. Am very thankful she could come with me and keep us company throughout the day.. And basically be my slave hurhur. But a bridemaid's job is no easy one for sure! With the gown being so heavy and rendering me rather immobile, she had to be my hands and feet a lot of the day - so I am truly thankful for that. 

Vietnam travelogue will have to wait til next post! I'm off to hang up the laundry before heading out for dinner with the boyf :)

TGIF, everybody!

Are we not like two volumes of one book?

I am sorry that I have been abandoning this space. It's just that I hate blogging without pictures!! And I haven't had time to sit down and look and sort through my pics.. It's surprising how few hours there are in a day, especially on the weekends!

I'm always so torn between catching up on my sleep and maximizing my precious weekend! >:( I've been trying to do so much over the two days I get each week - eat, sleep, exercise, spend time at home, read, watch some tv... (I don't need to try to shop over the weekend anymore, seeing how I shop every other day from my computer screen. --- Got to stop: BAD HABIT!)

Speaking of shopping. I've taken a huge liking towards The Tinsel Rack and Her Velvet Vase items recently. And maybe a little of The Velvet Dolls too. I've gotten a ton of stuff from these shops lately - been loving their collections of fashionable pocket-friendly duds that help make my wardrobe so-very-versatile. Would love to do outfits of the day posts of my work outfits to journal, but 1) my DSLR is with the boyf - maybe it's time to get it back from him, 2) my Sony compact is not working - maybe it's time to send it in for a checkup, and 3) my work place doesn't allow me to carry a phone with an in-built camera, so I don't even have that as an option. :'(

Wedding planning is starting to heat up a little, with 7 months to go til the Big Day!! I'm gonna choose my gown for the photoshoot two weekends from now, the photoshoot has been set for a date in June, I'm gonna be going to Vietnam in June to make my cheongsam - so much that's gonna be done in such a short time! Rings also have to be chosen, roles have to be laid out and helpers roped in, invitation cards have to be designed, a make-up artist has to be found too... I'm quite excited, but a little scared cos my expectations are running high and I don't want to disappoint myself.

And the colour scheme!! Can't decide on whether I should slot in a stronger colour to contrast against my dreamy palette of ivory and blush pink, or whether I should just take dreamy and run away with it. Have been doing extensive research lately and I'm quite determined to have a hue of pink. So I found this informative article here, which talks about the different kinds of pink and colours that go with them. Pity there aren't the actual shades for visualizing. Anyone knows where I can get colour swatches from? :D I'd love to get my hands on one, so I can see the colours side-by-side and better gauge what I'd like!

Since we're on wedding talk... I used to think that I would grow up different, that I would not subscribe to the usual girly girl dream of feeling like a princess on my wedding day. In the end, I'm just another stereotypical girl who wants her wedding to be the stuff of fairy-tales! Good grief! And to think I was so sure that I was so different from the others! Heh.

Grace Kelly's bridal party. She's just so elegant.

I hope to find a dress like this in the studio come this May. So classy! I wish I could get the original, but I doubt I'll ever be able to afford an Elie Saab creation - now or 10 years from now.

Some other pics that have caught my eye as I was browsing for inspiration to kiss me:

Coral, ivory and chocolate brown. Delicious or dull?

Peach/coral, ivory and pistachio green - this combination is so girly and airy, so light and reminiscent of Spring!

Okaaaay, off to do more wedding research. Hopefully in my next post, I'd have accomplished both a) the procurement of a decent camera so I can start journalling my outfits of the day posts, and b) I'd have checked off more of the long to-do list that is my wedding day. And c) found the time to sit down and prep my pics of the last month to post up so my life doesn't look so zzzzz. Two more days to the weekend, hang in there everybody! :)

I dreamed of a wedding of elaborate elegance,

A church filled with family and friends.

I asked him what kind of a wedding he wished for,

He said one that would make me his wife.

Anon.