Singapore Oct 2013

Back for the first time since moving to Shanghai. The peeps I gotta meet... =) The netballers.

The S gang. Really miss the kiddos who are growing up too fast.

The Fam. Celebrating S dad's big 70 at Paradise MBFC. Superb food and wine - just how a 七十大寿 should be.

Shanghai Oct/Nov 2013

Shanghai Masters Semis :) Watched Nadal and Joko. Honestly I think the tickets are overpriced. Which probably explains why the stadium was only about 75% full. Still, we were surprised to find a live band playing outside and some activities to keep people occupied.

More restaurant-scounting.

Name: T8

Address: 181 Taicang Lu, Xintiandi 太仓路181弄新天地北里8单元1楼

Review: Lovely brunch place though a tad pricey.

Name: Top Chef

Address: 169 Mengzi Lu 蒙自路169号智造局 4-105室

Review: A hole in the wall French restaurant in our neighbourhood. Recommended by a friend to try their lobster noodles. First time was a hit while the second time a miss. So I would say good but inconsistent.

Name: El Willy

Address: 22 on the Bund, Zhongshan Dong Er Lu 中山东二路22号5楼

Review: Our go-to Spanish tapas place along the Bund. Good variety and at a reasonable price point considering it's a Bund restaurant. Somewhere we would often bring our visitors to.

Name: Mr Willis

Address: 195 Anfu Lu 3rd floor 安福路195号3楼

Review: Good food and one of foreigners' favorites.

Name: M on the Bund

Address: 5 on the Bund 7th floor 广东路20号外滩5号7楼

Review: Brunch is alright.

Name: Oyama (鮨 大山)

Address: 20 Donghu Lu 2nd floor 东湖路20号邸雅居2楼 

Review: Our top restaurant in Shanghai with beloved Oyama san! The first experience blew us away and we've been back several times since. Feels very much like dining in Japan without having to actually fly over. Top quality food - mainly sushi and sashimi - plus Oyama's superb hospitality are the reasons why we find ourselves forever raving about it. I highly (only) recommend reserving the counter seats (~10 persons max) and choosing the 2nd seating at 8.40pm. Price is fixed at 880rmb pp. Just sit back and let the man himself feed you :) Somewhat of an Omakase style. Alcohol can be a bit pricey. Nonetheless, it's the closest thing to perfection..in Shanghai.

Sanqingshan 三清山 (26-28Oct 2013)

Went on a 3-day department outing which first brought us to a grottoes (石窟) attraction. The first photo shows how a grotto looks like on the surface and the 2nd shows what lies beneath, which were all under water until their discovery. It sure took a long while to empty the water! Even after decades of research, no one really knew the exact purpose of these grottoes. Every explanation explored returned with more questions and doubts. Some said they were meant to hide treasures, others said they were used for secret military training, and so on. Just something to ponder on...

Our destination - a UNESCO World Heritage site called Mount Sanqingshan (三清山) National Park - is the actual highlight of the trip. Took us a brutal 8 hrs' drive including stopovers. But it was absolutely worth the while.

"Mount Sanqingshan National Park, a 22,950 ha property located in the west of the Huyaiyu mountain range in the northeast of Jiangxi Province (in the east of central China) has been inscribed for its exceptional scenic quality, marked by the concentration of fantastically shaped pillars and peaks: 48 granite peaks and 89 granite pillars, many of which resemble human or animal silhouettes. The natural beauty of the 1,817 metre high Mount Huaiyu is further enhanced by the juxtaposition of granite features with the vegetation and particular meteorological conditions which make for an ever-changing and arresting landscape with bright halos on clouds and white rainbows. The area is subject to a combination of subtropical monsoonal and maritime influences and forms an island of temperate forest above the surrounding subtropical landscape. It also features forests and numerous waterfalls, some of them 60 metres in height, lakes and springs."
- Unesco website

Can you see the pathway meandering along the mountains? Definitely not for the faint-hearted!! But I loved every minute of it. My first experience climbing Chinese mountains and I was awed beyond words. Such natural beauty~ I couldn't stop snapping photos during our 6-hour hike. Also thoroughly enjoyed our tea session in the very poetic setting.

This was an excellent trip. Never knew my love for hiking!

Huzhou Oct 2013

S read about the newly built donut-shaped hotel in Huzhou and decided to bring me and the parents for a trip. Easy drive from Shanghai - about 2+ hrs out if I remember correctly. The Sheraton Huzhou Hot Spring Resort is architecturally unique, shaped in this way so that every room would have a view of the Taihu Lake. The parents were very much inspired to paint, and by some stroke of coincidence/fate, even gifted a painting to the hotel manager! Lucky him. We did receive a beautiful hotel souvenir and champagne treat in return. Nothing much in the vicinity except the nearby Nanxun Ancient Water Town (南浔古镇). Just a short but enjoyable walkabout. Little Lady luck was with us while we deliberated on 4D (Singapore's lottery) over brekkie ;) Golf was pretty good too!

Andy Lau Concert (Sep 2013)

If you're attending a concert at the Mercedes Benz Arena, I suggest going a little earlier to walk around the vicinity. There's an entertaining musical fountain show just beside the stadium but I'm not too sure of the showtimes. Anyway, another one of my dreams come true - seeing the legendary Andy Lau live :D T'was a rather elaborate performance and he is as suave as ever.