Wednesday 31 August 2016
Thursday 25 August 2016
Decisions, regrets and life lessons.
The main character in my book is fifteen years old. While writing I am taken back to when I was fifteen and the feelings I experienced then. What decisions I made, what I regret doing/not doing and what moments I would want to change. This is important to remember since I want my character to feel realistic, so I am creating these moments for her that are similar to what I can remember about myself.
Wednesday 24 August 2016
A lifetime of misery
Hi. Do you have back-pain? Are you in your twenties and walk around like you are in your eighties? Well, you are not alone! Or you are if you are me.
Tuesday 23 August 2016
First date
I just came home from a date! Not really a date-date, but a friendly-date. People are still calling it that, right?
Anyway. So I met this girl - well, we met online... as in the chat I have been talking about recently - and we decided to meet today. I confess I was a bit nervous because I do not meet a lot of people here on my own. I had an hour to get ready and chose between shorts/t-shirt and casual dress. Since I thought I needed pockets for phone and cards I chose shorts, but the dress and a small bag would probably have matched her outfit better.
She came over looking like a fine lady, very sexy and professional. Apparently going to a seminar at the NTU did not mean actually attending but being there looking for a job. I regretted not taking the dress but I was at least comfortable in my very me-clothes. Representing!
We walked into a Medical Centre that did not look like a Medical Centre. Inside there were shops and other stores. She wanted to take me to a sushi-place, but unfortunately it was closed. Went back over the street and headed to the only street I know in Holland Village. Walking past restaurants that had barely opened - the time was half past four - and found a small restaurant that looked like a brunch place (Breko Cafe & Sandwich Bar). It was, they had a brunch menu, but we came too late for brunch and so we had an early dinner. We were both very hungry.
Before ordering we talked for a long while. She was very easy to talk to, mostly because she did more than half of the talking. I really enjoyed it, I really like to listen to people and hearing their stories. Of course I shared some of mine. We talked a lot about Sweden since she had lived there not long ago. Her Swedish was incredibly good which was really comforting when my English was failing.
We ordered - pasta for her and salmon for me, also 2 for a-better-price beer. Tasted good! Talked so much and we got louder when they started playing music over our heads. Unfortunately (for me, not for her) she had plans that she had to leave for after we were finished with our meals. There was a good reason - a birthday dinner - but we decided to meet again in a week. Hopefully we'll have more time to get to know each other! I am looking forward to it.
Anyway. So I met this girl - well, we met online... as in the chat I have been talking about recently - and we decided to meet today. I confess I was a bit nervous because I do not meet a lot of people here on my own. I had an hour to get ready and chose between shorts/t-shirt and casual dress. Since I thought I needed pockets for phone and cards I chose shorts, but the dress and a small bag would probably have matched her outfit better.
She came over looking like a fine lady, very sexy and professional. Apparently going to a seminar at the NTU did not mean actually attending but being there looking for a job. I regretted not taking the dress but I was at least comfortable in my very me-clothes. Representing!
We walked into a Medical Centre that did not look like a Medical Centre. Inside there were shops and other stores. She wanted to take me to a sushi-place, but unfortunately it was closed. Went back over the street and headed to the only street I know in Holland Village. Walking past restaurants that had barely opened - the time was half past four - and found a small restaurant that looked like a brunch place (Breko Cafe & Sandwich Bar). It was, they had a brunch menu, but we came too late for brunch and so we had an early dinner. We were both very hungry.
Before ordering we talked for a long while. She was very easy to talk to, mostly because she did more than half of the talking. I really enjoyed it, I really like to listen to people and hearing their stories. Of course I shared some of mine. We talked a lot about Sweden since she had lived there not long ago. Her Swedish was incredibly good which was really comforting when my English was failing.
We ordered - pasta for her and salmon for me, also 2 for a-better-price beer. Tasted good! Talked so much and we got louder when they started playing music over our heads. Unfortunately (for me, not for her) she had plans that she had to leave for after we were finished with our meals. There was a good reason - a birthday dinner - but we decided to meet again in a week. Hopefully we'll have more time to get to know each other! I am looking forward to it.
Saturday 20 August 2016
Two is enough
Tomorrow we were supposed to go to a barbecue with some of Johns colleagues. I wondered about this since it seemed unlikely that they arranged a barbecue on a Sunday. John checked the email and I was right. The guy arranging it had accidentally written the wrong day and told everybody it was tonight. We already had plans and so we told them we could not come.
There was another meet up happening, from the chat I wrote about earlier, at a cheap beer-place called Booze Pharma C by Tiong Bahru. I was unsure if I wanted to go but I changed my mind after some music and drinks. It could be fun and we could make friends. That was the whole point of joining these chats, to really try and meet people/make friends.
It was a bit unorganised and at the end of the evening nobody answered if they were going or not. John looked a bit sad about this, he wanted to be around people and I was ready to go out as well. So we told the group the meet up was off and went out by ourselves. Promenaded to Holland Village and walked along the crowded small street with bars, clubs and restaurants. Found a Mexican place called Cha Cha Cha and sat down at the table almost at the street.
I had just had a half Subway sandwich so I was not so hungry. John ordered their chicken chimichanga and I had some cheese covered nachos with guacamole, sour creme, jalapeños and salsa. It was a very hot day and all the people on the street made it even hotter. No wind nor AC could reach us. Even so the food was great and I want to go back there some day. Would definitely recommend!
We enjoyed ourselves with watching people on the street. Looked at the foreigners who dressed up to nicely for having dinner at a restaurant. I remember being at Mallorca and we dressed up to much for just dinner, but that is Scandinavians for you. After moving here I realised the people of Singapore are really laid back. Makes it so much easier to be comfortable. We saw to young women wearing black dresses that did not fit walk back and fourth in front of us looking for a place to eat but the looked so lost and did not fit in with their dress or attitude. When they finally found a place to eat they looked very pleased with themselves.
Then we decided to walk home slowly while talking about dragons. Even though we did nothing of our plans it was a very nice evening. I love this man so much and I enjoy my life with him. It is so fantastic to be in love!
There was another meet up happening, from the chat I wrote about earlier, at a cheap beer-place called Booze Pharma C by Tiong Bahru. I was unsure if I wanted to go but I changed my mind after some music and drinks. It could be fun and we could make friends. That was the whole point of joining these chats, to really try and meet people/make friends.
It was a bit unorganised and at the end of the evening nobody answered if they were going or not. John looked a bit sad about this, he wanted to be around people and I was ready to go out as well. So we told the group the meet up was off and went out by ourselves. Promenaded to Holland Village and walked along the crowded small street with bars, clubs and restaurants. Found a Mexican place called Cha Cha Cha and sat down at the table almost at the street.
I had just had a half Subway sandwich so I was not so hungry. John ordered their chicken chimichanga and I had some cheese covered nachos with guacamole, sour creme, jalapeños and salsa. It was a very hot day and all the people on the street made it even hotter. No wind nor AC could reach us. Even so the food was great and I want to go back there some day. Would definitely recommend!
We enjoyed ourselves with watching people on the street. Looked at the foreigners who dressed up to nicely for having dinner at a restaurant. I remember being at Mallorca and we dressed up to much for just dinner, but that is Scandinavians for you. After moving here I realised the people of Singapore are really laid back. Makes it so much easier to be comfortable. We saw to young women wearing black dresses that did not fit walk back and fourth in front of us looking for a place to eat but the looked so lost and did not fit in with their dress or attitude. When they finally found a place to eat they looked very pleased with themselves.
Then we decided to walk home slowly while talking about dragons. Even though we did nothing of our plans it was a very nice evening. I love this man so much and I enjoy my life with him. It is so fantastic to be in love!
Thursday 18 August 2016
How to meet People
John found an app called Telegram. It also has a desktop version which means you can use it on computers as well. It is like WhatsApp and he invited me to two groups. I have no idea how he found them but we joined these groups with a mission.
Tuesday 16 August 2016
Writer's writing update
Last night we ended the day with me reading out loud from my book. This piece was five pages long and a crucial point in the story. It was the first "draft" since I will be fixing and correcting it later.
The best part of being an author is that when I finished these pages John was surprised that I was done. He wanted more, he needed to know what happened. Made me smile and also gave me some energy for writing.
Hard part is that now I do not know how to proceed. I ended at a point where the scene changes and I do not know to what. I will go back and fourth on this one thinking about what could be and what should not. I do not want to spoil anything of course so I do not write about the scene here.
It is such a good chapter that I want to read it out load to anyone wanting to hear it. That said, I will not send this to John's parents (because they have read all the previous chapters) but will wait for them to visit in September and read to them. Gives me enough time to get it done and polish everything.
See you soon!
The best part of being an author is that when I finished these pages John was surprised that I was done. He wanted more, he needed to know what happened. Made me smile and also gave me some energy for writing.
Hard part is that now I do not know how to proceed. I ended at a point where the scene changes and I do not know to what. I will go back and fourth on this one thinking about what could be and what should not. I do not want to spoil anything of course so I do not write about the scene here.
It is such a good chapter that I want to read it out load to anyone wanting to hear it. That said, I will not send this to John's parents (because they have read all the previous chapters) but will wait for them to visit in September and read to them. Gives me enough time to get it done and polish everything.
See you soon!
Sunday 14 August 2016
Birthday!
Happy birthday! I am now twenty two years old. I got several birthday-wishes and three gifts from John, one for every day of celebration. I wrote about a board game called Quixo in an earlier post and mentioned Love Letter, a card game, in the previous one. Today I got the best of board games, one that I can play alone and up to eight players. It is called Eldritch Horror and it is the players against the game. I have not read the rules yet, but it was a heavy box and there are so many things in there. I can not wait until I know this game by heart!
There was only one plan today - dinner at a fancy restaurant. This is exactly what I wanted. I love John, he knows me so unbelievably well. He asked what I wanted to eat for lunch and I was happy to go downstairs to the food court. There were a lot of people - since it is Sunday and there is a church across the street - so the queues were long. We stood for quite a while before receiving the ordered food, then ate it by the computers while gaming.
Around five I started making myself ready. Since I have had curled hair two days in a row I tried straightening it today. Looked so different, but nice! Short hair suits me, I like it. I put on some modest makeup and tried to find my beloved earrings. They were gone. Suddenly I remembered having left them on the living room table last night. They were not there. I turned my eyes to the cat but he was not willing to tell me where they were. In the middle of getting-ready-for-fancy-dinner-preparations we started looking for them. John found one under the washing machine. The other one is still lost in the apartment. No vacuum cleaning until found!
Half past six we ordered a cab. Two minutes it said so we went to the car park. The taxi was not waiting. John called him but the man said he could not find the car park, that he were not let inside and that he did not find us. So we had to walk out of the car park. Now, this may sound like nothing, but the car park is so big that it takes a few minutes to get out. Two floors down and the ramp up were on the other side to where we were. When we finally got out the driver called us and said he had found the pickup point. We told him that he was so late we had walked out and said he should meet us by the gate. Finally inside the car we drove ten minutes to Orchard Road.
The restaurant was called Crystal Jade Golden Palace. It has one Michelin-star and was inside a pretty expensive mall called Paragon. The stores around were Gucci, Prada, Miu Miu and so on. We walked in and was seated at our table. It was not on the lower floor but up on a little private alcove with two tables. One was a two seated table and it was taken, the one we got was four seats. The couple left shortly after we arrived and so we had a very private dinner. I later found out that John had told them that it was my birthday and I suspect this is why we were placed here.
They had two menus, one set which is a lot of small dishes and one large with so much to choose between. We asked for recommendations and after some consideration we ordered. From left to right we have a grouper fish with vermicelli (this was my favourite), chicken with cashews and some strange spice that made your tongue go numb, pork and duck with two sauces not shown in picture (Johns favourite) and rice with prawn and vegetables. Everything tasted really nice and we only had water to drink to not spoil the taste.
There was only one plan today - dinner at a fancy restaurant. This is exactly what I wanted. I love John, he knows me so unbelievably well. He asked what I wanted to eat for lunch and I was happy to go downstairs to the food court. There were a lot of people - since it is Sunday and there is a church across the street - so the queues were long. We stood for quite a while before receiving the ordered food, then ate it by the computers while gaming.
Around five I started making myself ready. Since I have had curled hair two days in a row I tried straightening it today. Looked so different, but nice! Short hair suits me, I like it. I put on some modest makeup and tried to find my beloved earrings. They were gone. Suddenly I remembered having left them on the living room table last night. They were not there. I turned my eyes to the cat but he was not willing to tell me where they were. In the middle of getting-ready-for-fancy-dinner-preparations we started looking for them. John found one under the washing machine. The other one is still lost in the apartment. No vacuum cleaning until found!
Half past six we ordered a cab. Two minutes it said so we went to the car park. The taxi was not waiting. John called him but the man said he could not find the car park, that he were not let inside and that he did not find us. So we had to walk out of the car park. Now, this may sound like nothing, but the car park is so big that it takes a few minutes to get out. Two floors down and the ramp up were on the other side to where we were. When we finally got out the driver called us and said he had found the pickup point. We told him that he was so late we had walked out and said he should meet us by the gate. Finally inside the car we drove ten minutes to Orchard Road.
The restaurant was called Crystal Jade Golden Palace. It has one Michelin-star and was inside a pretty expensive mall called Paragon. The stores around were Gucci, Prada, Miu Miu and so on. We walked in and was seated at our table. It was not on the lower floor but up on a little private alcove with two tables. One was a two seated table and it was taken, the one we got was four seats. The couple left shortly after we arrived and so we had a very private dinner. I later found out that John had told them that it was my birthday and I suspect this is why we were placed here.
They had two menus, one set which is a lot of small dishes and one large with so much to choose between. We asked for recommendations and after some consideration we ordered. From left to right we have a grouper fish with vermicelli (this was my favourite), chicken with cashews and some strange spice that made your tongue go numb, pork and duck with two sauces not shown in picture (Johns favourite) and rice with prawn and vegetables. Everything tasted really nice and we only had water to drink to not spoil the taste.
Lastly, because John had mentioned my birthday when he booked the table, they served these three small deserts free of charge. The yellow jelly did not taste anything until you swallowed it, then there was a small umami lemonish taste. The white and pink bubble was called a birthday bun which had lotus-paste inside. The more I ate the more I liked it. Last thing was the best. Sesame seed ball which had (surprisingly) sesame seeds inside it. Looks dark, and it was, but really good.
Thank you for a good birthday. They seem to only get better with you, John!
Saturday 13 August 2016
Second birthday-day
My heels hurt... which can only mean another well planned and super suitable day for me! John knows me so well. When somebody has plans which include me I always get scared a few days prior, because I have a pleasing-issue which means I feel like I need to do whatever is planned no matter how I feel. Knowing my body it can be very confusing and feel fine one moment and like hell the next. John managed to plan things that do not take up much time and then giving me the choice of continuing the evening or going home.
Today we slept for as long as we could... meaning we were woken up by Ymir the cat around five in the morning. We then spent the remaining hours up until nine trying to fall asleep again while the cat brought in toys and scratched the mattress. Lovely awakening...
John came in with another silver package while I was still in bed reading. In this one was another board game - one will never have too many, just ask John's parents - and this was called Love Letter. I have played in once with previously mentioned older adults and I remember it was fun!
I ate an apple for breakfast and we got ready. I curled my hair and put on a dress, something I rarely do but feel good doing. The short hair is still pretty new, especially with a straightener. I used to use one all the time to straighten my long hair and my bangs, but it is much different with short hair and I am still testing it. Unfortunately we never took a full body photo of me today so I have none to show you.
John and I took an Uber - bad choice because there was a lot of traffic - to Raffles City. We went to Din Tai Fung and put ourselves in the queue. Around twenty minutes for a table. We stood there filling in the menu. Precisely when our number was called Heidi joined us. This place speaks mostly Chinese and very poor English, so without her we would have had a problem communicating. The dinner was great though. So many dumplings! I ate more than John and Heidi together. Yummy!
Afterwards we walked twenty minutes to Clarke Quay, bought a coffee for John and headed up a flight of stairs (well, you know... escalator). Found the entrance to something called Lockdown! Lockdown provides different rooms in which you are supposed to find clues to eventually get out. These are called escape rooms. We did one of these with Sanna and Mattias in Stockholm.
This was in The Forgotten Temple and we were supposed to solve five clues before entering the last room (which held more clues). We had a phone to call the people working there if we got stuck and honestly, we called to get the solution to every single clue. We got a bit of it, but never solved them completely. It was HARD! And you were supposed to think for yourselves, without hints or words to go on... Lets just say the hour we got passed quickly. At the last clue, a strange cryptex, we got five minutes extra just because the key inside was the key for the door out. My red shoes came out almost white from all the sand and dust.
Needless to say it was challenging. Maybe not a laughing fun matter, but enjoyable if one were able to solve it on their own. For us it was more frustrating, but it was fun when we actually solved things on our own. We did that, I swear. Some of it we definitely did!
Heidi had to leave for dinner with family. John and I tried to walk outside but it was hot. Things you forget when inside with AC on. We were kind of tired too. Took the MRT one station past ours and went to Cold Storage to buy some chicken, sushi, avocado and such. John made his very tasty mashed potatoes with garlic and shredded fresh honey glazed chicken from the store. I made tzatziki. Good dinner!
Great Saturday. I can not wait to see what will happen tomorrow, on my actual birthday.
Today we slept for as long as we could... meaning we were woken up by Ymir the cat around five in the morning. We then spent the remaining hours up until nine trying to fall asleep again while the cat brought in toys and scratched the mattress. Lovely awakening...
John came in with another silver package while I was still in bed reading. In this one was another board game - one will never have too many, just ask John's parents - and this was called Love Letter. I have played in once with previously mentioned older adults and I remember it was fun!
I ate an apple for breakfast and we got ready. I curled my hair and put on a dress, something I rarely do but feel good doing. The short hair is still pretty new, especially with a straightener. I used to use one all the time to straighten my long hair and my bangs, but it is much different with short hair and I am still testing it. Unfortunately we never took a full body photo of me today so I have none to show you.
John and I took an Uber - bad choice because there was a lot of traffic - to Raffles City. We went to Din Tai Fung and put ourselves in the queue. Around twenty minutes for a table. We stood there filling in the menu. Precisely when our number was called Heidi joined us. This place speaks mostly Chinese and very poor English, so without her we would have had a problem communicating. The dinner was great though. So many dumplings! I ate more than John and Heidi together. Yummy!
Afterwards we walked twenty minutes to Clarke Quay, bought a coffee for John and headed up a flight of stairs (well, you know... escalator). Found the entrance to something called Lockdown! Lockdown provides different rooms in which you are supposed to find clues to eventually get out. These are called escape rooms. We did one of these with Sanna and Mattias in Stockholm.
This was in The Forgotten Temple and we were supposed to solve five clues before entering the last room (which held more clues). We had a phone to call the people working there if we got stuck and honestly, we called to get the solution to every single clue. We got a bit of it, but never solved them completely. It was HARD! And you were supposed to think for yourselves, without hints or words to go on... Lets just say the hour we got passed quickly. At the last clue, a strange cryptex, we got five minutes extra just because the key inside was the key for the door out. My red shoes came out almost white from all the sand and dust.
Needless to say it was challenging. Maybe not a laughing fun matter, but enjoyable if one were able to solve it on their own. For us it was more frustrating, but it was fun when we actually solved things on our own. We did that, I swear. Some of it we definitely did!
Heidi had to leave for dinner with family. John and I tried to walk outside but it was hot. Things you forget when inside with AC on. We were kind of tired too. Took the MRT one station past ours and went to Cold Storage to buy some chicken, sushi, avocado and such. John made his very tasty mashed potatoes with garlic and shredded fresh honey glazed chicken from the store. I made tzatziki. Good dinner!
Great Saturday. I can not wait to see what will happen tomorrow, on my actual birthday.
Friday 12 August 2016
First day of birthday
What a day... my feet hurt, my eyes can barely stay open and I have very little energy to lift my arm. This post is being written very slowly.
On Sunday I turn twenty two but John started celebrating me today already. I woke up by his alarm and after his regular half-hour snooze I asked if he should get up and go to work. He stays quiet and after a heartbeat I say you took the day off, right? Yes, he did, and I should not have been surprised since he did the same thing last year. Even so we were both awake and he got up to give our cat breakfast. I stayed in bed. He starts to sing the Swedish happy birthday song and enters with a silver package. Inside I found a lovely wooden five-in-a-row board game (with interesting rules) called Quixo and I beat him the two games we played that morning. A perfect game for me!
He then tells me that we are going to Universal Studios today. HURRAY! So we cuddle in the sofa watching a Dota-match (the international is ongoing) and I drink a cup of hot chocolate. We then quickly get ready and head towards HarbourFront. Clever as I am I say we should buy our lunch so we will be able to walk with it and so John suggests something from the food court. We eat while walking like time-saving experts. Halfway over to Sentosa we sit down and eat the rest of our meals.
Over at Sentosa we excitedly walk over to the over-pampered Universal entrance. We thought that since it was a Friday and everybody should be at work it should be less people and we could have the park all to ourselves. Unfortunately we asked the lady who sold tickets if there were a lot of people there - yes, yes it was. Always. Every day. Constantly. Sigh. We then go as far as we can without tickets to see just how many there were and how long the shortest queue was. TWO HOURS. Shortest... We were there five hours before they closed.
Bailed. There is much else to do at Sentosa. Small droplets hit our faces. We walked to S.E.A Aquarium - that John explained to me, after I asked why they had dots between the sea word, stood for South East Asia. I just thought it was a clever name for the aquarium - and talked to two of the staff for quite a while. Talked about what to do at Sentosa and if the aquarium was any good. We bought tickets and entered.
First there was a short, or rather large, exhibition about Zheng He and his trading ship. Huge display of perhaps one tenth of the entire ship. We read about interesting history and saw pots, coins and more, all brought back from a sunken 15th century trading ship.
We then came to the aquarium. First we walked through a tunnel filled with sharks and smaller fish. The very loud children made us hurry though that one. If you are looking at the map further down you will see the Exit and Entrance. They had apparently switched this so the entrance is now where the exit was. First we saw some pretty amazing moray eels. We crawled into a small space, probably made for children, and sat there watching them eel around in the little tank. Went past some common reef fish and jellyfish. Saw a few seahorses and a slowly circling school of fish.
After that came the big tank. We had been informed earlier that this was once the biggest tank in the world, then the Chinese built an even larger one. Inside were so many varieties of fish. Lots of stingrays, three huge that were so, so beautiful! A pair of large grouper fish that looked alien up close. A school of trevallies were swimming around, looking as ugly as they are. A fair amount of sharks, one with three fins on its tail. Never got a photo of it though, just a blurry mess.
I was amazed. We spent a lot of time here. I loved it. I really do love watching undersea creatures. They look so peaceful. It looks like they are in space, just floating around doing nothing. Well, they are doing something, I just do not know what. I wondered what they thought was on the other side of that glass wall. So many of them came close and seemed to investigate the never disappearing barrier.
When we eventually left there was not much more to surprise me. Or so I thought! After a while we came to a lit up tank, open from above, at which I also realised that it had stopped raining. I peered into it and saw shapes far away. John whispered in my ear: dolphins. Iihh! I have seen dolphins once, when I was six or seven. I do not remember much. There is one blurry photo of me sitting in a dark place and there could be a dolphin a few meters in front of me. One can not be sure. But this! I was so happy! Could not stop smiling! After just a little while they came closer, two pups came to play by the windows. The adults were swimming around upside down and kept to the surface. They were so cute! I wish I could swim with them... maybe one day.
In another tank was a giant octopus! It was the first time I saw one, a large one, up close. It was so huge. It moved around in the tank, from being at the surface looking purple to suddenly dropping down to a corner turning white! Looked so cool! It camouflaged itself and it was felt indescribable seeing it happen. I stood by that window for a very long time. People around me started to get annoyed and pressed past. I did not mind, I was done after a while.
Before leaving the aquarium we sat in another tunnel with sharks and fish, cozing and taking photos. Outside the sun was shining, even though it was supposed to be a cloudy day. We walked up some stairs, following the map towards the beach and sea. Passed an enormous Merlion, it cost twelve Singapore dollars per person to go up to its mouth. We did not. Walked down a decorated walkway with funny mirrors. Found the beach, realised it was really hot and we had no swim clothes so it was mainly torture to watch those in the water. We also went by a waterpark that looked like something we would have enjoyed. Sat down at a bench and called John's parents. Talked with them for twenty minutes. They are so lovely and kind, I really miss them sometimes.
Sidenote: we walked just a small bit of Sentosa but we could constantly hear Singapore's national songs playing on speakers. They make a new one for every year.
We walked all the way back to VivoCity/HarbourFront. The time was around five and since we had had an early lunch we were getting hungry. First looked at some games, found nothing new. Looked at some sunglasses, found some nice but expensive. Ate at Carl's Junior (for the people in Sweden, it is like Singapores MAX) which served a large avocado and bacon burger, ridiculously large sodas and very good fries (we had one with cheese, amazing). After that we barely had the strength to hold hands. We tested two massaging chairs and I had to drag John away from it. Before we left for home John wanted to check on some jewellery to see if he could spot what I liked. He showed me a beautiful bracelet with stars on it. Although it cost a thousand Swedish crowns, I would not dare to wear it.
When we came home a little cat was waiting for us by the door. Hungry and desperate for cuddles. He got all of it.
On Sunday I turn twenty two but John started celebrating me today already. I woke up by his alarm and after his regular half-hour snooze I asked if he should get up and go to work. He stays quiet and after a heartbeat I say you took the day off, right? Yes, he did, and I should not have been surprised since he did the same thing last year. Even so we were both awake and he got up to give our cat breakfast. I stayed in bed. He starts to sing the Swedish happy birthday song and enters with a silver package. Inside I found a lovely wooden five-in-a-row board game (with interesting rules) called Quixo and I beat him the two games we played that morning. A perfect game for me!
He then tells me that we are going to Universal Studios today. HURRAY! So we cuddle in the sofa watching a Dota-match (the international is ongoing) and I drink a cup of hot chocolate. We then quickly get ready and head towards HarbourFront. Clever as I am I say we should buy our lunch so we will be able to walk with it and so John suggests something from the food court. We eat while walking like time-saving experts. Halfway over to Sentosa we sit down and eat the rest of our meals.
Over at Sentosa we excitedly walk over to the over-pampered Universal entrance. We thought that since it was a Friday and everybody should be at work it should be less people and we could have the park all to ourselves. Unfortunately we asked the lady who sold tickets if there were a lot of people there - yes, yes it was. Always. Every day. Constantly. Sigh. We then go as far as we can without tickets to see just how many there were and how long the shortest queue was. TWO HOURS. Shortest... We were there five hours before they closed.
Bailed. There is much else to do at Sentosa. Small droplets hit our faces. We walked to S.E.A Aquarium - that John explained to me, after I asked why they had dots between the sea word, stood for South East Asia. I just thought it was a clever name for the aquarium - and talked to two of the staff for quite a while. Talked about what to do at Sentosa and if the aquarium was any good. We bought tickets and entered.
First there was a short, or rather large, exhibition about Zheng He and his trading ship. Huge display of perhaps one tenth of the entire ship. We read about interesting history and saw pots, coins and more, all brought back from a sunken 15th century trading ship.
We then came to the aquarium. First we walked through a tunnel filled with sharks and smaller fish. The very loud children made us hurry though that one. If you are looking at the map further down you will see the Exit and Entrance. They had apparently switched this so the entrance is now where the exit was. First we saw some pretty amazing moray eels. We crawled into a small space, probably made for children, and sat there watching them eel around in the little tank. Went past some common reef fish and jellyfish. Saw a few seahorses and a slowly circling school of fish.
After that came the big tank. We had been informed earlier that this was once the biggest tank in the world, then the Chinese built an even larger one. Inside were so many varieties of fish. Lots of stingrays, three huge that were so, so beautiful! A pair of large grouper fish that looked alien up close. A school of trevallies were swimming around, looking as ugly as they are. A fair amount of sharks, one with three fins on its tail. Never got a photo of it though, just a blurry mess.
I was amazed. We spent a lot of time here. I loved it. I really do love watching undersea creatures. They look so peaceful. It looks like they are in space, just floating around doing nothing. Well, they are doing something, I just do not know what. I wondered what they thought was on the other side of that glass wall. So many of them came close and seemed to investigate the never disappearing barrier.
When we eventually left there was not much more to surprise me. Or so I thought! After a while we came to a lit up tank, open from above, at which I also realised that it had stopped raining. I peered into it and saw shapes far away. John whispered in my ear: dolphins. Iihh! I have seen dolphins once, when I was six or seven. I do not remember much. There is one blurry photo of me sitting in a dark place and there could be a dolphin a few meters in front of me. One can not be sure. But this! I was so happy! Could not stop smiling! After just a little while they came closer, two pups came to play by the windows. The adults were swimming around upside down and kept to the surface. They were so cute! I wish I could swim with them... maybe one day.
In another tank was a giant octopus! It was the first time I saw one, a large one, up close. It was so huge. It moved around in the tank, from being at the surface looking purple to suddenly dropping down to a corner turning white! Looked so cool! It camouflaged itself and it was felt indescribable seeing it happen. I stood by that window for a very long time. People around me started to get annoyed and pressed past. I did not mind, I was done after a while.
Before leaving the aquarium we sat in another tunnel with sharks and fish, cozing and taking photos. Outside the sun was shining, even though it was supposed to be a cloudy day. We walked up some stairs, following the map towards the beach and sea. Passed an enormous Merlion, it cost twelve Singapore dollars per person to go up to its mouth. We did not. Walked down a decorated walkway with funny mirrors. Found the beach, realised it was really hot and we had no swim clothes so it was mainly torture to watch those in the water. We also went by a waterpark that looked like something we would have enjoyed. Sat down at a bench and called John's parents. Talked with them for twenty minutes. They are so lovely and kind, I really miss them sometimes.
Sidenote: we walked just a small bit of Sentosa but we could constantly hear Singapore's national songs playing on speakers. They make a new one for every year.
We walked all the way back to VivoCity/HarbourFront. The time was around five and since we had had an early lunch we were getting hungry. First looked at some games, found nothing new. Looked at some sunglasses, found some nice but expensive. Ate at Carl's Junior (for the people in Sweden, it is like Singapores MAX) which served a large avocado and bacon burger, ridiculously large sodas and very good fries (we had one with cheese, amazing). After that we barely had the strength to hold hands. We tested two massaging chairs and I had to drag John away from it. Before we left for home John wanted to check on some jewellery to see if he could spot what I liked. He showed me a beautiful bracelet with stars on it. Although it cost a thousand Swedish crowns, I would not dare to wear it.
When we came home a little cat was waiting for us by the door. Hungry and desperate for cuddles. He got all of it.
Small part of a trading ship.
You can see the tunnel in the background.
Sharks cuddling.
The wreck tank. I stand furthest to the right.
Living in a lake. Asias scary version of a northern pike.
A self-decorated crab and what we think is a shrimp on a starfish.
The second largest tank in the world.
My reaction to it.
One very large ray and two huge groupers.
John does not know how to smile when I ask him to.
