oh, wonderful days.

had a really busy weekend! (:

lunch with Aur on Saturday at Paragon’s Fish & Co. i super adore their calamari and the fish was great. big servings, so it was pricier but at least you get your money’s worth. 

we trooped over to NAC afterward so Aur can buy her sketchbook(s) from Art Friend. stopped by The Better Toy Store where i bought an adorable green/ecru canvas tote for $10. I LOVE THE COLORS in that place. and it brings back so many fond memories of my childhood and all the toys we had. 

had a peppermint chocolate chip ice-cream before going to the Apple retailer at Wheelock to check out screen protectors for Aur’s new iPod Touch. YAY AUR HAS CONVERTED TO MAC. (: 

and then Aur and i hit a beads/jewelry materials shop at FEP to pick up the basic materials to kickstart my interest in jewelry-making. the raw materials e.g. charms are still way overpriced though. the shop assistants were really nice and helpful generally. anyway,i bought some gold-plated ones and a small silver locket, and other random things like clasps and chains. and i realize i have a cutter at home which means i don’t have to buy one to cut my chains! but i think i have to get another pair of pliers.

anyway, i really got curious when i can’t find anywhere particular accessories that i have a hankering for. such as short gold necklaces to help me layer necklaces. Accessorize sells some with small charms, but they’re obviously overpriced and i’d rather shell out less money to make my own. 

today’s International Museum Day locally. (: which means FREE ADMISSION at all the National Heritage Board museums. yesterday was also the officially declared Family Day so many places had discounts on admission and stuff. really cool. went bright and early to the Asian Civilizations Museum with my family to check out the special exhibition of Emperor Kangxi. there’re some great artifacts and history but unfortunately the huge crowd turnout really marred the experience.

i’ve been checking out stuff like membership fees/admission charges in museums and all. i may not be able to travel much this summer, but i am sure going to enjoy my remaining June/July vacation in Singapore. there’re some great exhibitions, places, events and activities upcoming actually! 

anyway, we didn’t hover at ACM to check out their regular permanent galleries because of the insane crowds. went to get our free ice-cream (red bean!) and then lounged around a bit at The Fullerton Hotel which was just lovely. then we wandered over to The Art House and walked around the old Supreme Court. 

visited The Art House for the first time today. it’s housed at the old Parliament House. we were lucky and got to visit the chamber where parliament used to be held. it was unlocked for a wedding so we got to sneak in for photos and all. super cool. (:

The Art House also has a small cinema where it evidently screens films. i realize in a couple of weeks, the Italian Film Festival is going to happen. and there’re quite a number of free films and all of them have such intriguing plots. i can’t wait! most of them are in the evening though, so i’m going to have to plan what i’m going to catch well enough. (:

when Mint comes back, i’d love to rope her down for some of these stuff if she’s willing and free. museums escapades! $20 for 3 days access to all of National Heritage Board’s museums, including the 4 major ones – History, Art, Asian Civilizations and Peranakan. i’d love to check out their permanent galleries and any special ones in this period. and because all the museums are located at such a wonderfully central location close to each other, we could probably cover most of them within 3 days anyway. Sunday would be perfect. free parking right outside ACM, and walking distance within Boat Quay. Jazz@Southbridge! jazz pubs. think Aur was talking about going to Wala-Wala at Holland Village when Mint returns too. (:

besides ACM, we also went to the heritage gallery at the Central Fire Station. they have a Civil Defense heritage gallery which is actually kind of cool. and after that, we managed to squeeze in time to visit the Singapore Philatelic Museum which had a comic superhero exhibition thing. (: wound up the day with dinner at Jumbo Seafood along Boat Quay.

tomorrow’s my birthday! haha, my parents brought me to Takashimaya earlier this evening post-dinner to pick up my chocolate Guanaja cake from Rive Gauche (absolutely delectable). and we’re going to the Singapore Zoo after breakfast at Pierce Reservoir tomorrow! (: ROTI PRATA. waiii! can’t wait. :D

2 June is another happening day. Jin was talking about dinner with Jinhe who’s back from Japan. thinking of going to FEP to pick up more jewelry making stuff in the afternoon. going to Uniqlo in the morning with my sister to make use of the 10% discount voucher i won off Uniqlosurprise.com. i so need jeans and new t-shirts. :D

and Rach’s coming back from the States that day. HAHA. and so is Skoric probably which does not bode well since it means more work. but at least i can finally process my application for conference support!