... in other words, husband's employment pass has been approved and, with it, my dependants pass. I tell you, it feels strange being a "dependant" as every time I have gone to SG in the past it has always been on my own recognisance and I get my own employment pass. Ah well, I guess it is all part of being a tai-tai.
Anyway, now that we are "approved" we can do all the stuff necessary for living in SG - like signing the tenancy agreement, getting PHONE lines, getting an ISP, etc, etc, etc. I am SO looking forward to moving out of the serviced apartment to a 'proper' apartment, with more space to live and breathe. Not that the serviced apartment is not nice - it IS nice - but it is just too small, and there is a lack of privacy when you know that the various people in the housekeeping section can walk into your apartment at any time whether you are there or not.
Well folks, from March onwards, anyone coming to SG and needing a place to 'tumpang' for a few days - give us a call, and we will definitely make the space for you.
In the meantime, to all our Chinese friends out there:
KONG HEE FATT CHOY, GONG XI FA CAI
and all the best for the Year of the DOG
Saturday, January 28, 2006
Thursday, January 12, 2006
Life in Singapore starts again....
Well, we've been in SG 8 days now, and still feel like we are in a bit of a limbo. Husband started work on the day we arrived(!) - no rest for the weary :-) and has been getting busier every day since then.
We are staying at a 1-bedroom serviced apartment at The Concourse, on Beach Road. Very pleasant, definitely better than a hotel room - with a small and well equipped kitchen, a small sitting and dining room, a guest bathroom, a bedroom with en-suite. Well, as I said, better than a hotel room, but still a bit claustrophobic! VERY little wardrobe space, so it is a good thing we brought the bare minimum with us. Lovely little restaurant downstairs, outside the building, which serves decent nyonya type food, run by a nice Malaysian lady from Muar who is a good cook. Her assistant in the evening is also a Malaysian (ex-Malaysian, now Singapore citizen) who is equally friendly and pleasant. The prices are really good too - most meals cost between S$4 and S$5, while beer is S$4 per mug!
Husband's office at Millenia Tower is walking distance from here - just 15 minutes comfortable walk. He is also happy as there is a little Killiney kopitiam near his office which does a delicious bacon and egg breakfast for the princely sum of S$2.50!
Spent a few days last week looking at lots of apartments, and finally settled on one that is walking distance to Holland Village - the landlord/owner, who is currently living there, just came across so well and so relaxed, and the whole apartment has a lovely welcoming and cosy feeling to it. Unfortunately, cannot move in till 1st March, as the owner is only moving out end Jan, and then after CNY he needs to get the place cleaned up, and given that it IS CNY, he may not be able to get the contractors in that fast.... ah well, at least we know where we will be going.
Will be back in KL next week, just me, for a few days, to settle a few things, pay a few bills, see my family, meet some friends, and then I'll be back to SG again.
Hope you have all had a great New Year, and that CNY will be equally great. And may nothing but the best things happen in the year ahead and may 2006 be a truly blessed year for all my family and friends and friends of friends.
We are staying at a 1-bedroom serviced apartment at The Concourse, on Beach Road. Very pleasant, definitely better than a hotel room - with a small and well equipped kitchen, a small sitting and dining room, a guest bathroom, a bedroom with en-suite. Well, as I said, better than a hotel room, but still a bit claustrophobic! VERY little wardrobe space, so it is a good thing we brought the bare minimum with us. Lovely little restaurant downstairs, outside the building, which serves decent nyonya type food, run by a nice Malaysian lady from Muar who is a good cook. Her assistant in the evening is also a Malaysian (ex-Malaysian, now Singapore citizen) who is equally friendly and pleasant. The prices are really good too - most meals cost between S$4 and S$5, while beer is S$4 per mug!
Husband's office at Millenia Tower is walking distance from here - just 15 minutes comfortable walk. He is also happy as there is a little Killiney kopitiam near his office which does a delicious bacon and egg breakfast for the princely sum of S$2.50!
Spent a few days last week looking at lots of apartments, and finally settled on one that is walking distance to Holland Village - the landlord/owner, who is currently living there, just came across so well and so relaxed, and the whole apartment has a lovely welcoming and cosy feeling to it. Unfortunately, cannot move in till 1st March, as the owner is only moving out end Jan, and then after CNY he needs to get the place cleaned up, and given that it IS CNY, he may not be able to get the contractors in that fast.... ah well, at least we know where we will be going.
Will be back in KL next week, just me, for a few days, to settle a few things, pay a few bills, see my family, meet some friends, and then I'll be back to SG again.
Hope you have all had a great New Year, and that CNY will be equally great. And may nothing but the best things happen in the year ahead and may 2006 be a truly blessed year for all my family and friends and friends of friends.
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
I'm leaving, on a jet plane
..Yep... it has finally been confirmed. Husband is going to be based in good ol' Sinjapoh from January 2006 onwards, for a minimum of 1 year, up to 2 years, on a project. We are heading off on 4th Jan, to do the necessary prelim work - apply for employment pass, look for accommodation, etc. Hopefully we get an apartment as gorgeous as the last one we had in SG - beautiful duplex, with 4 bedrooms all with en-suite, plus a maids room with its own bathroom, a nice big laundry area, big kitchen, huge dining and living room. Fingers crossed!
To all our friends in KL and in other parts of the world - once we have suitable accommodation organised, consider yourself holding an open invite to come for a holiday - just give us a few days warning before turning up is all we ask.
In case you are wondering how to get in touch with us once we are in SG, my M'sia handphone number still applies, and will be on during the day every day. Other than that, you all should have our email id as well... and that is not gonna change.
And for those who are interested - we had a GREAT Xmas celebration. The entire family gathered in PJ, lots of noise, food, fun, talking, present exchanging and photo taking happened on Xmas Eve, which is the family get together time. Xmas Day was our Open House and it was great to see so many of our friends turn up - especially the gang from "T" --> you guys are STILL the best! Of course, we all ate too much (as one does on such occasions), and my poor stomach has not been at it's best since then. My stomach only has another 2 days to recover, cos on NY Eve we are having another get-together of my "hi-tea gang" of ladies, and their spouses (spice?) and kids... which, again, will involve a lot of food, noise, merry making, photo taking, etc. Might need another month to recover from that!
To all reading this blog - Husband and I would like to wish you all the best for 2006, both before and after Chinese New Year. May we all be truly blessed and happy in the year ahead.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
To all our friends in KL and in other parts of the world - once we have suitable accommodation organised, consider yourself holding an open invite to come for a holiday - just give us a few days warning before turning up is all we ask.
In case you are wondering how to get in touch with us once we are in SG, my M'sia handphone number still applies, and will be on during the day every day. Other than that, you all should have our email id as well... and that is not gonna change.
And for those who are interested - we had a GREAT Xmas celebration. The entire family gathered in PJ, lots of noise, food, fun, talking, present exchanging and photo taking happened on Xmas Eve, which is the family get together time. Xmas Day was our Open House and it was great to see so many of our friends turn up - especially the gang from "T" --> you guys are STILL the best! Of course, we all ate too much (as one does on such occasions), and my poor stomach has not been at it's best since then. My stomach only has another 2 days to recover, cos on NY Eve we are having another get-together of my "hi-tea gang" of ladies, and their spouses (spice?) and kids... which, again, will involve a lot of food, noise, merry making, photo taking, etc. Might need another month to recover from that!
To all reading this blog - Husband and I would like to wish you all the best for 2006, both before and after Chinese New Year. May we all be truly blessed and happy in the year ahead.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
The end of the year is nigh...
... but before I start on that - just a few comments about Julius Caeser:
- Patrick Teoh is still, IMHO, a totally natural and fantastic actor. He definitely did justice to the role of Cassius
- Ari Ratos used his voice well in his role of Brutus, but was rather stiff in the body.
- Nobody else is worth a mention, other than to say they were pretty bad... with the guy acting as JC himself being the worst. Talk about overacting with a vengeance. Wonder if they give Cameronian awards for that?
OK.. back to the end of the year - yes, it is HERE. Omigosh, where did the time go? Xmas is just this coming weekend and then it is the New Year and we can kiss 2005 goodbye.
Husband and I were in Singapore this last weekend, to visit a friend who just had a baby, and to catch up with some other friends as well. Got there on Friday late morning, and left SG on Sunday morning. Stopped in Melaka for lunch at brothers place, and then continued journey to KL. Traffic was amazingly good the whole way - maybe we were early enough to avoid the bulk of the travellers?
Xmas pressies are all wrapped and sitting under the Xmas tree, husband's famous Xmas cake has been made, and suitably marzipan covered - next step is the icing itself. Family get together planned for Xmas Eve as usual, with a pot luck dinner this time instead of getting Mum to cook everything.... the kids, of course, will be paying little attention to the food - they will be just waiting to open the presents up!
My next blog is more likely to be in the new year, so to all and sundry out there, may the year ahead be a blessed one, full of love, laughter and good fortune. May we all get what we deserve, and may we deserve what we get.
And to all ... a MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR.
- Patrick Teoh is still, IMHO, a totally natural and fantastic actor. He definitely did justice to the role of Cassius
- Ari Ratos used his voice well in his role of Brutus, but was rather stiff in the body.
- Nobody else is worth a mention, other than to say they were pretty bad... with the guy acting as JC himself being the worst. Talk about overacting with a vengeance. Wonder if they give Cameronian awards for that?
OK.. back to the end of the year - yes, it is HERE. Omigosh, where did the time go? Xmas is just this coming weekend and then it is the New Year and we can kiss 2005 goodbye.
Husband and I were in Singapore this last weekend, to visit a friend who just had a baby, and to catch up with some other friends as well. Got there on Friday late morning, and left SG on Sunday morning. Stopped in Melaka for lunch at brothers place, and then continued journey to KL. Traffic was amazingly good the whole way - maybe we were early enough to avoid the bulk of the travellers?
Xmas pressies are all wrapped and sitting under the Xmas tree, husband's famous Xmas cake has been made, and suitably marzipan covered - next step is the icing itself. Family get together planned for Xmas Eve as usual, with a pot luck dinner this time instead of getting Mum to cook everything.... the kids, of course, will be paying little attention to the food - they will be just waiting to open the presents up!
My next blog is more likely to be in the new year, so to all and sundry out there, may the year ahead be a blessed one, full of love, laughter and good fortune. May we all get what we deserve, and may we deserve what we get.
And to all ... a MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR.
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
The "Tai-Tai" life, continued
3 weeks... where has the time gone? I thought I would have loads of free time but that is not quite true. No complaints though, as I would hate to have nothing to do! Haven't started looking for a job yet - which is very remiss of me. A couple of things in the pipeline, which, if they come through, will be in January/February time frame, which suits me well.
Going to see the play "Julius Caeser" this Saturday - supposedly adapted by Joe Hasham to cut it down to 1.5 hours. It will be interesting to see if the cut has affected the story negatively. One of my favourite people, Patrick Teoh, has a key role in that play, as Cassius - the man with the "lean and hungry look"! I think Pat got ribbed so much (since he is not particularly svelte) that he deliberately set about losing weight..... very slim now. Pat.. don't disappear though!
Xmas is approaching and I have almost done with my Xmas shopping. Only ONE person left to go and, of course, the one person left is MALE so it is hard to think of what to buy. Any sensible suggestions would be good! The ones who are most fun to buy for are my neices and nephews. This year apart from a specific gift for each of them, I will be putting together some Xmas Stockings as well, with little fillers in them. Hopefully they like it.
All those of you out there who have not yet done your Xmas shopping, get a move on! Xmas is only 2 weeks away!
Going to see the play "Julius Caeser" this Saturday - supposedly adapted by Joe Hasham to cut it down to 1.5 hours. It will be interesting to see if the cut has affected the story negatively. One of my favourite people, Patrick Teoh, has a key role in that play, as Cassius - the man with the "lean and hungry look"! I think Pat got ribbed so much (since he is not particularly svelte) that he deliberately set about losing weight..... very slim now. Pat.. don't disappear though!
Xmas is approaching and I have almost done with my Xmas shopping. Only ONE person left to go and, of course, the one person left is MALE so it is hard to think of what to buy. Any sensible suggestions would be good! The ones who are most fun to buy for are my neices and nephews. This year apart from a specific gift for each of them, I will be putting together some Xmas Stockings as well, with little fillers in them. Hopefully they like it.
All those of you out there who have not yet done your Xmas shopping, get a move on! Xmas is only 2 weeks away!
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