Trip Report - Singapore

It is amazing how time just flies by. Can you believe that it has already been 4.5 months since Sang and I have moved to Darwin? The month of May was especially crazy. I have got so many major things to update but let me first start with our trip back to Singapore.

It was really nice to be back and to meet family and close friends. We were really thankful to our brother Nirmal who let us stay in his condo and also went the extra mile to buy a new mattress among other things so that we could be comfortable. 

A funny thing that happened was that a Cadbury Hot Chocolate tin that we had in the luggage exploded and my suit and all our clothes were covered in chocolate powder. Thank God for dry cleaning.

We spent the first Saturday, 14 May, hanging out with both sets of families. It was also my dad's birthday so it was a good occasion to meet up. It was Dim Sum with Sang's family and western with mine.  On Sunday, Sang spent most of the day with her friends while I met the boys for football. It was just like old times. After footy, it was time to head home for a quick change-up before meeting Alvin, Elaine and baby Hannah for a special meal. Alvin had done extensive research to satisfy my crab bee hoon craving and we ended up at Lavender to have just that. It was a wonderful meetup and it was also the first time we got to see and carry baby Hannah! Following that, we headed to Katong to say hello to Prabu (who was also in town for a few days).and the rest of the dive gang. With that done, we moved on to meet the Ananthans at Joo Seng Road where we watched Man Utd hammer Bournemouth 3-1 in the final league game of the season. That was just Sunday!

On Monday, Sang and I met up with Mr. Yap for Japanese food at the newly opened Punggol Safra. It was a nice time catching up and exchanging our experiences. Sang then headed to a hairdresser to become a redhead while I went to Funan for one last time (its going to be revamped over the next 3 years) to indulge in more camera equipment. Once there, my stalker appeared. Manoaj seemed to take it upon himself to be my personal escort and he hung around with me and then ferried me back to Simei to get dressed up. After awhile, we then headed to Manoaj's place in Serangoon for a home-cooked meal by his mother. It was nice to catch up with the lovely Mohans there. Sang joined us a while later and we had good fun.

On Tuesday, I went back to OEPS. I honestly felt a little jittery as I walked down Fidelio Street. I had decided to go just after dismissal. While walking down the street, a few pupils recognised me and shouted out to me. As I entered the school, pupils who were still streaming out started to yell and scream. Oh man! I really missed all of them. I then entered the office and saw that it had totally changed! The place that I would go to to disturb the admin staff was no longer recognisable. Thankfully the staff were still the same and it was nice to see them. I then headed to the HOD room and almost all the KPs were there as they were just going to start the Exco meeting. Everyone was really happy to see me and I was equally elated to meet everyone again. Moving on, I then moved to the staff room and a couple of shouts tore the silence of the staff room and before I knew it, most of the staff had made their way towards the staff lounge where I was standing. So many questions were asked and we chatted away for awhile. Just I was about to leave, Yoke Kin gathered the pupils of 6 Grace (then 5 Grace - my form class) in front of me. It was really a beautiful moment. We were all so happy to see each other. Ajmaeen hugged me and some of the other pupils shook my hand. I then had to take my leave. A school is a social enterprise - Mr. Yap used to say, but the OEPS he had left us with was more than a social enterprise... It was a family. One that will always stay close to my heart.

After leaving OEPS, I went to have a quick lunch with Osman and Tasyrif who brought me for briyani at some place in Arab Street. After that, I left to meet Rajendran for dessert at Plaza Singapura. We had our ceremonial Swensens ice cream and then relived some boyish days by playing games at the arcade. With that over, it was time to meet Andrew and Victoria at yet another ceremonial eatery. Greenwood XXL Pepperoni Pizza it was and there we chatted about their upcoming move to Sydney. (As I write this, it has been 4 days since they moved to Sydney) We then stayed over at their place for the night.

On Wednesday morning, we headed to Little India to recharge our Indian blood. It was breakfast at Anandhabhavan with everything from thosai to poori to appam and not definitely not forgetting, Bru coffee. I really can't remember what happened after that but time went by. I spent some time preparing my photography gear for Arwin's Nalangu, while Sang headed off to meet her friend Aline. In the evening, it was family time! This time with the extended family where we watched Arwin get smeared with turmeric paste in a hope to make him fairer (not gonna happen). What a night it was! We then headed to the opposite block where we spent the night at the Ananthans. 

On Thursday, we had lunch with Sentill and his dad at New Woodlands restaurant in Little India (yes again). Later on, I joined Arwin and the rest of the groomsmen for a dance and walk-in rehearsal at Serangoon Gardens Country Club. Following that, I met up with Sreeram and his family as well as Aanesh and Naanthini for dinner at Potong Pasir. With that over, we then headed for a round of drinks at Serangoon Gardens before I was called upon once more for another rehearsal. This time, it was  top secret rehearsal organised by Rohen. With that out of the way, Thursday came to a close and Sang and I headed back to Simei feeling exhausted.

On Friday, we had breakfast with Nirmal and Anusha at Little India (AGAIN!!!). If it was any consolation to your now-sore eyes, we ate at a fancy western styled cafe with poached eggs and cappucinos. Then it was time to head home and get ready for the wedding. The wedding was just pure madness. It was one of those occasions that was so filled with joy that it takes you a few days to get over. This wedding between Arwin and Naz was exactly that. It was 5 hours of happiness that Snag and I will terribly miss. Thankfully, we still have many unmarried cousins and friends. 

Finally on Saturday, Sang and I had lunch with Daryl, Melissa and their two wonderful daughters, Joshlyn and Zechlyn. This time it was somewhere in town and were were really thankful to them for having squeezed out some time. Faisal was supposed to join us with his son as well. Sadly, little Keyan was pretty sick and had to stay home. Later in the day, we headed to Sang's parents house to return the car we had borrowed. Jaspal and Usha were too kind to offer us a ride and met us there to pick us up. We then headed to Arwin's parents place for a thank you dinner they were hosting. It was an emotional farewell there as we left after 30 min. At the end of Saturday, we headed to the airport with mostly friends bidding us farewell. There was one last surprise at the Airport where Andre went through quite a bit of effort to make a guest appearance. It was really nice to see him full of smiles and we really appreciated him coming all the way to the airport to spend some time with us.

That was our Singapore trip in summary. Once we got back, we had to quickly get back into the stride of things. It was a fantastic time back home and I just want to thank everyone who thought about us or spent time with us while we were home. Cheers everyone!