[Personal] Family Day Out to Fort Siloso Tour + 365 National Steps Challenge + DIOR Christmas at Orchard

 I am quite active when it comes to participating in the community events so when one of the RC committee members told me there's a family day out event, I just purchased three tickets ($10/ticket) on the spot.  

The Family Day out event is a half day outing with a one-way transport to Sentosa. We had to meet at the RC at 8.30am to board the coach bus. Here's a photo of my girl running towards the coach bus as she was afraid the bus would leave without us. 

It was a fully guided tour to explore Fort Siloso. We set off with a scenic stroll along the 11-storey high Skywalk Trail among the treetops to Fort Siloso. The beautiful harbour below will move to Tuas in 10 years time. 

Next, we witness the largest collection of coastal guns left behind in Singapore. These are guns with the load emulsion in front and not canons as some may think they are. There are a total of 3 fortress built by the British but only Fort Siloso was preserved. 

These exhibitions may not be too suitable for my girl as it's more on the history of Singapore. 

Good thing is one of her best friend in class was also on this tour so she just hanged around with him and his sister throughout the whole tour.

This is an old photo of Fort Canning. A lot of people guess Chinatown but the hint is actually the light house behind.

Unfortunately, it was raining quite heavily towards the end of the tour and my girl was so concern for her best friend because he did not had an umbrella, so she shielded her all the way. 

We ended the tour with a round trip journey on the Singapore Cable Car - Sentosa Line. My girl had actually ride on the cable car before when she was 2 years old but when asked her about it, she couldn't recall it anymore so it's a good opportunity for us to ride the cable car again as a family. The whole duration to and back is about 30 minutes. 

After the cable car ride, we took a shuttle bus out to Beach Station and the buffet lunch was held at Good Old Days. We were lucky to find a long table so the two families can sit together and the kids can eat and play together. The food is quite nice but limited choices. The RC members told us that next trip is most probably going to the Jurong Bird Park in January before it shift to Mandai. This one I may not join as January is a busy month with Chinese New Year coming up.  

I continued to stay in Sentosa for the National Steps Challenge, Healthy 365 Feel Refreshed with Every Move Challenge. Coincidentally, this is a one day only event at the Sapphire Pavilion, Siloso Beach. As we've been out the whole morning, I asked my hubby and my girl to go to the library at VivoCity to wait for me while I complete this challenge. Gotten my game card and was told to hurry down to the Tanjong Beach at the other end to get the Bonus Chop. Hopped on the Sentosa tram and made a new friend. Like me, she's also heading to the Tanjong Beach for the bonus stamp. We chatted alot and we walked back from Tanjong Beach instead of taking the tram. Along the way, we made another new friend so the three of us completed all the challenges together. Even though in the end, all the lucky draw has been fully redeemed, I still enjoyed the long walk and chat. Both of them stayed in the East and even asked me to join them at Tampines for dinner but I had something on. 

After this, I met up with my family at VivoCity and we head down to Orchard to meet my friends, Jessie, Meryl and their other half. We had arrange to do our Christmas gift exchange and also to take photos of the Christmas decorations at Orchard. My girl was starting to feel sick and was coughing non stop thus I only managed to take photos at Dior and ate dinner with them at ION before we had to go back home. 

XOXO

[PROMO CODE ALERT] #anywherewithGL - Trip to the Zoo featuring Gaston Luga CLÄSSIC BLACK Backpack

Do you know a bag can tells a lot about your personality? Beside your outfit, a bag is probably the next most important item that defines your style and carries your things. Being a practical person, a full-size backpack is always my top choice be it going out for outings or to work. The reason is simple, I just had too much things to bring out. I had to bring an umbrella just in case it rains, a water bottle just in case I felt thirsty, laptop for working, wallet, handphone and whatsoever. That's why I'm rarely out with a small bag unless it's just a trip to the supermarket downstairs.

Official Photo from Gaston Luga Website

I was so surprised when I was approached by Gaston Luga, producer of quality backpacks from Stockholm, Sweden for a collaboration. The truth is, I've been eyeing their backpacks for a while because they are so functionable and versatile. After accepting the collaboration came the tough decision, which backpack should I choose? There were many different series and each series comes with different set of colours. In the end, me being me, I went for the good old CLÄSSIC BLACK Backpack. Delivery was pretty fast, after my order was confirmed, I received my first Gaston Luga CLÄSSIC BLACK Backpack within a week, just in time for me to use it for our planned Zoo Trip on Father's Day today! 

The front, the inside and the back

Being a first time proud owner of a Gaston Luga backpack, I just had to do an unboxing video for it. Check out my unboxing video here on tik tok or instagram. Made of PU leather, which is a strong and durable canvas, I'm ready to go anywhere with my new backpack. It has an inner padded pocket that can holds most 11" - 13" laptops so I can also bring this to work. There's a hidden back pocket to put valuables and although there's no zip, it's deep enough to even put a passport. I'm also loving the Maroon Red inner lining that is in contrast with the black exterior. 

Here's my what is in my bag photo for this Zoo trip. The backpack was big enough to carry all my essential items and there's still room to put more. The coin pouch, keys and two handphones goes to the zippered front pocket for quick access while the rest inside to the main compartment. 

Off to The Tortoise Shelter. Hubby even inferred that me carrying my backpack is like a turtle carrying its shell. 

Love that My CLÄSSIC BLACK Backpack can goes well with majority of the outfit, even this patterned dress I'm wearing. 

My little photographer, she's so excited taking lots of photos of the animals at the zoo as this is her first time there.

Carrying the backpack in front helps to cover up my fat tummy when taking photos. Lol.

Looking at the animals up close and personal. 

We had an enjoyable day trip to the Zoo. Thanks to Gaston Luga backpack, I can carry everything in just one bag and still looks good. 

SUMMER CAMPAIGN from 28th May to 20th Aug 2021

For those who are interested to get a Gaston Luga backpack, there's an ongoing campaign now where you can get a free journey patterned tote bag with the purchase of every backpack and the best part is, by quoting my unique discount code <chewyjas15>, you will be entitled to a 15% discount! Free delivery and returns worldwide for items purchased within 30 days ! That's a pretty good deal! 

XOXO

[TGIF] Chill-out at Bacha Coffee, Ion Orchard

 Had another meet up again and this time is just the ladies, JJM and my girl after work. Meryl has suggested to visit Bacha Coffee at Ion Orchard and she has made a reservation at 8.30 pm for us. We met up for dinner at Food Republic first before walking over.

Bache Coffee is a Morocco themed coffee boutique and is definitely a heaven for coffee lovers. Here, diners are spoilt for choice with their all-day dining option and a selection of over two hundred single origin 100% Arabica coffee beans! 

Upon entering, we were all fascinated by the grand and posh interior which was inspired by the spectacular Dar El Bacha Palace in Marrakech. At first, we were given one table in the corner which was quite cramp but later, we were shifted over to two tables which we comfortably occupied.

We ordered the signature 1910 coffee, watermelon juice and one pot of hot chocolate which can be poured up to 5-6 cups as we soak in the ambiance and enjoyed the short tai-tai experience! Heehee. 

We also ordered some of their Gourmet Sweet Croissants which is one of the best I've ever tasted. We had the Raspberry & Cinnamon, Pistachio and Orange Almond flavours. The flavour is not too overwhelming and tasted just nice. 

For those who would like to visit, be prepared to wait awhile as the place can be quite packed during the peak hours. Lastly, thanks Meryl for the treat tonight! 

XOXO

[Personal] Celebrating Christmas at Pororo Park Singapore

This Christmas, I decided to make it a spacial one with my girl as we visited Pororo Park Singapore for the very first time. We had sort of visited most of the indoor playgrounds in Singapore and Pororo Park Singapore was one of which we had not yet explored. Thanks to Huggies for the complimentary one adult and one kid ticket which allowed us into the park for a 2 hour session.

We reached there about 11.45am and it was already crowded due to the holiday season. Upon entering, we headed straight to queue for the first session of the Pororo Christmas Musical happening at 12pm at the Tong Tong's Little Theatre. It was like an auditorium and kids could sit on the floor in front for a closer encounter to the stage. We were so excited when Pororo and his friend came out and Pororo was even dressed in his Santa suit. They sang and danced to a few Christmas carols and my girl was grooving to the beat to songs like Jungle Bells.

After the musical, we joined another queue outside as Santa Pororo was giving out Christmas presents to the first 100 kids. It was really good to receive a present from Santa Pororo however, we were not able to take a photo with him. It was a take and go kind of session to minimize the waiting time for the rest of the kids. We managed to sneak a few wefie which turned out to be blur.

 We went to explore the rest of the Pororo Park Singapore and these were the different sections inside.

Shark Ball Pool

My girl had a fun time "swimming" inside the shark ball pool filled with lots of blue and white balls. There was a big shark in the middle of the shark ball pool where kids could try to aim and throw the balls into its mouth and the balls would drop out from its stomach. My girl was amused by this but she was slightly too short to reach in and so with my help, we both tried to see how many balls we could feed the shark.

Pororo House

This was my girl's favourite place. Inside Pororo house, the lights were dimmed and there were colourful moving spotlights.  She loved this area so much that she literally treated it like her own house and was telling other kids, "no, you go and play the balls outside" as she wanted to hog the place. Oops. It was really amusing to see her behaved like that. She also started dancing and pretended to sleep on Pororo's bed.



Outside Pororo House, there was a small interactive corner where we could see ourselves on the TV screen.

Loopy's Cafe

We wanted to stay on for the daily carolling with bubble party and found out that I could extend my stay if I purchased at least $15 worth of food at the Loopy's cafe. Since we did not had lunch, I decided why not and I got ourselves a Mac and Cheese with fries and cookie to share. The mac and cheese was creamy and cheesy, just the way my girl and I loved it.

Tong Tong's Little Theatre

After lunch, we went back to the theatre for the carolling with bubble party. It was pretty fun especially now my girl had overcame her fear of bubbles. All the kids seemed to go crazy and wanted to catch the bubbles. My girl, being one of the youngest there demanded me to carry her high up so that she could join in the fun to catch the bubbles too.

Hinoki Pit

 This sensory play area was filled with aromatic Hinoki wood that came all the way from South Korea which was safe for kids of all ages. There were a few toys and digging toy cars to play with. We didn't really like this area as I didn't like the feeling of stepping on the Hinoki wood.

Petty's Supermarket 

This was another play area which my girl enjoyed as she could pretend to shop and buy her favourite fruits and vegetables to whip up a meal for me.

Toddler Area

At the toddler area, she played with the soft gym like slide and rocking horse.

Poby's Play Gym

At the Poby's Play Gym, my girl had the chance to exercise her flexibility by climbing and sliding. I had a hard time chasing after her.

Pororo Express Train 

During specific timing, the Pororo Express train would start operating. It would go two rounds before the kids alight. Only the kids were allowed on the train and initially my girl was unwilling to leave me and got down the train. After much persuasion, she happily rode on the train and waved to me when the train passed by! Instilling some form of independence here as well.

Finally, since I've not bought any Christmas present for my girl, I decided to get it from the Rody's Toystore. I got a set of Tayo bus for her as this was her current favourite show on YouTube and I topped up to arrange for a Private Gifting Session by Santa Pororo! There's nothing more special than receiving a present from Santa Pororo in private and we finally got a chance to take a closed up photo with Santa Pororo. My girl was asked to closed her eyes and walked into the theatre to open her eyes and see Santa Pororo with her gift. Just look at the smile on her face and I know it was worth it. Definitely setting a high standard here for her future boyfriends. Haha.

I must say we spent a very memorable 4 hours+ inside Pororo Park Singapore which I hoped my girl would remember next time. The park was very clean overall and the food was delicious too. Definitely worth spending the time inside. As the theme park is based on a famous character like Pororo, kids would enjoy as the character comes to live and appearing before them. This is really something very exciting for them to look forward to.

We definitely hoped to be back again! 

Pororo Park Singapore

6 Raffles Boulevard,

Marina Square

#02-29

Singapore 039594

Website: https://www.pororoparksg.com/index.aspx

XOXO