Thursday, March 11, 2021

The Canopy Bridge @ Jewel Changi Airport [Singapore] #jewelchangiairport


Once you step into
Jewel Changi Airport, the first thing that impresses your mind would be the HSBC Rain Vortex and not many people would notice the glass-bottom suspension bridge right above them.

Known simply as the canopy bridge, you can access it on level five with one condition; it's ticketed entry and you would have to bloody pay S$8.00 (an adult) to walk on it! Granted I would get a 10% discount as a Singapore resident but a bundle package makes it a lot more worthwhile.

Re-entry is not allowed; hence, I would suggest you linger for around 10-15 minutes for two reasons. One, because you pay money for it and two, something magical would happen every 10-15 minutes.

Stepping onto the bridge; as this came right after our "walk" on the Manulife Sky Nets, I wasn't that much shaken by the height since the bridge was a lot more stable than the bouncy nets. 

Given that it's a weekday, the place was relatively quiet and you can totally feel the peacefulness while on the bridge, especially with the man-made waterfall so close to you. Imagine if Jewel Changi Airport allows you to camp there overnight; a total possibility if you are willing to fork out a hand or leg for the experience. 

Why was there a floor mat on a bridge?!

Glass bottom flooring; thanks to the reflections and the texture, I honesty can't see much and this absolutely didn't result in that heart in the mouth moment.

That texturized glass was only for the first three floor panels, likely to prepare you for the full see-through glass panels right in the middle of the bridge! Again, the reflections helped to reduce the visibility, especially when we are walking across. If there's no one around, I bet Alex would have his face plastered against the glass. 

Christmas tree right across - time passes so fast nowadays; can't imagine that Christmas was already almost three months ago and the lunar new year was just last month.

Can you make out the old icon of Singapore Changi Airport

Even though the 23-meter high Canopy Bridge seems like the closest you can get to the mouth of the HSBC Rain Vortex, the skytrain tracks connecting the terminals are near to the "waterfall".

Panorama! 

One side was the "good afternoon" mat and the other side "wished" you a "good day". Such a polite bridge. As you can see, we are coming to the end of the bridge and you can determine for yourself if the normal price of S$8.00 is worth a visit. 

My two other companions had crossed over to the other side but I was glad I stayed a bit longer to take photographs as I happened to catch sight of this big, thick fog spreading from the entry of the Canopy Bridge! 

Turned around to tell my companions and it was the same situation on the other end; can't even see where they were!

Had to take a selfie and it was such a serene experience as it felt as if I was situated on top of a mountain, enveloped by fog and clouds! That, to me, was worth the S$8.00 price ticket. p.s. the 'fog' would be activated every 10-15 minutes.

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Address 
78 Airport Boulevard, 
Singapore 819666

Map of Canopy Park
As above.

Website

Pricing Menu
As above; second photo is for annual pass. 


Wednesday, March 10, 2021

Blue Dragonfly Minced Meat Noodles (Bak Chor Mee) @ West Coast Hawker Centre [Singapore] #westcoasthawkercentre

Singaporeans love their bak chor mee (minced meat noodles) but I am the rare exception; not that I dislike it, just that I place higher preference for other types like fishball noodle, prawn noodle etc. 

In my recent visit to West Coast Hawker Centre for lunch, I would have likely chosen a meal from a stall I was more familiar with but the eye-catching signboard of Blue Dragonfly Minced Meat Noodles caught my attention! It appeared to be a new stall manned by a relatively young chap; my curiousity was piqued! 

While fishball noodle was also tagged as a must try, I think we should give respect to the signboard; hence, minced meat noodle dry it shall be. 6 types of noodle to choose from and my selection was, no doubt, mee pok.

Even though I was wearing a mask (mandatory given the pandemic), I can still smell the vinegar coming from the bowl of noodles! Main reason why I didn't quite like bak chor mee is because I don't fancy its usual vinegar flavour; however, this bowl of bak chor mee was delicious! 

Loads of ingredients (no pork liver) with tasty pork lard, yummy braised mushrooms, tender sliced pork, bouncy fishball, meatball with minced meat within, al-dente mee pork, and the vinegar wasn't overpowering as in the case for some famous stalls. The entire package was so flavourful; I actually slowed down my eating so that I can prolong the enjoyment.

So good; I am salivating as I am typing out the words now. One thing about the soup; it was bland alright but there's an sweetness that I actually found to be relatively interesting! 

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Address
726 Clementi West Street 2, 
#01-183,  West Coast Hawker Centre
Singapore 120726

Map
As above.

Menu 
As above.

Pricing
Minced Meat Noodles - S$3.50

Tuesday, March 09, 2021

Roast Duck & Char Siew from 尖东港式炭烧烧腊 @ Yishun Bus Interchange (Next to Northpoint) [Singapore]

Unlike many residents in Yishun, I do not have to step into the bus interchange in Yishun on a frequent basis as my residence is within walking distance from Yishun MRT station and my workplace is better served via the train network. 

However, Alex visits quite often; not to take the buses though. His main objective is this particular roast delight stall in the staff canteen which, according to him, served a mean tasting roast duck rice! 

I tried to find an English name for the stall but the signboard only indicated its Chinese name;  尖东港式炭烧烧腊. Never heard of it but Alex's recommendations can turn out pretty good sometimes. Since I was working from home last week, I thought I should give it a try, together with my mom.

Knowing I could not resist the beautiful looking char siew, I decided to have a platter of roast duck and char siew for two persons. The roast duck should have been the highlight but there seemed to be more char siew on the plate!  

Plain, white rice that wasn't fluffy and should have been deemed a failure if not for the generous amount of char siew sauce drenched over it! Next time, I would ask for the more sinful chicken rice and pray it would have a better texture.

I am glad I decided to get the char siew as they were delicious; meaty, juicy with a yummy, sweet tinge, and surrounded with desirable charred bits. Definitely one of the better ones around in Yishun! 

Visually, the roast duck didn't elicit any excitement from my mom and I; guess it has something to do with the plating. Thankfully, the disappointing appearance didn't have a direct correlation with the taste; there was this nice dang gui aroma that reminded me of the roast ducks from the more famous (and expensive) Dian Xiao Er and meat texture was tender! 

Two thing could be improved; the meat was a tad salty and the roasted duck skin would appeal to me more if they were to have that light, crisp crunchiness. In my humble opinion, the char siew actually ranks higher than the roast duck. 

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Address
930 Yishun Ave 2, 
Staff Canteen,
Yishun Bus Interchange, 
Singapore 769098

Pricing
Char Siew, Roast Duck Platter - S$11.00
Additional Roast Duck - S$5.00 

Sunday, March 07, 2021

8°1 Seafood Tze Char (八度幺海鲜煮炒) @ Yishun Block 747 [Singapore]

There's really nothing to complain about the area I live in; the train station is just a stroll of about 6 minutes, there's a supermarket beside my block and I have three coffee shops within walking distance! 

Usually, there's a resident tze-char stall in each coffee shop and I was quite familiar with the one at Hiap Hoe Eating House at Block 747, until it changed hands twice, I think, in the past few years. At the present moment, the current stall is called 8°1 Seafood.

Given that it was the seventh day of the new lunar year, also known as everyone's birthday, my family decided to give the stall a try since the location is quite convenient for most of my immediate family living in Singapore's most infamous town; Yishun.

Let the feast begin! 

Fried Baby Squid
- from the look of it, the supposedly baby squids appeared to be larger than the size I was accustomed to having in the past. Nevertheless, the crispiness appealed to me and I was glad this was heavily doused with sweetness instead of spiciness. p.s. some of you might find them overly sweet.

Sweet and Sour Pork - So long Jerald join us for tze char meals, sweet and sour pork would be a must-order! These had the desirable old school gu-lu-rou flavour but don't wait too long as the otherwise crispy texture would turn chewy! 

Salted Egg Sotong - caked thickly of the delicious salted egg sauce, these were good in my opinion, albeit the batter was a bit too much; however, a few of my family members didn't quite like the texture of the sotong which I personally thought were acceptable.

Marmite Chicken - I am well acquainted with the marmite flavour this this tasted more like sweet butter, instead of marmite! Don't get me wrong; they still tasted alright but would get cloying after a while.

Hotplate Tofu - normal; I am aware I am usually quite neutral about this dish as it hardly surprises. Not sure why we ordered also since Jovyn decided to order western food from another stall instead.  

Egg Gravy Hor Fun - a long, long time ago, my favourite hor fun came from the tze char stall in the same coffee shop. Pity the version for this 'new' stall didn't wow me and I think my carbohydrate need can be satisfied elsewhere. 

Yangzhou Fried Rice
- for a period of time, this was one dish that Alex always bought for takeaway and I tell you, the aroma was so tempting; I stole a few bites even though I already had dinner! 

The wok hei was obvious in every bite but maybe because we had so many other dishes; the flavour was relatively diluted and it didn't help that the prawns and char siew were diced up too finely. Maybe I should ask for takeaway next time, and throw in some gourmet bak kwa for that extra punch! 

Number One Superior Pot - just like hotplate beancurd, I have no affinity with this dish as it's just a saucy mish mash of expensive ingredients commonly comprising of sea cucumbers, prawns, scallops, fish, mushrooms that the older generation tends to enjoy for reasons unknown to me.  

Burp! 

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Address
Blcok 747, Yishun Street 72,
#01-108, Hiap Hoe Eating House.
Singapore 760747

Map
As above.

Menu
As above.

Pricing
Fried Baby Squid (S) - S$12.00 
Sweet and Sour Pork (L) - S$20.00
Salted Egg Sotong (M) - S$16.00
Marmite Chicken (M) - S$15.00
Hotplate Tofu (S) - S$10.00
Egg Gravy Hor Fun - S$4.50
Yangzhou Fried Rice - S$4.00
Number One Superior Pot (L) - S$30.00
(NETT)