Singapore’s Waterloo St.

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Not so far from Bugis Junction is the very busy Waterloo St. Formerly an open road, this area was transformed into a shopping street with the aim to lessen traffic.

There are a lot of stalls lined up along Waterloo St. You’d find a variety of products: from local produce, to clothing, to toys and gadgets. It’s a bargain center that’s a haven for shoppers. It’s also much like Tsim Sha Tsui in Hong Kong and you’ll see the strong Chinese influence in Singapore culture.

Some key places you may want to know is the Albert Food Market (or Albert Centre) which is a popular hawker centre in the area. And as you know, hawker centres in Singapore offer a selection of great food ranging from Chinese, to Indian, and Malay cuisine. It’s an open air place but it can get pretty crowded at times.

Another great thing here is that I found a good iced tea drink, Seasons Lemon Iced Tea. So refreshing especially when you’re in Singapore.

So if you’re around Bugis, do not forget to check out this place!

Enjoy!

MDR

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DFO Homebush: Best of Sydney’s Bargain Shopping!

When it comes to the ultimate Aussie shopping experience, you only gotta remember three letters: DFO.

In my stay in Australia, my niece and nephews have been telling me that the best deals in clothes shopping can only be found at the Direct Factory Outlet (DFO). This was absolutely great news, since I was fond of buying shirts and jeans whenever I travel. I was also keen on looking for great Aussie brands, not just Billabong or Quiksilver.

When in Sydney, the closest DFO would be at Homebush, which is somewhere in the middle of the Western Suburbs and the CBD. If you’re driving, the place wouldn’t be hard to miss especially when you’re cruising along the M4 Motorway. But for a more practical approach (and for those who can’t drive on the right), CityRail would be the way to go.

By train, you have to get off Homebush station. There are two lines that stop there, South Line and the Inner West Line. From the station, it would be best to take a cab and drop-off at DFO Homebush.

DFO isn’t one of those multi-level malls like Westfield Paramatta or Birkenhead Point. If not for the shopping and the bargains, you can tour the whole place in an hour or less. But you’ll surely get your money’s worth once doors open by 10AM.

Direct Factory Outlet boasts more than 90 Aussie and international brands under one roof. And discounts can soar up to 70%.

And based on my personal shopping experience, I think the following shops offered the best deals on great items.

Jay Jays- ultimate store for guy’s shirts, jeans and boxers

Roger David- great looking office and formal shirts at reasonable prices

Cotton On- awesome stuff here, they’ve got the best prices too (better than HK and PH prices)

G Star Raw- not so cheap but it’s an iconic jeans brand in Australia

Billabong- just because I got a swag leather surfer’s overnight bag for a VERY cheap price. No flaws on the item and it still looks fantastic up to now.

For the girls, the best stores based on the volume of people would be Oroton (for luggage and handbags), Witchery and Seafolly (ladies clothing).

When we went shopping at DFO, it took us the whole day just to check out 75% of all the stores.

So when you’re in Sydney, make sure you don’t miss this out! It’s a shopaholic’s heaven!

MDR

Visit http://www.dfo.com.au for more information

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Turkish Baklava

Australia, even though a secluded continent from Asia, is as diverse as ever when it comes to its people and cultures. Just around Fairfield in Sydney, you’ll find a lot of folks from different regions of the world. Some of them have put up shop in the town’s arcade.

It was a breezy early afternoon when my family dropped by the Fairfield Arcade to do some errands. And along the way, we checked out this little Middle Eastern bakery (which I was later informed it was Turkish). What caught my interest was the baklava, an “ancient” Turkish dessert. I’ve seen it on the Travel Channel before and by the looks of it, it seemed scrumptious. So I convinced my sister to buy me some of those and we got a set of baklavas which were four pieces and had different shapes.

Typically, baklava is made of filo: a kind of super thin pastry dough usually moulded together in layers. So it’s got that crisp and light texture once baked. In between layers are special baklava fillings of honey, nuts, raisins and even dates.

Having a taste of the baklava truly overwhelmed my taste for sweetness. On the outside, this Middle Eastern pastry looked pretty ordinary. I mean, there’s no powdered sugar, no sugary glaze on top, no candy toppings… There’s no hint that it’s a really sweet dessert. But I tell you, this thing should be paired with the strongest coffee you’ve got! Say goodbye to your Krispy Kremes!

MDR

 

 

Magnolia Flavor House

Back in the 80’s, there’s this place in New Manila called the Magnolia Ice Cream House. I’ve had no clear recollection of visiting the place but my sisters said that I really liked their milkshakes.

 

But over the years, Magnolia underwent a lot of changes; add the rise of malls and the emergence of new ice cream brands, the Ice Cream House vanished slowly from the consciousness of the people.  Recently though, Robinson’s bought the old Magnolia lot to build a brand new mall. They would also be the ones to recreate the iconic Magnolia Shop into the hip and new Magnolia Flavor House.

See what we ordered after the jump! >>

 

Food in Photos: Blue Mountains Chocolate Cafe

After having a heavenly sip of hot cocoa (in my Take That Max Brenner post), I continue my Blue Mountains Chocolate Cafe “eating spree” with their drool-worthy desserts.

The weather was terrible so nature-trekking and viewing the “Three Sisters” were crossed out of our itinerary. Instead we headed off to Blue Mountains Cafe to grab a bit of sunshine in the form of chocolate and desserts.

The moment I entered the cafe, I already knew that this will be a gastronomic experience.

On the Drinks MENU: Coco, tea, ice cream? I recommend their “real hot chocolate” for $5.95!

>> More yummy pictures after the jump!

 

Cheap Delights: Sentosa Origami Tree

When it comes to going green, there are some things we can learn from Singaporeans. Because their natural resources are limited, they think of creative ways to conserve and sustain whatever resources they have.

And take a look at this. In Sentosa, they’ve set up a small kiosk for making origami. It’s situated right in front of the ticketing area. And I presume the purpose that it serves is to let the children stay preoccupied while dad or mom go buy tickets. So using old magazine paper (which is provided), you pick out your desired origami and follow the instructions.

Then, you go hang it on this bare tree for everyone to see!

 

HK Chocolate Trail 2011

Harbour City in Hong Kong is a very special place for me. It’s where I fell in love with toys because of the Toys-R-Us outlet here. It was the biggest toy store in South East Asia back in the 90’s.

Now I’m back in Harbour City for another delightful reason. As we were fooling around in the different malls of HK, we stumbled upon this whimsical exhibit of the addictive, sexual, fun, and exciting world of chocolate.

You’d almost believe that each sculpture was made of the real thing. I was so close to sticking my tongue to one of these delicious displays.

Anyway, this is what they call the Chocolate Trail exhibit. They set up a variety of faux chocolatey objects in the mall for your enjoyment. There are four themes that’ll keep you interested in this sweet trail. There’s the ‘chocolate maze exhibit’, ‘the art and taste of chocolate’, ‘fashion and the chocolate’ (quite interesting), and UNESCO’s chocolate world.

More than 20 chocolatiers and restaurants have also participatedin the event, each whipping up their own delectable dish of chocolate. They’ve got pralines, cakes, crepes, muffins, and drinks all from the magical cacao.

This is only a month long event in Hong Kong. If you want to catch this, visit the city sometime January to February. You’ll also enjoy the chilly and snuggly weather.

The Chocolate Trail exhibit? Yum.

Visit www.harbourcity.com.hk for more info.

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