I love a pop-up event, where stores who don’t usually have a presence in wherever it is they’ve popped up, carefully and creatively showcase their stock to people they hope to convert in to the rare beast that is the ‘new customer’.
Naiise – pronounced ‘nice’ – is having such a moment now, in Orchard Central. About 60% of what Naiise stock is locally designed/made, 40% of things come from overseas, mainly from Europe. It is all design/style based.
Packing for any trip to the UK is, more often than not, a bit of a gamble. You just don’t know what the weather will be doing – bar December when it’s likely to be darn cold.
‘Summer’ can come as late as September and traveling in Europe in June definitely doesn’t equal bathing suits.
What I’ve lived in this time, especially in rural France, has been Uniqlo’s striped boat-neck long sleeved T that comes in a mass of colours. I had two on almost constant rotation: predictable Breton blue and white…
Let me say, before I go any further, that I am not at all in to cakes that look like they’ve been heavily influenced and inspired by Shrek’s body colour…but, don’t scoff until you’ve tried this particular one. Read on, those that dare:
I usually do make a pudding when I have a dinner party at home. Well, almost always, (read about the Mount Sinai Pudding Lady here who I used during a recent weak moment) but I am ashamed to say, I failed this Saturday.
My offering was spectacularly and unapologetically ‘bought’. I decided it was much better that I didn’t try to deceive anyone with an almost homemade looking creation.
What was it?
I don’t intend to write too many (more) posts about various holidays so, to keep relevant, here’s a bit of local news. I have returned from my sojourn to find that Ghim Moh market really is very close to closing for renovations. It has got a bit grim-oh if you look at it dispassionately, so this is not an altogether bad idea.
Before I disappeared, there were lots of discussions as to whether there would be a temporary market during the renovation period or not, so I am pleased by what I saw today:
** SINCE POSTING THIS ENTRY, THIS ARTICLE HAS ALSO RUN IN EXPAT LIVING (JANUARY 2015). See PRESS page**
Japan, as far as I can make out, is one of those places that people go to and get hooked on. I have Singaporean friends who go (not for business – we are talking strictly holiday) two or three times a year. And it IS addictive, I certainly found ‘Japan Bug’ to be as real as typhoid, figuratively speaking.*
So, during my trip there last week, one of the things on the culinary hit list was sushi at a proper sushi restaurant. A lovely Japanese friend booked us in to Mizutani, mentioning after he had done so, that reservations here were hard to come by and newbies only ever introduced if they came recommended by a regular.
“You do know how to behave, don’t you?” he asked questioningly. I was flooded with panic. I’m a well bought up girl, natch, but can I behave Japanese style? What does that even mean?
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