I baked blueberry muffins in the morning and steamed Chinese radish cake (a.k.a. Cai Tao Kueh in Hokkien) in the evening.

Fresh blueberries and plain yoghurt

Mixtures of wet ingredients – plain yoghurt, egg, canola oil (again, I omitted pure vanilla extract)

Blueberries tossed with a spoonful of mixed dry ingredients before being added to the batter

All ready to be baked!

Do they look good?  Thanks to the recipe from Joy of Baking.

I would say this was yet another successful attempt although DS still prefers banana muffins over these.  A friend of mine who was “lucky” to be my guinea pig said she liked that they were not too sweet.

I bought a radish from Old Airport Road wet market over the past weekend.  There was no special reason why I bought it from there since there is a mini market very near where I live.  It just happened that DS and I wanted to go to the Old Airport Road hawker centre for breakfast, so we took the opportunity to check out the wet market located nearby.  A friend of ours goes to that hawker centre every week, and he had recommended us some nice food there.

Making of radish cake is pretty simple, in terms of ingredients and preparation.

Transparent-looking grated radish, after steaming.  Leave aside to cool before mixing with rice flour solution.

Mixture of flour solution and steamed grated radish, before putting into the oven for steaming.

And here’s my satisfying dinner tonight – healthy home-fried radish cake!

Ingredients used to fry the radish cake – steamed radish cake, prawns and squids, chai poh (dried pickled radish), chopped garlic, spring onions and chives.

Thanks to the recipe from Rasa Malaysia.

In between blueberry muffins and radish cake, I also completed the cleaning for two precious sea cucumbers from Xiamen.  I started to hydrate them since 10 days ago.  These sea cucumbers came all the way from Xiamen but I didn’t buy them during my recent holiday.  They are from my mum.

Preparing dried sea cucumbers for cooking

Time to think of how to cook them to make it a special dish this Chinese New Year!

Cooking and baking can really be fun and enjoyable, when one has an interest and the luxury of time for it.  And of course, to have people to share the fruits of your labour.

A Moving Masterpiece- The Song Dynasty Living Art a.k.a Qing Ming Shang He Tu @ Singapore 清明上河图

This was one exhibition which DS and I missed during the Shanghai World Expo in 2010.  It was the highlight of the China Pavilion which had drawn unending huge crowds throughout the event.  I was deeply disappointed that we could not get in despite spending three full days at the Expo.  It is certainly great that we could finally see it here in Singapore!  After the Expo, this exhibition was also held in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan before coming to Singapore.

Talking about video clips creation…

The above is my number 65th video posted on Youtube since September 2007, and that works out to be an average of 15 clips per year. The total views so far has exceeded 300,000.  Not bad, isn’t it?  Considering the fact that I am not an active blogger or user of Youtube.

Interestingly and surprisingly, my video on “Peeling Dragon Fruit” which was posted in June 2008, has become my most popular video with more than 54,000 hits, and more than 200 comments to-date.

Perhaps there are lots of dragon fruit lovers out there!  I like dragon fruits but my favourite fruit is still bananas!  Recently I have fallen in love with passion fruits!

Enjoy your weekend and have a lovely 2012!

]]> http://qingmoments.wordpress.com/2012/01/06/my-youtube-videos/feed/ 0 qingmoments http://qingmoments.wordpress.com/2011/12/24/4960/ http://qingmoments.wordpress.com/2011/12/24/4960/#comments Fri, 23 Dec 2011 16:00:11 +0000 qingmoments http://qingmoments.wordpress.com/?p=4960 ]]> It is this time of the year again – Christmas – time to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

In about 8 hours’ time, DS and I will be heading up north for a cold but not white Christmas in Xiamen, China.  This is one very rare time that we decided on a trip within a day, and going to depart within 3 days’ after booking our flights.

Earth Tower aka Ke Jia Tu Lou @ Yong Ding that we plan to visit during our trip.

Our Christmas dinner this year was an early and simple one at home – roast chicken with green salad, assortment of sushi and a bottle of red wine!  We hardly had turkey for Christmas as it is way too big for the two of us, and I don’t really fancy that. This year, I did not put up my 5-ft Christmas tree, neither did we get a log cake.

One of our most memorable Christmases was the one spent in Japan in 2009 – a delicious traditional Japanese meal on the eve, and a fun-filled day at the Universal Studio Japan.  Hopefully Christmas in Xiamen will be yet another special one too.

For all readers of this blog, here’s wishing you a joyous Christmas and an abundantly blessed 2012.

For Unto Us A Child is Born in Handel’s Messiah, my favourite oratorio in Christmas season.

Christmas Decoration @ Changi Airport

Tangs @ Orchard Road

Big-small eye Santa @ Harbourfront Centre

Orchard Road

This giant Christmas tree with a mini viewing platform is a hit this year.  Many queue to go up!

Thanks too, to my friends who regularly visit this blog.  This shall be my last entry for year 2011, and it is also my 172nd entry since July 2007. 

See you next year!

Singapore had the privilege and honour to host this event for the second time now.  The first was 48 years ago, in 1963.

Floral designs along the walkway leading up to the event halls

Lobby area of the event hall.  It made me feel like I was in a fairyland!

Having been to the past biennial Singapore Garden Festivals in which the Singapore Orchid Show was part of the event, I must admit that I was actually not very keen on the 20th World Orchids Show even by the time the event started.  However, I was keen to be one of those early ones to have a preview of the Flower Dome in the Gardens by the Bay which was opened during the 20th World Orchids Show, for public preview.

Thanks to my childhood friend and her mum who, after watching the news report about the 20th World Orchids Show on TV, had come to the event all the way from Malaysia.  Her mum loves flowers, enjoys gardening, and even plants green vegetables at home.  So, I went to the event with them.  There was certainly no regret about it, but I actually regretted not joining my friend from the morning, so that I could have more time at the orchids show before proceeding to the Gardens by the Bay.

It was very interesting to note that taking photos using iPad2 has become a trend!  In my short 2-3 hours at the show, I noted quite a number of people (men and women) using it at the show. But I don’t think this is something that I would want to use for photography even if I have one.  Am I being backward?  I also overheard some male orchid enthusiasts who talked so fondly about orchids, and exchanged knowledge and information with each other at the show.  Most of them were either middle-aged or elderly uncles.  It is surely nice to have some sort of interests to keep us occupied and make life a little more interesting as we get older.

The centre-piece for the 20th World Orchids Show which is a design representing 5 major continents in the world.

MY ONLINE ALBUM ON THE 20TH WORLD ORCHIDS SHOW

MY ONLINE ALBUM ON THE FLOWER DOME OF GARDENS BY THE BAY

Supertree Grove that features the largest vertical display of plants ever presented in a garden.  At the moment the plants are not fully grown yet.

The fully air-conditioned Flower Dome which showcases changing floral display and plants from the Mediterranean climate such as olive trees, palms, baobabs etc.

Large variety of cactuses on display.  These cactuses bring back fond memories of my pleasant visit to Kew Garden in London in summer 2000!

Amongst the plants, there were also sculptures, woods carvings etc.  Can you spot those wood carvings in this shot?

A huge and nice one!

Looking down from the viewing platform, another lovely orchid show was being held in conjunction with the 20th World Orchids Show

A nice view of the Marina Bay Sands landmark from Gardens by the Bay.  It was getting dark by the time we make our way out.

 Supertrees were lighted up too!

Oh, I love the Flower Dome at the Gardens by the Bay!  I imagine Gardens by the Bay, when officially opened in June 2012, will further boost the name of Singapore as a Garden City, and become another major attraction of the country. It will also be a lovely place for family outing, especially flowers and gardens lovers.

This was my first attempt on muffins and being one who loves bananas, banana muffins became my obvious choice today.  And thanks to JoyofBaking.com website for the recipe.

I had chosen the banana with white chocolate muffin recipe with slight modifications made – instead of white chocolate chips/chunks, I used cinnamon powder, and I did away with the vanilla extract.  They still turned out good – DS had three in one go and I like the fact that they are not too sweet (perhaps due to the reason that I did not use chocolate chips?).

The wet ingredients – mashed bananas, melted unsalted butter and lightly beaten eggs

Well mixed dry ingredients in a big bowl (for ease of mixing with wet ingredient) – plain flour, granulated sugar, fine brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon powder.

All ready to go into the pre-heated oven but I could only do one tray at a time because of the size of my oven

It is always a thrill to watch the progress of baking

And finally, the satisfaction when all turned out beautifully!

Surely there is no way we are going to finish all the 12 muffins in a day.  So, more muffins the next two days!

We departed from Changi Village jetty after a hearty buffet breakfast at Changi Village Hotel, and it was almost 11am by the time we reached there.  Given the rainy season at this time of the year, the weather that day was exceptionally beautiful – bright sunny day with beautiful blue sky and lots of white clouds!

Although it is now school holiday, Pulau Ubin was very quiet that day as compared to our past visits.  A resident chatting with his friends near the bicycle rental shops also commented the same, as I overheard.  Perhaps this is the reason why the costs of bicycle rental has dropped 50% to S$6 per day.

We went on the same cycling trail as before, and explored Chek Jawa wetlands too by foot.  I thought there was not much to expect now since it was already our third visit but I was wrong.   We had some pleasant surprises, and noticed some changes too.

Our first stop at House No. 1, a pre-war English Cottage near the information counter of Chek Jawa.  We missed this in our first visit in May 2009.

Lookout area in front of House No. 1.  Beautiful!

One of the three wild boars spotted near the information counter of Chek Jawa.  This was our first time to see wild boars in Pulau Ubin!

What a beautiful day!  This shot was taken from the Coastal Boardwalk of Chek Jawa.

It was low tide. I noticed that there were a lot more algae along the coast than our previous visits.

Flock of birds enjoying the beautiful weather!

I am not sure why but this floating platform along Coastal Boardwalk is now locked.  It was still opened in early 2010 when we were there for the second time.

Mangrove area seen from one end of the Coastal Boardwalk

This tree, which I called it 一枝独秀 is dying.  It looks so different now from my first visit.  Perhaps it may not be there anymore the next time I go again.

Our biggest pleasant surprise for the day – lots of tiny crabs, of different species in the mangrove area.  We had not seen them in our past visits!  Some of them were colourful, and there was also a unique species with one exceptional huge claw as shown below.

There were even crabs with aqua colour shell.

This bird is real!  Spotted at the mangrove area.

Wild boar again, this time in the mangrove area!

Monitor Lizards seem common in Pulau Ubin. We spotted one in every visit, at different locations.  In fact, this one  seen in the mangrove area was not the biggest we had ever seen.

We gave the 21-m high Jejawi Tower a miss this time.

After Chek Jawa, we had a stopover at an abandoned quarry as we cycled back to the jetty.  This is another beautiful spot in Pulau Ubin.  I think the authority should consider doing up this place by providing some sheltered benches  for people to rest and enjoy the beauty of nature.

This drinks shop near the jetty was closed on the day of our visit.  I wonder if it is closed for good now.

It was still bright and hot by the time we bade goodbye to Pulau Ubin (before 4pm).  In fact, it was so hot that DS actually had some sunburn.  As I always do for outing, I went prepared with long sleeve jacket and sunblock lotion on my face, so I was spared from that.

Goodbye Pulau Ubin!

Every visit to Pulau Ubin had been interesting but I think it will be a long, long time before we set foot on Pulau Ubin again.

After arriving back at Changi Village, we had an early dinner there and spent some time checking out the shops at Changi Village.

Our bonus for the day – beautiful sunset seen from the bus, as we headed home.

That night, I had my best sleep ever in a long time.  I must have been tired after the long outing!

***********

Click below for my previous posting on Pulau Ubin : -

Visit to Pulau Ubin – The Last Kampong in Singapore

I am not sure what kind of programmes are in place in school to educate the young ones about the importance of recycling but based on my observations, I can’t help feeling that there has not been enough awareness and effort for recycling in Singapore.

For many years now, DS and I have been playing our parts in supporting the fortnightly recycling collection activities.

At our service balcony, there are always a few plastic bags of different sizes.

One for non-breakable items such as cans and plastics bottles

One for breakable or glass bottles

One for unwanted or unused plastic bags

And one more for old magazines and newspapers

On Friday nights, we made sure all bags are nicely packed into the large yellow plastic bags provided by the recycling company, and put outside the house for collection the next morning.

Since last month, we stopped receiving the yellow plastic bags from the recycling company.  On thinking that the worker might have forgotten to leave us the bags (as it has happened before), we continued to put the items outside our house on Friday nights, and the bags were collected too.

About 10 days ago, I decided to give the recycling company a call to inform them that I had not been receiving recycling bags from them.  I was surprised to learn that they had actually stopped doing the collection, and the recycling collection is now managed by SembWaste.

Wow, why was there no notification on the change?  And I wonder now who had actually collected the bags of items outside my house?

On contacting SembWaste, I was told that residents are now expected to bring the recycling items down to the bins near their blocks.  Well, that would not be an issue but the bins were nowhere to be spotted.  In fact, I welcome this move as it means that I can now drop the recycling items at anytime without having to wait for two weeks.

It was only a day or two after that call that I saw this huge bin under a small tree next to my block!  Quite frankly, it is quite unsightly to have this bin placed in such an awkward position.  On top of that, the bin was not designed to avoid getting drenched by heavy rain.

Then, I finally received a return call from the officer-in-charge a few days later.  He explained that flyers were distributed, and also placed on the notice board at the ground floor of each block to inform residents of the new system.  I told him I had not received the flyer at all, and had not paid attention to the notice board.  Interestingly, he also admitted that he does not look at the notice board at his block!  So I wonder how many are actually aware of the recycling effort, and noticed the change?

Obviously, if the authority is serious about recycling, there needs to be a better effort in increasing awareness and driving the effort, or it will just be futile.

There was only one staff on duty and we approached her by speaking in English.  It is natural for us to use English since it is our official language.  As she gave us the impression that she could not understand English, we switched to Mandarin instead.

After making his order, out of curiosity, DS asked (in his half-past six Mandarin) if she speaks English at all .  She said yes.  Giving her the benefit of doubt, DS went on to tell that she should use English more, as practice helps improve her English ability.

To our surprise, she responded by saying that there is no need to do so as eventually everyone will speak Mandarin.

Wow,  what an attitude and mindset?!  I began to wonder if this young lady really knows English, and how she actually came to such a conclusion?  Does she think that Chinese language is going to take over the whole world, including Singapore?

And  it also makes me wonder, what happened to the minimum requirement for English language ability for foreigners doing customer-facing jobs?  This is not the first time I have had such an encounter.  I have come across many situations where I was forced to speak Mandarin in places like restaurants, retail outlets, bookstore etc.

This reminds me of a sad case that happened in June 2011.  A Indonesian maid-wannabe committed suicide in Singapore after failing her English entry test for the third time.  Isn’t it more important for front-line service staff to be equipped at least with conversational English ability than a domestic maid whose customers are mainly the family that she works for?

At the launch of 2011 Singapore Kindness Movement two days ago, Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong said that, Singaporeans today no longer spit on the streets, nor talk as loudly in public, as before.  Not being disrespectful or unkind to our former leader, and with no intention to be critical at all, I beg to disagree with his assessment.

Mr Goh could be true that we are more gracious now as compared to 40 years ago since I am not in such a position to make that comparison.  I think, as a developed country and progressive society, we will be in serious troubles if our society is not more gracious than 40 years ago.

However, how about comparing to 10 years ago?  Are we really better off now? Is it true that Singaporeans today no longer spit on the streets nor talk as loudly in public?  My personal experience (not just once but umpteen times) as a common citizen of Singapore, tells me otherwise.  And I have previously written about such unkind or ungracious behaviours.  I think it would be more believable for Mr Goh to substantiate his assessment with concrete evidence.

I happened to be at Orchard MRT station yesterday afternoon and that was rare for me since I would prefer to avoid the extreme crowds at such a place on weekends.  As part of the activities for kindness movement, kind volunteers were out to distribute yellow daisies to spread the idea of kindness “blooming” in Singapore.

I witnessed in disbelief how the many passers-by had actually rushed and swarmed around the volunteers to get hold of the free daisies.  I have even seen individuals with 3 or 4 yellow daisies each in their hands.  Is this an act of a graciousness or more likely an act of greed? I can’t help feeling sad and even disagree more strongly with what Mr Goh has said.  I also began to wonder the effectiveness of such an activity in promoting graciousness amongst our community!

According to dictionary, the word KINDNESS means “the quality of being friendly, generous and considerate“.  I see it as a quality that has to be nurtured from young, and the act of kindness has to be something truly from the heart, spontaneous and consistently being demonstrated.

As the saying goes – Charity begins at home – likewise kindness should also begin at home.  I think that’s where the campaign should begin from……