Homecoming

Okay, so much for Carnival Part 3. Suffice it to say that a good time was had by all.

Just came back from Singapore - it was so very good to be home. I can't imagine I haven't been there in over 2 years. My old bedroom was the same way I left it, cluttered with memories from my young teenage years. Same glistening blue pool, same kid practising the drums every evening, same busy kitchen that keeps churning an endless supply of my favorite foods. New maid, new TV (brand spankin' new, arrived the day before we did... 42" plasma screen). Parents looked older. The neighbors got new plants for their rooftop garden; it looked like a jungle. Despite the heat and humidity, I hadn't felt so refreshed in a long time. There's no place like home indeed.

We hit the typical tourist spots - Esplanade, Jurong Bird Park, East Coast Park, Orchard Road, Botanic Garden... No Sentosa this time, cos honestly I was a little sick of it. The in-laws were impressed, but they got a migraine weaving through the suffocating weekend crowds in City Hall. They probably haven't been anywhere that urban for a very long time. E and I revisited Max Brenner's Chocolate Bar with them, and tagged along for the river boat cruise downtown.

Spent four days in Hong Kong and one in Shenzhen - regrettably, we stayed in Kowloon this time instead of Causeway Bay, though we made a point of taking the subway there often enough. The hotel in Shenzhen was uber cool. Our room had a spa bath with a glass window that looked out into the city, which was lit up and pretty at night. It was a walking distance from shopping in Luo Wu and a slew of massage parlors. After an evening of shopping, E and I headed to the least sketchy one and each got a 90 min full-body massage for USD15 total. Sweet deal.

The only drawback of all this jetting around was that we were doing it with E's parents, a choice usually reserved for the masochistic. There were moments where my hand felt the impulse to fly across cheeks, or where I just needed to scream, but I had foreseen this a few months ago and cleverly suggested that they take the Australia leg of their trip early, leaving E and I peace and calm for a 8 full days after Hong Kong. Sanity saved, crisis averted... and we actually had real fun in those remaining days.

Met up with Glenn for lunch at Kuishin Bo, an interesting concept for great Japanese food. He's the best guy friend a girl could ever ask for, and I'm lucky to have had him for 12 years. Talked about the past, present and future, looked at pictures, then joined up with E (who was sweet to give us private time) at the arcade. I nearly shed a tear of joy when the two boys played a shoot-em-up together.

On another day, we went to Secret Garden with Del and caught up over tiramisu and a latte. It was fascinating to hear who's doing what these days: the stewardess, the scholar, the singer, the straitjacketed. Then she took E and I out for a giant (like, 24oz) mango margarita at Cafe Iguana in Clarke Quay.

I ate so much food on that trip, E had taken to calling me "Chewie", although he vowed to find a more apt female Wookie name. Boy did I pack the pudge... :( I swore to go on a Cheerios diet when I got back. Not holding up that promise too well, but I'm a lot less crazy about food now. I miss home, but I know it's just the withdrawal symptoms kicking in and that it'll get better with time.

Went back to work the day after we returned - couldn't ask for too much after a paid vacation. I was glad to know that I still had my job, and that everyone was actually really excited to see me back. I must have been asked a million times how my trip was, and made a million promises to show pictures. A co-worker had also just returned from a week-long trip to the Outer Banks; he caught 104 lbs of tuna while deep sea fishing, and we agreed to trade my fancy green tea from China for a few fresh tuna steaks from North Carolina. Tea for tuna.

Life is slowly going back to normal. Summer in the 'burgh, movies in the park, good books and Italian ice.