Cavalock and The Hanging Birds CD (no, it's not a band!)

Here's where I learn something new everyday. Johan bakery at Isetan was selling them King's Cakes, a French pastry often associated with Epiphany. Apparently it's gaining popularity in Japan as a New Year treat as the Baker-at-Home found out from her Japanese friend, which prompted her to grab one entire cake at first sight. We really like it! The puff pastry is so rich and perfectly buttery. The almond cream is just the right amount and not overpowering. And there's a little free chopstick holder too! 

Check this out! Who knew you can sell your old CDs at 3 for $2 as a ....er... flashy shiny scarecrow? Hey, I'm all for recycling but this is hilarious! If anyone's interested, I'll sell you 4 music CDs from my collection for $2.

Cavalock and That Last Hike of 2020

It's only the first week of the new year so I guess things are still pretty slow around here. Well, the last week of 2020 did see me and the guys embarking on yet another hike. Met up at Ang Mo Kio train station at the crack of the dawn and off we went! First half hour was spent on the sidewalk, along the road Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 to be exact, which made it the most uninspiring part of the journey. Once we reached Luxus Hills Park, we turned into Punggol PC and followed alongside the river/drain/canal/oversized lonkung that's known as Sungei Punggol.

Lots of greenery and no more honking traffic for the rest of the hike. It was a Saturday morning so the track was rather crowded with families and groups which made the experience quite distracting. But it was still a pleasant hike and we hit 15km in a little over three hours. Not bad. Was actually me first time in Punggol Sengkang so I followed the guys as they led the way. I thought it was kinda funny when the end point was a group of many cafes serving breakfast but they were all full so one friend simply called for a Grab ride and we ended up in a kopi tiam having duck and roast pork!

Since we are all stuck home and not travelling outta the country, I got to go through some of the overseas crap... I mean, stuff I bought during my travels. This is actually pretty neat umbrella we bought in Italy ages ago. The Baker-at-Home says it's too heavy for her so I'm using it. Yah, I know. Olive Oyl ain't exactly the most masculine icon around but I like the brolly, its got a nice weight to it and provides a decent shelter area. Then there's the official Afuri ramen pin that I got from their ramen joint in Nakameguro when I was there with the guys in 2019. Still no idea where I'm gonna pin it.

Cavalock and That New Year Frenchie Post

 HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

I can't remember when was the last time I had me some crepe but the Baker-at-Home had some recently and she was damn impressed by it, enough to drag me to the joint that is French Fold. I had the the sweet crepe with the chestnut cream and mascarpone while she had the savoy crepe with the sautéed mushrooms and egg. Absolutely loved mine with the chestnut cream that reminded me of the numerous Mont Blanc that I had in Japan over the years. And since there was no Japan trip this year, this crepe was the perfect sweet proxy or substitute.

I honestly wasn't planning this to be an all-French post but I did play this game the day before we went and had the crepes. Now I know I already did my Top 10 Games of 2020 but I only got to play the new boardgame Paris earlier this week.  

In Paris, you take on the role of wealthy real estate investors in the Paris of the 1900s. Paris is at the height of its transformation into one of the most beautiful cities in the world. It is your task to purchase some of these magnificent Parisian buildings in order to make a profit and invest in the development and upkeep of some of Paris’ most iconic buildings and landmarks.

Just take a look at that, this game really commands a huge table presence. It's big and it's gorgeous. Over 40 tiles depicting landmarks and buildings in Paris and the art on every one is unique. It's one of those easy-to-learn, hard-to-master kinda game. A really fun game that's really not too difficult. On your turn, you only have two things to do, place a building tile and then decide where to put or move your playing piece. I can't wait to play it again, and if anyone wants to try it out, let me know. Viva la France!