hyejinxxx

tim ho wan: a review

so……… another michelin star restaurant has opened up here in singapore and of course i would like to taste for myself how good a michelin starred restaurant would actually be.

the super long queue to go into the restaurant…
tim ho wan calls this “1Q3H”
1 queue 3 hours
hahahaha… not funny. 

but i went on a tuesday evening,
so i only queued for like,
45 minutes?

a tip for you guys:
tim ho wan only allows groups with everyone PHYSICALLY PRESENT to enter,
so don’t ‘geh kiang’ try to queue up early for your friends.

prices ranged from SGD4.00 to SGD5.50,
which is pretty much the market rate for dim sum…
and yes,
we ordered THAT much…
for 3 stomachs only.

1. congee with lean pork, century egg and salted egg

texture of porridge was good,
but since i am not a fan of century egg,
i can’t comment much.

2. pan fried carrot cake

wasn’t spectacular
normal carrot cake…
and i think i’ve had better. 

3. pork dumpling with shrimp

another so-so dish…
i think tiong bahru siew mai is more delicious! 

4. baked bun with bbq pork
in my opinion, the BEST dish from this place!
super crispy exterior with tender pork inside makes the whole experience heavenly!


apparently each person can order a maximum of one set only…
will definitely buy this again if i come back,
or do a takeaway from the side of the restaurant.
p.s. prices are cheaper when you do a takeaway! 

5. bean curd skin roll with pork and shrimp


i like the sauce of this dish!
sweet and nice texture. 

6. beef ball with beancurd skin


i thought the beancurd skin didn’t really go well with the beef ball,
and the beef ball had a weird taste too. 

7. beancurd skin roll with shrimp


tastes like the ones you can get from the economical beehoon shop at all coffee shops…

8. pork rib with black bean sauce

3 words, i’ve had better.

9. prawn dumpling


i judge a dim sum place by the quality of the hargao.
sadly to say,
these weren’t very good either. 

10. steamed egg cake

meh.

11. dumpling teochew style


this look more delicious than it actually tastes.
there were peanuts inside the dumpling,
and no,
i didn’t like it. 

12. vermicelli roll with bbq pork

the one at changi village is better.

13. vermicelli roll with shrimp

the one at changi village is better.

14. vermicelli roll with pig’s liver

as a fan of liver,
i could tell that the liver was not very fresh.
it was also overcooked. 

15.  tonic medlar and osmanthus cake

finally after all the average food,
one that lights my mouth up.
very fresh and feels so healthy!
one of the more unique desserts i’ve tried in my life…

although the food was average,
i’d say my visit was a pleasant one as all the servers were super friendly,
always wearing a smile on their faces,
constantly refilling our tea,
apologising for the long wait…

and yeah, that concludes my tim ho wan visit!
a michelin star?
maybe i’ll save it for another restaurant though.

국내여행

the korean title reads “guk nae yeo haeng” and it means to travel within the country. it is a popular thing to do in korea, america, um well, in countries with bigger land space for one to travel beyond their usual hood. living in singapore, our beloved little island, it is quite hard to have a 국내여행, but my boyfriend and i tried to make it happen by going to pulau ubin (ubin island). and this is the blog post about our 국내여행 LOL

how to get there?
we drove down to change village (you can also take a bus from tanah merah metro station)  to take the bumboat to pulau ubin. it costs $2.50 for one way, which means that to and fro costs $5. not bad for an enjoyable boat ride, with the wind beating your face with freshness.

upon reaching pulau ubin, we made our way to tanjong chek jawa. you can rent bicycles at the jetty but we decided to take it slowly and hike our way around the island. we reached chek jawa after about an hour of walking…

along the way, we saw pretty flowers and even a horseshoe crab! the horseshoe crab was being kicked on shore but we transported it safely back into a pond hehe…

there is a boardwalk along chek jawa which was quite a nice route to walk. some parts of the board walk allowed you to look at the sea below your feet so it was quite fun. we also spotted many weird looking fishes and mudskippers, animals that you don’t get to see often in mainland singapore…

after finishing chek jawa, we hiked upwards to sungei mamam, just to explore the place and have lunch. i was talking to my boyfriend about digging the ground and setting up a fire with dried twigs to cook, which i did during my days as a girl guide, and we decided to re-live our youths…

hahahaha i guess we can survive well in the wild……… given that we are given instant noodles :p we actually bought wax fuel which came in handy because it rained in the morning and all the twigs were damp.

after lunch, we headed back down towards the jetty and towards merbah hut, to hike up the small hill which overlooks ubin quarry. we took slightly more than an hour, also resting at one of those pop-up street stalls for a coconut to cool ourselves down.

hike, hike, hike!

we managed to hike up the small hill (it took less than 10 minutes to reach the top) by sunset and check out the amazing view! many people on facebook have expressed interest in this place, and no one could believe it was pulau ubin!

hehehe it was a super fun outing since i like nature a lot and i also like hiking (yeah i know i don’t look like the sort…) so why not check out pulau ubin to escape from the hustle and bustle of the city :p

오빠, 떙큐.

행복해… 난 너무 행복해. 오빠를 찾았으니까.

왜 갑자기 이런 말?
“다시 사랑한다 말할까” 노래를 지금 다시 듣고 있거든… 오빠가 방금 보내줘서 듣게 됐어. 아저씨가 부른 노래 다 똑같다서 그렇게 됐어.
나는 1달전에 rail mall근처 한국식당 ‘강남스타일’에서 이 노래를 처음 들었거든. 그때 미치듯이 술 마시고 취했어ㅋㅋㅋ 눈깜박해서 1달 더 지났네. 며칠전 오빠한테 우리 사귄 동안 언제 제일 재미있냐고 물어봤는데 오빠가 ‘강남스타일’에서 취한 날이래. 그때 진짜 재미있었어…

지난 2달동안 많이 싸우고 울었고… 그래도 너무 행복하고 많이 웃었어. 항상 세상에 제일 행복한 여자란 생각이 들었고 세상에 가장 좋은 남자친구가 있단 마음도 있어. 매일 아침 ‘굿머닝’란말 보내고 밤마다 같은 시간에 잔다. 11.50, 11.55, 12.00, …자! 이런 것을 하면 할 수록 이제 습관이 됐어. 오빠의 심장소리 구든구든… 곁에 없어도 들을 수 있다. 들어서 앞으로 오빠한테 많이 잘 해주고 싶다. 더 좋은 여자친구 되고 싶다. 오빠가 내 인생에 와서 너무 고맙다. 고맙다 고맙다 또 고맙다. 얼마나의 “고맙다”해도 표현할 수가 없는 듯이 고맙워.

지금 사랑인지 사랑아닌 잘 모르겠지만, 열심히 사랑해볼게. 사랑은 기분에 따라 하는게 아니라서… 사랑은 자기한테 반복의 열공, 반복의 억지함… 기쁠 때 사랑하기 쉽잫아…

L▲NEIGE ♚beauty blogger contest♚

i am blogging right now about my favorite skin-care and make-up product from laneige, a south korean (!!!) brand. as most of my readers know, i am a skin-care freak, and many people have asked me about what kind of products i use… although not all my products are from laneige, ALL my skin-care products are korean :p

so, read on to find out which products are from laneige! ^_^
…and you might have *ahem* flawless skin like me wahahahahahahahaha 

♡ skin-care ♡

okay, so i am supposed to pick ONE item for favorite skin care… but i have TWO. i can’t help it if laneige products are really good and effective right?

so the first product i’m going to introduce is the WHITE PLUS RENEW FOAM CLEANSER.

ever since i had an outbreak last year, i have changed to using self-foaming cleansers. reason being acne-prone skin is more vulnerable to abrasions and more sensitive so harsh skin-care. i wouldn’t want to hurt my skin even more before it heals and so i changed to a gentle foam cleaner.

the laneige foam cleaner has a tinge of lemon smell in it (although it doesn’t state that lemon is an ingredient) and i like it because if feels so refreshing! it also cleanses my make-up away very well and i can skip the make-up removing step. YAY for lazy people like me……….

the second product i am introducing is the PERFECT RENEW DUAL TOUCH EYES.

i like it because it has two different formulas in one product, so that your eyes have maximum healing at night and maximum protection in the day (yes, you need that spf 25/PA++ in singapore alright!). now, this is an awesome concept.

♡ make-up ♡

i have come to notice that singaporean girls do not use much lipstick. my favorite product from laneige is actually the SNOW CRYSTAL INTENSE LIPSTICK!

“just a lipstick can make dramatic changes!” i totally agree ^_^

and, there’s a new product called the SNOW BB SOOTHING CUSHION! check out the product…

apparently, it’s SWEAT PROOF???

i guess such a function will be awesome in singapore, where the weather is so hot and humid, and my make-up keeps getting washed away by my perspiration ㅠ_ㅠ if this product really works, then we know what product to buy to significantly improve how we look. did you know? good skin improves how someone is perceived as “beautiful” by multiple folds? so, good skin is much more important than any feature on your face!!!

so, please let me be one of the 10 chosen bloggers to attend this challenge to test the product out, as well as let my KOREAN make-up skills be put to the test :p if i don’t already look korean enough……… HEHE :3

★ vanitytrove ★ JUNE 2013

once again the awesome girls at vanity trove sent me a trove to check out!

Read More

vanitytrove I LOVE YOU

i have been so busy with my new job and new relationship that i have been neglecting my advertorials whoops! put off april’s vanitytrove blog post and may’s vanitytrove dropped by to say hi, and so here’s the goodies i’ve received!!!

so before you click subscribe, here’s how it works…

simple???

yes, very :p

april

dr cl:labo set
from left: bb cream, super cleansing ex, super cleansing foam ex, aqua-collagen gel

elizabeth arden set
from left: smoothing cleanser, bb cream, night capsules 

may

nuxe cleansing gel

lunamer brightener

kose sunblock

japanese bath sea salt

sebamed feminine wash

hydrating mask

back rescue pastilles (eaten :p)

*

here’s the deal guys!

since i have SO MANY products to use, i have decided to share it with you all!

share this post on your facebook/twitter/instagram and tweet me at @hyejinxxx your post’s link, with what products (max. 5 per person) you would want to win!

last submission on 30th april ^_^

my 23rd birthday!

best birthday of my life, and i’ll let pictures do the talking ^_^ all i wanna say is that i have the best friends in the world and i am really thankful for them in my life!!!

today i had

a proper date in town on a sunday afternoon - 2 art galleries, a cafe and a stroll on a small hill. it’s totally my kind of date, i am so thankful for him in my life ❤

a red carpet look

so it’s the finals of #CNOS2 and there’s gonna be a red carpet event which requires us to do a makeover! so, let me show you guys what kind of EYE makeup i’ll be doing today to walk the red carpet :p

bare eyes say HELLO

step 1: clean eyes with toner

step 2: double eyelid tape

step 3: purple eyeshadow as base

step 4: black eyeshadow to line the eyes

step 5: liquid eyeliner

step 6: mascara

step 7: under-eye highlight (for korean style ‘aegyosal’ or a.k.a. cute eye bags)

and here’s my finished look!

this morning, i have decided on a short term work goal, which is to MOVE TO THE AESTHETICS CLINIC one day. okay, i hope this goal keeps me going. that position was taken away from me but now i want it back. FIGHTING!

greedy chimp

have you ever walked past rows and rows and rows and rows and rows […] and rows of snacks in the supermarket and finally not knowing what to get? or does a certain snack look delicious but you’re skeptical of whether it will actually taste nice? well, here’s a solution for you!

and……….

YUMMY!

i especially enjoyed the POPCORN because i haven’t watch movies in theaters for a super long time due to my super busy schedule (ㅠ) and having popcorn at home is an awesome way to comfort myself :p you know, sometimes when i shop for tv snacks at home, i don’t really think of popcorn, i don’t know why, but now that it’s sent to my doorstep, WHAT AN AWESOME TV SNACK as well! :p

and gosh, MAMEE?!?! and omg, RICE STICKS??? since when did they produce rice sticks??? my fond memory of mamee was mamee MEE??? am i too old now??? but omg thanks to greedy chimp i get to catch up with the times and exit the league of grandmothers :p and yes, the rice sticks actually lived up to my fond memory, good job! ^_^

and did you know, popcorn and rice sticks are so much healthier than potato chips??? yay to healthy snacks :p

 ONE MORE THING
speaking of healthy snacking, greedy chimp also tries to provide healthier choices so that even the health conscious can join us in the sinful (not anymore) munching YAY!!!

so now the question is HOW do you get these awesome snacks?

first you can click on the link below (yes the image) which will lead you to greedy chimp’s very own website!

and then, join the TRIBE (whoaaaaaa what a cool alternative to the boring ‘subscriber’ status)

and finally, choose how often you want your greedy chimp loot, which you can decide for it to be a monthly affair or a quarterly affair, depending on how much surprises your heart, [mouth and body] can take!

so simple!!!!!!!!!!!!! so sign up today!

quick update

before i hit the sack, because it’s not tgif for me - i have work tomorrow.

so, 5 days of working in the hospital have passed and i must say i’ve learnt so much from this job. about the job and also about myself. i feel so weak sometimes, being unable to handle criticisms, mistakes, pricked ego, etc. work life is really just so different, with every move i make being scrutinized by higher authorities, no freedom to exercise my own style of doing things, and every action i do is being recorded by The System. 

in university, making a mistake means losing some marks, or even a grade. but that is all. of course, you may feel down or guilty but there’s time to look back and think and maybe even dwell in that low mood for awhile. however in the workplace it is totally different. making a mistake means that The System will ultimately come back to find (haunt?) you, to question your actions, and instill fear of leaving a bad impression, or ultimately being cut from The System.

a mini economy, yes, it is. every industry is, and that is why the society is formed. how scary. from the tiniest of molecules in our bodies forming different groups of organs, to different humans to organizations and industries and then cities and the earth and then finally the whole universe - it is made up of the same foundation. it’s like life is a kaleidoscope of everything that is happening around, mirroring everything over and over, never ending, always changing, but also always the same.

but then today i experienced both joy and sorrow at my job. and maybe i can also say life and death - literally. i witnessed happy women calling their husbands to announce their pregnancies or the genders of their new babies being formed. i also witnessed sad couples being unable to conceive, and also received a phone call enquiring about an abortion. i really don’t know what to say because my feelings are just so overwhelming.

okay, 8 minutes to 11pm. i am going to blow-dry my hair and roll onto my bed.

and one more thing, i am so disappointed that a certain aspect of my life is moving too slowly, or maybe it is stagnant. continue to be this way and i will start to move, i will start to move away.

good night.

♥ cnos2 ♥ XXX at E2MAX challenge

since everyone knows me as “the korean girl” in this competition, i shall introduce you the different types of 방 “bang”, which also means room, in korea. you can find it all over korea and every kind of “bang” is very popular across all ages!

1. PC “bang”
where all the gamers go to for their daily fix of LAN gaming such as warcraft, starcraft counterstrike, maple story, etc… anyway, i used to play games with my brother when i was a kid, games like age of empires, warcraft, gunbound, hahahaha so whenever i see PC “bang”s i get reminded of my childhood.

i also went to a few PC “bang”s when i was living in korea!!! doesn’t really differ much from that of singapore’s e2max…

e2max’s LAN gaming section, with quite a lot of korean boys for those interested in making some korean dongsaeng (little brothers)! and check out that happy hour 1-for-1 offer!!! who doesn’t love more game time :p

and other than gaming, this is what you can do a a pc “bang”,

#TRUESTORY from my friend’s facebook which i posted on instagram :p
p.s. e2max also sells food! 

2. dvd “bang”

as the name suggests, it means a room where you can rent dvds to watch! although it sounds boring, the most common idea of a dvd “bang” in korea is this:

and so we try to avoid it past midnight as it’s a cheap alternative to a motel to hanky panky?

however, my (female) friend and i decided to watch an older movie last december and so went to a dvd “bang”. wow, it’s actually so much better than watching downloads off your computer because of the better sound system and the comfortable setting!

from this competition, i also realized that e2max actually has many movies that we can rent and watch in a comfy setting, like the korean dvd “bang” hehehehe however the rooms are not as private as the ones in korea so don’t try to hanky panky………… um, unless you guys like the thrill :p

less than 1% of the titles you can find at e2max

or you find out for yourself by going down to e2max! 

other than the older movies, e2max also has 2 cinema theaters where you can watch the newest movies out in singapore, ……..and theatres are also dark you guys can hanky panky there LOL!!!!!!!!!

3. 노래 (norae) song “bang”
my favorite room………………………… 랄랄라

although there isn’t a real norae “bang” in e2max, i can still sing (yay!!!!!) in the different multi “bang”s with games like ROCKBAND!

4. multi “bang”
games, games and more games!!! recently this kind of room has been increasingly popular in korea among all ages because you can find all types of consoles (or lack of) and games in this type of room, from XBOX, WII, PLAYSTATION, to KINECT! 

room prices in e2max range from as low as sgd10! so you save money if you go as a couple :p or try squeezing in 10 people in a sgd10 room……………… (shennyyang squeezed in 7 pretty ladies for her hens’ night blog post! how many can you guys squeeze in???)

you can choose to play your games outside, next to the LAN gaming area, or rent a private room (same as dvd room) to play your games if you are too shy to play in public :p

and check out the FREE playstation games i had fun with!
i kinda miss playing those 20-cent arcade games after getting a K.O., my skills have not deteriorated :p BUT THIS IS BETTER THIS IS FREE HAHAHAHAHA

but guess what,
at e2max, i am not restricted to only these 4 “bang”s!

i really love DARTSSOUL at e2max because the first time i played darts was in busan, korea, when i was traveling alone! and how i made new friends was through a game of darts at a random bar :p

don’t forget to change your coins!!!

check out who i want to kill at darts in my video below!!!

and lastly, you can have fun trying your luck at picking up a soft toy at e2max’s prize stage and also different kinds of electronic games…

♡♡♡

so, this week’s challenge is XXX at E2MAX, of course if would be hyejinXXX at E2MAX hahaha :p okay, not funny……… but anyway! watch the below video to find out what kind of milestone you guys can have at e2max wonderland!!!

♡♡♡

E2MAX is located at level 9 of
CATHAY CINELEISURE ORCHARD
8 grange road

website: http://www.e2max.com.sg https://www.facebook.com/E2MaxCineL9

and girls just wanna have fu-un~~~~~~~~~~~ 뿅!!!

HEY GIRLS! 失恋不败 (heartbreak undefeated) AT E2MAX!
follow my instagram/twitter for more pictures! @hyejinxxx i | t

midnight circus

i’ve always been afraid of such colors, especially in a darker places,
and those happy facades hide a deep dark secret behind them……..

good night, good bye.