Goodbye and Thank You Harbourfront Centre

We lived at Harbourfront in Singapore for 4 years. We frequented both Vivo City and Harbourfront Centre since that's where my bus stop was located. At the end of the day, Sweetie and I would usually meet up there to buy food at the hawker center before going home. 

We heard that Harbourfront Centre permanently closed on July 27 (early this week). We were sad to hear about it since it was part of our daily life for so many years. We enjoyed going there because it's a compact mall which has a bit of everything. 

We would have quick meals there, sometimes merienda at Toastbox. We loved going there since it has a view of the water. I remember we frequented a resto on the second floor (I just can't remember the name!) and a food court with Filipino food. And we'd sometimes do a McDonald's sundae run at midnight since it was open for 24 hours. It was also the only place we knew where you can buy Dunkin' donuts. 

Harbourfront Centre would often times have special events near the entrance. Sometimes it would be kitchen stuff, books, clothing etc. I remember it had a store that sold purely socks! There was definitely a wide variety of things you can see and buy. 

January 2020

It also had a branch of the Raffles Clinic which proved to be very useful for us. That's where we went whenever one of us got sick. It's also where I got a referral for the doctor who discovered my PE. The funny thing is we never tried riding a ferry from Harbourfront Centre, haha. 

It's just sad to hear about Harbourfront Centre closing. I heard they're going to demolish the whole building and replace it with something better. I tried to look for more photos from the place, but I just have a few and a very blurred photo from one of our McDonald's runs. 

April 2020 during the pandemic

Thank you Harbourfront Centre. You are one of the places in Singapore that brings me fond memories :)

#BeKind #StaySafe

Slice of Life, 15 Years

I was looking through Google Photos and saw it had compiled photos by year. Thought it would be interesting to see what I was up to the past 15 years. 

15 years ago, 2007

Singapore with the other scouts at the first Google office in Singapore. 

14 years ago, 2008

Date day with Sweetie where we went to a wedding expo so I could get inspiration for the Twisted Wedding Planner blog.

13 years ago, 2009

Watched Love to Love to Love with Sweetie. It was a concert with MYMP, Side A and a few other artists held at Araneta Coliseum.

12 years ago, 2010

Attended a sports event and met Rio dela Cruz. Also went to Davao that same week. 

11 years ago, 2011

Got a new car - Minnie my Getz! She's now finally with me in our new home. I haven't had a chance to drive her yet since I need to get a license. 

10 years ago, 2012

Nothing exciting happened during the week. I just cooked beef tapa and we also checked out the location of our future condo. 

9 years ago, 2013

Just had second open heart surgery. They had to drain water in my heart and lungs. Also got a surprise visit from my friend Don who was in Singapore at that time too. 

8 years ago, 2014

Celebrated Valentine's day across the miles. Sweetie surprised me with flowers which was delivered at the office. 

7 years ago, 2015

So many things happened this week 7 years ago. Titay's birthday bash, watched a concert and it was also the Android One launch. 

6 years ago, 2016

This was the year we transitioned the family to Singapore. This was the week Miggy moved to Singapore to finish his studies. 

5 years ago, 2017

By this time we had settled in nicely to our life in Singapore and was getting visited by friends! Anne and Andrew came for a visit that week (I think Anne was working in their SG office at that time). 

4 years ago, 2018

My memory is a bit fuzzy about this week since most of the photos I had were food! Seems I baked some chicken fingers and Sweetie and I went out. 

3 years ago, 2019

This was the time Sweetie had knee surgery because his knee was dislocated. 

2 years ago, 2020

We had a WFH drill this week. Victor, David and I ended up working at Starbucks that day. Few weeks later WFH became mandatory. 

1 year ago, 2021

The last Westies get-together I was able to attend. Restrictions eased up and we were able to have a get together. Promptly got sick after since we didn't know the air quality went bad that day. 

I noticed that time has been passing by so fast. I don't if it's because I move slower now, but I don't get to do a lot of stuff compared to before. I have a list of tasks I've been unable to finish. I guess I need to manage my time better. Looking back at the last 15 years was fun to do. Apparently I was either in Manila or Singapore, working, watching  a concert or at a hospital haha. Let's hope and pray there won't be  hospital staycations anymore! 

#BeKind #StayHome #VoteWisely

The 10 Things I Love About Singapore

This year marks the 10th year I've lived in Singapore. It took me awhile to call it home because my boys were back in Manila and I flew back and forth a lot for a few years. It became home when my family moved here five years ago.

1. Getting around is so convenient - it's so easy to get around by bus or through the MRT. You pay by using an EZlink card (which you can use also at shops).

2. Wide variety of food - there's a wide variety of food you can choose from especially when you eat at a hawker center. 

3. Toast Box - absolutely love teh peng and their breakfast food. Aside from Toast Box there's also other local coffee chains like Ya Kun Kaya, Killiney, Fun Toast, Old Town White Coffee etc. 

4. Shopping - when you shop you know exactly where you will go for the item. In the beginning I used to just go to Orchard, but eventually liked going to the neighborhood malls more (less temptation!). 

5. Parks - it's only now that I appreciate the park better. I love our evening walks at the park. There's always a nice breeze everytime we go. 

6. Attractions - we still visit the zoo, the bird park every other year. It's just fun to go and re-visit the zoo. We also visit Universal Studios whenever we have visitors. 

7. Staycation hotels - even before the pandemic our family would go on staycations. It's just nice to get some rest from house chores and explore the city. 

8. Healthcare - ahh this piece has been very important for me, I am only still around because of my amazing doctors.

9. Chinese New Year - CNY here is huge! I'm not really familiar with the traditions for CNY, but there's always a lot of snacks available. A friend explained to me that during CNY they basically have to visit all their relatives and that means endless eating. Ahh, it's very similar to our Christmas that's why I love CNY too. 

10. Church - love going to church here especially during the festive season. We've witnessed also how  they celebrate Christmas, New Year, Mama Mary's occasions, first Holy communion, baptism, Easter etc. 

Since we're going to be here for awhile I've been watching some vlogs of areas I still haven't seen yet. I'll make a list and see what else we could explore and experience in Singapore. 

CB///305 #StuckAtHomeDay/335 #StayHome #BeKind