Been a very relaxing week or so. I have kind of semi started school with the extra lessons for the graduating kids. But it's pretty mild, compared to the intensity during the official school term. Im having a lot of fun with the kids cos I haven't seen them for a while, and it's nice to be teaching once more. It's like the 2 week break recharged me, and Im on full steam again in the classroom.

Aside from the teaching, I am spending the last two weeks of the holidays fruitfully. At least in my opinion. I have been exercising a lot. Doing long runs to prepare for my July run, and to lose the weight gained during the holidays in Australia, going for regular yoga classes down town, shopping at the Mango sale on my own (shopping on your own is the best thing to do in the world. No one to make you stressed and feel bugged. It's so thereaupeutic! And you can go to a gazillion Mango outlets without them giving you the 'Why the hell are we going to the same store over and over again?' Hey! Different Mango outlets actually sell different things ok!). I went for a manicure, and a massage. Met up friends for drinks, dinner, movies, cake, lunches. Met up with Sharifah and baby Mikael and her husband Olivier for dinner and cake as well as lunch last week. Then met up Angela for dinner and drinks at Clarke Quay last weekend. Met another friend over the weekend too and chilled out at the Esplanade and Chijmes. And Im meeting Maya for dinner and gossip fest tomorrow.

So Im a happy camper. I feel very at peace with myself. Im doing a lot of things, both with friends and on my own. My kids are doing great in school. I had a great holiday, both out of and in Singapore. Im happy.

Term 3 looks like it's going to be a crazy term but I'm ready for it! :) Yay!

I'm back from my holidays. It was a gastronomical holiday cos for the first time in my whole life, I did nothing but ate during the whole 2 weeks. And I'm not talking about your normal eating, but fine dining food. I went to a few really top end restaurants and I have never paid so much for food in my whole entire life! But I can see why they charge so much for the food though. The quality and presentation is just wonderful.

Movida, Spanish restaurant

So the crazy expensive eating started in Melbourne. I went to a fine dining restaurant called Movida at Bourke Street. A Spanish restaurant, very popular there. I have been to Meblourne a gazillion times, and for the past 2 trips, we've always wanted to try the tapas there. Always failed cos you need to make reservations 6 mths in advance. But this time round, Jay managed to get us a reservation for 2, and we dressed up and went for an early dinner. $100 meal, and I had some of the best tapas in Melbourne. (That's what the restaurant claims, anyway) I had the scallops, hoki fish, thinly sliced wagyu beef, quail, and rounded off with a pear and chestnut tart. It was yum. Tiny portions which barely filled me, but it was so good.

Maze, by Gordon Ramsay

The 2nd place I went to was Maze, a restaurant owned by Gordon Ramsay. (Crazy, psycho chef from the show Kitchen Nightmares). This place was at the Crown Metropol and it was newly opened. A lot of hype about it, so we decided to try it out. Very, very fine dining, immaculate service, fabulous ambience, food was superb and the prices were crazy exorbitant. We had rabbit, venison, ox tongue and cheeks, quail, salmon, baramundi, salmon and ended off with dessert of a banana cake with pearl barley ice cream. It was so bloody good. Very, very, very small portions (And honestly, I was flabbergasted by the prices that went along with it) but when I tasted the food, it was just amazing. The rabbit and venison were so tender, and the ox was so soft....Yum....:) And the baramundi and salmon just melts in your mouth.....So yeah, that was a $170 meal. Im extravagant. I know.

Bistro Vue, a French restaurant

On my 2nd last day in Melbourne, Nad took me to Bistro Vue, a French restaurant off Little Collins Street. I have never eaten French food, and am really not a fan. But this one was surprisingly nice and pleasant. :) I had the soft shell crab as an appetizer (So crumbly and yum, but seriously, the portions were small. I could have eaten it with 1 mouthful), then the pan seared dory topped with crayfish, and ended off the meal with the chocolate souffle and tea with canales. IT WAS SO GOOD! The souffle was so big and puffy and when they poured the hot molten chocolate into the souffle, it started rising. People were staring at our desserts. LOL! That meal was $150. Insane.

Cafe Rosamond

And on one of those really cold nights in Melbourne, after dinner at a really cosy Japanese restaurant, we booked ourselves a place at Cafe Rosamond off Smith Street. A small cafe tucked in a corner, and could probably just fit about 15 people. We wait for about an hour before our turn, and we had a 3-course dessert, created by the renowned dessert maestro, Pierre Roelof. He only comes in on Thursday nights to this cafe, where they call it a Degustation evening. There's no menu, and we are basically in for a surprise as he concocts different courses every Thursdays. Which makes it so interesting. I had really no idea what I ate, but all I knew that each bite of the 3 course dessert had me and Nad swooning and gushing. It was really a lot of fun. That was a $50 dessert, by the way.

And of course, aside from these extravagant food that I had, I had my favourite breakfasts of strawberry pancakes, scrambled eggs on ciabatta, raisin toast at Degraves Streets as well as my Vietnamese noodles at Swanston Street, and Nandos Chicken. And in Perth, my fish and chips at Freemantle, Yum Cha at Jade Garden restaurant (I ate like a horse here!), cake at Leederville. And these are just the ones that I remembered. :)

It was a really nice break for me. To just be with friends, enjoy the cold weather, and trying out comforting and exciting food with close friends.

For now, it's back to the hustle and bustle of work for me. Term 3 is going to be a crazy term, but Im ready and psyched for it! Oh, and I need to work my ass off at the gym. Shed off the pounds gained during the trip, and to train for my 10km run coming up in July. I dont know why I signed up for 10km. I think I was delirious. Oh well....Good reason to start training up! For now, Im going to bask in the memories of those melt in your mouth dessert......Yum....God, I need to go for a run....