Tea Break At Colbar

After a late breakfast on Saturday, I opted not to go home despite the drowsy rainy weather. Instead, we drove to Colbar for tea break.

This is the cover of their rather flimsy menu.

Colbar, or Colonial Bar, is located in the middle of nowhere, aka Wessex Village, next to a bunch of new buildings that had sprung up over the past few years.

Despite the encroaching urban sprawl, Colbar remains relatively green and still retains much of its rustic nature. My dad's been coming here since the 70's and he reports that it still holds some of its olden day charm. That's pretty rare for any place in Singapore.

We sat by the little garden which was flooded from the rain and watched the water drip from the plants.

The main seating area is nice and spacious with high ceilings.

Within a few minutes of sitting down, I had gotten two mosquito bites. Yerrrkk!

I think part of the reason why this place is frequented more by foreigners and less by locals is that, what you see in the photo above- a plain cheese sandwich and a small cup of hot Milo, costs $6.50.

In a regular kopitiam (coffeeshop) elsewhere, this should only cost about $2.50 max.

I told Jerry that after all, we're really paying for rental, not the food...

Another thing my dad once told me- old houses in Singapore used to have windows and window grills that looked like this. His own bedroom used to have window grills like this too. It must be very nostalgic for him despite the steep price hike in teh tarik here.

Altogether, we had a nice time just relaxing outdoors in the cool weather. 

Lazy Saturday At Kampong Bahru & Sembawang

A few Saturdays ago, Hani and I went to check out this cafe called Stranger's Reunion along Kampong Bahru.

Yeseul told me about this cafe which she wanted to try, but can't because she's in Seoul now. 

We finally arrived along Kampong Bahru after getting lost in the maze of exits at Outram MRT.

The air was so hot, I was melting under my umbrella. 

Walked down a lovely corridor towards our destination.

And we made it!

It's too bad that I'm not a coffee drinker. Reading this sign actually kind of made me feel like I came to the wrong place.

Going to Stranger's Reunion on a Saturday afternoon was an entirely bad idea... 

The small cafe was filled to the brim and Hani and I weren't thrilled with the idea of having to share a small coffee table with two other people, especially since the table and chairs were really low, making for an uncomfortable seat.

Quietly, we escaped into the back alley. 

It was like a secret world back there. 

After some wandering around, we finally decided on the first cafe we had spotted on the way in.

It looked relatively empty, which made me suspicious. Still, the promise of air-conditioning proved more enticing than the idea of walking around for another fifteen minutes.

Yes! An empty cafe!

We found out later that the reason for OKP being so empty as compared to Stranger's Reunion, is that the place just opened for business in February.

Much of their lunch menu is already pre-made, so we weren't able to get any food "fresh" from the kitchen.

Cafe by day, bar by night.

Hani ordered a salmon omelette sandwich. She said it wasn't bad.

My interesting concoction of clam chowder, tomato and corn soup arrived in a a paper cup. 

It was actually a lot more delicious than I expected. The tomato soup goes well with clam chowder. Idea for home cooked meals!

I ordered a chorizo omelette sandwich and it was an utter letdown. I don't know how you can actually mess up an omelette, but they did. It was overcooked in the way my 7 year old brother would overcook an omelette on his second try.

From Kampong Bahru, we cabbed to one my favourite corners in Singapore.

It's my favourite because the area is very secluded and therefore accessible only on wheels or an untiring pair of legs.

Saw this interesting table inside the bar. I thought it looked really familiar. Then I realised they're the same ones we used in D&T classes!

Soooo hipster it's ridiculous.

Handlebar is called Handlebar, because it's themed as a bar for motorbike riders/lovers. It's usually frequented by foreigners who love this sort of thing.

We sat under one of the big shelters outside.

Handlebar sits right on the edge of Singapore. Sometimes my phone connection gets a bit wonky since Malaysia is right on the opposite side.

Next to Handlebar is the Sembawang PCN. 

You'll find Chinese and Thai people clamming here when the tide is low.

I can't believe Hani and I actually walked the entire PCN back to civilisation. Under normal circumstances, it would have taken me about fifteen minutes to skate out to the main road.

Thankfully, the sun was already setting as we made our way out along the canal.

I had a beautiful time. Won't mind repeating this again someday!

Capi Capi Loom Loom (Rilakkuma Cafe)

While I was sitting in the Hello Kitty Cafe, I wondered if there was a Rilakkuma Cafe in Seoul as well. A quick search on Google showed that the answer was a big fat YES. 

So, dazed with excitement, I wolfed down what was left of my chocolate cake (blah, who cares about Hello Kitty Cafe?!) and rushed on over to Sungshin Women's University Station.

I found the directions online from this girl's blog.

Capi Capi Loom Loom Cafe has a tiny entrance and it's tucked away between two more prominent-looking shops, so it's easy to miss. 

I can't tell you how excited I was when I walked in through the entrance and saw all this lovely Rilakkuma stuff!

The cafe is located in the back of the shop.

There are cosy corners, low tables, and Rilakkumas sprinkled everywhere.

Here's a cute wall with (I assume) polaroids from some customers.

Welcome to Capi Capi Loom Loom!

I loved every bit of this cafe! Went back there three times during that week alone. 

The second time I went, I went with my mom.

Here is her "I'm so unimpressed" face.

How can so much cuteness exist on a wall?

If someone buys this hat for me, I may wear it... in my dark room... before I go to bed.

The furnishings are simple and give off a very "cabin in the woods" feel. 

The hot chocolate is whatever, but the cheesecake is NAICE. It was frozen and tasted more like ice cream when I ate it, which is also very nice. It's probably the same kind of cheesecake as the one you can get in 7-Eleven. But just because it's served in the Rilakkuma Cafe, it tastes a million times better. 

The third time I went, I brought Hyoju with me. She was utterly in love with the place as I was.

We were frantically taking photos of EVERYTHING. 

I took more photos, even though it was my third time there already.

Who can resist Rilakkuma's big fat head?

Sooo adorable.

And this is what I ended up lugging back with me to Singapore.

A 70cm tall Rilakkuma, bedroom slippers, and a cute pink mug. All for just under SGD$100.

YAYYYYYY!