HHN #8

Hellos everyone! As you all know, it's the Halloween month and this year, I finally went to USS Halloween Horror Nights. It's the eighth edition this year. So glad I could make it for this with the best fun-filled group of friends from sec sch.

I was honestly really tired 'cos it was post-shift, didn't even have time for a nap. -cries- But my energy picked up later on as I thought it would.

There were 5 haunted houses in total:
Killuminati: vampires
Pagoda of Peril: chinese spirit folklore
Pontianak: malay village spirit horror
The Haunting of Oiwa: japanese horror
And last but not least, the most anticipated house of the year thanks to netflix,
Stranger Things : need I explain?

We went on the first weekend of October, and well, of course there were queues. I don't know how the previous years were like, but damn the queues were long. I didn't really catch the waiting time for all the houses, but the stranger things house had us queuing for 100mins (: Thankfully, I didn't feel that the waiting time was as long as I expected it to be. Probably due to talking and joking with friends, which made passing time faster and more enjoyable.

Loads of time to selfie/wefie while queuing kay.

Tips:
-Dress in light and airy clothes because human heat is no joke. 
-Go in big groups of friends, time will pass more enjoyably
-Definitely have even numbers!!

Last tip is because there are so many people and the space in some areas of the house is only enough to fit 2 at once. I have tried going in a trio and it was not good kay. I was at the side and I just kept getting off-balance 'cos I was pushed to the wall by my friend. Well, what are friends for.

There are also scare zones in designated areas. Where you, erm, get scared by them, what else. They'll literally run up to you and scare you in your face hahaha. Most of the time I was just laughing at my friends getting scared and screaming because I'm not the type to scream a lot.

After going through all the houses, we had time to play the mummy and transformers rides!! Also managed to catch one of their horror theatre special called Dead Talks.

I think our time and money there was pretty well spent because we did a lot. We literally went in from the time they opened to their closing time.

!!SPOILER ALERT!!

Skip this if you want the element of surprise when you go

Overall, I find Stranger Things to be the most fascinating house and also the one I felt I spent the most time inside probably because there were so many things to see. I could feel the effort they put into this. I kind of wanted to see more haha. The Haunting of Oiwa has got to be the scariest house for me because it also plays on real-life fears. I can deal with fake ghosts but I can't deal with fake snakes or cockroaches okay. Especially if the lighting is so dark and it keeps moving towards me I can't differentiate real from fake. Oh also I probably replayed too much jap horror shows in my head before entering. The Pontianak house wasn't too bad either. They really set it in a malay village setting and wow I could even appreciate how much effort was put into their makeup. There was this guy sitting half-dead on the floor with his guts spilling out. Other 2 houses didn't leave much impression on me.

My first experience was a good one and I would go back again with enough company but maybe not next year, see how it goes. And that's all for now! See y'all!

Chinatown 50 cents Fest

I heard of this 50 cents fest last year but didn't have the chance to go. This year, I chanced upon it again, and I finally went!!

It was held on the 29th and 30th July, Sat and Sun.

Rewind time: Representing the retrospective element of this year’s Singapore Food Festival, Chinatown Food Street brings back the award-winning ‘The 50 Cents Fest’ event for the second consecutive year running.

"It will ignite visitors’ happiest childhood moments and younger years through heritage recipes prepared by local hawkers, realistic 80s ambience, interactive 80s games, as well as memory jogging sights and sounds."

Visitiors will be able to taste over 40 dishes priced from 50 cents to $2. Some menu items include: Hokkien Rickshaw Noodle, UFO (Fried Oyster Cake), Hakka Abacus Seed, Red Glutinous Wine Chicken, Teochew Ah Balling, Ice Ball and more!

50 cents. Sounds very cheap huh. It only happens once a year. Not sure the about previous year but this year, they held it at the Chinatown Food Street! 

I went there with a ready stomach and expectations. I had to maneuver my way through crowds of people while figuring out which queue was for which stall. It was a little confusing at first, but once I got used to the crowd, the queues started to make sense. If it's still too confusing, just join any queue you see and keep the same person in front of you. You'll eventually get your 1st serving of food like how I did for my oyster omelette. Also known as "Orh Luak". The thought of taking a photo didn't occur to me and it just went into my stomach. Oops.

The 2nd dish I tried was the Char Siew Rice. For foreigners, it's basically pork with rice drizzled in sweet gravy. It looked plain but it was surprisingly tasty. Or was it because I was too hungry? Subsequently, I went on to try the Mee Goreng and Sambal Lala. Also no pics because it was too crowded and I couldn't find a proper place to settle down.

Fret not though, for those who really want seats, Chope was there providing reserved seats for people who actually reserved online! So I guess that's something to look out for next year. Unfortunately, I didn't know about it beforehand so no seats for me hahah. A lesson learned anyway.

Next I tried one of my childhood favourite kueh. I'm not sure what to call it in chinese but watch the clip to see it! It's somewhat like a spongy type of cake eaten with brown sugar?? Yum, reliving childhood.

As you can see, that was a gauge of how crowded it was. I started sweating within 30 mins of being inside. It's no joke, I could feel my sweat running down my back. The heat didn't come from the weather but the people. Thank god there wasn't any sun and the place was somewhat sheltered.

Looking for a food option to cool myself down, I took one look at the Ice Ball queue and decided against it LOL. The Ice Ball is an old representation of Ice Kachang similarly covered in bright syrup colours. Definitely worth an instagram shot but ugh, the queue. Instead, I opted for another options. Rainbow Bread Ice Cream!! Hehe.

So happy I got this I had to snap some photos. Nostalgia... I really forgot how ice cream carts used to sell them in rainbow bread but this brings back the fond memories. Surprisingly, my stomach felt kind of filled and I went for one last dish, Nasi Briyani as shown below.

                                                                         It was not bad!!

The whole time there, I wasn't just hearing people talking, but also singing. You can see it from the video below! They really put in effort to recreate the 1980s atmosphere with old songs. It felt heartwarming when I could actually recognize some of the songs they sang.

Here's a price list of all the items I tried there:

1. Oyster Omelette 50 cents
2. Char Siew Rice 50 cents
3. Mee goreng $1
4. Sambal Lala (small clams) $1
5. Rainbow Bread Ice Cream 50 cents
6. Kueh 50 cents
7. Nasi Briyani $1

Total damage: $5
Time spent: About 2 hours

The crowd wasn't as packed as I envisioned. Each queue took about 15-20 mins on average. I would advise to go down earlier (after 7 would be good too as there seemed to be lesser people at that time) or set aside a good 2 hours at least to try enough food. If you're alone, then definitely be picky with your choices and only go for those that you really want. With company, you can taste more varieties within a shorter amount of time. I was a little disappointed not being able to try their pork bee hoon. Partially because it was situated at a corner that I only discovered while leaving.

Don't worry even if you have no cash. There was a booth for DBS/POSB cardholders to purchase $12 worth of 50 cent coupons by spending only $10! Another thing to look out for if there's a next year! Beware though, it's a long queue for it too. I used what limited cash I had in my wallet to avoid extra time queuing.

Over all, it wasn't so much about the food but the nostalgia I experienced there that didn't give me regrets.Would gladly revisit again next year but with friends. This kind of festival is always better with company, no doubt. I'm sure parents and grandparents would enjoy the atmosphere too. I would also need to bring some sort of fan there next time. Haha!

Fun day out

Hey there! Headed down to Haji Lane again not long after with the intention of going to a café and taking pretty photos. Alas, it failed. Hahaha. Nonetheless, I'm glad I met up with them. Our theme for the day was black & white + snapback!

 

 

 I look like a rose among the thorns. #justsaying

 That's how models pose.

 Let me act step. Got feel? Hahaha.

  

"Eh, got sale! but this one not nice leh!"

Tried to act natural for the camera.

 

 

My head seriously not suited for snapbacks. But oh well!

And these people who took a wefie.

It was extremely warm like always so we aborted our café trip for air-con.

 

And I quote Jacinth:"Awkward elevator photo coz we're scared of being judged." *inserts laughing with tears emoji*

 

  We did accomplish one thing though, good food! Reddo Sushi! I said I'd be back didn't I? They had this set meal promotion going on at only $9.50!

 

 Meli and Jac ordered the same set meal while I went for another one.

 The highlight of this set meal was of course the sashimi! My fav <3

 We all said it was quite filling. I made a good recommendation to them haha. Affordable and I think the price matches well with the food. Thumbs up again!

 

After eating we didn't really know what to do so we ended up at Ksuites which Meli recommended. Nope, you don't need any membership for that and because they have an In-house promotion for students, it's only $12 for 3hrs! Compared to no membership for Kbox... Don't even wanna mention. Had superb loads of fun again! SHOOO HAPPY. "50% singing, 30% laughing, 20% snatching blankets." HAHAHA. Yes, they have blankets! So you don't need to bring extra sweaters.(Though we still felt rather cold) So nice right? Comes with a drink too. And it's only $18 on weekends! *Compares to Kbox again* Just remember to bring your student pass!

 

Headed home and took some more wefies in the MRT. Wished we could've spent the whole day together though I know that's not very possible. Haha.

 

Yeah, you should close up your mouth girl.

So fortunate to have them.

 

Alright, thanks for coming. See you guys soon!