Unlike the many people out there who have done their wedding research, I'm the complete opposite. I got my pre-wedding photoshoot (PWS) package on an impulse. It was just a casual shopping day when the guy suggested for us to take a look at the wedding photography booths since the poster had my favourite flowers on it.

So we voluntarily walked into the trap, and ended up sitting through all the sales talk. When we left the booth, we walked away with a wedding photoshoot package. The guy thought the price of the package was worthwhile, and after trying to google them to read reviews on them and looking through the photos, we selected the first wedding photography company we talked to.

The reason why we both readily agreed to it was also because we fell in love with the photography style. I hated the typical dreamy, cute, romantic, princess kind of wedding photos. And when we saw their portfolio, they had some really cool, dark, MV-kind of photos. And I really liked their oriental look. The 复古风 kind of feel? Also, since we always take our own photos when we are abroad, we wanted something special which we, ourselves, know we can't take.

Last year was eventful with me having to fly to Japan on three occasions and I can't be more grateful to be able to witness the transition from Summer to Autumn. Now that I've finally settled down and have some time, it's time to catch up on my adventures from last year.

I went on a 12 days Japan trip and while I went to some of the same places as I did a few years ago, I skipped out on Mt Fuji. If you're interested to know more about my trip to Mt Fuji, check out my previous post. I'll do up another post on the food gems I've found in Japan but meantime, here's my Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Kanazawa, and Takayama itinerary.

After a month's stay in Prague, I returned to Singapore the day after Christmas. The flight back was approximately 17 hours long, including a transfer at Dubai. The fortunate me had one of my flights bumped up to First Class.



The seat was unfamiliar and the steward was more than willing to explain the seat functions. The personal legroom for First Class was amazing. Similarly to the Business Class, the seat was able to recline flat, perfect for sleeping. The First Class came with a remote controlled privacy door which was lovely because I could sleep in peace without having someone looking over me. The entertainment screen was also significantly bigger. The drinks bar was also remote controlled but the drinks selection was similar to what you get in Business Class.

I think what was the most surprising thing I experienced in First Class was the ability to have a hot shower on board. The bathroom was huge and beautiful, and came with showering capabilities. There was a need to book a timeslot to use the shower spa though. Also, there was a limited 5 minutes usage of water so you can't simply waste too much of the water in the showers.

Honestly, I felt really pampered and had a really amazing experience on board with Emirates. If you would like to have a sneak peak into my flight experience, here's a short video :)

Perth has her Swan Valley and Sydney has her Hunter Valley. Hunter Valley is Australia's oldest wine region and is home to lots of good wine and good food. It's a three hours drive from Sydney and there's a straight highway that leads you there. I visited Pokolbin, a quaint little town in Hunter Valley. Unfortunately, I did not manage to get an accommodation there as I booked my holiday only a month before. Also, as I visited Hunter Valley in Winter, most of the vineyards were barren and I was definitely missing out on the hot air balloons - a common sight in Hunter Valley. I made a booking a day in advance over at Cafe Enzo for lunch after reading the rave reviews on TripAdvisior. Cafe Enzo was also situated right next to the wine cellars I wanted to visit. We were a little late on our schedule because we were stuck in a slow traffic while bypassing another town in Hunter Valley. I phoned in to make changes to my reservation and the staff was courteous. I'm a budget traveler but I could not miss out on tasting some of the best foods in Hunter Valley. Cafe Enzo is set in a Tuscan inspired village, picturesque from every angle. It overlooks a vine yard and a pond. Even though it was winter, the weather was a perfect 25 degree Celsius, which made it perfect for al fresco dining. I had the linguine with tiger prawns while my partner had the smoked lamb with mushroom risotto. Both were truly amazing and the ingredients used were really fresh. We both agreed that we would definitely return to Cafe Enzo the next time we visit Australia.

We began our wine tasting tour after the sumptuous lunch. I handpicked wine cellars from reviews across the Internet and narrowed it down to three, Tyrell's Wine, Scarborough Wine Co, and McGuigan Wines.
My favourite was Scarborough Wine Co. The service was excellent and I had a really fun time tasting the wine and the staff was knowledgeable and approachable. We ended up spending most of our travel baggage wine limit from there. Do note that there is a wine limit that you can bring back to Singapore. Out of all three wine cellars, only Tyrell sold travel bags for the wine. Here I'm tasting a Shiraz from Tyrell. However, Hunter Valley is well-known for her Semillon. Semillon is a dry and sweet white wine made of golden skinned grapes. We ended up opening a bottle during one of our dinners at Byron Bay and it was so good. Scarborough Wine Co has the perfect backdrop for photo taking. It would have been much better if it wasn't winter, but I'm not complaining because the weather on that day was perfect. I never had to put on my jacket throughout the entire day. Some of the wine cellars do charge for wine tasting. I do know that Tyrell and McGuigan don't but I can't be sure for Scarbourough because we ended up buying lots of wine from them. Also, Hunter Valley is home to chocolate and cheese tasting. We did not make it in time for the chocolate but the cheese tasting do charge. Next stop: Byron Bay!

Periods.

We all know the struggles. We all hate periods. It's the time of the month when you just wanna hide under the sheets and not move.

In the old days, pads never existed. Women have to make their own "pads". It's made off a plastic sheet that is pretty much shaped like our pads these days. The plastic material will prevent spillage onto the garments. A paper-like material will be sewn onto the plastic sheet to help in the absorption. And women would just tie the plastic sheet onto them.

And then we have sanitary pads. Absorbent and thin. I have no complaints with sanitary pads except on heavy days when I have to wear really thick ones that made me feel like I'm wearing a diaper.

I bought myself a menstrual cup recently, after months and months and years of deliberation. I've read about menstrual cups and was always curious about it. When we were kids going through puberty lessons, nobody mentioned about menstrual cups. It was always sanitary pads, or tampons.

So what's a menstrual cup?

A menstrual cup is normally made of silicone and shaped like a bell. It is to be worn inside and it captures fluids. It's reusable and can be worn overnight and in the day.

There are many brands of menstrual cup but I'm using Mooncup and loving it to bits. There has been a kickstarter on Looncup which basically contains a sensor to let you know when the cup is going to be filled, which is a brilliant idea imo. Why didn't I come up with the idea first?

How do you use it?

There are two ways of inserting it in. You can either fold it into a u-shape or fold the top inwards. I usually fold it inwards but it's up to individual's preferences. It takes some getting used to it but I've realised that the cup generally fits itself comfortably. All I did was just to push it in and the moment it flaps open, I'll just leave it where it is and it'll find its own comfort spot.

Always wash your hands before using the cup. The instructions state to boil the cup before the first use. I like to boil it after every cycle to keep it clean.

I only have one cup so whenever I'm in the washroom, I'll take it out to give it a rinse. No issues there. Is it difficult to take it out? A little. It took me quite a while to finally master the skill because of the suction the cup has.

How's it like using a menstrual cup?

It took me 2 cycles to get used to using the Mooncup. There's a steep learning curve but once you get the hang of it, you'll never look back.

There is hardly any feel when you are wearing the Mooncup. Sometimes, I forget that I'm on my period and that I'm wearing it. Happens a lot more often when I'm just about waking up.

What are the benefits?

1. It's really comfortable and you don't feel a thing. Pads are just really annoying and uncomfortable.

2. It allows you to swim. I've went into the sea with it and its's perfectly fine.

3. It doesn't leak. I'm always afraid it will leak but apparently, once you master how to insert it properly, it's leak proof.

4. It's environmentally-friendly. It's reusable which means it reduces the amount of waste (pads) you throw away after each use.

5. It's money-saving. As it's reusable, it'll be a lot more affordable in the long run as compared to buying pads.

Will you go back to using a pad?

No.

I read a review on a lady who talked about how the cup changed her perception of periods entirely. It felt a little exaggerated because it doesn't seem to be powerful enough to change one's negative perception of periods into a positive experience. However, after using it, I finally understood what she meant.

It's a far cry to say it made me change my perception of periods into positive but it certainly removed the dreadfulness of periods.

I would highly recommend ladies to switch over to the cup.

I love London. It's a cultural melting pot. And that makes the food in London amazing because you can get all kinds of food in this city. However, it can be pricey to eat in London but here are some of the better deals and food you can get in this beautiful city.

The Breakfast Club

33 D'Arblay Street The Breakfast Club is so popular among tourists that you have to queue for at least an hour and half to get a table. On the both occasions when I visited the branch in Soho, the service was quick. However, the interior is really small and cramped, which might have contributed to the long queues. The food was good. It’s the perfect way to start a weekend morning. However, I wouldn't queue another hour and half for the place again. Once is enough.

Flat Iron

17 Beak Street
Another place in Soho. A good friend of mine recommended this place. The deal with this place is that they serve pretty good steak for only £10. £10 may not be really cheap when you convert it into Singapore currency but it's going to be hard to find a place this decent to beat the price.

Patty and Bun

54 James Street I visited this place on two occasions. It's just right outside Liverpool station which makes it really convenient. The place is really tiny but they serve up really delicious burgers. I've heard of the long queues forming outside this place but on both occasions, I must have been really lucky. They also have a vegetarian option on the menu.

Four Seasons

12 Gerrard St | 84 Queensway
The only Asian food on this list. Famous of their roast duck, it has been crowned "Best Roast Duck in the world". I get that Singaporeans don't really opt for Asian food when they're overseas in an angmoh country. However, after a week of travelling, our Asian mouths were dying and screaming for some rice. A fellow Singaporean recommended this place to us.

They actually have two branches in Chinatown itself which we went to one day after another. That was how good it was, or rather we really missed rice. During my 5 months stay in London, I also visited the other branch in Bayswater, which was within walking distance from the station.

They've recently opened a branch in Singapore so I guess you can always give this a miss if you're on a tight schedule. However, if you are ever craving for some Asian food, keep this place at the back of your heads.

Burger & Lobster

Harvey Nichols Knightsbridge | 36-38 Dean Street Keeping the best for the last. If you can only have one meal in London, this is it. The highly raved Burger & Lobster serves only 3 dishes. Lobster (grilled or steamed), lobster roll, and a burger. Each costing £20. What? That's almost $42! Hold your horses. You'll have to understand in London, £20 is the norm for a meal in London. So instead of spending it on any other meal, why not eat a lobster? Besides, a lobster meal at Pince and Pints cost a lot more than £20.

Be prepared to wait really really long for this place. If you don't want to wait, come before the dinner crowd. Also, avoid the branch in Soho because that's going to be really crowded. I would personally recommend the steamed lobster over the grilled because it's juicer.

I love Korean fried chicken wings and can never have enough of them. Decided to drop by Tanjong Pagar and visited Twins Korean Restaurant for some fried chicken wings and beer the other day. Apparently their specialty is their ice-cream beer which we gave a miss because the hite beer was on promotion.
The place was quiet for a Saturday afternoon, which made the ambience really welcoming. We had an enjoyable lunch with fast service.
We had the Soy & Garlic and Yangnyum chicken wings which blew our minds. They were finger licking good and literally left us licking our fingers after indulging in the wings. And you definitely can't go wrong having beer with anything, what more fried chicken wings. We left Twins with tummies, feeling satisfied with the meal. I don't normally do up a food blog post but this place was really good and left me lingering.

So I caught the Jersey Boys preview at Marina Bay Sands on the 18 November.

Jersey Boys was AMAZING.

They blew me off my seat the whole two and half hours. The performers put on such a terrific show that I don't think I could ever forget the two and half hours I spent in the theater.

"JERSEY BOYS is the story of Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons: Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi. This is the story of how a group of blue-collar boys from the wrong side of the tracks became one of the biggest American pop music sensations of all time. They wrote their own songs, invented their own sounds and sold 175 million records worldwide - all before they were thirty."

Definitely worth the time to watch!!! 

My off days are the most precious days of my life now. It's a time when I can sit down, rest and get back on the internet. It's also a time when I can go out gallivanting around.

So boyfriend and I went to the Zoo :)



Clearly, the most interesting thing we saw in the zoo was to observe how the chimpanzees interact with their environment.

Here's how the chimpanzee get its fruits to eat.



The fruits are stuck in this weird container!



So the only possible way of taking it out is to poke a branch in its tiny opening.



And drag it out of the maze.



Or rather, pushing it out to the other side of the container where the opening lies.



And when the chimpanzee finally managed to get the fruit out, another little chimp came in and tried to steal the fruit.



So they fought over it.



But the bigger chimpanzee doted on the smaller one.



So he decided to give the fruit to the small chimp and get another one for himself.



The older chimpanzee just sat on top of the rock, trying to drink the water out of the hole using another branch.

Clearly, after observing them for 15 minutes, I realised how intelligent these creatures are. How they made use of things in their environment to get the food and water they needed.

Moving on to the next animal, the beautiful and colourful butts.



This baboon has a really colourful butt that looks like its face.



Blue, red, yellow... You name it.



Its face has as many colours as it butt.

Boyfriend and I concluded that it was probably a way to keep predators away from them. When your butt looks like your face, it will make predators mistaken your butt for your face.

The second pretty butt in the zoo goes to the red butt baboon.



I R baboon!!



A whole family of the baboons.



Another interesting sight of monkeys helping each other pick insects off their bodies.



The spider monkey posing for the camera!! :)



And the adorable orang utan being held by the zoo keeper walking along the path.

Can I have a pet monkey already? :(

Next, here's some of the interesting animals we saw!



My absolute favourite animal of all time, the white tiger! It gave me the chills when it looked straight into my eyes.

I'm upset that they don't have any other tigers in the zoo other than the white tiger though.



The kangaroo will always be one of my favourite animals :) I have a soft spot for Australian animals.



Hmmm. I forgot the name of this. Anteater?



I know zebras are like well known for their strips. But on a close look, their strips look so fake, yet beautiful at the same time.



I'm constantly amazed at this long necked animal.



This is one really really huge animal. And the most lasting impression it gave me was when it swam past me, it was releasing its waste. A horrible image I can never remove from my memory.



The beautiful crane which happened to just land on some random place.




And the amazing dragons in the zoo.

The most boring animals were:



The crocodile while was in the water like a log. It didn't even move an inch, just lying there in the water.



The giant tortoise. Really gigantic! I've never thought tortoises could be so huge.

Well, the Singapore Zoo was definitely a really interesting place. I'm just glad to see none of the animals in cages. It would break my heart to see them in cages.

I liked how I actually exchanged eye contact with some of my favourite animals! Yes yes, the white tiger was looking at me as he patrolled the edge of the rock, probably thinking of a way to get to the other side of the moat to pounce on me.

The chimpanzees definitely stole the day. They were lively and full of energy. It was nice seeing them mingle around, snatching for food, and learning ways to get the water out of the rock.