Famous Braised Duck @ JB

Truth be told that I am not a duck lover, I totally cannot stand the taste of Roasted Duck. BUT …

I totally love Braised Duck! Brought a group of friends into JB recently to look for this famous stall that is located near to Sutera Mall (五福城). It’s about 20mins drive towards Skudai after you have crossed over from the Woodlands Causeway.

八哩半大家发鸭肉
(1-B, Jalan Skudai Batu 8.5 (Lee Pineapple) Skudai 81300, Johor Bahru, Johor)

From the shop front, you may discount the food, nothing spectacular or even looked a bit unhygienic for Singapore standards. But one important fact while eating in JB, don’t ever look at the kitchen. You won’t be WOW by it, but the food will be different. At least here, the hygiene is not too bad.

We reached the place slightly after 2:30pm, but still the place is packed with customers enjoying their meals.

The indoor space is very spacious, with a few tables just outside the shop which is also sheltered.

And we ordered the glorious Braised Duck (mixed) which comes with the duck organs, eggs, dofu, etc.

Heaps of braised duck meat! This is enough for 7 adults and 2 children.

Plus the various duck organs. Can you spot the duck tongue?

One special dish to recommend will be the Braised Pig Trotters. This dish is slightly spicy, maybe not too suitable for the kids, but definitely a hit for the adults. It’s so tasty, you can hardly taste the oil or porky taste, can eat on its own.

You can order rice or noodle, and don’t forget to try the drinks, I would recommend Lime Juice or Pineapple Juice.

Good food with awesome company.

Primary Concern

It is almost 3 weeks of school since the beginning of this new academic year. This year Jayne finally stepped into her journey of studies from Primary all the way to University (hopefully). Looking back just a few months back when I just attended her K2 graduation ceremony, I was slightly worried if this little girl would make it in Primary school or not. As compared to her elder sister, Jayne is more willing (fearless at times) in adapting to new environment and things. Talked to a few other parents, made me realized that 2nd born are usually more “garang”.

It might be because Jayne tends to stick to me more than Joey, I had this feeling that she is not ready for Primary school. Plus her small frame really didn’t add much confidence to me. She is still just my 小不点.

Joey on the other hand tends to be a bit more reserved when it comes to trying new things. But I have seen her grew so much in the past 3 years in her Primary school life.Though as parents, they will always stay like a child in our hearts, but Joey has taken her role of an elder sister very well. Maybe it’s in her just like me to be the one who will take charge most of the times. Looking at her, I really see so much of me. She hardly needs us to coach her in her school works, always clear of what to do and bring for school, sometimes I even hear her telling Kless what to do too.

On the first day of school this year, we woke up early to ensure that all the necessary items are prepared. Jayne put on her school uniform and was so eager to go. If I remembered correctly, Joey was not as excited as Jayne 3 years back. Looking at both of the girls in the uniform that is so familiar to me, brings forth a special pride in me. My girls are in Primary School now!

And Joey is a full-fledged Prefect this year. I was a Prefect too =)

My primary concern for both of them is to enjoy school and learn as much as they can. I do wish to be a stressful father,  stressed out with their results and in turn stressed them for performance. I know to survive especially in Singapore, academic results are extremely important, but if a person is bad in character and has no love for others, being the brightest kid really doesn’t matter much. I just want my girls to have lots of friends in school, loved by most of their classmates, have respect for teachers, not afraid to learn, and takes care of one another.

Simple? I don’t know too. Just try lah.

Taipei Family Trip (Part 1)

Finally after 4 months, I have sat down to write this post. After reading a photographer who had this habit of processing his photos only after 3-4 months of the shoot, so as to relive the moments of a photo as a story rather than an event. I have decided to do the same with this trip. Hope you like it.

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This was the most impromptu trip we had all these years. One morning,  Kless chanced upon a super good  deal that was less than $750 all in with taxes, round trip to Taipei, for the entire family plus both mothers, 4 adults and 2 children. So without consulting our family, we booked the tickets. Still thanking God for the amazing deal.

The headache about traveling with a big group and with 2 mothers was to find a suitable accommodation. We didn’t want to book a hotel with separate rooms for everyone, firstly it was the cost issue and secondly, the security concern for our mothers. The next best choice was Airbnb. Thanks to friends who love to travel, we were recommended this awesome apartment in Da’an which has three bedrooms, just suitable for us.

Ann’s House (www.taipeiannhouse.com.tw)

Master bedroom with attached bathroom.

 

Initially I was planning to use this corner as my working space, just right and cosy. But ended up I was out every night eating and shopping and all the work required was done mainly on my iPhone instead.

Two other bedrooms big enough for 2-3 to sleep. One thing good about bringing both mothers along on this trip was the kids get to spend a bit more time with each one of them, sleeping in the same bedroom together. Of course, that leaves me and Kless to enjoy a few nights of couple time too. One stone kills two birds.

 

And a small but fully equipped kitchen for those who would like to prepare some cook food. But my personal conviction in Taiwan is to only eat out.

A family that eats together stays together. On this trip, we tried to stuff ourselves with as much food as possible. And since it was the first trip for my mother (2nd trip for MIL), it will be nice to bring them around to explore all the nice things they have only seen on TV until now.

My mother is a lover of beef and just near our living apartment, we found a local authentic beef noodle stall. The soup base was the killer, I can imagine the owner brewing the soup non-stop with bone stock soup added into the main pot hourly. Which is why the beef is so soft and tender.

I can see that my mother is enjoying the meal despite the slightly oily soup that is not her usual like. Probably what went through her mind were the images of all the pictures she has seen on Taiwanese TV programs. Now that Pa is gone, the joy of seeing that moment of happiness on her face was so rewarding.

We visited the biggest Night Market in Taipei – Shilin Night Market. Although it was totally crowded despite the rain, it was a good feeling for the family to walk through the streets and soak in the night market feel. It didn’t take long for my MIL to start shopping.

Since we just had a late lunch, we didn’t eat much here but still some street food cannot be ignored. Like this amazing clam boiled in white wine and the must have bubble milk tea in Taiwan.

 

Jayne came to Taipei 3 years back with Kless and her family, so on this trip she was proudly telling her older sister and Grandmother about the food and stalls to visit. There is always some jealousy among the siblings, but all in the good spirit.

Rise and shine, the next glorious morning we woke up to try the famous 永合豆浆 which has an outlet just outside our apartment.

We ordered the usual breakfast locals will eat, which was the rice wrapped in egg 蛋包饭. Very tasty but not to the girls’ liking, I think the girls prefer their western brekkie.

 

The second day in Taipei, we have decided to visit Beitou (北投) and Fisherman’s Wharf (漁人碼頭), which are in the northernmost district of Taipei City.

More of our 北投 / 漁人碼頭 story in my next post.

 

This family trip will always be special, given the story that underlies the reason for it. We left Taipei with our stomach tight, wallet light but our hearts full.

Completed our tourists’ itinerary (visited Taipei 101).

Drank a lot of bubble milk tea (different brands and outlets).

 

Ate lots of street food, the famous 阿宗面线.

Pampered ourselves with the best hair salon experience, haircut, massage, styling.

 

 

The story ends in Taipei, but our lives continue as a family.

2016 Resolution

Every new year, I will feel a slight pressure to write out my new year’s resolution. Especially when researches have shown that 92% of people fail to accomplish their goals every year. And statistics show that people who write down their goals have over an 80% higher success rate of achieving them. Hence, I have decided to write down my goals for 2016.

Family
This year, I want to date my girls. Planning a D&D (Daddy & Daughter) project. The idea is to bring one of the girls out on a 1-on-1 date night. Daddy has to be his girls’ first date. Hopefully along the way, I will be able to cultivate a habit for the girls to share with me what goes on in their lives, before they are all grown up and leave the nest.
For the missus, this year we are finally planning a trip to Seoul, and a chance to experience  冬季恋歌.

Ministry
This year will be a year of discipleship. I’m looking forward to the chance to know some of the members in the team a bit more and hopefully have the chance to serve together and even go for an overseas trip.

Friends
2016 will be a year for reconciliation of relationship. There are some friends I have lost in the past few years, hopefully this year we will be able to catch up and rebuild that friendship.
Another group of friends I want to know more is this awesome group of Daddy Bloggers. We have known each other for about 3-4 years, some even longer. But usually we only meet at events we attend, maybe this year we can be a bit more proactive and stay in contact more with side events for our families.

Health
My aim is to stay fit and hopefully complete a 21km run by the end of this year. I am already signed up for a 10km race on 31 Jan, more to come! Beside the run, I am targeting to ‘flatten” my growing tummy.

Social Media
Target to write one blog post every week. So if you are reading this, you can keep me in check and see if I accomplish this goal or not. Last year on Instagram, I did a 365-days of B&W photo series, so this year, I am giving myself a small break and probably do a 52-weeks B&W series instead. So watch out for it!