Marché des Gourmands

Sometimes it's important to stop and smell the flowers.

Or the artichokes. These ones were the size of small durians.

And even if you don't try, you will smell the cheese. Oooh affiné. (Thank you here to google's strong reluctance to accept my accent égu.)

Anyway, there are a lot of good things to eat in France, and I didn't have the time or space to eat them all.

But I did eat a lot of the above. And I still am.

In France you get too into your food and start taking pictures with it.

Food and Eater photography is not yet an appreciated art.

I brought a few small things home so that Barry could also savour the saveur.

Obviously, Singapore is not so freaked-out about the importation of stinky cheese. The one on the bottom right leaked in my suitcase ever so slightly. There should be a better food word there. Oozed? Seeped? Wept?

Finally, above is the result of my 15 minute discussion with the saucissier. Boar, lean pork, and chorizo.

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Gender Bending and Blending

Not much is new here, but Barry recently went backless to a party.

I went hairy, but my moustache melted later.

In other news, scallops with melty goo made Barry do his focus eating thing.

Then we were inspired by Japanese chili plum wine. Who isn't?

Barry was inspired enough to begin martini making at home. This is the MaliBarrytini.

This is the Barry's Chocolate Orange.

And this one, made with cilantro, is just named Barryuary, after Barry's favourite fictional month.

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Cemetery Past

Why is this bird angry? It has more to do with exhumation than iphones, I think.

Welcome to Bukit Brown cemetery, the first ancient site we've found since 2009.

Bukit Brown was discovered and researched by my tiny parents, shown here.

Some graves are a tad overgrown.

This nature allows for a lot of birds and wildlife not often seen in Singapore.

Many graves were from during the Japanese occupation in WW2. I suspect the grave carving was not actually done during the war, though.

Many graves are being exhumed for the expansion of a road. You can register your relatives' graves somehow, in support of a new resting place for them I think.

In preparation for her new home, this woman has a new pair of earrings, it seems. Intriguing.

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Engrish Matching

Sometimes it can be hard to match your Engrish shirts to the occasion. Here, I show you how. The above shirt is about joy and peace. So it's appropriate to wear during your picnic in the sakura cherry blossoms.

Some Engrish has very specific uses. This gender bender works well for a costume party.

Feeling like you don't fit in?

That is the sentiment expressed in this shirt. Half-bunny head can help you get over it.

Got a headache?

Probably time for a Coffee Addict shirt!

Feeling abandoned?

Let your Engrish encourage you!

Experimenting with fashion?

Have your shirt express this.

The shirt below is obviously very sporty.

Appropriate perhaps for a Japanese baseball game.

Here you can also fit in by having a balloon and releasing it at the right time.

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A Thirst for Sake

We learnt how sake was made in the past.

Some of it involved magic.

Other parts involved footwear made of ropes.

For us, part of it involved getting lost, and having the ramen lady guide us like this.

What's important is that sake is made in big barrels, under harsh conditions, with risks of falling in.

And this is called Koshiki!

I am not sure if the good or the bad stuff ends up in this hole.

Finally, tasting and judgement! With this man who befriended Catherine. Why he was hanging out at a sake brewery with a trumpet we do not know. We were too busy tasting, and trying not to offend the sake master through inappropriate ice usage.

Catherine is shown here choosing quantity over quality.

After the tasting, time for resting.

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