One Republic’s Apologize (Cover by EN-X)

Can’t wait for them to shoot videos of their originals! I’m not being biased or anything, but seriously, they have awesome stuff! XD

Jeff, our flatmate, bought a spanking new Playstation 3 and a Rock Band set the other night, and it has succeeded in keeping us up ’til the wee hours of the morning.

I’m no musician. I went to piano school for about two to three years in my younger years, but the keys never really had the patience with me. A family friend also attempted to teach me to play the guitar in the middle of my High School years, but I had a difficult time with that and I never really got around to completing a song (yes, not even one!). Another family friend also taught me a few beats on the drums a few years ago, and even if I could keep up with a few songs, I was just never excellent at it. It’s pretty ironic that my boyfriend is a drummer, right? And here I am, with very-little-bordering-on-nothing-at-all talent in music. And did I mention that I’m no good in singing either? Yep. I am part of that 5% of Filipinos who croak when they attempt to sing. Lol!

Don’t get me wrong. I always wished I was musically inclined. I did have dreams of being a rock star when I was younger too. But I guess rock and I are just not meant to be. I’ll stick to just enjoying and loving music.

Thank goodness for Rock Band though. I’m actually getting better at both the drums and the guitar/bass. Okay, so I always keep the level down to Easy, and I have to admit that my fingers freeze in the middle of the song from time to time, but I’m happy to say that I’m progressing. I like living my rock star dreams through the game. Because really, that’s just how far I can make those childhood dreams come true!

Now I just have to deal with my fingers going numb and my feet aching from time to time. I doubt that it’ll progress to anything serious like Plantar Fasciitis, so I will keep up with the beat until we actually get sick of playing! =P

I enjoy finding and trying out new places to eat (I should really detox and maybe try out a colon cleanse for all the belly abuse!), and I admit that I’ve done very little of that since I moved to Singapore. Last Saturday was a treat, because JR and I had lunch with two of his band mates after their interview one block away.

Our pit stop: Fishermen’s Wharf along New Bridge Road (right in front of Central Mall/Clarke Quay MRT). I was ecstatic to try it out. I spotted its front sign from across the street just a few hours earlier, and made JR promise that we come back to dine there one day. He had already tried the food there before, and gave a pretty positive feedback, which is why I happily agreed when Alvin (their band’s singer) suggested the place for lunch that very same day.

Nestled among a row of shop houses, Fisherman’s Wharf has a floor space of two units combined. Despite the visible stairs towards the back of the place, only the first floor is actually available for diners. Still, the tables and seats spread out across the space, including in front of the restaurant for those who want to dine alfresco, seemed sufficient enough.

Furnished with simple wooden plank table tops and cushioned stools, the atmosphere brings a nostalgia of dining only meters away from the beach. I liked the rustic feel. One wall, decorated with a mural of the seaside (with men fishing in the background), supplemented my day dreaming of actually being by the water. All that was missing was the feeling of sand between my toes, and it would’ve really felt like being there!

The only drawback is sweating while dining. The place is poorly ventilated with no air conditioner and only several ceiling fans available. Not too wise, considering Singapore’s hot and humid weather. Yes, the heat really does bring out the seaside ambiance, but better ventilation would be more appreciated for a genuinely comfortable dining experience.

With the restaurant being self-service, one has to order and pay at the counter, find a table, and wait for the food to be served. And considering the supposed poor/lack of service, it was surprising that our orders were served with very little waiting time. But then again, the place wasn’t packed (only 3 other tables were occupied at the time), so I’m not sure how fast they really are during peak hours.

The menu generally has one main dish: Fish and Chips (they do claim to have the best authentic Fish ‘n’ Chips in town). Except, there’s a variety of fish to choose from, and you also have the option of either french fries (pre-manufactured fries, which are fried… stays crispy) or chips (fresh potatoes, skinned, cut, blanched and fried) on the side. With the price ranging from as low as SGD7.50 (for the Cream Dory Fillet) to as high as SGD19.50 (for the North Atlantic Cod Loin), I say that it’s pretty reasonable.

JR and I both ordered the Baltic Sea Salmon Fillet: Fried a la Meuniere (only sifted in flour, no batter) for SGD12.50 each. He opted for the french fries (which he didn’t touch anyway because he’s on a low-carb diet), while I the chips. I was surprised by the very generous serving; In our baskets were two huge slices of salmon! It was only then that I noticed the menu that clearly stated that one order was already good to share.

The salmon was cooked to perfection; Crispy on the outside and soft and juicy on the inside. The creamy texture of the fish topped with the tangy tartar sauce was a treat to the palate. My chips went all soggy (they did have a warning about that in their menu), so I munched on JR’s crispy french fries instead. And of course, drizzling lots and lots of malt vinegar (having fish ‘n’ chips is never complete without the vinegar!) over the fish and fries made the entire meal a winner.

In the end, despite the shine and oil that suddenly appeared on my face (it was that hot!), I was satisfied with the whole dining experience. From the scrumptious fish to the generous servings, I left the place with a delighted palate and a very full and happy belly.

Next time, I shall try their other fish varieties.

They had a huge concert back in Manila a month after I moved Singapore. It was disappointment at its best, because I told myself that I wouldn’t miss them play if they came to Manila after I missed the Maroon 5 concert (they’re also one of my favorites) a few months earlier. Going back home just for the concert was not even an option, so I resorted to listening (and reading) to friends share their concert experiences. In the end, I was even more jealous.

I had forgotten about the missed opportunity of seeing them live, when the biggest surprise came just two days after we arrived back from our Manila trip; Lifehouse performing in Singapore! JR didn’t even have to ask me if I wanted to go, because he bought us tickets before I even found out about the whole performance. I was in the middle of an afternoon nap and was still half asleep when JR sent me a text message about it. I got up so fast that I almost fell off the bed (oh my dear life, time to check out life insurance rates, perhaps?).

So, how was my Lifehouse experience, you may ask?

FANTASTICALLY MIND-BLOWING!

October 4, 2008: Lifehouse at St. James Powerhouse.

With a few friends and Jeff, our housemate, we walked to the concert venue from Vivo City 45 minutes prior to the gate opening. Before we could even get 100 meters from the front door, we were already greeted by a long line of people. Apparently, the line started when a few people arrived 3 to 4 hours earlier. Intense! It was hot and humid, but I didn’t mind having to wait in line. I was able to meet friends of friends, who happened to be the same people JR and I ended up standing with at the concert itself, as well as seeing id in line.

Waiting in line and standing at the exact place that we were was also a bonus, because the bus that transported the band to the back entrance drove passed us. Okay, so they passed everyone that was in line, but what made it more worth it was when Jason Wade and the rest of the band looked out the balcony that was right above us. He gave a quick wave and hello with his wide smile, making our little group shriek (yes, we sounded like young High School girls!) in delight! We were all too slow to whip out our cameras to be able to capture the moment, so I took a shot of the balcony instead. =P

By the time we got inside, it was already half past seven in the evening. The club, not the best place for holding quite an amount of people (it had a bad layout for a concert venue with posts in the middle blocking several views of the stage), was already jam packed. We stood way back near the bar (where id and I were able to exchange a few stories), before moving to the VIP corner (again, thanks to our connections!). Our friends settled up to the VIP area, while JR and I decided to just stay below, for a better view.

Just before eight, my world almost stopped when the band finally walked on stage!

The Set List:

1. Make Me Over
   “I’m losing myself just to find a place in your mind.” The crowd wasn’t as fired up as I hoped with this opening number. I didn’t know the entire lyrics of the song, but managed to remember the chorus, and sang along while I could.
   
   
2. Spin
   The transition to this song was awesome, because I didn’t even realize that they were already playing the second song until Jason actually started singing the first line! Finally, the crowd (or at least on our side) was all hyped up, jumping around and singing along.
   
   
3. Am I Ever Gonna Find Out
   Not one of the most popular Lifehouse songs, which I guess is why the crowd became rather silent.
   
   
4. Simon
   After three upbeat songs, the band took it a little slower and softer with this song, bringing the crowd singing again. The funny thing was that while I was taking a video of this song, I realized that my camera’s lens was dirty (which explains why dozens of the photos I took beforehand were blurry!). I had to cut the video short so I could clean my lens! Watch the video on my youtube.
   
   
5. Hanging By A Moment
   This was when the crowd went wild. The song, being the band’s claim to fame single, had everyone singing from start to finish! Video from my camera here.
   
   
6. Blind
   This was the perfect song right after Hanging By A Moment, as it kept the crowd alive. Again, everyone sang from start to finish. One of my favorite songs of the night! I was able to take a video, but I had to cut it short, because one of the security guys told me off (and 3 others) for recording the performance (but you can guess what I, and the others who also got told off, sneakily did a few songs after that. =P.
   
   
7. Somebody Else’s Song
   “Ive Never been this lonely, Ive never felt so good, I Can’t be the only one misunderstood”
   
   
8. From Where You Are
   The crowd goes quiet again as the band gave the crowd a chance to just enjoy listening to them with this slow song.
   
   
9. Bridges
   The right side of the stage where Bryce, the bassist, stood was blocked from our view (because of the big column smack in the middle!), so there was a quick exchange of puzzled looks from our crowd when someone started singing while Jason was obviously far away from his own mic stand. It turned out to be Bryce, who sang the entire song. It was a fresh change hearing one of the other band members singing.
   
   
10. Better Luck Next Time
    The band rocking it again. JR and I were staring at Rick, the drummer, the entire time. He was so good! JR was so inspired that as soon as we arrived home, he headed straight to his electronic drums to practice! XP
    
    
11. Whatever It Takes
    She said “If we’re gonna make this work, You gotta let me inside even though it hurts. Don’t hide the broken parts that I need to see.” She said “Like it or not it’s the way it’s gotta be, You gotta love yourself if you can ever love me.” My favorite and most awaited song of the night!!! Again, the crowd is alive and singing! And I did say that I did something sneaky, right? Over here! I just couldn’t help myself. The whole recording is a bit of a mess, with the camera pointing to the ceiling in some parts. That’s because I was discreetly recording it, trying not to get caught at the same time! Lol!
    
    
12. You and Me
    A second or two into the intro and the crowd goes wild again! Some hands were up in the air, and a couple of cellphones too. This song made me want to cuddle up into JR’s arms. “I don’t know why, I can’t keep my eyes off of you.” <3 Video, again a bit rocky (still trying not to get caught! =P), here.
    
    
13. First Time
    “Maybe I’m wrong, I’m feeling right, Where I belong with you tonight, Like being in love to feel for the first time.” This song has been playing again and again in my head since the concert, which is why I used part of its chorus as my title. The crowd gets more alive with Jason screaming out “Singapore” before the end of the song. A perfect finale, only it wasn’t really over. Our side of the crowd started clapping and shouting out for an encore, and soon enough the entire audience joined in.
    
    

Encore:

1. Storm
   Surprisingly, only Jason came out with his guitar in tow, and that gave away this next song. It was a treat just having his guitar and no other musical instrument in the background, as it highlighted Jason’s strong and husky voice which I truly love. I enjoyed singing along with the crowd too. Video here.
   
   
2. Disarray
   The rest of the members come back on stage, with the audience cheering them on. They were meant to sing just one more song, but they were feeling the crowd’s excitement, so Jason promised two more. I jumped and sang along with my side of the crowd, enjoying every minute of it.
   
   
3. Broken
   I was anxiously waiting for this song, and was blown away by how they were able to bring out a powerfully grandiose sound from an otherwise mellow song. The extended ending truly rocked the house down as the perfect finale. I absolutely loved it, and managed to voice that out by screaming and cheering on ’til the last note was played. I was literally on cloud nine! Video here (cut-off at the end, because my camera ran out of memory).

The experience made me fall in love with Lifehouse even more, and the concert is now mentally listed as one of my favorites ever (now at par with the Janet Jackson and the two Michael Jackson concerts I watched back in Brunei). Everything, from Jason Wade’s singing to the band’s instruments, to the sound and lighting engineers, was excellent. Even the spot where we stood, blocked view included, was just perfect, as it blended us with other Lifehouse fans who sang along with us to every single song! The small venue (I’m guessing the entire audience was under 500) also made the entire performance more intimate, as felt with the band’s interaction with the crowd. They really took the time to engage with us.

It was truly one of the best nights of my life!

And now I leave you with a few photos:

Ready to rock the crowd.

You could really tell that he sang the songs with all his heart and soul.

I love this photo of Jason Wade.

Rick Woolstenhulme Jr. on Drums. Drummers are generally hard to photograph, which explains why I have very little shots of Rick.

Bryce Soderberg on bass. He was awesome! And I didn’t know he could sing too.

Australian guitarist, Ben Carey. He’s been touring with Lifehouse.

Awesome lighting effects.

Jason engaging with our side of the audience.

I love Jason’s expression in this photo!

The band after their finale. <3

More photos in my flickr and multiply.

Videos on my youtube.

—

P.S. A Belated Happy Birthday to Bestest! Check out her spanking new blog! =)

I love Cosmopolitan and Preview. They kept me company on lazy days off from my previous work. Actually, they also kept me company at work too. And since I have a lot of free time at the moment, I have been craving for my magazines.

Considering that I can’t exactly get my Cosmo and Preview Philippines all the way here, I have opted to find local alternatives. It wasn’t too hard to find, actually.

From Cosmopolitan Philippines to Cleo Singapore:

And from Preview Philippines to Female Singapore (thanks to Phoebe for the tip!):

I have to say that both Cleo and Female fit and meet my glossy mag criteria. Cleo, just like Cosmo, covers everything from fashion, beauty (makeup, acne treatment — not that I have acne problems, etc.), health and fitness, as well as love and relationships. On the other hand, Female scores a little better than Preview, with its thicker pages and overflowing beauty and fashion content. With Cleo selling for SGD4.40 (about Php140) against Cosmopolitan for Php150, it is obviously a steal! And although Female sells for SGD6 (about Php190) compared to Preview that sells for Php125, it’s still a good deal considering its great content.

Cleo and Female also take the jackpot, because now I’ll be informed with the latest fashion and beauty products (hello makeup!) in Singapore. <3

Monday, September 29, 2008 (4:00pm): It was JR’s mom’s Birthday, and since our flight back to SIngapore was scheduled later in the evening, we decided to celebrate it over an early dinner at Greenbelt.

We had several restaurants in mind: Bubba Gump, Fish & Co., just to name a few, but we had to rule those out, because Mark, JR’s younger brother, is allergic to seafood. Italian food was also not an option, because they just had pasta over lunch at their house. After checking out the other restaurants in Greenbelt 3 and not finding anything we fancied, Japanese food was finally agreed on. We walked to Greenbelt 5 for a belly-bursting meal at John and Yoko.

We started our meal with an order of Tuna Sashimi:

Followed by the Hollywood Tuna: ripe mangoes, wrapped in tuna slices and served with lettuce and sweet sauce. This was a nice salad!

Then we had two orders of Ebi Tempura (the picture shows only half of one order). You can never go wrong with tempura!

Our Crunchy Kani Roll was plated nicely, but sadly I didn’t get to try it, because I was overwhelmed when our next plate (BIG platter, actually) arrived.

Big in Japan: Oyster Teppan, Beef Teppan, Salmon Sashimi, California Maki, Bacon Asparagus, Chicken Yakitori, Ika Fry, Meat Fried Rice. We didn’t expect the platter to be that big! It occupied the entire center of our table of six, and overflowed with big servings of food.

I was able to try everything on the platter, except for the oysters. I was already too full to grab another bite, before I could taste it!

All-in-all, John and Yoko was neither a disappointment nor that exquisite. The food was good, but quite ordinary. It pretty much tasted like any other Japanese restaurant. However, the hip ambiance, the great food presentation, and the friendly staff scores them an extra point.

JR and I with his mom, brothers, and Daphne.

After having lunch at home, visiting my paternal grandmother, and walking around the mall to look for memory cards, we had dinner at Cyma. I had been craving for Cyma for the longest time, and since my family loves Cyma anyway, I didn’t have to fight over choosing the restaurant. I was glad JR could join us too.

I love Cyma! The food is so good that no diet can stop anyone from overeating! =P

My mom’s favorite: Pita with Hummous.
Php125

Roka Salata: fresh arugula, chopped romaine lettuce, sun-dried tomatoes, candied walnuts, with shaved Parmesan in traditional Greek vinaigrette.
Php460 (to share)

Paidakia: char-grilled lamb ribs, served with Greek roasted potates.
Php595

Baby Clams Angel Hair Pasta: pacific baby clams, white wine, lemon, parsley, grated Parmesan cheese and garlic evoo.
Php420 (to share)

And of course, our most awaited dessert (sometimes we eat there just for this!!!), Skolatina: Cyma’s molten chocolate cake served with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce. Heaven on a plate!!!
Php295

I forgot to take a photo of our fish fillet (Marlin), because it was already an empty plate before I remembered to take out my camera. =P

My family and I love food, and dining out has always been our favorite means of bonding.

The family.

With JR, this time. =)

After this, we had another dessert at Five Cows, but it was quite disappointing, so I shall not blog about it. =P But aside from that, it was another well-spent bonding session with my family over dinner. <3

1. Not having my favorite magazine (Cosmopolitan) available in Singapore. I must find a local alternative.
2. Sweating when I’m all dressed up.
3. People calling me Ann/Anne. Only my family and a few other close relatives/friends are allowed to call me that. My name is Anna, thank you very much. =P
4. Crazy truck drivers in Manila. The drivers should really consider having driving training (like CDL training, maybe) before they are allowed to drive those big vehicles. I saw two separate accidents caused by trucks while I was there last week.
5. Driving during a heavy downpour in Manila. Not only because it makes seeing the road close to impossible, but also because it’s even harder to see the annoying pot holes that’s practically everywhere.
6. Having a rather slow metabolism. I envy those who can eat all they want, and never have to worry about putting on weight. Unfair!
7. Barristas who don’t know their coffee. I encountered one at the McCafe near our flat, who didn’t understand what I meant when I asked for a Caramel Latte! I had to explain to her that it was just a regular latte with extra caramel syrup!
8. KFC here in Singapore. Not as good as KFC back in Manila. They don’t even have free flowing gravy!
9. Cebu Pacific. They gave us a headache on the night of our flight back to Manila last week. I’ll probably save the rant for another post (if I get around to it), but they were such a hassle! It’ll be the last time we’re going to fly with them! We’re also composing a formal complaint, which we will email them within the week.

I miss Fitness First and Body Jam. I became a gym buff for almost a year back in Manila. Going to the gym for Body Jam sessions right after a tiring day at work was never a chore, because I considered it fun. Plus, I lost a lot of weight while at it too! I never had to take prohormones, or any other working out supplement, because dancing itself kept me fit.

I really wish I could dance again. Maybe I can find a nice gym with dance workouts here in Singapore.

My all-time favorite has got to be one of Johnson&Johnson’s (a company who provides consumers with the best healthcare innovation in the market!) many products: Neutrogena’s Body Oil. I’ve forgotten all my other body lotions because of this. I apply it on when I’m still in the shower and my skin is still wet. I love how it dries up and instantly gives me a healthy, silky and glowing skin. It doesn’t leave an oily  and sticky feeling, even if I’ve been out in the sun for hours! Plus, it’s also great as a massage oil!

Too bad they don’t sell these in Singapore. I had to stock up when we first flew back to Manila early this month.