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Visiting the Philippines

Jasper and I decided to pay a visit to the Philippines because a bunch of our colleagues are from there. We had a work trip to Korea, but I had wanted to drop by the PH to see them first. I’ve worked with most of them for many years online, and thought it would be nice to finally see them in person.

However, the moment we arrived at the airport, we were scammed by the taxis. We saw people calling us over for taxis, and had assumed they were legitimate since it was at the airport. However, later on, we realized we were charged 3x more than what we would’ve paid if we had gone with the Grab option instead (their version of Uber).

I was so mad. And the driver even had the guts to ask us for a tip! How dare you!?

For anyone who is considering going to Manila, I would highly advise you NOT to go unless you have local friends who could take you around.

I also needed a SIM card. However, I was too afraid to buy one because I felt like they were going to overcharge me and I didn’t want to pay 5x more than a local. So, I decided to wait for my local friends to help me when I’d meet them the day after.

The next day, we met two of our local colleagues/friends in Chinatown. We were stunned by how busy it was. Although it was Lunar New Year, I didn’t expect it to be such a celebrated holiday in the Philippines! Apparently, Binondo, located in Manila, is considered the world’s oldest Chinatown!

We went to the Chinatown museum, and it was kind of cool. The display made it very picture-friendly, but I didn’t take many pics.

Then, we had lunch at a dumpling noodle place that Felis recommended. It was VERY good, but the wait was 45 minutes. Once again, I was flabbergasted.

Jasper and I were not used to the heat, and we had to order ice to put into our drinks to cool down. Nonetheless, the dumplings were big and juicy, and it was worth the wait!

Then, we tried to leave Chinatown to head to the National History Museum. Little did we know that the Grab driver would take almost an hour to get to us because of all the traffic. We could’ve probably walked faster. I’m still astonished that the driver didn’t give up and cancel his ride with us. So dedicated!

Meanwhile, CZ had biked there and was waiting for a long time. Sorry, CZ!

The National History Museum was super nice. Felis made so many puns, and is the ultimate pun master.

I was looking at a lake exhibit, and Felis came over to ask me, “What do you call a counterfeit lake?”

I said, “I don’t know…?”

Felis replied, “A fake!”

And while I was looking at the pitcher plant, Felis commented, “Are you going to take a picture of the pitcher?”

I was soooo impressed. Felis is one of the punniest people I’ve ever met! The word play is brilliant! XD

There’s a common Chinese novel quote that goes, “You have eyes, but you can’t recognize Mount Tai.”

Well, my version is, “I have eyes, and I recognize the punny one, Felis!”

By the way, Felis is one of our best editors on Wuxiaworld, and CZ is one of our staff who deals with tech and customer support! Thank you for all your contributions, guys!

After the museum, we went to the Belfry Café. They had a bell inside the café, which was actually quite cool. Felis made another joke, but I can’t remember what was said since it’s been 8 months (oops). We spent more time chatting and getting to know each other.

Also, during the time we were there, there were a lot of people wearing duck clips on top of their heads. It looked very odd, but cute. Here’s an article about it if you’re interested: https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/filipinos-stand-tall-with-duck-hair-clips-as-fad-takes-country-by-storm

Another interesting thing I’ve noticed is that Filipinos really like neon lights. Everything is so bright and neon. They like to make things look very Instagrammable.

The next day, we met with the others who were in the area. We went to the SM Mall of Asia. It was huge, and a very good mall.

We waited for others to arrive outside the McDonalds. It was Raido, CZ, Felis, Invictum, me and Jasper! Yuuko was joining us later in the evening since she was coming from another province.

I was extremely happy to see Invictum because even though we had never met in person, he’s always given me the feeling that things would be ok! I was so happy he came despite the long commute (was it an hour or two?). I knew we would vibe even before meeting, and my sixth sense was correct!

I’ll talk more about Raido later.

Once everyone arrived, we went to have lunch! We went to a Filipino restaurant and ordered a bunch of Filipino dishes. We had the yummy pork, and the super super super super super super sour soup called the sinigang. I feel like sinigang would give someone high blood pressure because of how salty it is. Aiya!

We also had the sisig, and it was really crunchy. And we had halo-halo for dessert! It was good, but I found it so sweet! Everything was so salty or sweet to me.

After lunch, we went the arcade inside the mall. I hadn’t played arcade games in years, so it was actually quite refreshing and fun. CZ showed us who was boss by winning A LOT of tickets. The tickets just kept flowing out! In the end, she redeemed the tickets for a small plushie!

I think going to the arcade is a good date activity if you want to do an activity with a significant other! 😉

Later on, I wanted us to try laser tag, but the time they had available was too late for us. Instead, we left the mall and went outside to go on some rides.

I wanted us to go on the rides together, and we all tried the pirate ship! Each time, it was halfway up in the air, it made my tummy feel funny. I was slightly scared, but I enjoyed the thrill. Not sure about everyone else!

Raido looked like he wanted to curse.

Thank you to everyone who went on even if they were not a fan. 😛

We took a picture, and Raido was super far in the back and looked like he wasn’t part of the group. Haha. Yuuko made fun of him later on when she saw the picture.

Look at how far Raido is standing. He doesn’t even look like he’s part of the picture! HAAHHA

We then went karaoke!! As some of you may know, karaoke is my favourite hobby of all times. In fact, my latest karaoke session with my friend lasted 5 hours, and we sang 70 songs. I could probably handle 6 hours if my singing partner rotated with me.

Anyway, the karaoke was quite expensive. It was 3000 PHP for three hours. It did include some food, but still seemed kind of scammy. Perhaps it was because we were in a tourist area.

There were a lot of Chinese businesses there, and we even saw lion dancing! The lions would go to each restaurant and get some red pockets.

Soon, Yuuko arrived and gave me a big hug and asked me to rate it. I gave her a 5-star rating. It was a good, firm, warm hug! A very loving, proud hug! I mentioned I would definitely praise her in my blog post. 😉

The girls (me, Yuuko, CZ), had a blast singing, but the guys looked dead. Raido looked grumpy like always, but it was nice he came even though he isn’t a fan of singing! I had met Raido previously in 2022 when we first went to LA. At the time, a lot of us caught covid.

I still remember his favourite line, “This is trash!”

To this day, I would still imitate him and go, “This is trash!” *points to actual trash*

I still remember how he pointed at the mushrooms outside and asked me if I was going to eat that since I was environmentally friendly and it would’ve gone to waste if no one picked it.

Anyhow, Raido was in PH so that was nice he could join us. I would describe him as a grumpy, kind, talkative man. Haha. Yuuko loves making fun of him too. Hehe.

Invictum also sang very passionately, and Yuuko said this is a typical Filipino man singing karaoke. Haha. It was funny. Too bad I didn’t record him! Invictum is full of passion. Haha!

Felis and Jasper were mainly listening. I hope they enjoyed the music!

After karaoke, I went on some rides with CZ because no one wanted to go on the spinning ones. It was not too high, so I was completely fine. I love rides!

We also went on the ferris wheel! The ferris wheel was nice, but it felt a bit short. We couldn’t all fit in one, so we had to split apart. Yuuko, CZ, me and Jasper were in one. And we took many cute selfies together.

After that, I had wanted to go to a rooftop bar, but Invictum said because of our outfits, we wouldn’t be allowed in. I forget if it was no flipflops or no t-shirts or shorts or something. We didn’t look fancy enough.

But we ended up picking a bar nearby and we ordered some light alcohol and drank and chatted.

Invictum was being a wise dad and giving us life lessons. CZ was sharing her love life with us, and Invictum was very invested and told her not to date someone simply because they were cute. *cough*. Talking about relationships is always fun. Raido also shared some of his stories with the ladies.

Felis didn’t stay too long because it had been a long exhausting day, and was allergic to alcohol? (I think). But I think Felis had fun, and thanks for coming out!!

Meanwhile, Raido didn’t expect the day to be as “fun” as it turned out. He ended up staying a lot later than he intended. Yay!

I was really happy that Raido and Invictum both came out!! It was out of their way, but we had a great time.

Too bad we couldn’t stay longer since me and Jasper were meeting Yuuko and CZ for Star City (an amusement park) the next day.

The next day, we had lunch at Jollibee, and I ordered the steak with rice. It was soooo yummy!

Speaking of which, Filipinos really love rice. At McDonalds, you could actually order one rice. I was SO amused. Take a look!

We then went to Star City, and went on a bunch of rides. The amusement park is half indoors and half outdoors. I really liked the little train ride we had gone on. Jasper even went on a rollercoaster type of ride with me and CZ, but he looked like he was gonna fall off since he was sitting on the edge. Yuuko actually filmed it and made fun of him. Haha. Poor Jasper!! Hehe. But I’m glad he went on despite his fear. Thank you for going out of your comfort zone, Jasper!

I personally am afraid of spooky rides and haunted houses, but we went through a creepy ride too. The only good thing about it was the A/C inside helped me cool down.

Near the end, me and CZ went on a spinning ride, and I was dizzy for 30 minutes after that. I don’t think I can handle spinning rides anymore!

Anyway, we then went to Shake Shack for dinner. It was so expensive. I wonder how Filipinos afford it if they’re earning their local currency.

CZ and Yuuko says it’s just a treat and not something people often do. But there were a lot of people inside, so I think Filipinos really enjoy living in the moment. They must be YOLOing. (YOLO stands for you only live once)

We chatted a lot, and CZ mentioned how it was very common for Filipinos to send money back home. Most of the time, they give probably 80% of what they earned.

I was so shocked that Filipinos would be so willing to do this. 80% is a lot!!! But CZ said that it’s normal because your family raised you. She said that if her grandmother didn’t raise her, she wouldn’t be here today. And she would do anything for her grandmother.

This actually reminds me of the Asian culture. Although I was born in Canada, I still follow a lot of Asian values. I give my parents money and goes to all their appointments with them if they require a translator. It makes it very tough for me, because I feel torn in between.

A part of me wants to leave my parents and just be free, but a part of me feels like I have to stay to take care of them because my parents need me so much. My parents do not speak English and they aren’t tech-savvy either. So when you have this combo in Canada, your life is very hard.

I wish I could be more like CZ and not feel resentful. I want to be a good daughter, but also live my own life. Sigh.

Anyhow, I was so happy that CZ came out three days in a row. By the end of it, she looked half dead and I felt a bit bad. She had run out of energy and asked me how I was still so energetic. Haha. But maybe because she bikes everywhere, so she burns a lot of calories on a daily basis!!

CZ, you need to eat more because you are burning too many calories! Thank you for coming out and helping me get the SIM card!!

After a few days in Manila, me, Jasper, and Yuuko went to Bohol. Yuuko suggested that to experience the PH, we really needed to see other parts since PH is super big!

Bohol is an island province in the Philippines, and is known for their chocolate hills and the tarsiers (they look kinda creepy and cute at the same time. Feel free to google). We took a plane there, and went to a nice hotel Yuuko had previously been before.

There were a lot of restaurants and bars around there, and the Korean Moon restaurant that we tried was so yummy that we went there twice!

Yuuko helped us book a tour, and we went on a day time boat cruise while we ate and admired the scenery. The scenery was gorgeous and the singing was great! The singers sang in different languages (English, Tagalog, and Mandarin).

However, the food was left out all day, and me and Jasper had food poisoning and I had explosive diarrhea for a week after that. I think Yuuko was the only one fine.

Anyhow, there were young girls dancing on the island as a group, and you could give a donation and they would also teach you.

Yuuko got off the boat briefly to dance with them. It was very cute!

When they were dancing on their own, they would go very fast and smack the sticks together very hard. They probably burn a lot of calories by doing this on a regular basis!

The driver also took us to see the chocolate hills. They really look like those truffle chocolates. I think you’d probably want to eat them if you see them! Here’s a picture:

We also went on the ATV! I was soooo scared and didn’t want to drive my own. Luckily, Jasper drove and I just tagged along as a passenger next to him.

It was very dirty and hot. I don’t know how our ATV guide wore long sleeves and covered his face with a mask too. It was like a hat mask. I already found it so hard to breathe. He was also soooo fast at running up to the top of the hill too! Very fit!

Our ATV guide was very experienced at taking pictures, and my favourite picture is the pic of Yuuko stepping on us. He was so creative and pro!

Yuuko stepping on us. It looks like she’s not wearing pants XD

I felt bad for him because he has to hustle so hard. He said this is his life, day in and day out. It is truly hard-earning money.

Me, Jasper, and Yuuko watched the sunset together, and it was so nice. In the end, we gave our ATV guide a big tip! He was very grateful.

I also ended up buying my carpet outfit in the PH. The ladies tried to scam me, but after Yuuko stepped in, I managed to get it for cheaper. I love it, but the needlework is very bad. It looks good on the outside though! (just like most things on social media)

We were also working in the hotel at the beach during most afternoons. It felt nice working by the pool, smelling the salty ocean air, and gazing at the sandy beach.

We went swimming on one evening, and I hadn’t been inside a pool in over a decade. I actually had a toe cramp where my toes were spread apart in a very disturbing manner.

My feet were probably not used to being in the pool after all these years. It was painful, but luckily it went away after a few minutes. I had to put my feet flat on the ground for a few minutes before it resumed its original shape.

On our last night, we had late night drinking on the beach, and it was very nice. Me and Jasper are super lucky to have our PH friends/colleagues take us around and spend time with us. Thank you so much to you all who came out, and especially to Yuuko for being such a great tour guide! Without you, we wouldn’t have gotten to experience so much.

Your hugs are amazing and I can’t wait to get another one! Hope to see you all again in the future!

P.S. If Yuuko hadn’t made such a strong request, who knows when I’ll ever blog… Do you know how many brain cells it takes to write? (Answer: A lot) Hope you enjoyed it!

My Netherlands adventures with the language genius

Long time no blog, guys! A few of you actually asked me when I would blog about the Netherlands. I had been meaning to, but it takes a lot of brain cells. However, I will try my best to give you guys some interesting tips and stories.

Here are some of the things that surprised me quite a bit about the Netherlands:

The number of bikes

The moment I arrived to Rotterdam, I saw AN INSANE AMOUNT of bikes. I think there were at least several hundreds. Biking is extremely common in Rotterdam/the Netherlands. I’d say you’ll see a biker every 10 seconds (not exaggerating). They have their own designated bike lanes, but you still need to pay a lot of attention if you’re trying to cross the streets.

Expect A LOT of walking

Similar to Paris, I don’t think the streets were designed for cars. If you go to Amsterdam, you’ll see a lot of roads that look more like square, rocky tiles. It’s not exactly a smooth surface, and the streets are crowded. It’s extremely difficult for cars to go through a lot of streets, so even if you want to be driven somewhere, it’d probably be like a 25 min walk vs a 20 min car ride in the city center. Hence, if you want to go to the Netherlands, either be prepared to bike or walk a lot. If you are not a fan of either, then it’s probably not a good idea for you to go.

Their English is amazing

We struggled a lot in Paris, but we were pleasantly surprised by how fluent everyone’s English was in the Netherlands. It seemed like 90-95% of the people we encountered spoke like an American. They are able to switch to Dutch and other languages very seamlessly. If you are afraid of not being able to communicate in the Netherlands, do not fear. As long as you can speak English, you’re basically fine 95% of the time.

They are very tall

I’ve never seen such tall people in my life. Apparently, people from the Netherlands are the tallest on the planet. The average height is around 186cm, and it’s very common to see guys above 190cm. I, as a tiny Asian girl who is 158cm, felt like a midget. The doors are also so big.

They love doors

Speaking of doors, I’ve also never seen so many doors in my life. Sometimes, entering the bathroom means you’d open three doors. One door, and then there’s another door (I guess in case people entered by mistake?), and then that’s where the sink will be for people to wash their hands. Then, to actually go to the toilet, you have to open another door. I found it very strange since in North America, we usually just have one door, and then a bunch of stalls lined up next to each other.

Note: The doors are also incredibly heavy because they’re actual wooden doors and not cheap plastic stuff. Continue reading “My Netherlands adventures with the language genius”

Is FIRE even possible when inflation is so insane?

FIRE stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early. I first heard of the term several years ago and was very intrigued by it.

I started reading a bunch of finance books and also watched countless Youtube videos to see how I could implement it into my life.

After all, I don’t want to work until I am 65. I want to get to the point where working is something I choose to do, and not something I have to do.

However, with prices going up 3x in the past fifteen years in Toronto, it feels almost like an impossible dream.

The same meal that used to cost $7 now cost $16 (so around $20+ after tax and tips). But wages have not kept up at all. It is getting more and more unaffordable to eat out. Not to mention, the tipping culture here is insane (15-18% on average on top of 13% tax).

Experts suggest that you should take out 4% of your total portfolio and aim to have enough to survive for 30 years. So, if you have $1,000,000, then you would take out $40k, and basically take out money annually and gradually use it all up during your retirement.

However, that’s based on a 30-year retirement AND assuming your investment is beating the inflation. If inflation far exceeds 4%, then you’d need to take out more than 4% in order to have enough purchasing power to maintain your quality of life.

I can’t even imagine how someone would survive if they had retired in the 1970s when prices have gone up 10-15x since then (or probably more).

In all the books I’ve read, they say 1 million is a good number to aim for. But now, you can’t even buy a house for a million.

In fact, retiring with 3 million might not be enough with how things are going. Continue reading “Is FIRE even possible when inflation is so insane?”

Travelling to Paris: My experience and helpful tourist tips

Surprises

Narrow streets: I didn’t expect the streets to be so tiny! I could literally cross some streets in six steps (I counted). It is not wise to drive in the heart of Paris, and most of the time, you could probably get to your destination faster by walking if you’re already in the area.

Uphill: I had no idea that everywhere would be like climbing a mountain/hiking. The streets are so slanted that it’s a huge workout every day if you’re outside. If you’re not physically fit and able to walk a lot, I would NOT recommend going to Paris. Many places don’t have elevators because the buildings were built hundreds of years ago.

Police presence: I did not expect the police to be holding all these gigantic assault rifles on the streets. They were alert and ready to fire. You wouldn’t want to mess with them!

Chinese: The airport has Chinese signs everywhere. The Chinese tourists must bring in so much money.

Fit people: I did not expect the Frenchmen to be so fit/skinny. I would say the majority (at least 75-80%) has the body type like One Direction when they had first debuted. I think it must be all the walking.

Note: I was only in Paris, so I’m not sure if it’s the same outside of Paris

Not many fast food chains: Apart from several McDonalds and Starbucks, I did not see any of the fast food/American chains that I commonly see in North America. I was surprised since there are quite a lot of fast food chains in Asia. It seems like the French really protected themselves from Americanization.

Things to Note

A lot of security: If you’re planning to go to a tourist attraction, expect to go through heavy security check. You’ll need to remove all your belongings and go through a scanner like at the airport. So, avoid carrying a lot of stuff. If your bag is over a certain size, they might not let you in. They do not allow carry-on either.

Wear comfortable shoes: If you’re a tourist, and you’re outside exploring, expect to walk thousands of steps and hundreds of stairs a day. Even if you are getting driven to your destination, you’ll need to walk a lot when you’re inside.

Museums tend to close on Mondays: We did not know this ahead of time; if you’re planning to get the Paris Pass, make sure to go to all your destinations before Monday or don’t activate it until after Monday.

Note: I would NOT recommend getting the Paris Pass unless you plan to check out more than 5 attractions in a day. It is extremely expensive, and most often than not, you’d probably be exhausted after 2-3 attractions in one day. The pass will activate the moment you enter your first attraction, so if you have a 2-day pass, you’ll need to see as much as you can within the next 48 hours. For more info, check out https://parispass.com/en-us/paris-attractions

Warning: I will go into detail about the attractions we visited and include pictures, but the post is very long since there’s also my own story + experience.

Why Did I Choose Paris?

I had always wanted to go to Europe. Back in 2020, my brother and I were going to take my mom to Italy. However, the trip was cancelled due to covid. So, when one of my family friend asked if I’d like to go to the UK in April 2023, I thought it would be nice.

Jasper, my colleague at the time, is from the UK. I thought it would also be great to see him again since we had gotten so much closer during our time in LA.

So I mentioned it to Jasper, and he suggested that we could also do a Europe trip since he’s already there, and we could travel to multiple countries!

It sounded like a wonderful opportunity as I had always wanted to explore Europe. However, I never had the courage to go alone as I was afraid of pickpocketers, being kidnapped, being scammed, and etc.

Since I was going to the UK with my family friend and my brother’s friends, it wouldn’t make sense for me to ditch them to go on a Europe trip with Jasper, so I told Jasper it would probably have to be another time, and we decided to go sooner (in Dec) instead.

I had asked Jasper if he would like to invite our other colleagues since a few of us had met in LA back in July 2022 and gotten covid. But Jasper said that it was already quite difficult to plan for two, so the more people, the more complicated it would be.

It made sense, and we had gotten so close, so I didn’t mind.

Later on, when Cosy (our colleague + friend) found out that we were going on a Europe trip with just the two of us, she bombarded me with questions.

“What? Just the two of you? Is this a couple trip or something?”

I, of course, denied it. I told her that me and Jasper were just colleagues who had gotten a lot closer since we spent ten days stuck together due to quarantine.

She replied, “Stop lying! Why would you go on a trip with the opposite sex if you do not want to progress things further?”

I told her she could join us if she wanted, and Cosy messaged Jasper to “test” him. Hahahaha.

When Sangria, my previous assistant and friend, found out, she was grumpy!! Sangria and I had also worked together for 3 years or so, and she had always wanted me to end up with Jasper. In fact, she was/is so hardcore that she created a fan name called, “Grasper” (the combination of Grace and Jasper lol).

Sangria had always thought that we would make a good couple for some reason. This was way before me and Jasper had even met. She’d imagine that Jasper was a respectful, calm gentleman with the British accent, while I was the friendly, excited girl who could help him open up.

Anyway, Sangria did not want me to invite other people to our trip. She said, “Grasper only!” LOL she was serious.

Cosy eventually said that she could read the room and was not going to intrude on our trip. (Awww, Cosy, don’t worry! We want to go on a trip with you too!)

At the time, I was a bit conflicted. I had just gotten out of a relationship, and I wanted to move to Asia for health reasons. After all, I’m allergic to all the trees in Canada. Birch, willow, elm, fir, maple, cedar… you name it. And I’m severely allergic to ragweed and pollen in general. Moving closer to the equator and near the ocean would help me immensely, and that was my plan.

That was why I had gone to visit Singapore in Sept. I really want to move to Singapore!!!! (I still do, but it’s a lot harder than it looks, and it doesn’t seem like a realistic option.)

Hence, getting into another relationship was not something that was on my mind. Not to mention, me and Jasper don’t even live in the same country!

But as time went on, people who knew we were going to go on a trip together started to tease me a lot. They really wanted me to view it as a couple’s trip even though we weren’t in a relationship.

One of my male colleagues messaged me and asked what I thought of Jasper. I responded, “Jasper is a very nice guy. We get along very well.”

His response was, “Okayyyyyyyyyyy.” (Clearly unsatisfied)

He then said, “You know, Jasper wouldn’t go on a trip like this with anyone else but you.”

I thought long and hard and figured that Jasper probably does like me to some extent, since we were going on a 2.5 week trip, and that’s a lot of time to spend with someone you didn’t like!

For me, I felt positive emotions towards him, but I wasn’t sure. And it was stressing me out.

I told my colleague that Jasper never said he liked me, and he had never even flirted with me! His responses had always been so professional. We had worked together for three years, and I’d say it was just a work relationship. He was a great listener and helpful, but he had never shared anything personal about himself. However, Jasper was a lot more open with me after we met in LA.

My male colleague said, “Flirting is not his style.”

Meanwhile, one of my close online friend/reader/supporter/ex-colleague, Dimple, was grilling Jasper like crazy and trying to be an investigator. She was super hardcore and even gave him multiple choice questions to respond to. It was hilarious when they told me about it afterwards.

Dimple stated she would be happy with whatever decision I make for myself, but I knew she was also a Grasper.

At this point, I was still unsure. Not only was I older than Jasper, but I also have a lot of health issues due to my autoimmune condition. I didn’t want to drag him down, and neither did I want to be accused of being a cougar.

My real life friends would tease me all the time and ask why I am always talking to younger guys. It just happened that the discord community tends to be younger people. It’s not like I go looking for a bunch of younger men and decide to talk to them because they’re young!

I’d say probably the majority of the people I meet online are younger than me, but we’re generally in our 20s-30s.

Anyhow, I had a lot of doubts, and even on the day of the trip, I wasn’t sure. After all, it wasn’t like Jasper confessed he liked me, so it doesn’t really count until he does, right?

Continue reading “Travelling to Paris: My experience and helpful tourist tips”

Day 7: Sept 15th (last day)

Today is my last full day in Singapore! I had to check out by noon. Several days ago, Rozen told me there was a delicious dim sum place close to where he lived, and he asked me if I would like to try it. He said it had a Michelin Star!! I said yes, but because I will have my luggage with me, I told him it would be quite inconvenient.

Hence, Rozen told me he was going to order and then bring it over so we could eat it together before I checked out. He was so considerate!!

I think he knew it would be way too difficult for me to travel to his area to have dim sum. We were going to go to the Artscience Museum afterwards, so it would have been probably an hour of commute there and back.

Anyhow, Rozen arrived and we ate before I checked out! It was so yummy! He said he knew I would like it because it was Cantonese dim sum. He was aware of my shellfish allergy and ordered items I really liked! I thought it was so much extra work for him to come all the way, and I was very grateful he didn’t mind.

Rozen told me it was better I picked up my luggage at the end of the night, but I told him that I had to rush to the airport right after karaoke since I wanted to take the subway there, and I think the last train would be at eleven something (Karaoke was from 8-11pm). I didn’t want to pay for an Uber.

He said that we could pick up the luggage before I head to the dinner meet-up then. So, I asked the counter if I could drop off my luggage and return to get it around 5-5:30pm.

They said it was fine, but I realized my SIM card was no longer working without wifi. Fallen had gotten me one on the 9^th, but it only lasted 7 days since that was the only option unless I wanted to pay for a 30-day one. So now, another problem had occurred. People who were meeting up with me would have a hard time getting a response from me since I no longer had data.

Rozen told me that he would be with me, so I didn’t have to worry, but he wasn’t coming for dinner or karaoke, so I told everyone who was meeting me that night to message Cosy if they needed anything. Thank you for all your help, Cosy!

Anyway, we took the subway down to the Artscience Museum. When we got there, we decided on the mental health exhibition because Rozen was going to go to the main exhibit with his online date another time. Because Rozen signed up for some membership thing, it was a lot cheaper for both of us.

I was actually so impressed by the exhibit. It was one of the most touching exhibits I have ever been to. It really made me feel a lot of emotions.

If you are currently living in Singapore, I would highly recommend you check it out before they take it down.

A lot of it helps you understand what a person with mental health issues is going through.

Here are some pictures since it is very difficult to put into words:

The pill one really made me want to cry. The description was, “What do you use to cushion your mind?”

I also thought the pink expanding balloon was very powerful. I was actually getting anxious as it kept expanding. I wasn’t sure if it was going to explode or not, and the uncertainty put me on edge.

There was also another part of the exhibit where you could write notes to strangers to cheer them on. I really liked that. Visitors could take the notes home if they found some that would help them in any way.

When we walked further in, there was a telephone where you could pick up and talk to someone, and they would respond to you. I think it was AI though. It was still a very cool experience.

I feel like this type of museum is much more of a “feeling” museum than a “knowledge” museum. You really get to experience what it feels like to be in another person’s shoes. The exhibit is until February 26th, 2023, so do check it out if you’re in Singapore. Here’s a link for more info.

I think those who have mental health issues would feel like they were being heard or understood.

After we were done at the museum, I wanted to check out the Singapore Flyer, but it was so expensive that it wasn’t worth it. It was like $50/person or something ridiculous like that. Rozen said it was a tourist trap, and we decided to head elsewhere.

Rozen then said when I come to Singapore again, he would take me to places that the Singapore government didn’t want me/tourists to see. We passed by areas that were not so nice, and he said that some people still litter even though it was against the law. But he also said that some of the not so nice areas have the most delicious food, and there are many hidden gems.

At this time, I told him I wanted to try that buttermilk chicken from McDonalds, and I asked if he was willing to split half with me since I wouldn’t be able to eat the whole thing since the dinner event was in a few hours. Rozen didn’t mind, so we went to McDonalds.

It was a pretty delicious sandwich, and something that we don’t have in Canada. Fallen and Choufleur had told me previously that McSpicy was the best burger, but I have a very low spice tolerance, so I chose the buttermilk chicken sandwich instead.

After we were done eating, it was probably 3:30pm or so, and I still had 2 hours before I had to head to dinner. Rozen and I decided to go to a temple that was somewhat nearby! (I think it was a 15-20 minute walk)

Because I was wearing a dress, I had to cover up before entering. The monk said that the knees must not be shown, and I was given a brown apron-like thing to cover myself.

You basically tied it around the waist. A lot of women had to use it since most women wore shorts or skirts due to the Singapore heat.

I was very fascinated by the interior design, and thought it was so cool. They also had a museum upstairs, and it was nice to check out all the different types of Buddha and learn more about the history.

We went to another floor that required visitors to take off their shoes to go in, and no pictures were allowed. I told Rozen I was just going to wait for him, since I didn’t want to take off my shoes, and the people working there said that they were closing in five minutes (at 5). So Rozen dashed in and prayed, and then we left and went back to my hotel to pick up my luggage.

We picked up my luggage, and I read and answered some of the discord messages with the hotel wifi. At this time, I was so sweaty because it was SO HOT. I think Rozen was also sweating like crazy. We stayed for about ten minutes to cool down and then headed out to wait for the bus to go to Somerset.

Rozen told me that he would stay with me until the first person arrived. He said he had to go home to prepare something for work the next day. I tried to convince him to stay, but he had already spent the whole day with me, so I must not be too greedy.

Anyhow, we arrived at Somerset, and there were still almost 45 minutes before 6:30pm.

Rozen asked me if I was going to buy anything for my parents, and I told him that they were just going to say everything is a waste of money. He asked me whether I was going to buy souvenirs for myself, and I said that I had already bought three clothing items a few days ago.

He asked me what Singapore has that Canada doesn’t. I told him I liked milo, and we don’t have it in Canada (it turned out we do, but it’s not a common drink here, so you would never hear anyone say or order milo).

We were looking around in a supermarket trying to find milo, but it was almost 6:30pm. So, I told Rozen that we should go. After all, I didn’t want to be late as the organizer, and I didn’t know what half the people attending looked like.

I arrived at Marche and didn’t see anyone outside that seemed like they knew me (I told them I had a purple carry-on luggage, and was wearing a turquoise dress). So, I went downstairs to the seating area and asked if I could get a table for around 10-14 people. I wasn’t sure if there would be people who’d cancel last minute.

The waitress said it was first come first serve, so I was free to take whichever seats were available.

I went to combine five tables together and used their free wifi to read my messages. Starve had said he had arrived already, but I had never met Starve, so I wasn’t sure what he looked like.

However, I had often joked with Starve, and made a lot of starving jokes on discord. I think Starve realized who I was and made a 3 second eye-contact with me. I hesitantly asked, “Starve?”

Starve replied, “That’s me!” (lol I am really bad at remembering people’s real names since I have been using their discord names for the past few years)

I was very excited to see Starve because he is a SUPER pro and experienced translator. You could probably google Starvecleric and find out more about him if you’re curious. At this time, Rozen said he was going to leave since Starve had arrived and I was no longer alone. So, I gave him a farewell hug and thanked him for taking the time to meet me and doing so much.

Then, I told Starve that his name was a lie. I told him he should have named himself “Buff” instead! HAHAHAHAHA. I think Starve didn’t know how to react since it was a compliment, but a very strange one. Starve probably exercises a lot. Or maybe he lifts lots of heavy weights. His chest and arms looked so nice. Good job, Starve!

Anyway, shortly after, Cosy, J.Andie and Chai arrived! And then Limit came too! Then, it was Yeow, except I had never met Yeow, so when he asked, “Is this the Wuxiaworld gathering?” “I was like, yeah! Who are you?” LOL

I was really happy Yeow came though! I wasn’t sure if he would actually show up since he was close to three other translators, and two of them, OMA and Thy, had cancalled the day before.

Yeow seemed like the quiet, shy type. Shortly after, Wei arrived! I didn’t know what Wei looked like, but Yeow recognized him and Wei said, “Hi, I’m Wei” so I knew. HAHA.

Both Yeow and Wei have been translating on Wuxiaworld way before I started working there, but I manage their current projects.

Now that most people had arrived, I brought up my fair price joke again, and Cosy was so fed up since she had heard it for the past few days. BUT IT IS A DIFFERENT GROUP, OK? She facepalmed.

Eventually, Hilda and Iris showed up too!! They were a bit late since they were coming from work. I was very touched that they came since I’ve worked with these ladies when I had become the manager on volare probably in 2019.

They had finished their projects several years ago, and we don’t really talk much. Hilda translated Split Zone 13, and she also helped finish Their Love Stories. As for Iris, she translated Adorable Creature Attacks and had helped out on Bone Painting Coroner.

I had told them that I would be coming to Singapore, but I wasn’t sure if they would be willing to come out since our relationship wasn’t that deep. However, the day before the karaoke event, they both said they would come out! Yay!!

Iris and Hilda didn’t know each other prior to the event either. I think they found each other since they both seemed confused and figured out they were attending the same event.

Oh! I forgot to mention, Marche is a place where you get a temporary card, and the restaurant is designed like a marketplace with all sorts of different booths. If you find something you’d like to eat, you just line up and order, and scan the card. There is someone cooking/standing in every booth. At the very end of the night, you would check out after tapping your temporary card and paying the final balance. Continue reading “Day 7: Sept 15th (last day)”

Day 6: Sept 14th

Day 6: Sept 14^th

If you haven’t read my Day 5 post, please read that before this one! Initially, I had wanted to go to Universal Studios Singapore today with Cosy and J.Andie, but because it looked like it was going to rain, I didn’t want to risk it since we wouldn’t want to be rained upon if the rides were mainly outdoors. Furthermore, me and Cosy had only gotten 2 hours of sleep or so the night before.

So, I messaged in the Sept 14^th group chat and postponed breakfast by an hour, and I think we met around 10:45-11am.

There were six of us in total. Mel, Cosy, J.Andie, Chai, me, and Victor. This was the first time I was meeting J.Andie and Victor. J.Andie is one of the managers that help us manage the Korean translators on Wuxiaworld, and Victor is an artist that helped us draw covers for I Shall Seal the Heavens and Desolate Era ebooks!

J.Andie is Cosy’s best friend in real life, and also an extremely hardworking staff that has helped us tremendously. We don’t know each other too well, but she is a very patient, thoughtful, responsible, and calm person to be around. I was happy she came out! Thank you, J.Andie!!

As for Victor, I had found him on reddit years ago, and got him to work for us around three years ago. We got along quite well, and sometimes we would chat about random stuff, so when I was coming to Singapore, I wanted to see if he would come out to meet. I knew he has a young daughter, so it was difficult. Furthermore, his wife was on a business trip the week I was here, so he really didn’t have time. Luckily, he had some time after dropping his daughter off at Kindergarten and said he wouldn’t mind meeting for brunch.

Meanwhile, Chai had work, and she couldn’t actually take time off since she had recently changed into another position. As a result, she brought her laptop and had a bit of time to spend with us. I really appreciate you for coming out, Chai!! NEXT TIME WE NEED TO SPEND MORE TIME TOGETHER!!

If you’ve read my Day 4^th post, you’ll know that I’ve already met Chai and her family. But we didn’t talk much since I had spent the majority of the time talking to her mom.

Anyway, Cosy was truly giving me a lot of face since she had already come out MULTIPLE times and she was dying from exhaustion, but she still came out again. Thank youuuu! And Mel, even though he said he probably wouldn’t have time again, he came for brunch! I appreciate it very much, everyone!

We went to Ya Kun for brunch, and this place has many branches in Singapore. Before coming, I actually went on the website and read about its history and founder. I find that stuff very interesting.

Anyhow, I tried the Kaya toast, and it was SO SWEET. I did not expect it to be *that* sweet. It was good, but a teeny bit was enough for me.

Kaya is basically coconut jam. It’s yummy yummy!

The combo also came with an egg, and you could dip your toast into the egg. Mmm.

Since I was the first one there, I tried to hog a table for us all, but I was worried that it would be difficult since the seats filled up so quickly, and it was hard to try to save a table for six people if I was the only one there.

About five to ten minutes later, someone sat down and I almost said, “Yo, this is taken!” But I realized it was J.Andie! I didn’t know what she looked like prior, so I didn’t know. Haha. I gave her a look and she revealed her name. Haha.

Mel came shortly after and then Victor joined us! I also didn’t know what Victor looked like, and he wasn’t sure either, so when he came up to me, he was like, “Grace?”

I thought Victor looked really cool with his semi-pony tail. Very artistic. He mentioned how my itinerary was so hardcore.

Initially, I had wanted to go kayaking, and Victor said he would have been interested too. In the end, it seemed too difficult to organize, so I decided to do something else instead. I think next time I would try to go kayaking, but maybe just ask a handful of people so it’s not too difficult to plan. It’s SOOOOOOOOOO much work to organize events!

Anyway, Chai and Cosy showed up soon and we all ordered and ate! We went to Starbucks afterwards, because we couldn’t stay at Ya Kun since there is limited space in Singapore, and you really can’t sit around and hog the seats once you’re done.

So, the six of us went to Starbucks within the same mall. I was REALLY shocked by how expensive the drinks were. Starbucks is very expensive in Canada, but it was even more expensive in Singapore! I felt like most of the drinks were $8 or higher. Meanwhile, their bubble tea was half the price. For us, it’s the other way around.

Something interesting to note is that in Singapore, usually one person orders, and then everyone just pays that person. I’m not sure what they use, but it’s like an e-transfer but with their phone numbers.

They want to save the server time, so it’s very common for them to do this. But in the west, we usually just pay separately. It’s less efficient, but I think because it’s too much work to calculate everything separately since we have to add tax and tip on top of our bills. In my province, tax is 13%, and tip is typically 15%.

Anyway, we sat at Starbucks and chatted some more. I was telling Victor how Singaporeans don’t like to be touched. I complained about how people don’t like to hug, and in general, it seems like no one wants any physical contact with people they don’t know (and even if they know, it’s still a very “don’t touch me” kind of vibe).

Victor agreed, and said he definitely notices a difference between people in Singapore and people in North America. I think in the west, we’re generally a lot friendlier to random strangers. It’s not uncommon for people to talk to you and have an actual conversation even if they don’t know your name or know anything about you. You could walk on the street, and someone might compliment your outfit or appearance in a genuine way.

However, I’m not sure if this is more of a Canada/US thing, as I went to Europe, and I don’t think anyone really tried talking to me except to get me to buy souvenirs or sign stuff (most likely a scam).

Since I was sitting next to Victor, I spoke to him the most in Starbucks. Victor told us about his family’s reaction when he decided to become a freelance artist. It’s not easy to pursue your passion and also earn a stable income, so Victor was very brave. Asian parents usually want their children to choose a more stable route, and they look down upon the arts. Victor says now that he’s doing alright, his parents think he’s ruining his eyesight by being in front of the computer too much.

Soon, Chai had to leave and return back to work, and Victor had to go home, so me, J.Andie, Mel and Cosy went to the National Museum of Singapore!

I had wanted to go to multiple museums, but time was limited, so I picked only one. The National Museum of Singapore is free for Singaporean citizens. Cosy said it’s because the government knows that most people won’t go even if it’s free. Haha.

When I got there, I was really impressed. Singapore has such nice exhibits. I got to learn about the history of Singapore, and it was so touching reading about it. Singapore became a country in 1965, and they used to be part of Malaysia before they were kicked out.

Since they got kicked out, Singapore had to basically figure out how to survive on its own. I am not an expert, so I can’t tell you too much, but Singapore went from a place with nothing to a mega city in a generation. The first prime minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, is a very impressive man.

I even watched some of his clips on youtube before, so it was very touching seeing how he was so determined to help Singapore become prosperous and successful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytMXSLeqFMY here is a short one.

Just see how powerful his speech is!!! I feel like he has the ability to move people. Sigh. I’m not Singaporean, but I felt so emotional in the museum while reading about his contributions and achievements. Continue reading “Day 6: Sept 14th”

Day 5: Sept 13th

Today was my birthday! I did A LOT today, so hopefully this post won’t be too long. I promise it’ll be interesting though!

I ate a piece of pork jerky for breakfast as usual, and then I headed to Chinatown. The closest subway stop to my hotel was Fort Canning, and Chinatown was only one stop away. Previously, I was planning to walk, but Mino suggested it was better to take the subway.

The walk would have been 15-20 minutes, and honestly, I would usually walk if it’s under an hour in Toronto unless I’m in a rush. But it was so hot that I did what a Singaporean would do; take the MRT.

I was meeting Mino and Cosy at noon, but decided to leave earlier to check out the mall and look at the nice stores around. When I got off the station, I entered the mall that was right there (Chinatown Point?) and began checking out each floor.

There were so many different food options and also shops to see! I saw a supermarket that was called, “Fair Price Supermarket” and decided I had to go in to check if the items were fair priced. See what I did there? 😉

I was so proud of my joke that I kept telling everyone, and Cosy was so fed up that she complained she heard the same joke 7x on the last day! HAHAHAHA.

Sorry for repeating myself so many times, but it was with a different group each time, ok? So I’m not that sorry.

Mino used to translate on Wuxiaworld. He was also one of the twenty translators I had chosen back in the summer of 2019. Mino is a lawyer, but he was on a sabbatical and was taking a break at the time.

Mino was/is a super pro translator because he is so articulate. I think having a strong vocabulary really made/makes him stand out! Sadly, his workload became too much, and he stopped translating last year in August.

Nonetheless, we still talk once in a while, and I said I would come to Singapore to meet him one day. When I decided I was coming, I asked him if he had time. I also asked him if his wife or Adrian would like to join as well. Adrian had edited the first 700 chapters of Keyboard Immortal, and he is PRO. Adrian was Mino’s referral, and his friend in real life, so I thought it’d be nice to meet if they were all free.

Unfortunately, Mino says neither his wife nor Adrian were available, and due to his busy schedule, he only had time to meet for lunch. We met at Chinatown because his office was in the mall.

Mino said he usually eats at a hawker centre, but because I couldn’t handle the heat that well, I wanted somewhere with A/C.

Then, he suggested the Breakthrough Café. Mino said that the café is actually run by previous drug offenders. Their mission is to help them integrate into the society again. I find that very admirable, and thought it would be an interesting experience.

Mino and I met at the mall, and when he arrived, I gave him a hug! He did hug me back, but I think hugging is just too weird in Singapore, so he wasn’t that comfortable. Sorry Mino! LOL

We then went to the café first because Cosy was running late. When we got there, Mino ordered a bunch of items so that I could try; he ordered everything in Mandarin.

I praised Mino for having great Mandarin, and he said, “No, I suck. I cannot do business in Mandarin at all. It’s too hard to get my point across. I can only say simple stuff.”

This reminded me of my brother. HAHA. My brother has very lousy Cantonese, but extremely great English. I recalled he wanted to tell my parents that he went to see the Northern Lights with Charlene (his lovely girlfriend), but he told my parents he saw the green sky. LOLOLOL. (I wonder if he’ll read this? *hehe* Charlene convinced him to read Day 1-3, so I think he might see this. What kinda bro are you. You should care about your sister!) Continue reading “Day 5: Sept 13th”

Day 4: Sept 12th

If this is the first time you’re seeing this post, please check out Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3 before reading this!

I met Bunbun and Prem today!!! Both Bunbun and Prem translated on volare before I did.

At the time, I was translating on my own site. Etvo had actually tried recruiting me six months prior, but I didn’t want to give up on my site, so I refused her at first. Later on, I became Prem’s reader, and we started talking. We got along really well, and we would joke around a lot. He is my second Singaporean friend; I had met both him and Fallen during the summer of 2016.

Hence, I was more receptive to translating on volare when Prem brought it up. Eventually, Etvo found out we were close and asked me to join a second time. This time, I agreed! I probably wouldn’t have joined volare if it wasn’t for Prem, and things would be quite different now. (I eventually ended up managing volarenovels, and working on Wuxiaworld, hiring over 30 people for Ren)

Anyway, I remembered Prem was very punny and we would talk for hours about random stuff. At one point, he told me he had a crush on Bunbun, and I was supporting him from behind my laptop. I had also read Bunbun’s translations, and knew of her since we were all translating on the same site. But at the time, I didn’t know her well since we had never spoken privately.

Eventually, Prem and Bunbun met in person, and they started dating shortly after. Hehe. Because Prem and I used to talk A LOT, he told me all the juicy details and the thoughts that were running through his mind. It was actually so cute. Good job for being brave, Prem!

And now, they’re happily married!!

It’s so neat because they wouldn’t have met if it weren’t for translating, and then they would’ve never gotten together!

Sadly, Bunbun and Prem stopped translating several years ago, and they are doing their own thing now. Nonetheless, I still message them once in a while, and funnily enough, I have spoken to Bunbun more over the recent years instead of Prem!

However, when I told them I was coming, they were both looking forward to seeing me. They took off Monday because they thought it would be less crowded and wanted to take me around the Marina Bay Sand area.

That morning, I took the subway and got off at the Bayfront stop (I think). When I exited the station, I saw a casino entrance in the mall, and there were a lot of luxury brands around.

I was a bit early, so I took a brief look around the mall. The mall had a canal and a whirlpool thing in the ceiling. It was hardcore.

Soon, Bunbun and Prem messaged me and said they were already in front of Bacha Coffee.

I could see them from where I was, but because of the canal, I couldn’t actually walk right over. I had to walk up some stairs and cross over a bridge and then down some stairs. They were looking around, but I could see them from above. I sound so creepy, right? Haha.

Anyway, I had already known what they looked like because I have their social media, so there weren’t any surprises there. I exclaimed, “Bunbun! Prem!” And they saw me!

They both gave me super nice hugs, and they were the best greeting hugs I had in Singapore. I give them a 5 star rating!!

We were actually a little dressed up since we were going to have lunch at a fancy restaurant (I forget the name lol. It’s up on a very high building). There was a business casual dress code. Continue reading “Day 4: Sept 12th”

Day 3: Sept 11th

If this is the first time you’re seeing this post, please check out Day 1 and Day 2 before reading this!

Today is actually one of the days I’ve planned the earliest. I had messaged Dray several months before I was coming to let him know that I’d be arriving in Singapore in Sept, and wanted to meet him! He had previously met a bunch of volare translators back when Etvo (my previous boss and ex-owner of volarenovels) went to visit in 2017.

Anyway, I had met Dray probably around 2017 in the volare discord server. At the time, I still hopped on voice chat once in a while, so I recalled karaoking with him a few times. We don’t talk that much, but I’d say we have a pretty good relationship. Throughout the years, he has been helping us moderate the discord server, and tries to help me motivate/message the translators to get them to release more frequently. Thanks, Dray!

As for Mel, I had met him years ago through singing on discord as well. I remembered I was so amazed by his voice that I joined his personal server just to listen to him sing! AHAHAHAHA. That was so many years ago. We had stopped talking for three years. But when I decided that I was going to go to Singapore, I messaged him because I wanted to go sing karaoke with him!

Next, Rozen was also someone I have known for years. I think he was translating/helping Sigil out years ago. Back then, I remembered people teased him and called him Rosie. Hahaha. Rozen and I used to talk more, but we’ve spoken less over the years. However, it was very easy to reconnect with him. I was looking forward to meeting him in person as well! Continue reading “Day 3: Sept 11th”

Day 2: Sept 10th

Please read Day 1 before reading this. Today, I met up with Limit for lunch! He said he was going to pick me up from my hotel. I didn’t realize he was actually going to pick me up with a car. Haha. After all, it is extremely expensive to drive in Singapore. I was told that in order to get a car, you would need a piece of paper to bid, and that paper alone would cost nearly six figures already. The car itself is probably another $50k. To make matters worse, you would only get the car for 10 years (I forget what happens afterwards). Oh, and gas is super expensive too.

So, unless your family is rich (or you are), you probably wouldn’t be driving. Singapore has a super amazing subway system anyway, so you don’t even need to drive. It’s AMAZING. To prove my point, here’s a picture:

Hence, when people tell me that they will pick me up, I would automatically assume that they’re coming over via public transportation and then walking to where I am.

So, I was very stunned when Limit actually drove over. Now, before you think I’m insane for going inside a stranger’s car, Cosy has met Limit before, and Cosy’s brother is Limit’s classmate (or schoolmate? I forget).

Anyhow, it was nice to meet Limit! Limit is one of the twenty translators I had hired back in the summer of 2019 for Wuxiaworld. At the time, I had chosen the top 20 applicants out of the 300+ we had received. Successful applicants had to pass both the novel test as well as the manhua (comic) test. I had chosen ten for novels, and ten for manhua. Limit was one of the people I had chosen for manhua.

I had only briefly worked with Limit because I wasn’t in charge of managing the manhua translators at the time. So, there were probably two years or so that we didn’t chat. It wasn’t until last year that he started editing a Korean novel for us that we talked from time to time.

I recalled he seemed quite chill and friendly, and I figured we should meet up in Singapore since he was a Singaporean! I wanted to go to a 2D café and also an escape room, and invited him to join me, Coca, Corliss, and Blip.

Limit wanted to have lunch first though, so I said, “Sure, let’s go eat somewhere! But could we meet near Bugis because that’s where we’re going to meet the others later?”

Limit was fine with it, and said he’d come to get me at my hotel and we could go together. I thought we were going to take the subway, but it was nice to get a ride.

When we were in the car, we asked for each other’s age. I asked him to guess mine, and he said, “Twenty five.” But for some reason, “twenty” sounded like “thirty” to me in the Singaporean accent, and I nearly shrieked. “YOU THINK I AM 35? DO I LOOK THAT OLD?”

And Limit quickly clarified and exclaimed, “I said 25! 25!” LOLOL

I was like, “Oh. Ok!” I smiled and calmly replied, “I’m actually 34…” And then I was super sad about how old I was. Sigh.

I think he was a bit surprised, but Limit was focusing on driving, so he wasn’t looking at me. Then, he told me he was 26 or 27. I was like, “Ohhhh.”

Honestly, it’s quite hard to tell with Asians. We don’t look too different in our 20s-30s, so it could be a wide range.

Limit mentioned he usually doesn’t drive during the weekdays, because parking would cost $50-$60 downtown if he were to drive to his office and stay there all day. I don’t remember how much parking was during the weekend, but it was cheaper.

But I guess, if you have a car, you might as well use it. If you’re not going to drive it, it’d be a waste of money!! However, I do feel that if guys/girls were going on a date, they should be careful and probably not drive too soon; just in case the person is after their money instead.

Anyway, we arrived to Bugis, and Limit asked me what I wanted to eat. I muttered, “I just want somewhere with A/C.” It was SO HOT!!!

We parked underground in a mall, and then went upstairs and walked outside and quickly found a restaurant. It was a Japanese restaurant where you grill your own meat. I do not remember the name (Sorry, I’m really bad at remembering the names of food or places).

I checked the time, and it was around 12:15pm. I was a bit worried we wouldn’t have enough time to eat because I had booked the escape room for 1pm. Luckily, the food arrived by 12:26pm!

By the way, Limit is EXTREMELY tall. I think he said he was 187cm. I giggled, “Limit, your name is Limit because your height has no limit!”

Limit just stared at me. “…” Hahaha. I guess he didn’t think I was funny.

Me and Limit chatted about his work, and how he was going to quit and vacation in Japan before starting his new job. He seemed to enjoy travelling a lot, and so do I. I felt like he’s been to a lot more places than I have though. I think he likes Japan the most. I have never been, but I’d like to go one day!

I also told him to come out on Sept 15^th, since that’s the night where I had invited a bunch of WW translators + volare people to go karaoke. I got Cosy to help me book a party room that could fit 30!

Limit said he would be coming right after work, and would be dressed in his work clothes. I replied, “It’s fine. No one is going to judge you based on what you’re wearing!!” (Actually, I was judged when I had arrived at the airport but that’s beside the point) Continue reading “Day 2: Sept 10th”