Christmas holiday

Sam has had all the days between Christmas and New Year’s off work. So at first we contemplated travelling to one of the many amazing countries nearby. Eating a steaming hot bowl of Phở in Hanoi wouldn’t hurt, or grilled seafood and spicy food on a beach in Thailand sounded tempting…or maybe a few days on a resort in Indonesia or Malaysia.So many choices, so little time. In the end we decided that what we needed was a “relaxication” in good old Singapore as we’re still getting to know the city. And relax we did.

We have been swimming in the pools almost every day. Elliot’s favourite is still the comfy hot tub and he now knows how to float around in it without us holding him up. He’s also slowly learning to swim, doing the doggy paddle and kicking with his legs. It’s been great to see him grow more and more confident in the water as we took him to baby swimming back in London when he was just a few months old, and he absolutely hated it. So much that we had to stop the course. I’m so happy it hasn’t left him permanently traumatised. He just wanted to swim in a warmer climate.

When we haven’t been swimming, we’ve been hanging out in parks and playgrounds, sometimes alone, sometimes with Elliot’s new friend Charlie.

We’ve been doing a LOT of relaxation on the sofa, practising taking self-portraits.

Elliot was also sick with a fever and all he wanted to do was chill with his beloved windmill.

Unwrapping pressies on Christmas Eve: Melissa and Doug ABC blocks and kitchen set.

Playing with the ipad and drinking red wine (adults only).

After Elliot went to bed, Sam and I had a big steak from one of Singapore’s good butchers.

There’s also been a slight obsession with Baby TV going on.

More playing with Christmas pressies in the shape of Lego Duplo blocks.

And later, more Christmas pressies arrived from Denmark.

We even ventured into town, to Little India. Singapore can sometimes be a bit sterile and bland looking, it’s always so clean and orderly and organised. But they haven’t succeeded in taming the Indian part of town completely. Here everything is more chaotic, smelly and bustling. And people stare at you like there’s no tomorrow!

We walked past the beautiful Sri Veeramakaliamman Hindu temple and ended up at the incredibly crazy big department store, Mustafa Center. You could easily get between its maze-like aisles…and apparently that happens to people quite often.

We have also been hanging out locally, walking to the picturesque Bedok Reservoir. Elliot fell asleep on the way so we got to relax with a drink.

Then he woke up and was in a great mood.

We also decided it was time for Elliot’s chickenpox vaccination. I did a bit of research and found a brilliant GP not too far away from where we live. For the first time, Elliot didn’t cry at all, maybe because this time he wasn’t being man-handled by a brutal British nurse. Actually I’m not sure he even noticed the jab. Afterwards the friendly doctor quickly blew up a balloon and handed it to the brave young man.

The GP also happens to be a well-known food blogger (ieatishootipost.sg), so we left his clinic with a few restaurant recommendations and a smile on our faces.

We have also been busy eating our way through the city. Soups are a favourite at the moment, from Japanese ramen to the local Laksa and Ban Mian.

When we first moved here we bought an annual pass to the amazing Singapore Zoo and we went there for the fourth time during the Christmas holiday.

This time though, Elliot was so Zoo jaded that he really couldn’t be bothered to look at the animals. He was more busy jumping in puddles (it’s the rainy season here).

When we reached the elephants he completely ignored the large beasts and just wanted to touch the fountain.

And here he is, completely ignoring the giraffes.

Yesterday on New Year’s Eve we spent the day food shopping, making blinis and waiting for some good friends to show up.

Once they arrived the men started prepping the Beef Wellington.

Meanwhile us women looked after the red wine and champagne in the living room while waiting for dinner to be served.

And served it was. And very yummy.

At midnight it was time for even more champagne. Soon after this picture was taken I collapsed on the sofa. But hey, at least I didn’t fall asleep BEFORE midnight as I did last year in London.

HAPPY NEW YEAR. I WISH YOU ALL AN AMAZING 2013!!

“Boller i karry” & Doggie Love

Photo: Mette Bassett

Beklager blogstilheden, men jeg er på visit hos mine forældre i Vendsyssel, nærmere bestemt Hjørring, og har travlt med at spise mig mæt i gammedags danske retter fra min barndom, som for eksempel boller i karry.

Og så er der også den her, der hele tiden vil klappes:

Sorry about the blog silence, but I’m in Northern Jutland visiting my parents in my home-town Hjørring and am busy eating traditional Danish dishes from my childhood. One example is “boller i karry” (meatballs in curry sauce).

And then there’s this one who demands to be petted pretty much constantly:

Photo: Mette Bassett

Men heldigvis er der også genbrugsbutikker heroppe (møj møj billige) så har allerede et par fund, jeg vil vise jer snarest muligt.

Luckily they also have some quite good and mucho cheap charity shops up here and I did the first tour with my mom today. Will post the finds later.

Hjem til Hjørring

Jeg har lige været en tur i Hjørring for at besøge min mor, far, søster og bror. Jeg har ikke boet i Hjørring, siden jeg var 19, men der er noget helt særligt over naturen og lyset i Vendsyssel. Der er så fladt så fladt og man er aldrig langt fra havet. Og himlen fylder det hele og afgiver et særligt blåligt lys. En atmosfære som mange kunstnere har forsøgt at fange.

I’ve just been back to my hometown, Hjørring, for a quick visit. I haven’t lived there since I was 19 but there is something special about the nature at this most northern tip of Jutland. The sky is everywhere and the light is very blueish and with an almost melancholic tone that many artists have tried to capture.

Foto: Mette Bassett

En af dem, det er lykkedes for er Poul Anker Bech. Jeg elsker hans billeder, og blev glad da min mor fortalte, at der var en retrospektiv udstilling med ham på det udmærkede Vendsyssel Kunstmuseum. Jeg blev dog knap så glad, da jeg fandt ud af, at der var tale om en mindeudstilling, da Poul Anker Bech døde sidste år. Udstillingen var så fin, og jeg er  ærgerlig over, at jeg aldrig fik investeret i et af hans værker.

One of them is Poul Anker Bech. I love his slightly surreal paintings and every time I see them they remind me of my hometown and my childhood. So I was thrilled when my mother told me that the local museum was showing a lot of his works. I was less thrilled when I found out that he died last year. But the exhibition was beautiful.

Foto: Mette Bassett

Der var endnu en særudstilling, med den fantastisk dygtige fotograf, Krass Clement som især ynder at forevige livets skæve skyggeeksistenser, det der falder udenfor, det lidt slidte og hærgede i sine dokumentaragtige fotos. Han havde blandt andet været en tur ude på landet i Nordjylland.

So was the other exhibition, showing works by the amazing photographer Krass Clement. He takes pictures of the hidden things in everyday life, the rough and forgotten things, the people who live their lives in the shadow of society.

Foto: Mette Bassett

Der blev også tid til at rode lidt i gemmerne, og jeg fandt en af mine gamle sølvringe med bladmotiv. Det viste sig senere, at den havde været min mors, da hun var lille. Den ser ret fin ud alene på lillefingeren.

I also found a spare minute to rummage through some of  my old stuff. I found this old silver ring, shaped like a leaf. It turns out it used to belong to my mother when she was little. I like to wear it on its own on the little finger.

Foto: Mette Bassett

Jeg rodede videre, og fandt mit gamle billedlotteri-spil. Det har den sejeste 70’er-forside med stor, uglet hund og glade børn. Nu er det kommet med tilbage til London. Jeg har en skummel plan om at bruge det til at torturere det hold af “Dansk for begyndere” elever jeg underviser på aftenskole.  Forhåbentlig lærer de lidt dansk undervejs.

I rummaged a bit more and found this “picture lottery/bingo” from my childhood. I love the cover, it’s so 1970’s with that bit longhaired dog and the happy kids. I’m going to use it when I teach my Beginners Danish class.

Foto: Mette Bassett

Alt i alt en dejlig tur til det nordjyske, hvor vi kom helt ned i tempo, fik sludret, drukket rødvin, spillet spil og hygget med familien. Og vi fik også vadet godt og grundigt rundt i sneen.

I also had time to drink wine, play board games, eat and go for walks in the snow that covered almost everything. All in all a very nice and relaxing 3 days….

Foto: Mette Bassett