have i fallen off the face of the earth?

Well, kinda. To be honest, I have jumped right back into work and after having a month away meant a lot of adjusting back to normal life. My break seems so far away now!

I haven't shown you pictures of my holiday yet have I? I had a packed little month away. We spent much time in KL. Most of the time was spent repainting and putting my parents' extensive library into some visual order. We did the best we could since they live in a little tiny apartment BURSTING with books. There were lots of sorting out and throwing away. I wonder if Ma is making good headway into the pile we leftover in what is now the library. The best part of it all was the fact that the apartment's main room had a new coat of paint and my favorite bit is the photo wall that now graces one wall of the apartment. Ma loves her collection of family photos!


Khoa and I took a little trip, just the two of us, to visit his relatives in Ho Chi Minh City. I haven't been back for about 4 years and was surprised at how different it all felt. It felt relatively safer than before and looked cleaner too. It was needless to say, I was in shopping heaven with the Australian dollar so strong. Here are some pics:

The quintessential motorbike and the tree-lined boulevards of Ho Chi Minh City

Quan An Ngon is probably my most favourite places to eat in Ho Chi Minh City. They recently moved into a newly restored and adapted historic French villa. Lovely! The restaurant boasts the best cooks from all the regions of Vietnam and let me tell you, it's true! YUM.

My quang (pronounced "mee wang") is Khoa's favourite which we ALWAYS have when we visit the restaurant.

And a visit to Vietnam is not complete without having some sea snails. I'm not a big fan but I enjoy the odd one or two.

I really should mention the fruits and the mangosteen in particular. Another big YUM!

We did also take a road trip down from KL to Singapore and thanks to my brother, we got to stay at Marina Bay Sands Resort. Look at the view from our balcony. Yes, we did have a balcony we could walk out onto!

View of the unfinished resort and the port area of Singapore.

That's it there in the background, Marina Bay Sands Resort. That almost ugly monumental looking tri-tower with the ship like structure on top of it. The ship like structure houses the sky park that has the largest infinity pool in the sky. In the foreground is the double helix bridge.

It was definitely an amazing experience swimming to the edge of the pool. The kids LOVED it! Okay, I loved it. Skypark is amazing. If you ever get a chance to go to Singapore, definitely grab your swim stuff, make a visit to Skypark. Swim to the edge of the pool and then after the swim walk to the end of the ship structure and stand right at the tip of it with only the glass balustrade holding you back from falling. As you can tell, I absolutely LOVED it.

Oh a visit to Singapore during the Christmas season means a mandatory visit to see the Orchard Road lights. We did a super quick tour in my brother's car.

So, as you can see, I've had a packed November AND December and to tell you the truth, I am still a little pooped. It's no wonder I haven't had much time to do any crafting. Maybe I should go on holiday to get over my holiday. What say you?