-we passed by the same house on a certain corner, that we have passed by for the last 10-12yrs. it's been sold a number of times and now it's up for lease or sale again... oh i wish i wish i wish!!! :)

-we stayed in a suite with a dripping ceiling in one toilet, and an un-flushable loo in the other! 

-we discovered a serene and sunny little 'beer' garden at the end of the jetty. the karaoke lounges along the way were noisy and smoky, but the pleasant sightings of waterbirds, and the serene seaview, were worth the sojourn. and 'no', there was no beer in the beer-garden...it was closed!~ so bring yr own drinks and snacks in the day and go hv a quiet seat in the quiet open air.

-a creepy creeper-lined coridor (almost of storybook-character) ~and to be found somewhere off jonker street, led to an old blacksmith's home at the back...re-constructed to it's original condition. having housed a rather noble occupant prior, it had been restored and converted to a museum and quaint little teahouse...the owner whom was kind enough to leave what seemed-to-be her students, and their informal art-lesson~ willingly.  she briefed my children and i on the history of its owner, along with his interesting travels...marked on the wall in a stone map of sorts.

-along the same walk, we came upon a quiet courtyard that backed on to some shops~ the buildings stood large and majestic in their opulance of space...in contrast to some of the small shophouses we passed. yet their occupants were of humble professions: masseuse, hairdressers and the like.

'one could live as kings here," my hubby ventured...as we continued to explore their 'grand' courtyard.

-the artists' cafe was a gem on a side-road... simply, yet creatively adorned with paintings, beaded lampshades, interesting artefacts, and with an equally-interesting crowd!  the curry is not worth trying, the satay is tasty but pricey, the fried dimsum goes well with the sweet-sour sauce, and potato-wedges too! your best bet would be coming here for it's array of wonderful coffees... both the chilled and hot variety.  a selection of cheesecakes, brownies and caramel slices, are sure to provide a good pick-me-up between shopping and sightseeing~ and excellent to take back to the hotel as a midnite treat! :>

-the kids had a fab time swimming... and i was kept busy following them around the pool with the pretext of 'playing' with them. my dd has become way too mobile in the water...so i spent some time encouarging her to learn how to paddle. my valiant efforts proved to have some results. (all-be-it my pleasanlty-tanned arms ;))  my son was happy to finally put his old snorkelling set to good use. and now that he can swim, he proved to take to it very well... even going so far as to spot tiny ivory-coloured beads on the floor of the deep pool...then proceeding to dive and retrieve them for his dear sister... who plans to make herself a bracelet with them :) 

-while i watched the kids, caught up on my newspapers, swam and played putt-putt, dh did the obvious thing: he happily went shopping :> he came back with a present for each of us...and a few more for him!

-we saw way too many accidents on the way back... a car that had flipped and landed up upside-down in a ditch. another that reduced traffic to a crawl in one direction, and a complete standstill in the other, saw a collision between a bus, a truck and a few other vehicles. the truck had tipped it's load of sacks across 3 lanes and needed a crane to come in to right it. i'm just glad we werent stuck with 2 tired cranky kids in that lane! quiet prayers were said allround... and i noticed dh drive even more sensibly after that.

-at jb we stopped for dinner. ky took part in a 'surfing' competition. (one of these mechanical surfboards where u hv to stay on as long as possible.) he didnt beat the longest time...but he did stay on longer than quite a few adults :) and exactly the same amount of time as a 10-year-old girl...which pleased him even more!!! afterall, no guy wants to be beaten by a girl right! :))  and better yet: he got a giant goodie bag, with a very little pen and some other minor knick-knacks.. of course it was the pen that interested him most... and why? ~well, it's strange mechanism of course! :b

-our fish all survived. my plants thrived. our cat survived...without getting lost!... and our kind neighbour-lady saved all our newspapers... so we cd catch up on the latest H1N1 happenings as soon as we touched down!

-the power didnt trip while we were gone, so nothing in the fridge turned mouldy.

-i remembered to put bleach in the toilets b4 we left...so we didnt come home to a home full of mozzies and mosquito larvae.

-i cleaned the house b4 we left, so i came home to a pleasantly-empty sink, dry washing on the line, and crumb-free floors... but oh the dust that settles in just a few days of absence!