Simon's Peiking Duck

Chris and I caught up with our friends, Cassy and Ethan for a dinner over Peking Duck. We decided to go to Simon's Peiking Duck. This is one of those places where their speciality is Peking Duck and everything else on their menu isn't all that great. The restaurant is really busy, so busy that they had to split into two dining sessions - 6pm and 8pm. We booked almost 2 weeks in advance for the 6pm session on a Saturday night. We decided to order 2 ducks for the night between 4 of us (as recommended by the waiter upon booking). You have to order the ducks beforehand otherwise they'll have no ducks for you and you'll have to order something from their menu. 

There are two duck sets available, one with noodles and one without. Duck soup, bean sprouts and peking duck is included in both sets. We decided to have one of each set. (Since it was Cassy and Ethan's first time dining at this restaurant, they wanted to try a bit of everything.) Ethan didn't try much since he came a whole hour late and had a super big and super late lunch so wasn't all that hungry.

If you're expecting 5 star service, this is definitely not the place for you. It's really loud - like a typical Chinese restaurant (also proven with the incorrect spelling in the name of the restaurant) and lacks service - no body cares about you unless you call them over. The owner, Simon does have a sense of humor though, he goes around table by table to teach you how to fold your peking duck - and don't you dare wrap it incorrectly!

Another thing I didn't like was that they tried to get us to eat faster so they can prepare the tables for the next session. We weren't even done with the first part of the meal and they kept piling the food on our tiny table. No time for us to sit around and enjoy the good food and the company.

Oh, and this place is cash only - another boo! But definitely worth trying.

Simon's Peiking Duck

197B Middleborough Road,

Box Hill South, 3128

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Bloop

The past week has not been my week at all. I’ve been knocked down with that time of the month (yes, ladies!), Chris has had a fever and a stomach bug and to top it off, I was about to blog last night and my laptop decides to freeze. I just let it sit there, hoping it’ll unfreeze itself but nope, it decided to make a ‘bloop’ sound and switch itself off. Now, it won’t turn on at all. It just stays on the loading screen and loads and loads and loads continuously. :/ (Lappie, what are you loading?)

I'm not going to bother trying to fix it as I have had it since my uni days. (4-5 years). So frustrating though!

I guess it's time for a new laptop! Hmm, now it’s time to choose which laptop I want. Any suggestions? 

Bye bye savings (once again!) L

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Enchanted Maze Gardens x Ethan's Birthday

Chris and I have been planning to catch up with our good friends, Cassy and Ethan for a day trip for a while now. We chose a Saturday that happened to coincide with Ethan's Birthday. We all decided that we wanted to go to a late night hot spring session so we planned our day around that. We had brunch, went for a walk to the coast, went cheese tasting, Strawberry farm, enchanted maze gardens, dinner then hot springs.

Ethan mentioned that he wanted to visit the Enchanted Maze Gardens. Chris and I actually wanted to visit this place about a month back but didn't end up going in because we thought the facade looked like it was designed for children and not suitable for us - it also rained that day, which drew us even further away.

We were really blessed with the weather on Saturday. It was forecast to rain that whole weekend but it was such a beautiful sunny Spring day. Chris and I were actually glad we didn't go in the last time because the rain would have spoilt everything as the maze gardens is entirely outdoors. Going in Spring made it so much more enchanting and beautiful, the flowers were in bloom and the trees were luscious green! Look how perfect everything is.

It really is so beautiful inside. The sculptures are perfectly cut out! Really impressive. It's not easy to maintain such a big high-maintenance area!

The lady at reception recommended we visit the Tube Slides and The 3D Spooky Maze first because they close earlier compared to the rest of the park. Good call from her because our favourite hang-out for the day was at the Tube Slides. Too bad it's super tiring because you have to lug these huge tubes

up a super steep hill before you can slide down and get sprayed with water. What's not to love?

Can't say the same about the 3D Spooky Maze. In my opinion, it was quite lame. You walk through these rooms with your funky 3D glasses on and the painting on the walls appear in 3D. I have to admit, I did get freaked out (at the very end, when the air machine popped and steam touched my leg). Props to me for freaking out the others! :P

Whilst we were going through the gardens, we looked up and saw these people tree surfing! Omgoodness, looks like so much fun but too bad, you require a booking to participate. Will definitely find time to go back there to tree surf!

Finished off a jam packed day with a relaxing night at the hot springs.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ETHAN :)

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The Boatbuilders Yard

Chris, his mum and I went to attend an investors and home owners expo a few Sundays ago. It was pretty much a huge empty hall filled with mini white tents and individuals exhibitions. We scheduled our day to attend the talks that we were interested in. Most of them were talking about how to buy your first home/which location is considered the 'hot spots'. Pretty interesting day.

The talks were pretty much back to back so we didn't have much time to do anything else. We did however schedule some time to go to a nearby cafe - The Boatbuilders Yard - for a quick lunch. Chris' mum recommended this place. It was a wonderful choice, the ambience was great and the views were amazing (overlooking the Yarra River).

Chris and I both ordered the Wagyu Burger and Chai Lattes, Chris' mum has a beef pie and pumpkin soup. Their servings were huge! If I had known, I would have shared with someone. Regret max.. 

The cafe is situated on a pier and is designed like a Boatbuilders workshop, it feels like a cosy hangout - perfect to relax and share a cuppa with some friends. They even have umbrellas and blankets for you to borrow in case it rains or is too cold outside. So considerate

The one really unique thing about this place is that we had to wait for our buzzer to go off - indicating our food was ready and then we had to walk all the way out and around the cafe to reach a little window (resembling a canteen) to pick up our own food. That was something new for both Chris and I, we had no idea where we were going and had to look for and follow the signs.

I'll definitely come back here again on a day when I have more time so I can relax and not feel too rushed.

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Homemade Italian

It's not everyday I get to cook for my family. Usually, when I come home from work, my mum has already prepared dinner or I don't even make it home for dinner at all.

This particular day, Chris and I decided it would be nice to whip up something special for my family. We decided on a 3 course Italian meal - a bit ahead of ourselves there! Luckily, we had the whole Saturday evening to prepare. We decided that the menu would include: Pumpkin Soup, bruschetta and lasagna! All made from scratch - delicious!

Below are the final products, yummmy ~ Success!

 Notice: my dad's inner Asian - tomato sauce and chilli sauces to accompany everything! Even Italian --" 

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Hello Spring x Happy Father's Day

September is finally here, which means Spring! It’s been a very dull and wet winter so it’s great to finally have some warmth, sunshine and colour in our days! Yesterday also marked my dad’s 23^rd Father’s Day! We celebrated by bringing him out to lunch and then to dinner, it’s always great to get together as a family to celebrate an occasion.

Yesterday was also the first time I went to visit my God Sis. If you know me well, you’ll know she passed away back in 2009. It’s been so different without her here with me which made it so difficult to go and visit her. But yesterday, together with Chris, his mum and my parents, we went to say hi. I know she’ll be upset because I delayed it for so long but I’m sure she would have loved having us there. We also took the time to visit Chris’ dad and Nanna whilst there. I’ve never seen a cemetery so busy before.  It was literally chock a block at every turn. Thankfully, we parked near the entrance which was just in front of a short cut turn to the exits!

That’s my daddy

 I love him so much x Happy Father’s Day, daddy! 

Look how young daddy still looks! Forever handsome x

and this is how much Jim loves dad :P

Also, a huge thanks and crazy amounts of love and respect for my eternal Father. Thanks for keeping me on track and loving me wholeheartedly x

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