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Marina Bay Singapore Countdown 2014 @ One Fullerton Rooftop and The Promontory @ Marina Bay

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Friends who know me well enough will know that I dislike places with large crowds and while this is especially true, attending the New Year’s Eve Countdown last Tuesday at the One Fullerton Rooftop and The Promontory @ Marina Bay has somehow changed my mind and I have been somewhat convinced to attend the yearly New Year countdown celebrations from now on.

Both Jacqueline and I were at The Promontory @ Marina Bay to catch the Celebrate With The World Concert and the venue was swarming with people. As the concert was FREE and opened to members of the public, there was actually a long line of people queuing up to get into the concert grounds, even when we left at about 10pm.

The performances put up by the various artistes at the Celebrate With The World Concert were splendid and we liked the acts by Juz-B, a local a cappella group formed in 1995 and Ronski Speed, a German DJ and producer.

Juz-B

[Image Credits to Juz-B]

Rose to fame on the first season of televised Channel U Superband competition in 2006, Juz-B was well received as an All-Malay a cappella group that sang in Mandarin. Breaking the language barrier, Juz-B touched the hearts of both Chinese and Malay viewers with their passionate yet intercultural voice. Known for their soulful performances and on-stage flair, Juz-B bagged awards at the 2nd Asian A cappella Festival. Other notable performances include the 4th Starry Starry Night on Beijing CCTV as well as the STAR concert at Gardens by the Bay in 2012.

Ronski Speed

Best known for tracks like ‘The Space We Are’, ‘E.O.S. Satellite’ with Above & Beyond, ‘Lasting Light’ with Emma Hewitt and ‘Rise Again’ with Lucy Saunders; Ronski Speed has played DJ-sets in over 80 countries including world-renowned festivals such as Gatecrasher, Love Parade, Nature One and Mayday in Germany. He has also spun in globally recognised club establishments such as Ministry of Sound London, Avalon Hollywood, Zouk Singapore and Pacha New York.

We also happened to get upclose and personal with Namewee, a multi-talented artiste from Malaysia!

Namewee is a multi-talented artiste from Malaysia under the label Prodigee Media. Being a controversial figure through his rap songs depicting social issues in his country, he is becoming one of the most influential voices of his generation. His directorial movie debut ‘Nasi Lemak 2.0’ which he also starred in, became the highest box office movie in Malaysia in 2011 and earned him ‘Asia’s Best New Director Award’ at the Osaka Asian Film Festival. His latest album, ‘Asia Most Wanted’, launched in Taiwan this year introduced his talent to a bigger regional audience. With an official Facebook page of 950,000 fans and Youtube channel of 300,000 subscribers, he is now one of the most popular online figures in the region. ‘Celebrate with the World’ was Namewee’s first ever public performance in Singapore.

With awesome music at a location where people can also view the stunning fireworks display, the Celebrate With The World concert was too good to be missed.

After listening to some songs by Rivermaya, Jacqueline and I headed to the One Fullerton Rooftop where we spent some quiet moments just admiring the scenic view and await the highly anticipated fireworks display to start.

To be honest, we were rather privileged to be given this rare opportunity to access the One Fullerton Rooftop as it was only opened to the guests whom were staying at The Fullerton Hotel Singapore and The Fullerton Bay Hotel Singapore. All thanks to the special arrangements by both Urban Redevelopment Authority and The Fullerton Hotel Singapore, this was made possible and we are really grateful.

Canapés, soft drinks, wines, and champagnes were served to the guests at the One Fullerton Rooftop and when the countdown to 2014 began, everyone were just bustling with excitement. The 8-minute long fireworks display was truly amazing and it was our first time witnessing such a grandeur display of fireworks that beautifully coloured the sky.

[Video Credits to Marina Bay Singapore]

It sure was the best countdown we’ve ever had and we’re quite sure that as the year progresses, more new and exciting stuffs will be coming soon!

Let us all work towards our New Year Resolutions and may all of you experience new hopes and dreams towards a greater future.

Happy New Year! 🙂

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A Day For A Celebration [New Year’s Eve]

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Cliché as it may sound but today is definitely the day for a celebration!
Why?

Because it is New Year’s Eve!

Yes, after 365 days of working hard and toiling away, you definitely deserve a good break to celebrate your successes and achievements in the last 12 months!

If you are still thinking of ideas about how you can celebrate and welcome the New Year at the Marina Bay, we have some suggestions for you:

Celebrate with the World Countdown Party @ The Promontory @ Marina Bay
From 6pm to 1.30am, Free admission

[Image Courtesy of Celebrate With The World]

Usher in 2014 in style at Celebrate with the World 2014 – A Countdown Extravaganza! Featuring local and international artistes, Celebrate with the World Countdown Party aims to make the world a smaller place and have every individual in Singapore, no matter what nationality, ring in the New Year together as one!

Dance the night away to over 7 hours of non-stop entertainment by Renowned German DJ Ronski Speed, Filipino rock band RiverMaya, Malaysian singer/songwriter Namewee and our homegrown Juz-B, Chriz Tong and Queen Inc. featuring Sylvester Sim!

The countdown party is free of charge to the public and will feature key areas for partygoers to purchase drinks from the bar. Look forward to 2014 with unrestricted views of Marina Bay Sands, ArtScience Museum and the Marina Bay Floating Platform as you enjoy various entertainment acts from around the world!

Marina Waterfront Bazaar @ Marina Bay Waterfront Promenade
From 4pm to 1am, Free admission

[Image Courtesy of Marina Bay Singapore]

Feel the soothing breeze and admire Singapore’s most spectacular skyline as you shop at the Marina Bay waterfront promenade. Offering a variety of good buys from fashion accessories and apparel to toys, books and souvenirs, this bazaar ensures that there will be something for everyone.

Downtown Bites by Marina Link Bay Mall @ Marina Bay Waterfront Promenade
From 6pm to 1am, Free admission

[Image Courtesy of Only William]

Planning to arrive at Marina Bay early in the evening to reserve your favourite spot to count down to 2014 and watch the majestic fireworks at midnight? Satisfy your hunger pangs and quench your thirst with gourmet food and beverages from Buzz, Eskimo, Four Seasons Gourmet Market, Fruit Frolic, Jollibean, Old Tea Hut, Smoothie King and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.

And by the way, if you are an avid shutterbug, don’t miss out on the wonderful photography opportunities that are available for you to capture beautiful and happy moments of people celebrating and welcoming the New Year because your photos might probably win you some prizes that are proudly sponsored by OSIM! “Beautiful Life” is the theme for the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown 2014 Photography Competition and all entries submitted shall be based on this theme.

For more details about the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown 2014 Photography Competition, do check out the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown 2014 Website!

Oh, and less we forget about the most important point; you might want to take note of the road closures [if you’re driving], and the bus services that would be affected by the road closures [if you’re taking the public bus].

Road Closures

[Image Courtesy of Singapore Police via Marina Bay Singapore]

If you are driving, do note that parking lots are limited and you are strongly advised to leave your house early. Otherwise, it is wiser to take the public transport. The last trains toward Joo Koon, Pasir Ris, and Jurong East MRT stations will depart City Hall MRT station at 2.15am and the last train toward Marina Bay MRT station will depart City Hall MRT station at 2.01am. Last trains toward HarbourFront and Dhoby Ghaut MRT stations will depart the respective terminals at 1.38am.

Bus Services and Bus Stops that are Affected by the Road Closures

[Image Courtesy of SBS Transit via Marina Bay Singapore]

Last but not the least, while you enjoy and soak yourself in the happy occasion, don’t forget to keep Marina Bay clean for the community to enjoy by not leaving your thrash behind!

Have fun and Happy New Year everyone!

May all your wishes and dreams come true!

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[Post-Event Thoughts]- Run For Hope 2013

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Two Sundays ago, we were at The Promontory @ Marina Bay to participate in the Run For Hope [10KM Category] and we had a blast completing the non-competitive charity run.
Organised by the Four Seasons Hotel Singapore and Regent Singapore [A Four Seasons Hotel], this year marks the 21st run that the long-time supporters of cancer research have organised to show their support and dedication to finding a cancer cure and it saw more than 11,000 participants, the largest turnout in the event’s history, take part in the 3.5KM and 10KM routes at The Promontory @ Marina Bay.

Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for Health and Manpower, showed her support for Run For Hope 2013 by flagging off the race proceedings as the run’s Guest-Of-Honour and joined the hundreds of families and supporters at the event to complete the 3.5KM route.

The 10KM race route was scenic and when I was running, it didn’t felt like I was doing a 10KM run as I was just too engrossed admiring the city skyline.

At the 7KM mark…

At the 9KM mark…

All participants were encouraged to personalise their running bibs to share their reasons for supporting the run and we too did the same.

Through Run For Hope 2013, over $460,000 was raised in support for cancer research at the National Cancer Centre Singapore and this accounts for the largest pool of funds raised from a run event organised by the hotels. The total amount also includes close to $25,000 that was raised by the two hotels, through separate fundraising activities in the lead-up to the event.

Overall, we were quite happy with the organisation of the run and we really enjoyed ourselves; all thanks to the almost 600 student volunteers from Temasek Polytechnic, Republic Polytechnic, University of Nevada Las Vegas Singapore, ITE College West, Anglican High School, and St Margaret’s Secondary School, whom contributed to the success of the event by helping out with the packing and distributing of the race pack collections, and the marshalling and handing out of bananas and water during the run!

We definitely look forward to future charity runs like these! 🙂

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A Recount of the Ben & Jerry’s Chunkfest 2013 at The Promontory @ Marina Bay by Foxy Mehmeh

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Papi Melvin told me that he wants to take a break from blogging and so, I [Foxy Mehmeh] am writing this blog post on his behalf. All pictures used in this blog post were taken by Mummy Jacqueline.
Last Saturday, Papi and Mummy brought me to The Promontory @ Marina Bay for the Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013, Singapore’s largest ice cream festival, and we had a fabulous time indulging in the yummy Ben & Jerry’s ice cream that were specially flown in for the occasion!

Despite the pretty bad weather at the beginning, a steady stream of visitors came to join in the muddy affair. As I didn’t want to get myself dirty, Papi carried me in his recyclable bag and we went to sight see. There were a couple of game booths set up and we could tell the little ones had loads of fun!

Yes, even adults older than Papi and Mummy had fun at the game booths too!

A father and son duo enjoying themselves at the game booths.

A group of children waiting to compete in a sack race.

With so much activities lined up for Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013, there was never a dull moment and everyone was smiling and so happy!

While sight-seeing with Papi and Mummy, fans of A Winsome Life came over to say “hi” and they received 5 pints of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream along with some Ben & Jerry’s merchandise from us. Here’s a photo of Papi with our fans!

The Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013 surprised us in many ways because for one, the Ben & Jerry’s merchandise were really affordable! We literally saw troops of people just rushing over for some shopping madness and we ourselves joined in the craze and Papi and Mummy bought a couple of Ben & Jerry’s tee-shirts that were going for 2 Fair Coins [equivalent to $2] each! Unfortunately, there weren’t tee-shirts my size and I guess I shall just stick to my foxy sweater.

Here are just some of the Ben & Jerry’s merchandise that were selling at Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013.

We also spotted a group of children that came for Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013 and boy, were they rich! Some of them were seen carrying $50 and $100 notes to buy ice cream!

Anyway, pets were allowed at the Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013 and I saw many friendly dogs. They smiled at me but I was too shy to approach them for photos so Mummy Jacqueline help me to take some photos of them for me to keep and remember them.

Papi and Me posing for a photo.

I was rather thirsty that day and the Korkor and Jiejie from Somersby were very generous to offer us some Apple Cider.

Papi and the Jiejie from Somersby posing for a photo.

When Papi gave me a cup of Somersby Apple Cider to finish by myself, Mummy was angry withPapi because she said I was too young to drink alcoholic drinks. So, after much discussion with Mummy, I got a tiny weeny cup of Somersby Apple Cider and it was simply refreshing!

We also went to checked out some of the Fairness Partners’ booths at the Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013 and we found Project Happy Feet quite meaningful.

When we visited Project Happy Feet’s booth, we found out that Project Happy Feet is a Singapore-based not-for-profit organisation set up to empower the lives of underprivileged youths and children in developing countries by supporting their education and training through fund-raising for education-related initiatives and programmes that positively impact them or their families. Papi found Project Happy Feet so meaningful that he is considering signing up to be a volunteer.

Another Fairness Partner booth that we visited was Kerbside Gourmet.

Kerbside Gourmet is Singapore’s first gourmet food truck with a social vision. “Kerby”, as the truck is affectionately nicknamed, hit the streets in the first quarter of 2013 with soul food, catering to the discerning individuals who seek an alternative, sublime dining experience. Papi and Mummy ordered some of their food to try and they were really tasty! To catch Kerby and try some of the awesome food, do check out Kerbside Gourmet’s Facebook Page for updates about where they will be located at!

One of the highlights of the Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013 was the Vermonster Challenge.

It was my first time witnessing such an eye-opening event. The teams that participated in the Vermonster Challenge were really big eaters and it was indeed a very messy affair! In case you’re wondering what is a Vermonster, the Vermonster is a large ice cream sundae served in a “Vermonster Bucket” at Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shops. The Vermonster Bucket contains 20 scoops of ice cream, 4 bananas, 4 ladles of hot fudge, 3 chocolate chip cookies, 1 chocolate fudge brownie, 10 scoops of walnuts, 2 scoops each of 4 toppings of your choice, and whipped cream. The Vermonster contains a whopping 14,000 calories and 500 grams of fat!

Here are some photos of the teams that participated in the Vermonster Challenge:

Team Mon Mon Cheongster came in second place after Team Fair La Croquette Ben & Jerry beat them with a minute lesser.

Team We Are Monsters

Team Fair La Croquette Ben & Jerry won the Vermonster Challenge and they received a one year’s supply of Vermonsters!

And of course, how could we miss the yummy Ben & Jerry’s ice cream while watching others chomp down the Vermonster? Papi and Mummy gotten me three different flavours of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and they were oh-so-yummy! My favourite one has got to be the Candy Bar Pie and unfortunately, it is not available here in Singapore. I really do hope they will bring in this flavour next year!

When evening came, the lights from the surrounding buildings were very pretty and the atmosphere was so surreal.

For the very first time in the history of Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest, there was a special movie screening under the night sky and the movie, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” was screened.

Well, I had a lovely and fun time at Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013 and I am definitely looking forward to next year’s Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2014! Hopefully, Papi and Mummy will bring me out again!

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[Ben & Jerry’s Ice-Cream Giveaway]- Ben & Jerry’s Couch Potato Workshop & Singapore Food Inspiration Tour with Peter Lind

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Pre-amble: This is going to be a rather long blog post. We took more than 600 photos yesterday and even after all the sorting, deleting, and editing, we still ended up with quite a number of photos. Hence, we have consolidated some of the photos into collages for easy viewing.
Yesterday, we were at the Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop at VivoCity for the Couch Potato Ice Cream Workshop with Ben & Jerry’s Flavour Guru, Peter Lind, and it was a very insightful session. Couch Potato is the latest Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavour that is launching here in Singapore and during the workshop with Peter, we learnt about the secrets that went behind the creation of Couch Potato.

In case you didn’t know, Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop at VivoCity underwent a major facelift and we really like the newly decorated place. With its more cosy, clean, and colourful furniture and fixtures, the Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop at VivoCity is definitely a chic place for some awesome Ben & Jerry’s ice creams!

Kenneth, the Brand Champion for Ben & Jerry’s, gave his opening address before the workshop with Peter Lind.

Peter made quite a surprising entrance when he played on his harmonica and welcomed us to the workshop.

Peter explained to us that the idea behind the creation of Couch Potato was a rather elaborate one. There were many experiments that had to be carried out to perfect the Couch Potato and in this photo, you will see Peter dipping a potato chip into a cup of milk. This was done to put across the point that potato chips would absorb moisture and turn soggy when submerged in liquid. As such, when Peter was creating the Couch Potato, he had to find a solution that would prevent the potato chips from turning soggy. Hence, this was how the idea of a chocolate-coated potato chip came about.

Even then, the idea was still in its infancy stage as there are many different types of flavoured potato chips. After tasting for ourselves the various chocolate-coated potato chips in different flavours, we concluded that the chocolate-coated classic potato chip was the best. As potato chips are quite brittle and fragile to be mixed into ice cream, Peter then came up with the idea of grounding the potato chips, forming them into a spherical shape, and then finally coating it with chocolate. This made the chocolate-coated potato chip clusters rather sturdy to be mixed into the ice cream without becoming soggy.

During the workshop, Jacqueline also had the rare opportunity to assist Peter in making the Couch Potato which we happily ate on the spot! Nothing beats freshly made ice cream!

Couch Potato, a wacky, chunky, and funky concoction that features vanilla ice cream with a salty caramel swirl and chocolatey potato chip clusters.

Ben & Jerry’s is all about Peace, Love, and Ice Cream!

At the workshop, Peter also showed us how quality checks are done on Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and he literally saw pints of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream into half. He showed us what makes a good pint of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and really, we were quite amazed at the stringent requirements that Ben & Jerry’s has for their ice cream. The next time you buy a pint of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, you can be rest assured that you’re getting high quality ice cream all the way from Vermont, USA!

After the workshop with Peter, we were very privileged to bring him on a Singapore Food Inspiration Tour together with 4 other Bloggers.

The first stop was to Thye Moh Chan and it was led by GNineThree. There, Peter tried a couple of tau sar piah that came with different fillings. For those of you whom are unfamiliar with the tau sar piah, it is actually a flaky pastry and it is a Chinese delicacy. Apart from the tau sar piah, Peter also had the kaya toast bread from Toast Box.

The second stop was to Ah Hung Company where Peter had his first experience with the durian. There, I introduced the durian to Peter and though he was initially quite apprehensive about trying it, he was actually quite surprised that the experience wasn’t so bad after all. We also introduced some other local tropical fruits to Peter and he was quite pleased with the dragonfruit and the mangosteen. With that said, the XO durian that we had didn’t come cheap. It cost a staggering $132 and the XO durian weighed about 4+KG!

Peter’s expression when trying the durian.

The third stop was to Sinma Frog Porridge and Melicacy led the tour. Though it wasn’t Peter’s first experience with frog legs, he enjoys the frog leg porridge very much. Personally, we liked it too as the frog legs were chewy and tender and the sauce complemented the entire dish really well.

The fourth stop was to Bedok Central Hakwer Centre and there, both DarrenSim and YummyFoodBook introduced the chendol and the rojak to Peter.

Apart from the chendol, Peter also had a taste of some other local desserts such as the almond paste, pulut hitam, soya beancurd, and even the goreng pisang! Peter was also given a bottle of gula melaka which he could bring back to his laboratory and experiment with new flavours!

Peter shared with us that he handles spice really well and he enjoyed the rojak even though it was slightly spicy. He found the cucumbers and pineapples rather refreshing and he even candidly told us that he might want to work on the cucumber sorbet that he previously experimented with.

Honestly, we were indeed privileged to have such an upclose and personal session with Peter! He was so accommodating and extremely friendly, and we really do hope that he returns to Singapore again!

We concluded the whole event with Peter presenting hampers to everyone of us. The hampers came with Ben & Jerry’s merchandise and to top it off, Ben & Jerry’s Singapore gave us a year’s supply of Ben & Jerry’s ice-cream! We were indeed feeling extremely euphoric!

This Saturday, Ben & Jerry’s Singapore is organising Singapore’s biggest ice cream festival, the ChunkFest! It will be held at The Promontory @ Marina Bay from 2pm to 10pm and admission is FREE! There, you will be able to enjoy exclusive Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavours specially shipped in from the US for the event, participate in euphoric carnival activities, and catch the ever popular Vermonster Challenge!

Also, for the first time at ChunkFest, you can also enjoy an evening movie screening with your loved ones over a cup of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream! So, if you’re planning a romantic date, don’t forget to purchase the Moovie Pack which consist of a complimentary scoop of ice cream, picnic mat, flip-flops, and tote bag; all for only $12 and 50% of the proceeds will go towards Ben & Jerry’s Fairness Partners such as Blessings in A Bag, Chris Café @ The Hub, Dyslexia Association of Singapore, Kerbside Gourmet, and Project Happy Feet!

If you feel lucky enough, you might want to check out GNineThree’s Blog as they are giving away 6X Moovie Packs!

[Image Credits to Ben & Jerry’s Singapore]

As for us, we’re going to slurp down the 13 exclusive flavours of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream from the US that are only available on that day itself! There’s Candy Bar Pie, White Russian, Banana Peanut Butter Greek Yoghurt, Chocolate Peppermint Crunch, Karamel Sutra, Peach Cobbler and so much more!

Before we end off this blog entry, we would like to share the joy of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream with all you readers and that is, we will be giving away 5X Pints of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream [any flavour of your choice] which are redeemable only at Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop at VivoCity.

All you have to do is:

1. Like Our Facebook Page @ http://www.facebook.com/awinsomelife

2. Like, Share, and Tag 5 Friends In This Picture, with the Comment; “Join Me @ the Ben & Jerry’s ChunkFest 2013 that is happening at The Promontory @ Marina Bay this Saturday and help me look for @awinsomelife”.

3. Head down to Chunkfest 2013 and be the first 5 to hunt us down to collect the “Free Pint Voucher” from us this Saturday at ChunkFest 2013!

See you at Ben & Jerry’s Chunkfest 2013 at The Promontory @ Marina Bay!

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