Ion Orchard: a dazzle!

Life ran a full-length feature on its highlights and perks. Looking at the picture of its public loos already leaves me bedazzled. I do not mind not being a VIP who can gain access to the $10 000 restrooms. Even though different terms are used for the same place, the public ones are very spacious and the huge mirrors in the middle definitely makes one's vanity checks more luxurious. :)

I am enticed by the fact that the architectural design was inspired by Orchard Road's history as a real orchard. Its history has been resurrected through Ion! I also am happy to note that all the shops are easily visible and reached. I am not a consumer who goes for designer brands and so I will immediately go to the basement levels.

I am very excited about the food outlets. Canton-I seems to be as good as Crystal Jade. I must go and try its food. :) I know my mum would have looked forward to eating there. I will go on her behalf then. ThreeSixty Marketplace has Fortnum and Mason products on its shelves. I am ecstatic! It is the English queen's grocer, for your information. I went to its original location in London. Its products are gourmet in nature and its cakes are the traditional kind! I was so excited to see Victoria Sandwich cakes. Its wedding cakes are those worthy of being at a royal wedding. Its window displays will cause you to take a second glance at. Ginza Bairin's tonkatsus and Katsu sandwiches sound delicious, and so do R Burger's Asian burgers. Ooh, what about Tsukiji Gindaco's takoyaki balls and AOBA Ramen's shoyu ramen?! I will wait till the crowds die down though. I hate crowds.

The Sunday Times featured an article on the food offerings in Ion. There has indeed been a long queue for Tsukiji Gindaco's takoyaki balls, since they originate from Japan. difference though is that they are crispier than takopachi balls. The latter, which can be found at outlets like Junction 8 and Bugis Junction, is still soft on the outside, and I prefer this. Also, I prefer its smaller serving of 3 balls, as compared to Tsukiji Gindaco's 6. Thus, I guess I may not try this new fad after all.

The picture of Ginza Bairin's Katsu sandwich is enticing. The pork cutlets look pristine white in the centre, indicating they are well-cooked, while their breaded batter looks crispy. My tastebuds are reacting to the picture! The sandwich comes as finger portions and costs $9.10, a tad expensive for my pocket. Modern Peking Duck serves its duck skin slices in crepes at $6 for 5 pieces. This is a rather reasonable price but the health factor of this delicacy is on a low level, to be frank. The Chicken fenugreek tikka kati roll from Go India Express has the same issue with me. It is more expensive at $6 for 2 pieces and using prata as the roll decreases the health factor of the dish. The Taiyaki falls into the low health factor category as well.

I went to the supermarket ThreeSixty Marketplace and it is full of exotic products. In the deli section, I saw an unusual pre-made dish which merely needs to be put in the oven before eating. Bell peppers are filled with minced beef and shredded cheese. There are unusual canned products as well, in the form of butter beans and refried beans. I spent a rather long time in the baking needs section, where I bought ready-made graham pie crusts. I hope to make pies and cheesecakes with them. There were more varieties of Hawaiian Host chocolates, for example, Jewel. Exotic fruits and juices were also displayed in their various sections. The last attraction for me was the huge single portions of cheesecakes and brownies, as well as the exotic desserts served in covered plastic cups. Of course, their prices are expectedly high.

High heels and flip-flops per se

I've never liked stilettos because I know that despite their ability to make women look taller, slimmer and sexier, they cause long-term damage in a physical sense. To compromise my bodily functions for vanity is not worth doing. I love kitten heels though. They may not be as sexy as stilettos, but they are better for my legs. I have to wear flat shoes due to my arthritis, but I disagree with Sumiko Tan's opinion that they make me look old. I love them, as I feel like a ballerina in them.

It is true that regardless of brand name and price, high heels still do damage to the wearer's legs. I especially like A.A.Gill's humorous opinion on high heels. They are the modern version of the feet-binding which women in ancient China had to endure. Sumiko Tan equates the act of forgoing high heels for a month to let her legs recover to a short-term sacrifice, and the wearing of stilettos to a long-term pleasure. I hope she is just being satiric here, as the short-term sacrifice should really be forgoing high heels for lower ones, and the latter be maintaining healthy legs.

Like stilettos, flip-flops are harmful for our feet. However, Trove Tkees supposedly makes them look better. The range is named after makeup essentials, and seek to enhance our feet's appearance. Though flip-flops offer comfort to their wearers, they have thin soles, which give very little support to our feet. Again, is comfort worth obtaining at the expense of health?? Also, no matter how comfortable they are, they are definitely not suitable for formal occasions such as meeting the State President, even if their designs are sparkly and pretty. Blame the Y-shaped straps they have as their basic design.

The price of vanity

A housewife was found dead after having consumed a slimming drink. It caused her to physically weaken as a result. Andrea D'Cruz needed an organ transplant after having consumed slimming pills which had an adverse effect on her body.To maintain a good figure, it seems that one must destroy one's body in the process.

I have heard of slimming drinks that strive to be appealing in taste, by introducing delicious flavours such as chocolate. The truth is that we need food from all 3 groups for our body to properly develop. If we fear putting on weight, we can reduce our carbohydrate and meat intake, while increasing our consumption of fruits and vegetables. Believe it or not, sleep helps us lose weight too. I am a personal testimony to this truth. When I sleep enough, ie. 8 hours, I actually lose weight and vice-versa. Science has advocated the fact that we burn about 70 calories an hour as we sleep.