Monday, October 28, 2013

Tangle no more! Hassle-free Music and Phone Calls

While normal earphones with their wire (frequently) constrain movement or get caught up in something, and untangling the wire can be a (painful) hassle, it never really occurred to me how much more enjoyable music can be wire-free. So when I first heard of and received my Plantronics Backbeat GO 2 Wireless Earbuds, the first thing that came to my mind was, “Why didn’t I not think of getting one before? They are a God send!” 


Normal earphones have the tendency to get tangled easily, especially when they are not connected to the phone or mp3 player (nicely coiled and/or corded up). It’s a mess having to just rummage through a vast bag, and a torture having to untangle the wire (especially when you are up and about in a crowded place). Even when the wire is nicely (as much as possible) coiled around the phone or coiled inside a case, it is a nightmare having to uncoil it (holding on to both phone and bag) on a crowded moving bus or train.

Just to get music into the ears or even answering the phone with normal earphones can be a challenging affair, especially when in a crowded and/or moving platform (regardless whether the earphones are connected to the device). There are also just too many steps! You have to:
  1. Take them out of bag and/or casing
  2. Untangle or unwind them
  3. Plug the earphones into device (e.g. phone or mp3 player)
  4. Maneuver the wires around/into your bag or pocket
  5. While you have music piped into your ears, you are still subjected to the constraints of the (slightly short) wire getting in the way (dangling from the ears all the way to the bag or pockets) and risk any device connected to it to accidentally drop.

However, with Plantronics Backbeat GO 2 Wireless Earbuds, listening to music and being on the go is much simpler. Minus the maneuvering constraint of (sometimes) short wires and headache of tangles. All you have to do is:
  1. Take out the Plantronics Backbeat GO 2 Wireless Earbuds from bag / casing. 
  2. Connect the earbuds to the music device via Bluetooth and you are done!

Pairing the earbuds with any Bluetooth enabled device (e.g. phone or mp3 player) is straight forward and simple to understand. All that is needed is to hold the center button till it says "PAIRING" (of course you have to also turn on the device’s Bluetooth function). Click “Pair” on the device... Read more>>

Sunday, October 06, 2013

Tim Ho Wan (Plaza Singapura)

After a day out playing at St. Games, we made our way to Tim Ho Wan - the latest (branch at Plaza Singapura) place / craze for dim sum apparently. The restaurant takes no reservations, so the queue can and is usually insanely long (40 minutes or more just to get in!). Fortunately for us on a weekday mid afternoon there wasn't much of a crowd. LuttiSparrow & Co.were already famished at this point. Thankfully, it took us less than 15 minutes to be seated.
Interesting fact: Tim Ho Wan is a Michelin one star restaurant famed for it’s affordable and delicious dim sum.


It was a vibrant place bustling with constant activity (true to its Hong Kong origins I guess). Service was prompt and attentive enough (even though it was full house as the afternoon progressed); kudos to the service staff that day. Food was served at a relatively fast rate (we had to eat faster just to make... Read more>>

Hotel Equatorial Melaka (Review)

Hotel Equatorial Melaka
The lobby
Was in Malacca recently and stayed in Hotel Equatorial Melaka for 5 days (for a church camp). Hotel Equatorial Melaka claims to have a 5 star rating and its décor is on the vintage side (it has been around for some time and its age does show). Fortunately some areas seem to have undergone some refurbishment, but unfortunately the hotel ends up with what seems like an identity crisis: while some areas retain its old vintage-ness (and tired chairs / sofas / carpets), other areas attempt to be modern (but both not complementing each other in any.. Read more>>

Saturday, October 05, 2013

Samcheong-dong - Bukchon Village: Food, Shopping, Cafe and History!

As Gyeongbokgung Palace (not to mention the Ginseng Chicken at Tosokchon) took more than half a day, we left Samcheong-dong to the 6th day. Samcheong-dong is near to Gyeongbokgung Palace and is relatively near to Cheong Wa Dae (the Blue House a.k.a the President’s Office) and Insadong; both of which are tourist spots worth to visit. To get there just alight at the some subway station stop (Anguk Station, Subway Line No. 3) for Gyeongbokgung Palace.

Samcheong-dong
From the subway station out to Samcheong-dong

Just follow the signs and you will find yourself at Samcheong-dong, one of the most unique places in Seoul where there is the hanok (traditional house made out of wood and put together without any nails) Bukchon Village. Samcheong-dong is a beautiful neighborhood and will definitely take more... Read more>>

Farewell Dinner at Big Mama’s (Korean Food)

We had a farewell dinner (some time back) for our favorite Korean language teacher’s farewell and where else would we go but a Korean restaurant! Ke had suggested going to Big Mama, whose owner, to our pleasant surprise happened to be 샘's friend. So with venue in place and day scheduled, all that was left was to await the (farewell) dinner.

The day come and we met as planned at Tanjong Pajor MRT Station. Big Mama is just a walk way; about 10-15 minutes from the station. Coincidentally there was a Korean meetup group having the same meeting place and same venue - we had to clarify a couple of times that we were not the... Read More>>

Sunday, September 08, 2013

Cold Eyes Singapore Movie Gala Premiere and Red Carpet

Cold Eyes Movie Gala Premeire and Red Carpet

This summer the movie Cold Eyes is one of the hottest movie in Korea, topping the domestic box office charts in its first week of release on 3 July 2013 and earning more than US$36 million. In conjunction with the Singapore promotional tour, an exclusive preview screening was held for the fans at Marina Bay Sands MasterCard Theatres with a red carpet event to boot too!

Cold Eyes Movie Gala Premeire and Red Carpet

Thanks to DramaQueen who had invited me, I had to opportunity to not only have a look (at me first red carpet event!) but also watch the movie before it hits the theatres in Singapore on 5 September 2013.

It was an eventful evening as we made our way to the Marina Bay Sands MasterCard Theatres to collect the tickets before heading over to have a peek at the red carpet event. The crowd for the red carpet was growing as the minutes ticked by. By the time it was time for the Korean casts' arrival, "orderly" fan chaos ensued. Earlier in the day there were promotional rounds and interviews, where... Read more>>

Madame Patisserie: Passion for Baking and much more!

Madame Patisserie

Hidden in a corner of Boat Quay lies this quaint cozy looking cafe, Madame Patisserie, which serves pastries, desserts, tea and coffee (even wine!). There are even baking classes and you can customize your cakes! How cool is that? ^^

It has been a while since I last visited Boat Quay and since Mmy was invited by her friend, I tagged along and we took the mrt alighting at Raffles Place MRT Station Exit H. From there, it was a 10-15 minute walk to  Madame Patisserie, but in the scorching hot sun that day made the walk seem even longer. 

Madame Patisserie has outdoor and indoor seating, both of which are comfortable and overlooks the Singapore River (nice for a relaxing afternoon tea break on a breezy day). The menus are pretty and... Read more>>