Fraud!! Fridge Repairman MIA - Do NOT use!!!

This is a case of unprofessional misconduct of a certain repair company.

This company was supposedly named Evertech Builders & Services. We had initially acquired their number through an internet search and found under 88db.com.

We had an issue with our fridge not being cold.

At 645pm on the 14th of February, we called their number, 68818662 and a lady named Angie arranged for a repairman to come down to our home that evening.

The repairman arrived around 845pm and proceeded to assess our appliance. After his assessment, he advised that we had a very good quality fridge that would last another 13 more years at "least" and it was his professional assessment that our issue would be solved after he had installed an access valve, introduced thawzone acid into our piping and top up the fridge gas. We trusted his evaluation and paid a very expensive cash payment of $265 for this repair.

We were provided with a cash bill invoice that stated a 6 month guarantee to the repair done and a namecard. He said to give the fridge another 3 hours for it to get back to its "normal" state and left.

The next morning, we found the fridge still warm and called them to come down to check on their repair. Angie mentioned that since it was a Sunday that none of their repairmen were available. We asked Monday? She said their schedule was full and would call me back.

Their online advertisements state that they are a 24 hour Singapore Islandwide Repair service.http://sg.88db.com/sg/Services/Post_Detail.page/home_services/appliances_repairman/?PostID=125334

We called again on Monday for an appointment and were told by Angie through her evaluation over the phone that it was our pc board and we must change it for an additional cash payment of $156 repair on top of what we had already done to get our fridge working again.

She suggested switching off our main switch and turning it back on after 10 minutes. We did so and our fridge came back on. But since that time, our fridge had been cutting off every 6-8 hours and we had to reset the fridge each time it happened. Obviously, this would spoil the fridge and cause a potential appliance shot-out towards the rest of our household appliances if this were to continue.

All our food had since spoiled and we have not been able to store fresh food in this fridge since then.

We wanted a re-assessment before we agreed to additional repair & installation of new components and requested that their repairman come down again to re-evaluate our fridge first to confirm that additional components were really necessary as we were not convinced that it was the board issue and could very well be the issue with their initial repair which was under their service guarantee!

We were quoted again for an additional $15 transport charge which we had agreed to pay as long they send down the repairman to assess our fridge.

During the call, I asked her where they were located as we wanted to go down to their office to discuss our repair if necessary but she refused to tell us where they were located. She said she will call us back after she set an appointment time. They never called back to let us know again.

So we called repeatedly over the next couple of days with no avail until 19th of Feb where my husband managed to reach Angie at noon and spoke to her on sending the repairman down. She said she will arrange and will call us back and then. Never called us back once more.

Since that day, we have repeatedly called them on their provided number at 68818662 and cannot got through. Their number was either busy or redirected to an M1 mobile number which was not picked up.

We had tried to look for their address and found that they had several listed addresses from one at Tagore Lane, to one at Paya Lebar *on the namecard*, to one at Geylang East *listed online*.

We had tried to email them at their provided email at sales@evertech-aircon.com.sg and their email bounced back 5 times.Their provided website on their namecard is also non-existent. http://www.evertech-aircon.com.sg/

We did a search online and were further horrified to note that they had very lately this week put up more listings but under a different company name called CoolMega instead of Evertech like previously.

http://shops.st701.com/shops/view/118559
http://www.adpost.com/sg/appliances/2040/
http://singapore.gumtree.sg/f-refrigerator-Business-Services-building-removal-trades-W0QQCatIdZ33QQKeywordZrefrigerator

They had listed under 3 totally different male names too.

Just the day before, we finally managed to get through this line which Angie picked up around 1230pm only to have her pretend that the phone was not working and "couldn't hear me" so she quickly put it down after a few "cannot hear you" exclamations. I am very sure that our phone had no issues and I could hear her clearly.

Since then, no one picked up the line with our calls and was redirected the mobile number. Further calls came to no avail and we feel that there is something very wrong with how this is being handled.

We feel that in this is clearly a case of non service, avoidance and unprofessional misconduct that there are underlying issues that this company will bring forth to others in similar manner.

For us, we had paid a $265 charge for a repair that was supposedly guaranteed to fix the fridge which it did not and supposedly came with a 6 month guarantee that has not even on the first level of contact fulfilled for followup.

I would like to bring this issue to light to avoid further families from being cheated by this company. If they can do this to one family, they can do it to more.

There are more cases too of dissatisfaction that I've found on them too! A case of one of the mothers on my parenting board...

"DO NOT, DO NOT ever use this company EVERTECH BUILDERS & SERVICES. I also found them on the 88 site, for my air-con. Job was to top up the gas on the aircon. The technician tried to get technical, talking about gauge, coil, condenser etc and asked for $400plus to get the job done. As it was an emergency as I had guests, I bargained it down to $160 just to top up the gas of 1 aircon."

This would not be the last we hear of this. I only want my fridge fixed but if it means a company has go to down for this, so be it. Fix my fridge!!

On a Manhunt Search for a Hot Singaporean Male Blogger

Is there such a thing? Honestly?! Frankly. Is there a Hot Singaporean Male Blogger in our midst??

I'm not dissing existing male bloggers, some I've met, some at gatherings and some at events are all nice guys but I have HONESTLY not seen a HOT LOCAL MALE BLOGGER yet that I'd visit for superficial sake. If you feel you're a hot blogger *be a little thick skin, we'll forgive you*, tell me. I'll link it and us females will decide.

Perhaps he would camwhore? Or Perhaps he'd really have nice pictures that I would possibly drool over? *No, CJ doesn't have to worry about being jealous over anything....*

I plurked it and the response either came out in defiant indignantcy that there ARE such men.

Tell me. WHERE. Why is it that all I see are young, Jappy inspired style, highlighted standing up hair young guys flooding gathering pictures.... blogger events... with their multi colour blogs.

UPDATE: Please do not send me links of young "cute" male boys who fit the above description. They do not make the cut.

Don't ask me.. why am I SUDDENLY interested in this.. well its because I did some blog browsing and was damn freaking dulan seeing the "same type" of male blogger! Is that all we have?!

Some say the handsome ones must be Gay.. Okay.. so tell me WHERE IS that hot gay blogger?! Show me that link.

There are blogger babes galore.. GALORE!! u can easily bloghop and u can go FWWWUUAHH! Freaking chio lah!! But their opposite counterparts leh?

I now throw down this challenge. Show me 10 links to a HOT Singaporean Male Blogger before I declare our blogosphere devoid of such a thing.

Requirements: Be stalker worthy picture wise aka fulfills a majority standard of hotness and is LIVING in Singapore with a good, regularly updated running blog. Any race or age. Note that we're not necessarily looking for a POPULAR blogger but just a male that blogs! Who knows.. you may just be undiscovered?

And don't tell me what you think is hot may not be my standard of hot, just show it to me and I'll link it up here and we'll all see it for ourselves.

And don't start saying "who the hell do you think you are to throw down this challenge?" Whatever Okay! Show me proof and I'll shut up.

Seriously, I'm sure many females are now wondering and scratching their heads... if you know of one, cough it out... where are these elusive males... COME OUT OF THE WOODWORK!! If you think you're hot, just come out with it.

Don't give us machismo and say "I don't need to say I'm hot because I am". *facepalm* Whatever!!

My girlfriend BLOGGED about this manhunt blogger search too... send me a link if you blog about this too! You can email or leave a comment.

HSMB Recommended Shortlists *will be updated as they come in*
Not in order of merit.

http://yongfook.com/
http://www.krisandro.com/
http://limetouch.com/
http://www.non-famous.blogspot.com/
http://www.hisfoodblog.com/ - While you'll never see his face on his blog. If you meet him in person, you'll find that he's pretty cute. *Had the opportunity of meeting him during a food review once*
http://blog.omy.sg/danielang
http://www.cneil.com/
http://www.alloiscius.blogspot.com/
http://willyfoo.com/
http://ieatishootipost.sg/ (Dr Leslie Tay)
http://blog.sina.com.cn/zhengbinhui/ (Tay Ping Hui) *chinese blog - Unfortunately for pple like me who don't read chinese, this won't work but still...at least he blogs*
http://natho.net/nblog/
http://merman13.livejournal.com/
http://thinkingbetterthinkingmeta.blogspot.com/
http://mingwong.livejournal.com/ - Whoa GOOD RECOMMENDATION Karen!!
http://www.jsloh.blogspot.com/
http://www.ourembrace.blogspot.com/

http://www.willylamtw-diary.blogspot.com/ - Taiwan (But I'll make an exception here bc he cam whores, a little young but not too bad!)

OMG. THAT CAN'T BE ME!

Eeeyarrrghhh!! But it is.. when I was 8 months pregnant with Eirian back in 2002. I was talking to Coraine over msn and she asked how I looked like when I was pregnant at close to 100kg heavy with baby. I pulled out a hard cover album on Lauren's shelf and whoa!! Found it!

Eeeeeyyyaaarrrgghh!! Thats. HUGE. I gained 25kg per pregnancy and thats AFTER I lose 10kg during the first trimester aka first 3 months from all that morning sickness and then get back to the same weight when I conceived and then BAM! another 25kg on top of that each time... phew!! Lauren came out at 3.495kg and Eirian came out at 3.650kg.

A really really really cute 2 year old Lauren and a really round belly on me with an 8 month Eirian swimming about inside.

Disclaimer: Please do not let this post and pictures scare potential parents to be on how you MAY become during and after pregnancy. Having kids has many rewards and satisfactions that unsurpasses temporary whale like moments. And if anything, you have proof here that you can bounce back or at least near to your former figure if you really want to post baby. :)

And this was me at the Zoo with a chubby hubby and a 1 year plus Lauren.... OMG.... *shudder* Ookay.. you can close your mouth and blink now... Pffft!

EEeeyaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrghhhhhhhhh!!!!

Chicken Adobo, Chaipoh Omelette & Beansprouts

Coraine reminded me that I haven't put up some food pictures lately which I actually LOVE to do and I realise that I kinda missed it too! So I cooked again today after quite a while.

We ate early at 1030am after being rudely awakened at 730am by a screaming daughter who spotted a cockroach on the wall RIGHT ABOVE MY HEAD.

There is some kind of cockroach frenzy over here lately! I don't know why?! Just some days back, we were complaining of a mozzie buffet season. There were mozzies EVERYWHERE buffeting on our bodies.

But it doesn't compare to over the past 3 days, we've caught and killed 15 cockroaches. INSANE O NOT?!?! WTF! How does 15 cockroaches get out and about in one house LIKE THAT!! 15!!!

Anyway... *snigger* from food to roaches.. abit gross I know.. but... moving on... I wash all my utensils, pots and cutlery before use okay!

We had Chicken Adobo with diced potatoes, Salted Fish Beansprouts *recipe for both of these can be found HERE and Chai Poh *salted radish* Omelette for lunch. Rice was an option.

The omelette was standard issue.

I dry fried the Chai Poh *salted radish* and minced garlic for about 5 minutes on low heat. Added the mixture to beaten eggs and made individual omelette rounds on the flatpan.

And now that its almost 3pm.. we're all hungry again.. time to make more food.. Enjoy!!

Weightloss Update: Still 69kg

I haven't had a weightloss update for ages! Not since November 08 HERE. I don't blame anyone because I know myself that I have broken carb since then for the festive seasons. Christmas and New Year.. all so much food that saw my weight fluctuate to up from that 67.5kg to up to 72kg depending on how much feasting went on that week.

And my workouts have literally been halved since the end of last year. I could have hit up to 11 classes in a high peak week last year but I now do 5-6 dance classes at most now.

Waaay too many people have taken to thinking that I'm a whole lot smaller than this 69kg that I'm standing at now. How I wish!! While I'm thoroughly flattered, I do bring myself back to reality and note that I AM still 15kg away from my goal of 55kg.

I can attribute an increase in resistance training aka weight training this year to this so I'm looking alot smaller but I'm weighing the same. Yeah I know muscle weighs more than fat but still.. I'm still affected by the scale! I want to see the numbers go down!

This years goal. 55kg. This time, I'll make it a gradual loss througout the year but I will hit December 2009 knowing that I've hit 55kg sometime this year. Watch this space. I will make it happen.

Sardine Pasta

I haven't been cooking much lately but we did have some sardine pasta the other day that turned out pretty alright.

Whats in it?

1 Large Can of Deboned Sardines

Half Red Pepper *diced*

1/2 block of Cheddar Cheese *grated*

1 Can Ayam Brand Baked Beans

1 Red Onion *diced*

1 Tbs Garlic *minced*

Seasoned with black & white pepper and italian seasoning.

Boil pasta. Stir fry all ingredients except cheese in a pan. When pasta is cooked, mix in and top with a generous amount of cheese. Serve. :)

Trust Me... You NEED a HOLIDAY!

If you enjoyed our Family Getaway review and want to spend some quality, relaxing time with your spouse and child(ren)... at an extremely affordable rate too!

Exclusive to Dreaming Reality... YOU CAN!! From now till 22nd March 2009! The Getaway offer to the public ends this month but we've got something special just for my blog readers. Yes! Thats you!! :)

In addition to the luxurious complimentary spa voucher which you can book for your treatment and redeem during your stay *appt must be made in advance & is available for either husband OR wife!*.

You can also redeem a $20 dining voucher which you can use at Feast@East Buffet Restaurant, the Roxy Bar by the Pool or at Jia Wei Restaurant during your stay!

That practically means one adult almost eats for free! *If dining at Feast@East/ Or Equi. to one main dish at the Roxy Bar!*

And in addition to this, THERE'S MORE!! Absolutely insane I tell you.... and I'm so excited to share it with you too!

Readers who book a stay from now till 22nd March can redeem Parkway Parade Shopping Shopping Vouchers!! *PP is just located opposite the hotel!*

The shopping vouchers include:

• Soo Kee Jewellery Brilliant Rose $100 voucher


• Princess Jewellery $30 voucher


• OTO Bodycare $30 voucher


• Kimage $20 off hair services voucher


• Crocodile 30% off voucher

Each voucher has its own T&Cs.

To receive these shopping vouchers, all you have to do is mention "Getaway Special" when making your reservations and produce a printed copy during check-in of the promo. image above or EMAIL ME to get the image. Click on the image above, save it and print it!

So once again.. if you haven't already done so, go check out PART 1 and PART 2 of The Best Family Getaway Ever!! Go book a night people... believe me.. You Need a Holiday. :)

Beyoncé 'Single Ladies' Dance Routine

The song is pretty catchy. The dancing... I like too! I can so do this.. now if only I can remember the choreography! *running off to try*

And Little Arianna can do it too! So if she can, I can try, you can too! Beyoncé!!

And if these BBW *Big Beautiful Women* can do it... heck!.. Whats stopping you from trying!?

Shake some booty people! I absolutely advocate dancing as a way of losing weight and maintaining a fabulous body! Go for it!

Part 1: Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel - The Best Family Getaway EVER!

(WARNING! EXTREMELY LONG POST AHEAD. Part 1 of 2 - Be prepared to witness one of the Best Family Getaway Ever!!)

My blog rarely contains matters of business or of the companies that I run so this is the first time that there is a cross platform of work related matters that now involves my personal blog. Perhaps this would set a precendence for more to come but for now.. enjoy this post.

Through some workwise discussions, I was graciously offered the opportunity to review a Family Getaway Hotel Stay Package by Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel. It was an exciting lead up to the day that we were due to check in, we have not gone for a holiday in YEARS.

Yes, years... so we were highly due for some pampering and relaxation. So on the 7th of February, Eirian and I hopped into a cab and made our way to the hotel. We were so excited, we were there way before 9am and our appointment to meet the marketing manager was at 950am! Lauren had leadership camp earlier in the morning so CJ was left to arrange to pick her up and bring her over once she was done.

We brought along 3 bags filled with all our stuff and were very very excited!

As the Grand Mercure Roxy hotel is situated in the east, just opposite Parkway Parade, it took us less than 10 minutes to reach from home and hopped off the car in squealing anticipation.

The hotel mainly caters for corporate guests but as a move towards reaching out to the leisure group of travellers, locals and families. New promotions such as these are newly rolled out on a regular basis for families like ours to take up and enjoy. For convenience, there is even an hourly shuttle bus that ferries guests directly from the airport and back.

Looking directly across the road was Parkway Parade. How convenient!!

Floral arrangments abound everywhere in the hotel and I love how everything was so fresh and colourful! Eirian was bouncing off the sofas in the lobby just excited being there.

There is also a small lobby cafe which serves a lovely array of pastries and juices to go along with your morning coffee or tea at only $9 per person. *Slurps!*

Since we were early, we decided to check out the hotels' amenities on our own and headed up towards the escalators towards the 2nd floor and voila! Saw that it was Jia Wei Restaurant! I did a food review there just last december HERE! and the food was incredible!

Then we headed up to the 3rd floor and saw that it was Feast @ East. A buffet restaurant that serves all 3 meals plus brunch and hi-tea too!

We head back down again just like tourists all smiles at what was to come. As part of professional curtesy, I approached the counter to ask if it was alright for me to take pictures in the hotel and I was pleasantly surprised that the answer was yes, they were expecting me and I could take any picture I pleased.

Hurr?? Expecting me?! Whoa!! The communications within the hotel is really smooth with all relevant staff alerted of our arrival even before we checked in! Impressed already.

The hotels isn't a very tall one but it certainly makes up for its welcoming ambience and impressionable service levels. I also noted their security feature of only allowing the public up to the 4th storey and keeping the room levels locked and accessible by room key only.

We head up to level 4 to check out the pool and the spa. Over at the pool side, a sight pleased me.. piles and piles of fluffy warm towels! I love towels! Hahahh specially those that are fluffy and warm!

Eirian skipped over to the lounge chairs and let out a happy sigh.

After spending a couple of minutes revelling by the poolside, we head back down to meet the marketing manager and checked ourselves in to room 1338.

The standard Getaway package comes with a nights' stay in a superior room for 2 adults and 2 children and comes with buffet breakfast the morning after. Guests are allowed unlimited access to the pool and gym throughout the day and of course are welcome to patronise the in-house restaurants for their meals.

A delightful picnic goodie bag is also given to families taking this package which you will see later in my post.

A complimentary spa voucher which involves a 30 minute swedish back massage and a 15 minute aromatic steam bath by Body Contours which can be booked prior your check-in date for a complete relaxing experience. A further upgrade of $28 can be done on top of the complimentary voucher service to receive an additional 30 minutes massage and 30 minutes honey crystal spa polish.

We head up to our room which was upgraded to the Deluxe room, which is a little bigger than the superior room and BOY! were we pleased....

I flipped open my handphone and took a video of our room. Check that out!

Looking out of our window, we were pleased to note that we also had a sea view room which gave us a nice view of the East Coast and overlooks Parkway Parade too!

I took a video of our view too so check it out!

After settling in a little, we went about checking out the other amenities the hotel had to offer and of course, being the gym fan I am. I had to check out the gym too!

Small cosy place but it had almost everything a person travelling or on holiday would need. From cardio. machines, to free weights and even an in house personal gym trainer! Heck! it even looks like a cross section of what you'd find at California Fitness but CLEANER and smells so much fresher and with less crowd!

And here we have Eirian posing with the orchids just outside of the gym.

We were then brought upstairs to the Royal Club lounge where business travellers and those staying in the business suites and Royal Club suites *top level and most expensive rooms of the hotel* can use for various purposes. Wireless online access is available throughout the hotel.

Some light pastries, cereals and refreshments are readily available for those in the lounge.

A TV area too! If you want to further entertain guests with TV and don't want to do it in your room. And for business travellers. There is a fully equipped meeting room plus a business corner which has computer and printer access for those on the go!

My appointment for my spa treatment was pre-booked by the marketing manager and we head down at 10am to get me settled in while they settle Eirian with her legs up in one of the pedicure chairs and armed with a TV remote control to watch OCTO.

I opted for the $28 Spa upgrade and head off into my treatment room while the staff watched over Eirian.

My therapist was named Yvonne and she really knew what she was doing. She made me feel very comfortable. What I found strangely amazing was that she knew exactly where I was hurting or tense and where I was injured before even without me saying anything.

She knew that my right shoulder which was recently hurt with a little too much vigorous dancing had a crick in it and really concentrated her massage to clear the "block". Whooot! Heavenly. And she asked me "were you REALLY FAT before?" I was surprised and she said "I can see! Last time you very fat arh!" And she pointed out my stretch marks and parts of my body and said.. "last time 100kg arh.. now like this very good already.. maybe another 10kg more the most and then don't lose anymore just nice.... " It was like she was reading my mind.. -.-''

I finished my treatment feeling rejuvenated and pretty and was given a lovely warm cup of ginger tea to settle up. I LOVE ginger tea! And I also love how spa rooms are always so calm and serene...

We went up to our room after to wait for Lauren and CJs' arrival and for lunch time. And up on the itinery next was a Buffet lunch at Feast @ East! As part of the review, the hotel provided everything complimentary to us but guests on the package are most welcome to patronise the restaurants for their meals at the following dining rates.

We were treated to their Chinese New Year Special theme lunch and a table was specially reserved just for us! And the supervisor at the restaurant knew us by name! We felt so important and pampered!

Lunch (Mon to Sat) - $38++ per adult, $19++ per child, $28 nett per senior citizen

Dinner (Mon to Sat) - $40++ per adult, $20++ per child, $30 nett per senior citizen

Sunday Brunch - $48++ per adult, $25++ per child, $30 nett per senior citizen.

The next theme at Feast@East is the Lavish Heritage Buffet (from 16 Feb to 13 Mar 2009) where there is a special privilege for senior citizens where for every four paying senior citizens, only three pay while one dines for free (up to a max of 8 in a group).

Senior Citizen - $28 nett per pax for lunch (Mon to Sat), $30 nett per pax for dinner (Mon to Sat), $35 nett per pax for Sunday Brunch

Adults - $36++ per pax for lunch (Mon to Sat), $38++ per pax for dinner (Mon to Thu), $40++ per pax for dinner (Fri to Sun), $42++ per pax for Sunday Brunch

Children - $18++ per pax for lunch (Mon to Sat), $19++ per pax for dinner (Mon to Thu), $20++ per pax for dinner (Fri to Sun), $22++ per pax for Sunday Brunch.

There will also be a Hi-Tea Buffet every Fri and Sat (from 16 Feb to 13 Mar 2009) from 3pm to 5.30pm at Feast@East where it is $18++ per adult or senior citizen and $12++ per child. The senior citizen special does not apply for this Hi-Tea Buffet.

The opening hours of Feast@East Buffet Restaurant are:

Breakfast - 6am to 10.30am
Lunch - 12pm to 2.30pm

Dinner - 6pm to 9.30pm
Sunday Brunch - 11am to 3pm

I love hotel food. I really do. I love buffets lines! We started off with walking around the buffet line and checking out the food available. With a Chinese New Year theme, there were cookies of course! All CNY favourites too!

And of course the salad and fruit bar is a must at every buffet. As I was making my rounds taking pictures of the food, a gentleman approached me and said "Hi! You must be THE BLOGGER".

For a moment there, I was stunned and nodded furiously while smiling and wondering who this person was. Was he another blogger? Or just a hotel guest seeing that I had my face plastered to my camera which was in turn plastered closely to the food displays and thus assuming I'm a blogger?

Only after a moment where he pulled out his card to give to me did I realise. Oh. My. Gawd. It was the Hotel General Manger who was also having lunch. We spoke casually and then as gracious and surprising as his appearance, left me to my own devices to continue snapping away at his food bar.

The bread baskets were full.. the cheese platters were nicely displayed and there as a roast meat section too which were personally cut up and served to you by counter staff...

Potato salad, Shepherd's pie, fish fillets and cereal prawns. I ate a little of EVERYTHING!

I was specially pleased to see Roast Beef with brown gravy.. *slurps!*. This was SO GOOD. And there was also fried rice... *carbs.. - urgh*

We were completely fawned upon with service staff hovering over us like bees to honey. Our waters & juices always remained full and chilled. Our empty plates whisked away without request and food carried to our tables without us needing to carry them back from the buffet counter. It was SOOOO IMPRESSIVE!! that everything was done with such impeccable service quality.

We then decided to do a little test and try something off the menu and asked if they could make us milk shakes. Rossi, the supervisor didn't even twitch and smoothly went on to asking "extra thick? More milk or more ice-cream?" I was stunned again. "More ice-cream of course!"

5 minutes later, 3 glasses of milkshakes were presented to our table. Two vanilla shakes and one extra thick Strawberry Milkshake. Oh. My. God. I was in heaven again. Kill me and send me to the GM Roxy Hotel... hahahahaha!

And there was a hot counter which served hot piping Laksa and Mee Rebus. I had both and they were excellent! As I was busy walking around taking pictures, I left my bowl of laksa to cool at my table and returned to it shortly after.

In less than a minute into tucking into my noodles, one of the waiters came to my table with a new bowl of piping hot laksa and offered to change my existing bowl bc it was "getting cold".

FFWWWWWwwwwwuuuaahhhhhhh!!!!!! IMPRESSIVE LARH! I gracefully declined as I actually liked my noodles cool and not burning hot but their intentions were really appreciated and touching. They really know how to make a guest feel first class.

More of the buffet spread. Braised tofu, steamed fish, chicken masala and papaya salad!

Some kind of nugget, mock char siew nuggets in tomato sauce, shark fin omelette and stewed pork.

And of course some Japanese fare of fresh raw tuna and salmon, sushi rolls, topshell and smoked salmon slices...

One of our favourite areas was at the chocolate fondue counter & fountain! We skewered fruits and marshmallows and dunked ourselves silly. When I returned from one of my rounds, I was pleasantly surprised to see my girls laughing and happily dunking their chocolate covered sticks into a huge bowl of crushed ice which specially was provided to them by the staff to harden the chocolate! Such a good idea!

And then of course there was the dessert bar which we all eyed from the first time we entered. They had durian cakes, brownies, fruits, jellies, ice-cream and best of all. Durian puree.. pure unadulterated durian puree!! Insane!!! It was soooo good!! After lunch, we all ROLLED out of the restaurant back to our rooms for a nap.

End of Part 1. To be continued in the next post, Part 2. Stay Tuned!

Part 2: Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel - The Best Family Getaway EVER!

(Continuation from Part 1: Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel - The Best Family Getaway Ever Post)

After lunch, we head back to our room to relax and took some time to check out the goodie bag which was given to us upon check in. The dry items came in a large paper bag and contained the treats below.

And the hotel scheduled the "hot" treats which was part of the goodie bag, ie cooked food to be delivered to us at 4pm that day so we lounged till our doorbell rang and we were presented with chicken wings and fruit tarts! More food! Oh my Gawd!

They provided a picnic mat so families could walk over to East Coast and have an outdoor picnic if they preferred. Or they could just do it in the comfort of their hotel room which we did!

And the crispy chicken wings were good! And we downed the fruit tarts too!

The girls were uber excited and really quickly got into their swimwear while I lay on the bed too full from lunch.

"Can we go swimming ma! can we? NOW? now? Now?!?" was all they said again and again and again and again...

Shortly after, single side beds arrived for them! Which is available upon request. One single bed is available for a separate child to sleep on in the getaway package but for us, both girls got one each and they were delighted! Their own beds!

CJ and I donned ourselves in bathrobes and just lazed till we managed to gather enough energy which wasn't being drained digesting all that food and head down to the pool!!

It was a lovely day for a swim and there were very little other guests at the pool too!

One average sized graduated depth swimming pool and a small foot pool which kids used to play in too. And oh goodness.. the water was FREEZING!

We frolicked a little in the water while I pretended to be the lochness mommy monster to drag the unsuspecting Eirian into the water...

And when I did catch her, she turned into a Koala and grabbed everywhere including my.... *cough* .... boobs.... just to hang on for dear life...

CJ took over and swished her around the pool on his shoulders.

Another picture together in the water before my teeth nearly chattered out of my head in the cold water and I pulled myself out to bask in the sun instead.

The girls came out shortly after and we wrapped them like poh-piahs on the deck chairs.

And I was one happy bikini clad chicka...

After the swim, it was yet another lazing power nap moment till we awaited dinnertime at 8pm. We surfed all 30 channels available. Snacked on the goodybag treats which we didn't finish earlier and just bonded with the fluffy pillows and soft down comforter blanket. Did I say it was heavenly? Yes it was.... *snores contentedly*

It was just before 7pm and the girls started to get restless and started to bug me to get some food. They were hungry again!! What?!? Didn't we just come back from a HUGE LUNCH BUFFET GIRLS?!?!

And again! Like as if they read our minds.. the doorbell rang and I opened it stunned. What the.... "mam, some pre-dinner treats for you..." I nodded and let them in and they set up a very lovely fresh fruit platter with spoonfuls of dried fruits and nuts and chocolates on a CHILLED display. We were stunned again.

We all sat around the side table which they set up the fruits on and just stared at it for a minute in disbelief and then WACK! ate every SINGLE thing.

The first 2 rows of chocolates are regular chocolates but the gold foiled ones below which to our surprise and relief, was filled with brandy. It burst in full alcohol flavour in CJs' mouth as he popped the whole thing and crunched. His eyes bulged and he spasmed like a fish out of water for a minute while the girls and I stared at him in shock.

When he recovered, he said. "That one. *points to mouth* has alcohol in it." I immediately swiped it from the girls and ate it. Whuauahahaha!

At 8pm, we went down to the poolside to the Roxy bar which a special table space was reserved for us yet again. Praveen who was the Assistant Manager at the bar for the evening introduced himself and took wonderful care of us as he and the staff flitted about us tending to our orders with sheer professional execution.

The Roxy bar by the poolside has a happy hour from 5pm to 8pm where each glass of housepour wines and Tiger Beer goes for $6.50++.

Our drink orders were taken once we sat down. We had carrot juice, tomato juce and two mango juices.

Apetisers were ordered and we had two servings of Cream of Mushroom Soup ($8). It was by far the BEST mushroom soup I've ever had and the girls finished the bowls dry.

And we ordered Fried Battered Cheese stick bites which came more like cubes ($8). Of everything, this was the only thing that disappointed me. I expected to bite into lumps of gooey hot dripping cheddar/mozarella cheese covered in crispy batter but what we got was a tofu like inside that didn't smell cheesy at all with crispy batter. CJ, however happily finished up the rest of this dish while we waited for our main dishes.

We were allowed to order items A-la-Carte aka from the menu but we were also arranged to try out their new promotion which was the Laksa Hotpot! ($20++ & comes with a bottle of Mug Rootbeer).

Two firey boiling mini hotpots came and were displayed on our tables with separate raw ingredients for our own cooking.

The gravy was good and we love these kind of novel self cooking kind of meals!

Eirian ordered the Fish & Chips ($22) which came in a HUGE portion which we all helped to finish. Lauren ordered the Spaghetti with Italian Sausage ($20) which was absolutely excellent too!

During check-in, we were given a drink coupon which we gave to the bar staff to exchange for a free drink. We chose orange juice as we didn't want any alcoholic beverages and it was delivered to our room via room service much later that evening!

During dinner, we also ordered the 3 meat pizza ($18) which we had delivered up to our room as we couldn't stomach more food at the bar. That was a superbly good pizza! Crust was thin and crispy and fresh and the meat chunky and the cheese.. goooey.. *drools just thinking about it again*

The hotel also specially ordered for us to enjoy two complimentary freshly made Singapore Slings *which was made by the original barista from Raffles hotel!* which were delivered to our room with our juice/pizza order. CJ doesn't usually drink but he drank this one with gusto. And I happily finished mine of course. *hic!*

The day was immensely sinful and we all fell into deep sleep before midnight. The next day saw us up fresh and ready to go again... it was time for food again!! Whoooot!!

The girls had one final swim for the day... and we took a little more pictures...

They loved the pool even though I thought it was waaay too cold for human relaxation.. whaahah!

And they even got to have a little warm bubble bath in the bathtub too! CJ took one too while we were down at the pool!

There were the standard issuance of towels but there were more for us. I called room service to send us more towels and toiletries and I was pleasantly surprised again when they rang our bell 5 minutes later *damn these people are fast!!!*. A handful of WARM fluffy towels and a HUGE BAG of toiletries... Who could resiste hotel toiletries!?! I always take them home.. don't you?

And when I said "bring us more" ... I was expecting maybe 2 sets more..not a whole bag!! Wahahaha! my my my.. aren't they the generous lot... *I'm not complaining*

Lazing with the robes on the bed in a cold cold room is the way to go...

And CJ took one of me too... loving it so much so far... ahhhhhhh, the luxury... but... why is it this picture looks so porn starish? Ie any moment, I'd jump up and rip off the robe to display bare nakedness...NOT! *growls*

And then it was off to Feast @ East again for breakfast!! Oh. Heaven.

From the pastry counter...

To the cereal dispensers which also came with a choice of chilled whole or skimmed milk.

To various juice dispensers.. we had freshly squeezed orange juice delivered to our tables.

White/Wholewheat and homemade bread and an industrial toaster where u throw in your slices on the rotating rack and it pops out freshly toasted a minute later... Whoooot!

and whats breakfast without Eggs! Scrambled no less, some fruits & yogurt maybe?, waffles and baked beans!

And this is Uncle Kwek Sin. The best egg chef in Singapore! Whahha! His omelette is to die for and I had one of everything.. sunny side up, half boiled and omelette! All good!

For those who still want a little more traditional fare, there was hokkien noodles and steamed fish too!

A porridge counter and a miso soup counter complete with seaweed and various condiments. And of course, for the health conscious.. a salad bar.

Ham, baked potatoes, sausages and crispy bacon strips!

And my favourite staff at Feast @ East, supervisor Rossi who provided commendable excellent service during our stay.

A couple more pictures from the stay... ripples on the water of the swimming pool...

CJ took the camera and took some shots of his own and they came out lovely! The view of the hotel upwards from the pool....

And another one from the pool side...

And a little strange phenomena.. a white rose that was in the middle of a bush by the pool.

And just before we checked out, I couldn't resist... one last parting shot for the getaway in the lift. We had a great time... and so would you... book your Getaway package today.. its an incredible experience.

I challenge any other hotel to take up a challenge to beat this experience or come up with a new one that would rival this stay but for now, I'm a fan. Of the Grand Mercure Roxy Hotel. :)

Thank you for everything K. We loved everything and will be back. SOON...