Sony Alpha 7R

SONY α7R E-mount, ILCE-7R ($2299, after a $500 discount)

Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* ($769, after $300 discount)

This will be my new trusty companion - the SONY Alpha 7R, a Full Frame on a Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* FE 35mm f/28. The camera itself packs a 36.4 MP 35mm full-frame sensor.

Then we are still getting around the 7R longer focusing distance; it's especially difficult for closeups with food. Anyway, most of the photos on this blog will be from it now.

Bavaria Radler Lemon

Bavaria Radler Lemon, Vol. 2% (330ml, 4s for $10.90)

Radler, or shandy is blond lager blended with lemonade or lemon-lime soda. A beverage made popular as a thirst quencher with low alcoholic content than beer, for the dizzying summer.

So far, we had only tasted Jolly Shandy, a lemonade with real beer at 1% vol. Bavaria does it better at 2%, but still we can't feel the alcohol. The strong fizziness of the radler did help pumped up the alcohol at certain point of our drink though.

You could imagine this is an expensive Sprite, doubled its carbonation, lesser the artificial sweetness with a hint of lemon citrus. A thin body with a sweet finish.

成基黑鸡补品, Seng Kee Black Chicken Herbal Soup

It was 20 years ago when we last visited the famous Seng Kee Kidney Mee Sua at 511 Market & Food Centre, Bedok North Street 3. We never patronize their main branch at Kembangan (Changi), which has a history of 50 years! Because we love coming back to where we started with Seng Kee.

And 20 years do lots to our taste buds. I guess we matured and learn to appreciate good soup. The 2 soup types which we ordered today were actually of the same soup base. But without the addition of Mee Sua (a type of salted wheat noodle) to the Pig's organ soup, we thought the taste was so much clearer and concentrated! It was mouth watering, as i recalled.

Pig's Organ Soup, with Rice ($4.50)

Pig's Kidney Mee Sua ($4, includes Pig's Liver and Lean Meat)

We didn't know their signature black chicken soup isn't available for lunch, only for dinner. So we ordered their steamed fish and were recommended to add some chili to it. Sounded ok, but we had only expected some sliced chili padi and not a messy plate of tomato chili gravy, overpowering any freshness of the steamed fish.

Stay safe. Just go for their herbal soup.

Steamed Fish Tail, Chili ($26)

Traditional Putu Piring - Tu Tu Keuh!

Putu Piring (5 for $2)

If you have never tasted the Putu Piring, a Malay dessert with a filling of melted Gula Melaka (Palm Sugar), you should certainly make a trip to the Haig Road Market & Food Centre. I presume this is the only stall in Singapore that sells this.

The dessert is served hot, and oozing dark sweeten sugar. And you take it together with the chilled grated coconut! This is good.

林玉梅, Sarawak Kolo Mee

What's addictive about Sarawak Kolo Mee is always the noodle texture and seasoning sauce. Red Hornbill at Bedok is our favourite, but when we are more centrally located, it would be Lin Yu Mei (stall 01-33) at the Haig Road Market & Food Centre.

Look at the crispy pork lard and fresh ground chili paste? Ask for a less salted serving from the friendly hawker, and you shall enjoy your bowl immensely. We did.

Sarawak Kolo Mee ($4)

What I Carry

Inside the bundle Ama packed for me are:
my bowl,
my hairbrush,
the notebook my teacher gave me for being
the number one
girl in school,
and my bedroll.

Inside my head I carry:
my baby goat,
my baby brother,
my ama's face,
our family's future.

My bundle is light.
My burden is heavy.

- Patricia McComick (Sold), Sept 2006.