16 July 2010 (Friday): It's hard to believe that Singapore has a countryside- an undeveloped stretch of land with unruly trees growing and where insects and birds abound. There is - it's rather close to where I work by car. I like this kampong (Malay language for 'village') in Kranji.
If I am not picking up Japanese handmade tofu and sundries at Meidi-ya, cosmetics, electronic gadgets, and clothes after lunch, this is the place where I will head for a light healthy meal.
You can appear in a T-shirt, shorts and flip-flops; and remember your shades on a bright sunny day. This place is great for an introduction to biology or botany as well.
Banana curry
It's a clean countryside with no rowdy and viscious mosquitoes of the tropics. If there are, there is a pond to ensure that they will be gobbled up by the fish. There are even clean toilets with always-functional flushes and modern hand-towel dispensers.
That's so much about Singapore's countryside. Being in Singapore, the countryside must have some reasonably good food. I like the Acar fish (acar: Peranakan pickle vegetables consisting of pineapple, julienne carrot and cucumber, sesame seeds in a spicy vinegrette); banana curry, chicken curry and farm kang kong (water convulvulous).
Chicken curry
The taste is mild and the volume, not overwhelming. The beverage list is healthy; my favourite is lemongrass but
not the aloe vera which has sugar.
I usually go there for lunch once a month. I enjoy travelling on the well-paved road with plots of soil supporting the wild albizia, banana trees, and the ferns by the sides. Very quiet.
Acar fish
