Drew's Return and the Cape

After multiple delays Drew's plane finally arrived at 9:40p on Sunday. Given my geriatric tendencies this was past my bedtime, and so our happy reunion where we were supposed to run into each other arms in joy turned into a zombie walk as my only goal was to reach him so I could fall asleep against him....  

That is until the reality of what more than 24 hours in a cramped space with recycled air does to a person's hygiene. The big hug and kiss I had planned to give him turned into a small peck and a pat on the belly. Drew understanding the visible stink lines radiating from his body responded with a pat on the head. Though we hadn't seen each other in 4 weeks, our reunion was the equivalent of "sup bro."

We then watched the hypnotic procession of luggage as we tried to distinguish Drew's black suitcase in the sea of everyone else's similarly colored luggage. Next time we are getting neon colored suitcases with flashing LED lights.

Drew can't believe he's made it. He also can't wait to shower.

Despite the late hour, we decided to stick to our original plan and drive down to the Cape that night. Thanks to Drew's jet lag, he was good to drive.

I was good to drive once I got my hands on all the snacks Drew got me and quickly reminded him of the uncontrolled quickness that I can stuff these down my face. Drew immediately started to wonder why he missed me.

Green Tea KitKat!!!! Just as good as I had hoped.

Softest mochi ever.

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The Cape!

The Cape was wonderful as usual. There was a list of errands for us to run, which was perfect to get Drew out of his jet lag. Add on top of that getting ready to leave for Alaska, and Drew remarked after our first day, "I wasn't even this busy in Singapore!"

We treated ourselves with lots of yummy food.

Lunch at the Weatherdeck. Drew quickly adjusted back to good old greasy food.

 

He's also looking (and smelling)  much better after a couple of showers

The next day we went to Pain d'Avingnon.

We visited Mimi! Drew shared photos from the trip on his iPad.

 

Despite the wet and gray weather, we spent some time in the garden. Broccoli was starting to come out. We planted beans, peas, carrots, radishes and spinach.

Maddie looked on with interest.

Glory Be had her own agenda.

 

 

Flower petals were everywhere as the apple tree was in full bloom.

Almost there!

Drew has less than 8 hours before he boards a plane back to the U.S. He goes from Singapore to Tokyo to Washington D.C. and then Boston. He's supposed to arrive at Logan around 6:30pm Sunday. Can't wait! Especially since he'll be coming back with these! The Chewy bars are for his flight back.

Drew's task for when he arrives at Narita Airport is to find green tea KitKats. One of the best things about Asia is that there is green tea and red bean flavored everything. Also rice flour based pastries. So good!

Drew and Alex went to lunch with one of Alex's friends. Drew refused to take a picture of the food because he didn't want to come off as weird. Pfft. He ate a burger, and since it's been a while since he's eaten heavy American food, he said that he felt sick and sluggish afterward. Maybe this is the start of adopting a healthier diet and lifestyle.

Later they went to the office and worked some more. Drew said that they should okay with what they got done over the past 4 weeks. He's leaving Singapore with much more confidence and has learned a great amount, though there's still lots more left. There may be another opportunity for more training, but it has yet to be made official. So we'll see!

Last Day of Work and Last Day of Classes

Today was Drew's last day of work in Singapore and it sounded like he and Alex were still trying to get a lot done. He shooed me away when I tried talking to him on chat saying that he was busy, so I have no idea what went on today. Tomorrow I believe the plan is to go around Singapore some more. Perhaps get some of those last minute souvenirs.

Today was also my last day of classes. Hurray :)

More Errors and My birthday!

Drew and Alex spent the day dealing with DLL hell.Their number of program errors shot up to 11,000! They worked their programming magic and fixed the errors for now, but Drew said that more was sure to come. It's never ending. They celebrated with spicy chicken ramen and rainbow sushi. 

My grandparents would be very happy to see that Alex is making sure to eat every grain of rice.

Today is also my birthday! I got a wonderful email and card from Drew. Sending a giant cookie five times the size of my face would have also been acceptable.

 

Errors

Drew and Alex continue their work. One of their programs wasn't working right and would crash the computer. Drew spent half the day trying to figure out why the program was crashing, and the other half trying to fix the error. With some help from Alex, they got the error fixed... however, fixing that error revealed other errors. How many others?

588 Errors!!

Drew and Alex dealt with these errors appropriately by dropping everything and going out to dinner with the rest of the lab. Drew assured me that the errors will be fixed in due time. Despite their non-working program, Alex was in a good mood and dinner was on him.

It looks like last night's speedy take-out was not satisfying, so they got the good stuff this time. Spicy beef noodles, pork buns, dumplings, fried rice, more dumplings, crispy duck skins.

By the way, this is what I do all day. Sit in the dark peering over these guys' shoulders. Sometimes I bring a container of cereal and munch on it while looking on, and it's like I'm in the theaters watching a slide show... sort of. They are some of the smartest people I've met. I wish my brain worked like theirs.

Countdown begins!

In case you haven't been obsessively counting down the days until Drew's return, there are 5 more days left until Drew returns to the U.S! So what's the plan for the remaining days? Work work work. Drew and Alex continue to try and get as much of their project done as possible. Though it doesn't have to be finished by the time Drew leaves, they're still feeling the time crunch! Since working long hours into the night is practically synonymous with take-out Chinese food, Drew and Alex indulge in the quick, easy, greasy but very yummy cuisine.

Although Drew's arrival seems to be approaching quickly, it's hard not to get prematurely excited about his return only to then realize that five days is still some time. So inevitably today I felt a bit down, plus it's also overcast, chilly, and drizzling. Blah. So what's a person to do? With the same rationale that I use for justifying large Froyo intake, this was my way to help me get through the day.

1. Nap.

2. Engage in emotional eating.

3. Engage in shop therapy. Fall in love with a dress not available in my size. Buy dress anyway.

4. Ignore gas prices. Drive to favorite library in suburbs.
Do not be fooled by my age and upcoming birthday, because I headed to the graphic novel section, gingerly stepping over 12 year olds reading in the aisles.

5. Escape into book.

5. Get back into pajamas. Make tea. Crawl into bed and watch Fraiser. I once heard from someone that Frasier is a show that only grandparents watch. I cannot seem to do anything age appropriate...

All I need to top off the day is a kitten massage. D'aww!

Manila, Phlippines beyond Airport Customs!

Usually when tourists head to the Philippines for vacation, their destination is the surrounding islands to visit places like Boracay, Palawan, or Cebu City with beautiful beaches, relaxing resorts, coral reefs, and wild giraffes flown in from Africa. Somehow Drew and Alex did not get the memo. But that's fine. Who would want to go island hopping in the picturesque outdoors with non-native giraffes awkwardly galloping on beaches (ok the giraffes are actually in a safari type area but I thought it was a funny mental image.) Apparently instead they'd rather go to malls.....  Hurray..... No judgment, guys.

Well, they were in Manila, and they were going to make the best of it. At 4.2 million square feet, the SM Mall of Asia is the third largest mall in the country and the fourth largest shopping mall in the world. A well needed trolley is available to take people around.

 

Ice skating rink for those not inclined to shop. There is also a bowling alley, an IMAX theater with one of the world's biggest IMAX screens, and a stage for concerts.

From one mall, they head to another, Market! Market!

 As if there weren't enough malls, Manila is also the location for the SM Megamall, the seventh largest mall in the world at 3.9 million sq ft. And what mall would be complete without a Chapel of the Eucharistic Lord  for that quickie confession between standing next to Ironman and eating a Cinnabon...

 (SM Megamall. Web photo.)

Ok, so I'm being harsh on Alex and Drew's vacation choice. There were lots more to see and enjoy in Manila and the surrounding areas. If Drew had the time to write these blog entries he would be able to tell better stories that reflect a worthwhile trip. Things get lost in translation as I try to piece his trip together through pictures and inadequate chats.

In the end Drew enjoyed himself greatly in Manila including experiencing a monsoon that flooded the streets and buildings, which according to Drew was one of the highlights of the trip. He also gained invaluable insight into the unequal distribution of wealth as he saw impoverished areas with entire families living in small cement blocks with tin roofs and no running water, something not experienced in the artificial milieu of resorts. I guess vacation is not all about sipping tropical drinks on the beach as giraffes graze in the distance. (I cannot get over those giraffes.)

Moral of this post? Giraffes are cute.

Drew in the Philippines!

Friday night Drew and Alex flew to Manila, Philippines for a weekend trip! They arrived around 4:30am. That's what you have to do to get the cheap flights. For some reason the only picture Drew sent was a blurry one of people standing in line at customs...interesting. I think this is what happens when you're delirious from early morning travel. When I got an email titled "Manila Customs" I was expecting something more cultural. Anyway, Drew took more pictures, but per Alex's advice, bringing their laptops was not worth the risk. So the pictures will have to wait until they return to Singapore on Monday.

Drew's exciting customs photo.

MFA

Drew did more work today. He wrote some code, and he finished this week's assignments for his pharmacology class. You work hard, you play hard, so at the end of the day, he was off to an exciting weekend trip with Alex that will no doubt bring lots of pictures and stories.

Meanwhile L and I went to the MFA to see the new Art of the Americas wing. Drew and I went in January, but it was L's first time. It was nice to see the exhibit again. The art was just as interesting the second time around; however, what made the trip even more worthwhile was the new Chihuly: Though the Looking Glass exhibit, which was amazing.

First was a yummy lunch. Special Sampler?? Yes, please! 

It may look like a heaping mess of food, but it was soooo good. I don't know what the red sauce bordering the hummus is, but it was oh so spicy and delicious.

As we walked to the MFA, there were flowering trees everywhere. Dogwoods, magnolias, cherry, and apple trees! I had to keep stopping to take pictures.

 

 The Chihuly exhibit was breathtaking. The photos obviously don't do the pieces any justice.

Crazy.

 

I want this hanging from the ceiling of my apt. I think it'd fit right in, though protective eye wear may be necessary.

As you can tell I'm thoroughly enjoying my new camera from Drew and his parents!! Be happy that I did not post the zillion other random photos I took throughout the day.

Stranded at Fusionopolis

Alex had a meeting at Fusionopolis where he now has a second office in addition to one at Biopolis. Drew tagged along though he did not attend the meeting and did not have access to the new office. Little did he know that the meeting would last three hours... The good thing is, if you had to be stranded in a building, Fusionopolis is not a bad place to be. There are shops and restaurants, and the building itself with all its natural sunlight is a beautiful place to relax and do some reading.

Game store that set Drew's heart aflutter with excitement. Paradigm Inifinitum... a somewhat grandiose name.

 

Munchkin is everywhere. How many variations of the game can they make... who knows.

Food at Fusionopolis. Starbucks' chicken sandwich looks kind of gray and lacking, but that hot chocolate looks yummy. Can't go wrong with Haagen Dazs ice cream.

Sashimi for lunch... no comment.

 Pho Ga for dinner.

For the rest of the day back at Biopolis, Drew worked on more coding and fixing bugs. The days left in Singapore are winding down. With less than 10 days to go and another weekend trip coming up, it's a race against the clock to get their project done.