The Great Moscow Circus

[Media Invite]

Have you not heard of The Great Moscow Circus that is in time right now? Go check out all the posts with the hashtag #TheGreatMoscowCircus and you will know what you have been missing! I went for the press call before attending the gala opening last Friday, and got to see some of the acts performed right in front of us. Knowing how a little miscalculation would have a disastrous result is what makes watching all the acts a nail-biting experience for the ones watching. In fact, just watching the contortionist is already enough to make an adult like me squirm. It was almost painful to watch, and I know many felt the same way too, judging from the yikes and the ouchs!

Then there are also the gymnasts who swings from bar to bar, as well as the graceful pair of performers who combines ballet with "flying-through-the-air" manouveurs that makes ones' heartbeat beat vigorously too, simply because they had no safety lines attached at all. Any wrong move and we can potentially say sayonara and bid them farewell. We can really say that they are literally playing with their lives, no matter how well-trained they might be. 

The magic of watching the circus, lies in experiencing it live and up close. The stage is set right in the centre and the action can be seen from almost 360 degrees, and even if you are sitting right at the very last row, you will still have a reasonably good view, unlike the mega concerts. While actually I wouldn't even recommend the most expensive seats at he ringside, not only because of the price, but also because some of the actions are better viewed from a distance so that you can see the "big" picture!

With popcorns and cotton candies at $8 a pop. Snacks can be pricey but totally not unexpected.

My kiddos also enjoyed the hilarious antics between the clowns and the ringmaster, who did more than just distract the audiences from the setting up of the stage between the acts. They were really funny lor! Thank you Sliding Doors Entertainment for the kind invite to the gala opening of the circus for the family. It was truly a night of amazing acts and great memories for the kiddos!

Useful Information

Performance Times (now till 25 Nov 2018):

Tuesday - Friday: 4pm and 7.30pm
Saturday: 12pm, 4pm and 7.30pm
Sunday: 11am, 3pm and 6.30pm

Get your tickets from SISTIC here.

Hennsley Mattresses

[Product Review]

The mattress on our marital bed was bought more than a decade ago and my wife even joked that the mattress not bad leh coz we even have 5 kiddos lor, lol. And yes, I was also rather used to it after so many years already. However if you were to ask me what brand it was, I have totally no idea lor. Back then when our salary was not even enough to apply for any credit cards and we had lots of loan to pay for our humble 3-room flat, we merely bought whatever was priced reasonably for us, and surprisingly it lasted us till now. But we never knew what we were really missing.

We needed 2 x king-sized mattresses to cater to our growing family.

Fast forward to this year when we finally finished our renovations, we decided to upgrade our mattresses. We had been co-sleeping with all the 4 older kiddos on a queen-sized bed alongside another super single bed. That was how we bond. But with the frequency of waking up in the middle of the night with little fingers in my mouth or a kick in the groin, we thought that getting 2 bigger beds would be the best thing to do after the conversion of our 2 rooms into just 1! We started searching for our ideal 2 x king-sized beds.

Hennsley's range of products that would ensure a good night's sleep. The mattress protectors worked really well, when accidents happened in the middle of the night. 

I know that mattress prices can range from the low hundreds all the way to tens of thousand dollars, much like comparing watches like Swatch to a Patek Philippe. Both watches also tells the time leh, so why spend that much for the luxury watch? In the case of watches, maybe one can still argue that owner can show off coz it is worn on the wrist, but mattresses? I ain't gonna carry one around when I go out, so why pay so much? There must be some real reasons why people are willing to pay premium for something that will end up hidden under bed sheets no less.

Look at how thick the mattresses are! There is a reason for the 7-Zone Pocketed Innerspring System and for the pricing! Best to check out with the friendly staff who will advise appropriately! 

After months of sleeping on our new Hennsley mattresses, I finally understood the reason and the differences between the prices of the 'normal' mattresses and that of the premium luxury range. I used to have stiff back or aching shoulders in the mornings previously, especially when I have to sleep with all the kiddos surrounding me, and had to take great care not to move around too much. But all that miraculously disappeared after I started sleeping on our Hennsley mattresses. Initially I was still not fully convinced, and attributed the improvement to having a bigger sleeping space now that we have 2 king-sized beds.

Go try out the mattresses at the Sleep Sanctuary.

That was until I had the recent big fight with my wife (over other matters, not over the mattresses lah) and ended up sleeping in our guest room, on our old mattress because of my pride. I never had so much space to roll in bed ever since we had our first kiddo, and it also felt kind of relaxed without the kiddos for that few nights. But guess what? The backaches actually returned again, thus this time I knew for sure, that the new mattresses were definitely doing much good for my old body, besides being so comfortable as well! I am surely glad to be back, sleeping with the rest of the pack on our Hennsley mattresses!

There are different types of pillows available, such as latex or polyester fibre. 

So how do you choose a good mattress for yourself? Do not be like us, where our only consideration back then was the price. We did not even know how our first mattress felt when we bought until it was delivered to our house. But this time round, we went down to the showroom twice to test and try out the range the local company carried, before making our final choice after a long and educational consultation with Mr Marcus Goh from Hennsley Singapore. So if you have intentions of getting any new mattresses, do yourself a favour and head on down the showrooms in the most comfortable attire you dare to wear out of your house, and test out the different mattresses by getting onto them, like the kiddos and me!

No parents should ever place kiddos to sleep on a bed without any good protector, ever!

My wife preferred the softer versions while I thought I liked the slightly firmer ones but we ended up with their 'Desire' series after coming to a compromise and it was the best decision ever. To be absolutely honest, I never expected that purchasing the right mattress would make such a big difference! I grew up sleeping on straw mats laid on the floor and our old mattress was already an upgrade. But I guess as I got older, the body is not as 'good' as before and having the right support really made the difference between waking up refreshed or having those irritating body aches instead. These days, all of us sleep soundly, 2 adults + 4 kiddos + 1 baby, all co-sleeping on 2 king-sized beds.

Loving our Hennsley mattresses for sure!

Hennsley Singapore had only recently moved its showroom, Hennsley Sleep Sanctuary to the east side, just beside i12 Katong. Go check out their range of mattresses, bed frames, as well as the  other sleep necessities such as mattress protectors and different types of pillows as well! Thank you for giving us the opportunity to have the best sleep ever, and for showing us how getting the right mattress can work wonders!

Useful Information

Showroom Address: 66, East Coast Road, #01-01, The Flow, Singapore 428778
Telephone: +65 69502860
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HennsleySingapore/ 
Selected models are also available at Courts Megastore and Courts Jurong Point.

The Summerhouse

[Media Invite]

On the invite of the good folks from The Summerhouse, we finally made our way to that part of Singapore. It was the very first time we stepped into the Seletar Aerospace vicinity after all these years and it is so happening now that the news reported recently that there will be more colonial bungalows to convert to lifestyle, food and retail use soon. 

Away from the hustle and bustle of the city, this trip felt almost like a trip to the countryside for our family and I loved how the bungalow was converted into a fully air-conditioned restaurant that offered an awesome view of the surrounding greens from the verandah where we dined. What made it even more awesome for the kiddos was the giant bouncing castle within its premise.

I always say that I am no food connoisseur or critic, and that I can say whether it is nice or not nice at most. Or maybe expensive or not as well. And my take on the brunch we had that day was that it was totally worth our efforts lugging the 5 kiddos on public buses no less to the place. I really cannot find any fault with the food served, from the presentation to the taste. I am basically a carnivore but somehow the dishes looked so appetizing that I 'devoured' them despite all the greens! I usually do not crave for fish, but trying to recall how the red snapper tasted made me salivate right now. With that level of freshness, all it required was some salt and herbs before going into the grill and into our mouths! The dessert looked really classy and instagrammable but I am a simple person lah, throw me a giant scoop of ice-cream with all the condiments will do. 

Open Portobello Mushroom Tart

Whole Red Snapper

Free Range French Poulet

Mud Crab Omelette

Mayura Full Blood Wagyu MB9+ Flank

French Toast

Rock Melon

After our brunch, we went on a guided tour of their edible garden where 100% of their garnish came from and had another round of food (plan) tasting right there and then! I even took some cuttings and seeds to cultivate back home as well. There were around 3 domes near the garden that looked really cosy for a small gathering of friends or even a romantic night out with your loved one. I thought initially that one can bring food into the domes for consumption only to find out that there is a special menu for couples at $350 that you can find here.

Thank you for inviting our family over for the lovely brunch, where we celebrated my wife's birthday in the very cosy setting and the kiddos were asking already when can we try having their meals in the domes and go bouncing in the inflatable castle again! My personal take of the place is that it is really worth a visit, the ambience and quality of food would be considered reasonable for many, for the prices it charged. Having said that, we are of a different SES lah, this would have to be an occasional treat apart from our usual hawker fares and fast food joints.

Useful Information

Brunch
Sat, Sun and PH: 1130AM to 3PM
Last Order at 230PM

Dinner 
Wed to Sun, Eve of and PH: 6PM to 11PM

Last Order
930PM – Wed and Thurs
10PM – Fri – Sun, Eve of PH and PH

Website
http://www.thesummerhouse.sg