Mailbox Monday 9th April 2012: The Singapore Haul

Mailbox Monday is a gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house during the last week.

Be warned that Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.

Mailbox Monday is c ‘on tour’ and being hosted by Cindy’s Love Of Books
this month.

 

Singapore is a fantastic place for bookstores. I love that Kinokuniya is as full as a pub on Friday night and absolutely jam packed by 10:30am on a Saturday morning. I love that prologue sits in the same shopping centre as Louis Vuitton and that Times, Popular and Harris contain just as good ranges in a smaller area (plus the stationery! But that’s another topic for another day).

 

Despite the fact that I have a perfectly good ereader, some books were cheaper than the e version due to the strength of the Aussie dollar against the Singapore dollar. Some books were available in a small paperback format rather than the larger (and more expensive) format we get here. Some books were just new to me. I like having books as souvenirs from holidays!

 

Below is what I bought (and yes, my suitcase was underweight by 200g on the way home):

 

 

Top Row, L-R:

• In 5 Easy Steps, Lum Kit-Wye: A light Singaporean chick lit. Looking at a well-thumbed copy in prologue, this made me laugh out loud!
  
• Rules of Civility, Amor Towles: The story of a girl in New York City, 1938. Absolutely brilliant, watch for my review. I dropped everything and read and read…
  
• The Sealed Letter, Emma Donoghue: I enjoyed Room, but reviews on this one don’t seem too good. Part of the Orange Prize long list.
  
• Number 9 Dream, David Mitchell: This was about Japan and seemed quirky. Plus Times were refunding the GST (is this normal or do I look like a tourist?)
  

Bottom Row, L-R:

• The Language of Flowers, Vanessa Diffenbaugh: This was so expensive at home – I thought. Then I looked at the junk mail and it was $10 at Big W. Oops.
  
• Do No Harm, Carol Topolski: The red dot says I’ll like this if I like Sophie Hannah. Sounds interesting, about ‘bad’ doctors with ‘secrets’.
  
• The Reader, Bernhard Schlink: No, haven’t seen the movie. But love the cover, part of Orion’s 20^th year celebrations. (More on book series later).
  
• Rival Passions, Zoe Miller: Light lady-lit about a big house/hotel, warring families etc. Technically ‘free’ because I bought it at the airport with my GST refund.
  

• The Paris Wife, Paula McLain: Everyone’s read this but me. Another airport purchase.
  
• A Different Sky, Meira Chand: About Singaporean history, from ‘local authors’ section of Kinokuniya.
  
• Gillespie and I, Jane Harris: THIS BOOK IS BRILLIANT! MUST READ! I read this until my eyes hurt yesterday.
  

So that’s a very big mailbox! What did you get this week?

A change is as good as a holiday…

Enjoy the new blog look – if there’s any issues, let me know.

As you couldn’t come on holiday with me and see this…

Or this…

Or this…

Or even this…

Melbourne Holiday

Yes, I went to Melbourne, Australia. I’d forgotten how easy domestic travel was in Australia – no passport and you can take your water bottle! As always, Melbourne’s weather was variable – from constant rain, to sunny spring weather to a day of 35 °C (although to this blogger, it didn’t feel much over 30!). I didn’t take a jacket and of course had to buy one. But that’s another thing Melbourne is famous for – shopping!

I stayed on Swanston Street, one of the main streets of the CBD. Here, my rain soaked window looks on to the back of Bourke Street Mall, where the major department stores (Myer and David Jones) are located.

Speaking of Myer, last year (or early this year?), they unveiled their new flagship store. Can’t say I’m a fan, but instead of buildings over three streets, there’s one. This is what is left of the Lonsdale St store. On my first trip to Melbourne, I could see into the men’s shoes storeroom (more interesting than it sounds).

The old book department (easily the best in any Myer store across Australia) was about Level 3 or 4 in the building on the left. Wonder what they’ll put there now?

Trams are also an integral part of Melbourne. The ‘ding ding’, hook turns and ease of getting places is part of the charm. And they’re half price on Sundays!

Flinders Street Station is where you can catch lots of trams from, or step inside and catch a train. (I only caught trams this time, get enough trains at home). Federation Square is on the very left.

There’s also a really cool cathedral opposite, makes me think of The Pillars of the Earth:

And of course, who could forget the beautiful blue Yarra River (cough cough):

This was at South Wharf, looking back towards Crown Casino and Melbourne Convention Centre.

This is from the other side, taken at the back of Federation Square.

The Town Hall is decked out for Christmas (note the tram and the rain):

And just to be fair, the sun really does shine in Melbourne sometimes! Goodbye Melbourne (from the bus on the way to the airport):

I’ll be posting some of my finds next week in Mailbox Monday.

Hope you enjoyed my pics!

Another holiday – where have I been?

I think this time it will be a little easier to guess where I went this time (hint: it’s a shorter plane ride and the weather is famously variable).

More detailed post soon!

The Grand Hyatt, Singapore Holiday Photos

I’ve been a bit blog lazy lately, which I apologise for! Can’t say that I’ve been doing anything even interesting – been on call which kindly brought up my working hours for the week to 120! Needless to say, I’ve been sleeping it off this weekend. I thought I’d relive and share some of my pictures from my recent trip to Singapore with you.

1. The Hotel (Grand Hyatt Singapore)

The Grand Hyatt is just lovely. It’s restful, charming and has the best service of any hotel I’ve ever been to. I was lucky enough to be upgraded (thank you!) to the Club room, which meant a lovely room, access to the Club Lounge (excellent food and service), computers (I love computers and spending time away from them is difficult) and a quick checkout upstairs. The service was impeccable. This is my room:

After the attack of the shops (early in the holiday I might add)!

A lovely separate living area, with comfy couch and a great sized desk (I’d love to have one this size at home).

The view was out over Orchard Road. The red building is DFS Galleria (duty free heaven). I enjoyed watching the building of the tower in the background and the people playing tennis.

The bedroom was also lovely and relaxing, with a great view and another television. Apologies for the wrinkled bed (they were very comfortable).

The bathroom was lovely, with large bath, overhead shower and ample basin to do your makeup in. The June Jacobs toiletries were also luscious!

 

Not long after we entered our room, there was already a knock at the door. A present!

Mezza 9 is one of the delicious restaurants at the Hyatt. What was inside?

Nine delicious chocolates – the white mango ones were absolutely heavenly. The gold and silver dust on the truffles was a lovely touch!

The gardens are also lovely – green and tropical, a welcome sight for any Australian!

The fantastic pool…

Thank you Grand Hyatt for a lovely stay – stay tuned for my epic dinner at Straits Kitchen (my favourite restaurant in the world)!

I am by no means financially backed by the Hyatt – just a happy customer. The Grand Hyatt Singapore is located at 10 Scotts Rd, Singapore, very close to the Orchard MRT, Orchard Rd and lots of great food and shopping.

Mailbox Monday 28/3/11

Another week back at work…the money’s good, but the lack of reading time is not! Today I present to you my acquisitions from my recent trip to Singapore. A bit less than last year, no doubt compared to my ereader and ebooks!

Here’s 2011′s haul:

• Haruki Murakami - The Elephant Vanishes (for the Murakami challenge)
• Helen Dunmore – The Betrayal (follows on from The Siege)
• Ken Follett – World Without End (follow on from The Pillars of the Earth)
• Dawn Farnham – The Red Thread (historical fiction about Singapore, first in a series)

2010′s stash:

• The Outcast – Sadie Jones
• The Chocolate Run – Dorothy Koomson
• Their Finest Hour and a Half – Lissa Evans

• Wolf Hall – Hilary Mantel
• The Beach House – Jane Green (lost it for months, now found)
• Young Hearts Crying – Richard Yates

• Brooklyn – Colm Toibin
• Around the World in Eighty Days – Jules Verne
• Agnes Grey – Anne Bronte

• House Rules – Jodi Picoult
• Dear John – Nicholas Sparks

• Shanghai Girls – Lisa See
• Moll Flanders – Daniel Defoe

Quite different, huh? There’s still a few of these I haven’t read yet. I love looking at the different covers and book sizes overseas but I also love the portability of my ereader.

What did you bring home recently? Check out I’m Booking It, for everyone’s finds!

My Holiday

Where did I go on my holiday?

I went to Singapore! These are pictures of Marina Bay Sands, an ‘integrated resort’  located on the main island. It contains one of the island’s first casinos (free for foreigners, $100SG for locals). I didn’t go it, it looked like all the other casinos everywhere.

There’s also a big shopping centre (still in the process of being finished) and see that ‘ship’ on top? You can go up there, it’s called the SkyPark. (I didn’t, given the cloudy, sticky weather, the entrance fee – something like $16-20 SG and the fact I’m not keen on heights).

One of the levels of The Marina Bay Shoppes.

You can ride in a gondola for $9 SG (sorry, didn’t do this either!)

And a giant Ferragamo!

While I enjoyed my trip out to Marina Bay Sands (only about 15-20 mins from Orchard Rd via the train, MRT), it’s not a must see, especially compared to Orchard Rd for shopping. Stay tuned for the Orchard Rd edition…

Mailbox Monday 21/3/11

Afternoon all! Hope you’re having a lovely week. Me, I just got back from holidays:

Can you guess where I went? (Hint: it’s a humid island and these buildings house one of its first casinos…which I didn’t go into!)

While I was away, my Amazon UK order arrived (who could resist free international shipping to Down Under?):

I’ve heard so much about The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks but I couldn’t find it at home. Room appeared in small paperback literally the day after I ordered this (but still cheaper to get from the UK). Ellis Island has been compared to Brooklyn by Colm Toibin, which I really enjoyed. Finally, Sister was on my Christmas wishlist but I didn’t receive it.

I already have another Amazon wishlist going!

What did you receive in your letterbox over the last week? Do visit Laura at I’m Booking It, who is hosting this week.

Guess where I’ve been?

Well, for the past week I’ve been attending the most boring conference in the world as well as having a little holiday in Sydney. While I found that Sydney shopping is just as good as home (except for Kinokuniya, which I love dearly), I managed to do some sightseeing too.

This is what I came home with in terms of reading material:

(Excuse the dodgy pictures, it was late when I took them).

And today’s finds at the local shopping centre:

I do have some reviews written  and another three or so to write, so please expect to see in the near future reviews of:

• The Chocolate Run by Dorothy Koomson
• Sahara by Michael Palin
• Queen of the Big Time by Adriana Trigiani
• The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark
• Down Under by Bill Bryson
• The Song of Silver Frond by Catherine Lim

Have a lovely weekend!