Chai Tow Kuay cum Children's Day Run

Ok ok .... I know I'm too old to be celebrating Children's Day. But hey! there is a kid in everyone, so we are ALL entitled to celebrating that little kid in us. :P

A few of us were chatting few weeks back and somehow the chai tow kuay at Charlotte's place was mentioned. Always eager for food hunts, the foodies in us decided to do a west side run that Charlotte can bring us around the west and to end with CTK at her place.

We finally managed to arrange for this run to materialise this sunday and though many among us expressed interest in the run, only Charlotte, Roentgen & myself managed to go for this run. The rest were unfortunately unable to make it due to work committments, other prior arrangements & illness.

We met at Charlotte's place and started the run at about 6:45am. Roentgen & Charlotte were the ones that discussed & plotted the route while I was the one just happily and contentedly tagging along (this is the advantage of being a DR!! U are not required / expected to contribute when it comes to direction! :P)

Since I spent a good part of my life living in the West, I was very happy to run around the area. Reminiscing about the past, the good and not-so-good times. I wun attempt to describe the route we took but will just list down the major landmarks/places that I can remember we passed today.

Ngee Ann Poly
West Coast Park - it was still pretty early when we reached West Coast Park. There weren't many people there and one stretch of the park was really serene with trees lining both sides of the path. It was really peaceful just running past that stretch, how I wish that path goes on forever ....
Pasir Panjang Wholesale Mkt - used to go there with my mom when I was a kid. The exterior hasn't changed much though.
Pasir Panjang Food Centre - used to eat there a lot, liked their fried rice there. But heard from Charlotte they have moved ? The place seemed to be under construction now ..
Labrador Park - Almost tempted to share one curry puff between the 3 of us but thankfully we were disciplined enough not to let the sights of the good food derailed our run :P We ran up the mild slope (but super tiring nonetheless!!!) and were very pleased at what greeted us at the top. The sight and the very cooling breeze really made the climb up worthwhile! We were able to have a good view of the sea and the jetty and were elated that the jetty was accessible to public! (the last time I was there, the gate was closed and the signage on the gate explained that the gate would be open only at 9am). The 3 of us then walked down the stairs leading to the foot of the (hill?) and jogged along the jetty enjoying the cool fresh morning sea breeze. It is really very refreshing running there ... I felt at peace and calm
Alexandra Road - we stopped by the petrol kiosks to buy drinks, passing by Queensway Shopping Centre, IKEA, BMW showroom (my dream car is inside waiting for me!! :P), my alma mater
Botanical Gardens - Finally got a chance to run INSIDE BG! Met several high-powered people (one minister, one CEO of an IT company) and Roentgen even met his ex-colleague there *faint*
I always like BG, enjoy just walking inside the place, with its little structures that transports me back to the days when i was just a small little gal ... so glad that these little huts and structures are finally going to be preserved as part of our national heritage (Its about time!!!!)
Bukit Timah - passed by Coronation Plaza (again one of my old hangouts when younger). Along the way we passed by many a cafeterias. These are just little shops by the road, but they seem so hidden from the public eye. Somehow these shops (especially those just beside Coronation Plaza) made me feel like I'm overseas. Really have to make a mental note to go back to these cafe one day, just sit there and relax and watch the world go by. Think i will enjoy just bumming there. Along the way we also passed by this restaurant called Athens Restaurant. Hmmm, must try it since I have been wanting to go Greece for the longest time ever but never got around to it. Eating at Athens Restaurant will be the closest I can get to Greece for now :P

Finally reached back at our starting point 4 hours later, clocking 28 km. This run was 30mins longer than the previous week when we did the same distance during the Demoralising Run, but I think it could be attributed to the many traffic stops along the way, not forgetting the many other stops for drinks at 7-11, petrol kiosks etc. At one point we even ventured into the Cold Storage before Coronation Plaza. The Cold Storage there is big and quiet, looks like a really nice place to shop for groceries!!! :P

Of course, what is an LSD without a pig out session thereafter ? :P We proceeded up the food centre and ordered chai tow kuay, poh piah, chwee kuay & soya beancurd with dumplings. Unfortunately the chai tow kuay & chwee kauy were REAlly disappointing. Wanted to buy the MJK but it was closed! ARGH! What was lacking in the food was fully compensated by the good company. The three of us had a good time just chatting and talking nonsense.

After lunch, we parted ways and I headed straight to the office for a shower before rushing to HSA for my blood donation. In my haste I almost BT (bua toh)! Almost sprained my ankle when my right foot landed on the hole in between those cement slabs in the carpark, thankfully i am fine and only suffered some scratches on my right feet -__-" Am I clumpsy or am I clumpsy ???

By the time I got home, I was already 3/4 of a zombie ... legs were really tired ... managed to catch some sleep and by the time I woke up, was time for dinner. Yumz Yumz ... too bad dinner was also rather disappointing *ARGH!!!*

All in all a FANTASTIC day! Enjoyed the Sunday morning LSD, especially with GREAT company and interesting route.
THANKS again Charlotte for planning & leading us in this run!
*2 thumbs up* and thanks to Roentgen for picking me up at the Mac near to the start point so that I wun be lost! *bow*

Think Roentgen has a pretty interesting account of our run today. Read all about it here :)

ContentedButTiredKahSngJazzy