here we were just beginning, at a traffic junction just past the interchange!
Having participated in TH night cycling last year, I vaguely remembered the route we took from Pasir Ris to Punggol, and it was pretty straightforward and short. The rain was just getting harder when we took off but we braved through it anyway. Silly Tricia brought an umbrella instead of poncho..like how was she gonna carry it and cycle at the same time right?! HAHA. I was smarter ;)
We cycled past the industrial area and the farmway, and reached Lorong Halus shortly. Lorong Halus is a wetland reserve that has a bridge that brings us across the waters to Punggol. Not many people would have known but there are two islands nearby, namely Serangoon Island and Punggol Timor Island!! During TH night cycling recce trip last year, we actually cycled across the Timor Island to Seletar Airport. And wow, the small airport was really a wonderful sighting in the middle of the night, with planes flying low and emitting lights like fireflies in the sky. It is also a good location for a 那些年 shot hahaha.
HAHA this picture was taken from the front camera and I had tricia to press the shutter for me (because she can't take human photos for nuts, I've got to do the angling for her yea)
We spent quite a bit of time at the bridge taking pictures of the surroundings such as the waters, sighting an alligator (which Tricia named Luffy, after the One Piece character you'd see appearing in a while). Tricia is fond of taking nature shots, like water droplets on the leaves, flowers and the scenery. I am a mix of both - nature and portraits - whichever appeals to me at the moment.
See, Tricia being devoted to the nature.
And, this is the Lorong Halus bridge.
Luffy! Just got this toy from the Macs collection and Tricia said I was lame..hey, One Piece is the best anime EVER. No kidding. I learnt a lot from that show. Hahaha.
Opening arms, just living in the moment & embracing the wind
Looking forward, expecting patiently for whatever lies ahead
Come what may :)
I tried to get Tricia to take inspirational photos..you know, pretentious much, but that kind of photos featuring a person staring out at the horizon with deep thoughts in the mind.. Guess what? She failed, again, terribly. HAHA. Sorry Hyung, this is so not a bitching post yeah. We moved on into Punggol Waterway and there's simply more nature - ponds, flowers by the pavement, plants on the wall.
Reminds me of a movie production company but I can't remember which! This tree is amazing, all dried up and standing alone, as if its existence is simply to provide temporary sanctuary for surrounding birds.
Hyung and I agreed that this reminds us of the rail tracks in Hunger Games. And, we had fun pretending we were in a mission to get to the Capitol to save the victors HAHA.
This graffiti wall was the highlight. It goes:
And I
Gazing at stars
Stumbled over you
Tripped
And Fell
Painfully in love
Couldn't get up
For Ages
Mmmmm.
The only two colored robots on the wall, observed first by Tricia. Then we noticed that the girl (must be the one in pink because of gender stereotypes (pink colour) and her smaller frame (biological determination) hahaha) does not articulate any speech. What do you make out of this?
Cycling out of Punggol
It is a pity that cameras can never quite capture the beauty we perceive and comprehend in our eyes. This is why I believe photos don't represent memories, they do best by evoking the memories in our minds. Initially, we had intended to watch sunset at Punggol but given the weather, and the dread of U-turning back to Pasir Ris, we spontaneously had a change of plans. It was really comfortable doing so because we're both the easygoing kind of people who take on whatever comes in our way. I can't imagine riding with an uptight person who has to come prepared with a foolproof plan and gets worried when things don't go their way. So, we went forth to Kampong Buangkok.
There wasn't much to explore in that kampong. It all looks very staged to me actually. Also, I was from a kampong in Malaysia so these houses didn't fascinate me much haha. It was just kinda cool to uncover a hidden kampong in the midst of a modernised landed property area. We then headed north (from our spot) towards Marine Parade, where we were told that we could return our bikes there too! It's a lovely initiative to have pit stops of the same bicycle chain at different parks. The convenience it brings encourages more of us to cycle and venture into new areas more.
And so, we cycled along Yio Chu Kang Rd, to Paya Lebar Rd, to Geylang Rd, and to Katong where we finally stopped for GLORIOUS VICTORIOUS FOOD. Wow.
A sign from the universe to take a break and love ourselves
It would be so so rude to not stop for these gorgeous looking tarts.
Egg tarts and us were meant to be, really. Because shortly after we got them, the shop had to be closed. Not as fantastic as the Chinatown ones, but still, yum yum in our tum tum. The only probable truth in life is, the love for food. True story.
These routes were not pre-planned haha. After Punggol, I had stopped taking the route used by my hall night cycling. Plain figuring our way out using GPS. Thank goodness for this invention, really. Unplanned routes are the best because of these small surprises along the way - you don't know what's there to offer next, and so you keep going, looking forward to what you're in for the very next minute. Kinda sounds like what life is all about yeah.
Lo, and behold. Second sign from the universe!! I had already seen this fruit stall when we were at the egg tarts shop. But I've not imagined the kind of emotion it'd stir up in my heart when we were this up-close. Ah, fruits paradise. We looked like two overly excited kids, who shall be judged by the Katong people and perhaps all Easties. But but, we don't really eat our fruits by the roads in Singapore, do we??
So, we did not give this moment a miss.
HAHA. Them excited eyes and grin.
It took her a lot of bites to reach this crescent.
Beautiful. You're what caught my sight and captured my heart, truth be told.
We had fun dunking our faces into our own share of watermelons and man, were they succulent. We were full from taking in the juice can you believe it. Hahaha. Please refer to my Instagram post for the snap of the blood crescent.
After awhile, we realised that we're taking too much time indulging in these small joys and so we hopped back onto our bikes. We were already feeling the aches in our legs and butt, an inevitable effect of stopping. This is why in any kind of journey, you have to push yourself and keep going, because once you stop, your body gets the slack and it fails you. BUT. There are things worth making a leeway for always - yup, you get me, food.
Finally, we returned our bikes at ECP Area C and it felt so surreal having our legs on the ground. Kinda want to be an astronaut right there and bounce my way in the air back home. We were fortunate to have made it in time because once again, the bicycle shop closed shortly after we left!! Haha. And then..it was time to have a legit feast. Once you got the engine on, you can't stop it!!!!!! Was supposed to head back to katong but ended up way past it, and so we stopped at Lau Par Sat. Tricia and I ate there once before, just the two of us too haha, after we cafe-hopped in Tiong Bahru and were goddamn full. So, she told me to have self-control this time. HAHA.
Sat at the open satay area where we had high-rise buildings in the background. The food there are overvalued man, but it's the place you'd want to chill and drink beer and eat zichar.
No, these weren't enough, but we had no more cash to be indulgent. HAHA.
Got to admit, after this trip I'm falling in love with the East.
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