a 3-day birthday celebration! WOW!

it's great being able to celebrate my birthday in Singapore, since for the last 3 years i've been away in the UK on my actual birthday (thus celebrations with friends in Singapore have always been at odd times). and perhaps it's because i've been missing for 3 years that this year's celebration was MASSIVE!

it started on the 4th in the evening, when my family decided to have the birthday cake. coffee ice cream cake to be exact! mmmm... me and my parents!
my brother, me and my mom! YAY CAKE!

on the 5th i had a casual Italian dinner with my family (at De Mario, Quayside) before heading off to eM By The River for a drinks party with some close friends.
Rachel and Moon amusingly trying to read the menu under the lamp because of the dim lighting...
Rachel, Moon and ME! i decided to go all out and be adventurous in my dressing! suspenders and hat, very Marlene Dietrich! haha... and fun!my friends that amuse me...
me, Jeannie, Amy, Steph, Alina, Joyce and Ave!
me and Ave! the hat caused a lot of amusement - Ave's musings on Facebook: "Talk about globalization! This hat was made in China for Swedish behemoth H&M, purchased in Dubai and now sits elegantly on tapdancing extraordinaire Adeline Li's pretty little Singaporean Chinese head."
Amy and me!
Ms Joyce UnKhoo!
a flattering photo! haha!
Ivy and Wen Fang brought me cake! and not just any cake... LANA CAKE!
what a pleasant surprise!
Wen Fang, Ivy and me! (and one in the toilet! hehe...)
awwwwwwww... it was a great night!

and the birthday celebrations ended with a lovely brunch buffet at Keyaki, the Japanese restaurant on Level 4 of Pan Pacific Hotel. at $58++, it's not cheap but they have a great selection of really good food. PLUS it's a la carte buffet so it's very civilised.
baby lobster with a wasabi mayonnaise
the sashimi platter (sadly, they only allow a maximum of one sashimi order per diner because "the ingredients are seasonal and not always available in large quantities")
roasted duck breast cold dish
rice ball with fish flakes, served with pickles
agadeshi tofu - i liked it so much i ordered a second round of it
teriyaki cod fillets
yakitori - mmmm... (yes we ordered a second round of that too!)
salmon with sea salt
grilled prawns! mmmm...
clockwise: tuna nigiri-sushi, california handroll, unagi nigiri-sushi (eel)
soft shell crab - i really liked this version. many that i've tried have so much batter while this one is just very thinly coated.
assorted tempura - it is really good because you can tell that the oil they use is fresh and not oxidised.
tuna with grated yam
scallops with miso paste
scallop nigiri-sushi and a tempura handroll
maki with sweet pickle (the brown bit)
smoked salmon salad
snapper salad
salmon nigiri-sushi
pork with ginger - YUM!
crab cream croquettes
beef teppan-yaki - REALLY good! not overcooked so still moist and tender inside!
yellowtail nigiri-sushi (and more scallop ones!)
cold soba
squid and salmon nigiri-sushi
FINALLY we decided we'd eaten enough and ordered dessert - fruit is always good to cleanse the palate
the lime sorbet is very refreshing!
utterly satisfying meal...

AND what a way to end the great birthday mega-celebration!