Category Archives: My life

♛ Scarlet Carousel | Prologue III

{Prologue III} Jae (Song Jae Won)’s 1999 South Korea They wouldn’t let me out. When I finally shoved past the barricade of arms, and barreled out of the bedroom into Dad’s chamber where the loud noises echoed, I had to cough hard to clear my lungs. Clouds of smoke in the air were far tooContinue reading “♛ Scarlet Carousel | Prologue III”

Laws of Human Nature

Humans are consummate actors, we all wear a mask and we all learn how to lie. We adapt ourselves to our groups and we are so good at acting that we don’t even realize we do. Being aware of our internal self and social selves, we can channel the best of all of our selves.

When writing feels good again

For quite a while I’ve forgotten how writing was my main (perhaps only) catharsis for getting a load off my chest, or when I simply needed a go-to outlet as a person who never felt a need to pour my feelings out in entirety to someone else. Throughout my schooling days I’ve kept journals detailingContinue reading “When writing feels good again”

Trinz NessyChoice Falsies

Making a small note to Trinz’s NessyChoice, whose falsies I’ve come to love! Made in Thailand, the brand manufactures super soft, high-quality eyelashes from real horsehair and mink. You know how some falsies have the tendency to irritate the hell out of you? Well, the texture of NessyChoice makes it lighter than most, hence the pliability, andContinue reading “Trinz NessyChoice Falsies”

[MUA] Channeling Oriental Vibes 

Like many Asians, I used to hate my mono-lids. Except mine aren’t exactly mono per se – only tucked away under an inch of skin. My younger self was an avid fan of thick grunge-rock black eyeliner. And my mantra was that the thicker the eyeliner, the more ‘made-up’ and glam I looked. With my eyesContinue reading “[MUA] Channeling Oriental Vibes “

An Uber Encounter, An Epiphany

The probability of ever getting a ride on the same cab with the same driver in Singapore, within a month, is approximately less than 5%, assuming 15 rides per month and official statistics as of August 2015: the current fleet of taxis in SG being 28,404, with 2 or 3 shift-based cabbies are tied to a vehicle (~70,000 drivers),Continue reading “An Uber Encounter, An Epiphany”

Music and Endless Wintering

“Music brings a warm glow to my vision, thawing mind and muscle from their endless wintering.” ― Haruki Murakami, Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World   Last night saw the revival of my 7-year-old iPod (above), opening an emotional floodgate of memories tagged to songs from another lifetime. Despite being in a badly scratchedContinue reading “Music and Endless Wintering”

[DIARY] WRITER’S BLOCK

Life caught me by the lapels and refused to let go. For a while now I’m almost afraid of looking at watches & clocks, seeing each day draw to an irrevocable close. 2015 is turning out very different from what I imagined, it’s little wonder that I’ve stopped churning out annual resolutions to ‘be better’, ‘work harder’,Continue reading “[DIARY] WRITER’S BLOCK”

[MACAU] oo4. THE ISLAND IN 20 PICS

Let me take you on a tour of the nondescript: things you won’t see unless on foot, plowing through the city. “It all takes time and lessons and places, but I’m learning to listen to my restless heart, telling me to “go, go, go!” ― Charlotte Eriksson, Another Vagabond Lost To Love: Berlin Stories There youContinue reading “[MACAU] oo4. THE ISLAND IN 20 PICS”

[MACAU] oo3. HORSING AROUND

We regret to interrupt your regularly scheduled travelogue… …to present you with a series of horses… horsing around. In the chinese zodiac I’m born in the year of the horse   I couldn’t resist. Reporting live from Macau Tower! Jean, out! xoxo, Viktoria Jean

[MACAU] oo2. RUINS OF ST. PAUL’S | MUSEUM OF MACAU

Tourists are so darn easy to sniff out. If you’ve been to Macau, you’d know the Ruins of St Paul’s (大三巴牌坊) but a one-sided wall, completely demolished and naked in the back. So the first-timers (like us) would still clamour for pictures with the famed 16th-century complex, an official UNESCO World Heritage Site. 68 stepsContinue reading “[MACAU] oo2. RUINS OF ST. PAUL’S | MUSEUM OF MACAU”

[MACAU] oo1. OF EGGTARTS, GRAFFITI AND ALL THINGS YUMMY

“I looked to the ceiling and told God, “God, next time I want an adventure, strike me with lightning. You have my permission.” ― Kristen Ashley, The Gamble We were crazy for adventure and found our answer in Macau. The idea came like a flash of lightning. So with one day to spare we grabbedContinue reading “[MACAU] oo1. OF EGGTARTS, GRAFFITI AND ALL THINGS YUMMY”

[DIARY] GOODBYE SINGAPORE AIRLINES

Ending my career as a stewardess was perhaps the best decision I’ve made this year. Letting go of this comfort zone I had (unfortunately) sunk into for the past 2 years involved lots of anxiety, doubt, and inevitable thoughts of missing the globetrotting lifestyle. Nevertheless I made my decision quickly and set my heart for the big change whenContinue reading “[DIARY] GOODBYE SINGAPORE AIRLINES”

[DIARY] COME AND GO

“We the mortals touch the metals, the wind, the ocean shores, the stones, knowing they will go on, inert or burning, and I was discovering, naming all the these things: it was my destiny to love and say goodbye.” ― Pablo Neruda, Still Another Day Breathing to the rhythm of waves; watch them crash and leave theContinue reading “[DIARY] COME AND GO”

[TAIPEI] oo6. NIGHT MARKET HUSTLING

So we arrived at the famed Raohe Night Market 饒河街夜市 in Northern Taipei, which is in close proximity to Taipei’s Rainbow Bridge across Keelung River (another topic altogether), and accomplished the feat of exploring the entire district in a night. But hang on, this post is all about food! The night market 饒河 (Raohe) is namedContinue reading “[TAIPEI] oo6. NIGHT MARKET HUSTLING”

10 SECRETS TO GOOD SKIN

Shh… I’m letting you guys in on what I do to keep my skin minimally flawed and young-looking. I’m not without vices – my lifestyle certainly does a great deal of harm to my skin. Constant travelling, difficult climates, dry-air in airplane cabins, late nights, sleepless days, junk food and irregular meals, social drinking and partyingContinue reading “10 SECRETS TO GOOD SKIN”

[DIARY] LOVE YOUR IMPERFECTIONS

31 days into 2015 and it has been surreal. I’ve been thankful each day for the people I’ve met, especially to those I’ve learnt to count on for simply being there. The obstacles in my current career are finally levelling out. I’m beginning to understand why some of my colleagues would fall in love with this jet-setting lifestyle. Don’t be fooledContinue reading “[DIARY] LOVE YOUR IMPERFECTIONS”

[DIARY] ONE LESS STRANGER

A sleepless night was spent following tweets on AirBnB’s #OneLessStranger campaign. Tired and insomniac as I was, I couldn’t help applauding the global movement to connect people across cultures, to eliminate the distance we keep with people we don’t intend to know. To be on the receiving end of a thoughtful deed from a stranger – it is a simple,Continue reading “[DIARY] ONE LESS STRANGER”

[SANTORINI] oo1. THE ELUSIVE SUNSET

I began my journey to Athens in Greece. Everyone who’s ever read a summer issue of Condé Nast Traveller dreams of the perfect Santorini sunset. Elusive is the word: sunset at Santorini isn’t about the picture-perfect moment. It is the breathtaking instance when you first catch sight, with your very own eyes, the illuminated sphere of bright fiery orange, radiating pink atContinue reading “[SANTORINI] oo1. THE ELUSIVE SUNSET”