Whimsical Fantasies: Dinner at the Altivo

"Lunch", in yesterday's context, morphed into a day's event.

Munch. -guffaw- Chomp. -giggle- Slurp. -burp-
That pretty much summed up our activities in a nutshell.

Presumptuous on the proportion attributed to the beef brisket noodles, clever me promptly requested for a double portion of noodles and iced milk tea while Diana was contented with her share of seafood rice noodles and lime juice. Striding out of the restaurant and straight into an ice-cream joint, wholesome sin came in double-scooped vanilla and cookies & cream. Less sinful was Diana's single scoop of yam.

To burn off the calories, my mission was to hunt down the latest Devics cd. Sembawang. CD-Rama. That CD Shop. Gramophone. HMV. It cumulated to naught. By the fourth shop, I was on the brink of throttling the next person who threw me an incredulous look upon the utterance of "indie band" and thereby mistaking it for "Hindi band" or "Indian band", either of which was irrelevant to my search. Is our nation strictly spoon-fed on bubblegum pop or what?

Next on the list was a large iced lemon tea for me. Diana and I yada-yadaded (ie. chatted incessantly in Seinfeld speak), with Tianxiang arriving at Takashimaya at 7pm. Currently a Keppel scholar serving his bond, it was a rare chance for him to knock off in time for dinner. I thought he was acquainted with another friend of mine, Rongxing, the current assistant chief financial officer at Keppel but I was wrong. Our island isn't that small after all.

Understandably famished, his suggestion to grab a bite "out of town" translated into dinner at the Altivo which was at the peak of Mt Faber. Frequented by ministers and celebrities, polished accents and crisp shirts dotted the place and I felt crummy in my simple gear. Nevertheless, the resplendent view had us welling in our own private conversation of ghost stories, college nostalgia and trivial matters. Bloated with a good grind of food and talk, we left three hours later. As I drifted in my own world briefly while lingering at the exit, a man walked towards me and came a tad too close for comfort. That sent me scuttling towards Tianxiang who was peeved at this display of inappropriate behaviour. After a few last shots, Tianxiang drove me home after 11pm and the night ended with two egg pratas consumed by yours truly.