JJ at the Lego Ninjago SlamJam Competition at Legoland JB

JJ at the Lego Ninjago Spinner SlamJam Competition at Legoland JB (Jul 2019).

OK, so Gugu J has been a faithful sponsor of our Lego and we continue to be blessed by her generosity which we warmly accept 🙂

Seems she has been on some Lego mailing lists and she informs Jon of an upcoming Ninjago Spinner SlamJam Competition happening at Legoland in July. There are specific dates and time slots you can register for, but Mummy and Daddy J decide on Saturday, 13th July.


That fateful day finally arrives (a beautiful day indeed!), and Didi has been practising hard – I mean real HARD. There are apparently different stages/rounds requiring different strategies and he’s simulated all possibly scenarios in the past couple of weeks, anticipating having to persevere through 3 differing trials, each assessing his strength, speed, and agility!

We arrive ahead of the 1pm start time, and were pleasantly informed the competition would be extended to interested walk-in participants. Hearing that, Daddy persuades me to signup and compete alongside Jon. We were one of the early birds, seems there were like 10 other kids at that time and the organiser asks us to get in queue.

As we were a little early after rego, Mummy allows us to go on some rides! After all, whats a visit to Legoland without our usual dose of the Ninjago ride?

We set our personal record of 462,850!

On the way past the Fireman’s Bistro, we smell the familiar scent of our favourite fruit – the King of Fruits, that is! But wonder how it could be possible… but alas, it is true! Legoland JB is selling durians! 🙂

Lucky for us though, this departure terminal doesn’t have a ban on durians!

After some rides, we trod back to the competition venue – Sensei’s Brick Shop and who do we meet but the wise sensei himself, and his faithful side-kick, our fiery Kai!


The organiser explains the mechanics of the contest.

Round 1: In the very first trial, the task was to take down all the cut-up villains (ranging from 10-60points each) using Lloyd’s Titan Mech.

Round 2: In the second round, each contestant was given a slam spinner with the objective to take down as many of the 9 villains set-up in a 3×3 matrix formation.

Round 3: In the final showdown, contestants were asked to pitch their spinning skills aimed at the longest spin, each timed with a stopwatch.


After 3 gruelling rounds, the organiser asks for some time out to tabulate the scores, and we wait in anticipation.

After awarding the consolation prizes to the runner ups, it boils down to the final 2… he asks “whom of the following 2 do you think is the champion?”

Jon basking in jubilation over his win and poses with his clinch – the new Lloyd Titan Mech! Way to go CHAMP!

My very proud littl’ brother – grinning from ear to ear with his bounty in tow.

By the way, Daddy’s smiling cheekily also, proudly whispering to Mummy how he’d just saved $120 bucks not having to buy us that new mech. He thinks we can’t hear! 🙂

~Jo aka Twin1

JJ at The Bicentennial Experience – From Singapore to Singaporean

JJ at The Bicentennial Experience – From Singapore to Singaporean

Mummy J signed us up some months back for the Bicentennial Experience. Good thing she did that.

When we first heard it however, we went like “What? Are we going to a new shopping mall?” and never thought back anything about it until last week when Mummy gets a reminder on her trusty iPhone calendar and off we go to the Fort Canning Centre (located at 5 Cox Terrace, Singapore 179620) [Park at F0022].

Note: what we’re attempting to describe below is based solely on our collective experience and will definitely not do justice to the amount of work the production team has put in over the past years – there has clearly been an incredible amount of effort and investment that has gone into making this show, experience, exhibit or whatever-you-call-it a reality.

This is ‘an-admission-by-ticket-only’ event and FREE tickets can be booked online here. Be sure thought to secure your tickets ASAP to immerse yourself in an educational experience that showcases defining events in Singapore’s 700-year history!

The following is an excerpt from the Bicentennial Experience guidebook which succinctly captures what the experience is all about:

The Bicentennial Experience commemorates the 200th anniversary of Raffles’ landing in Singapore. The Bicentennial Experience reflectively unfolds the story of our country’s evolution – stretching beyond the British arrival in 1819 to explore the preceding 500 years. As the centrepiece event of the Singapore Bicentennial, this multimedia sensory experience will take visitors back in time to witness key moments in Singapore’s transformation. The Bicentennial Experience has 2 main sections:

  1. The Time Traveller which takes place indoors, bringing visitors on an epic experiential journey through Singapore’s key historical moments.
  2. The Pathfinder which is an outdoor experience, with a series of pavilions designed for visitors to explore a diverse range of ideas and themes that show how Singapore’s connections with the rest of the world have spanned 700 years.

We thoroughly enjoyed the Time Traveller experience, comprising 5 different acts, preceded by the Atrium experience where we were taken thru a summary audio documentary of the rise and fall of civilisations and cities with a digital rotunda table of the visuals and map of the story, culminating with an awe-inspiring visual of the reverse-rain effect (rain drops rise from bottoms up)!

Act 1:  Beginnings – Live performers and a moving travelator add drama and dynamism to some of the most colourful exploits that unfolded in early Singapura. The synchronised performance of the actors with the music and audio recap were choreographed perfectly and added drama and suspense! This was our favourite part of the entire experience.

Act 2: Arrival – We board “The Indiana”, the ship that brought Raffles to Singapore in 1819. The digital screen and animation were simply astounding, and left us awe-struck. [JJ Tip] Sit at the back rows if you are prone to motion sickness!

Act 3: Connectivity – Still in the same room, the circular surround screens now move and seats rotate to provide an all-immersive show experience.  The JJ Tip of sitting at the back pews still apply since Mummy J had her eyes shut at some point to prevent her getting dizzy!

Act 4: Occupation – We disembark from the ‘vessel’ and are herded into a small darkened room to simulate refuge within an underground bomb shelter. The sirens and alarms blare signifying the Japanese occupation of Syonan during World War 2 (1942-1945). The audio broadcast of happenings around are vivid reminders of the very significant yet painful WW2 era in the history of Singapore. When we exit the room, we talk into a tunnel with supposed cracks in the wall through which we see glimpses of historical events during this time, culminating with an audio+visual account of a Sook Ching survivor (a Chinese term depicting the purging or cleansing or eliminating or individuals resisting the occupation).

Act 5: Destiny – Prior to entering the next room, we were handed brollies which we promptly opened before a gust of rain hovered across and started pouring cats and dogs.

Soon the weather fined up and we were ushered into a new dawn. A new era of Singapore, our Singapore today.


View our videos below in 2 parts [Caution on the 2nd video which may require parental guidance]

JJ at V-Dining

JJ at V-Dining by V-Zug.

Turns out Mummy J lands us some dining vouchers, courtesy of our friends at Class 95 after winning them off the ‘I’m NOT stupid’ segment of Muttons in the Morning ! Daddy J is a closet fan of the Muttons, and some say thats why Jon’s nickname evolved to Mutton over time… (Jonathan->Tern Tern->Natern->Mutton).

FYI the crew with the Muttons at one of the previous Class95 roadshows at Nex!

So with our reservation in place, Daddy and Mummy J pack the kiddos and head out for lunch at V-Dining @ Scotts Square. It was a very quiet afternoon…

Very cozy ambience with an open kitchen concept and vantage views of Scotts Road.

Daddy and Mummy have the 5 course lunch set with wine, while Jo helps decide on our order of Salmon+Spinach as main course and Apple Cinnamon+Camomile ice-cream with home filtered water, and swiftly burrows her head in a Lego Ninjago book while the kind crew begins to whip up lunch.


Snacks and starters…

Tartar Lamb and fingerlime.

Laksa mousse with taupok (fried beancurd) cubes, laksa leaves.

Brown butter cabbage with langoustine.

 

Carrot soup with kohlrabi and leek.

Chicken with pumpkin and coconut curry for the grown-ups and salmon with spinach for the kids.

 

Desserts! Apple cinnamon with camomile and Yoghurt with berries and meringue…

Mummy was happy at the end… sipping Prosecco while kids worked on folding napkins to pay off their meal *burps*, and she can now confidently tell the Muttons – “I’M NOT STUPID!” 

Thank you Class 95! 🙂

  

Toy Story 4!

It is the final week of our school holidays and Daddy J suggests we head out the to Gardens by the Bay coinciding with the Children’s Festival happening from 15th Jun – 30th Jun 2019! While we had previously been there on our kindy’s field trip, it would be our first visit as a family to the gardens! Yay!

The toys are back! Tucked amidst the lush foliage of the Supertree Grove area are pop-up carnival games stalls and special missions to be completed. We team up with our favourite characters Woody, Buzz Lightyear and Bo Peep to complete the tasks, meet new and old friends along the way while having a blast of a time!

With our trail book in hand and following the signs to the carnival!

 

Can someone please let us know what fruit tree this is? Sure looks like Daddy J’s favourite pomelo, right in the middle of the garden!

Greeted by Woody & Jessie at the Bullseye Games…

Woody’s Coaster Rescue, which was by far one of the most (if not THE most) popular stall of the day judging by the queue…

Jessie’s Ring Capture and Bulleye Rescue…

Flag off at the Buzz’s Star Adventurer! Jon seems a tad too big for the littl’ red swivel car by now…

Meeting Bo and her sheep (Billy, Goat and Gruff!) at Bo Peep’s adventure!

Mr Duke Caboom and our new friend Forky the Spork…

 

At the end of the day, we had a BLAST of a time!

Best part of it, says Daddy “It was FREE”…

Free stickers for completing at least 3 of the challenges, styro planes (we caught a red and blue each during the frenzy of the Ball Drop), the awesome lazer, lights and sound display (from 7pm), and LOTSA fun together with Daddy and Mummy J!


And what’s a visit to the Toy Story 4 Carnival without actually making it to the movies for the actual movie itself?

That very same week we hit the box office…

It was a very good story with a good mix of old and new toys. Of the new cast, we liked (what Daddy called ‘separated at birth) the twins… Ducky and Bunny (the yellow and blue guys) the most…

At the end Mummy stepped out teary eyed and said it was OK to cry… we think she sobbed buckets by the end of the movie, not sure if it was because it was funny, scary or sad. We guess it was a bit of it all 🙂