The massage on Saturday was looovely! I discovered that the gym (well, Health Club, as it’s referred more eloquently as) that I’m in love with is so $$ because it’s Westin’s Hotel gym, right in the GPO on Martin Place. I love love love it but it’s $120/month with a $200 joining fee, and I just can’t part with that kind of money. So I’m going for the other gym near work that’s $60/month.. will sign up later this week. But back to the massage: what I liked about the massage therapists there is that they’re all medically certificated therapists, and have all their certifications hung up. Degrees in Physiotherapy, Sports Science, etc, etc. I get a bit wary of massages when it’s just from a random non-credited therapist, so my mind was at ease for this one. She was brilliant, very firm yet not too painful/ticklish and I woke up this morning with my muscles feeling like I’d exercised them yesterday – that kind of worked-out gooey muscle feeling. Ahhhh… Will definitely be back!

Today, went out with a girl friend for a lazy Sunday lunch and wandering around.. because the weather was so divine. We hit Zia Pina Pizzeria which was quite random – based on the fact that we were looking for something where we were, and cheap. It looked really Italian from the outside and was bustling inside, all cozy and wood-y. Very nice 🙂 We got kinda iffy with the waiter though… he was perky and made a lot of jokes, but after awhile it got kind of old and erm, quite annoying. Ridiculous things like when I was applying my lipgloss he’ll say in a shrill voice “Oh you’re applying lipgloss? Can I apply some too?” and when my friend was checking her mobile, he started pretending to SMS on this wooden block he was holding and said “Look I’m sending a text too!” in an annoying voice. Ahhh it’s hard to describe and I know it just makes us sound like grumpy old ladies, but it was just an annoying/uncomfortable situation. It’s not being friendly anymore. But I guess on the bright side, it’s better than having a rude/grumpy waiter 😛

The Ham & Pineapple Pizza was a total stunner. The base was crisp and just the right in-between of doughy and crispness. Very very tasty and soo divine, despite having such few/boring ingredients. I’ll definitely go back there for lunch for a pizza!!!! It was fantastic. Anyone want to join me? 🙂 Also shared a Tortellini Bolognese – this dish was pretty disappointing. You know that microwave smell? The bolognese was very obviously already pre-cooked and re-heated with the pasta in a microwave. The pasta was quite overcooked and squishy and the meat was a bit salty. Not inedible, but not great either.. and for $13 for the Entree size, it was so incredibly small we kinda stared at it in shock when it arrived, and I quipped “Is this for a 5 year old child?”. Very odd. I’d go back there, but only for the pizza!

After that, I was craving dessert and managed to resist both Beard Papa cream puffs and Baskin Robbins ice cream (the strawberry cheesecake flavour’s divine!), and was feeling ever so saintly.. but finally caved and got some Emperor Custard Puffs – this little “hole in the wall” shop in the middle of Chinatown. It’s basically a tiny room with a tiny window where you make your purchase, and the machine takes up the entire room.. making a never-ending line of custard puffs. It’s all fresh off the machine too, because there’s always a line at the window with hungry Chinese folk (I say this because I’ve never seen an Aussie there before, weirdly!) eyeing the puffs eagerly. They’re super cheap, I got 2 for 50c! The puff itself is soft and sweet/buttery, and the custard is milky smooth and mildly sweet. Beautiful.

Emperor Custard Puffs

Mmm.. enticing

Gooey insides

Walking around shopping worked up quite an appetite, so we stopped by at Mother Chu’s Taiwanese Gourmet for a snack. I had a Iced Soya Bean Milk.. a drink where seemingly only Asian people like. I’ve someone managed to cajole almost every Aussie I know to try it, and they’ve all unanimously gone “YUCK!!!” once they’ve had a sip. I love it though, one of my fave drinks 🙂 Also had a Glutinous Rice with Yiu Tiao and Pork Floss – very nice and made the perfect afternoon-tea snack!

Glutinous Rice with Yiu Tiao and Pork Floss

Got home in the evening with bags of groceries from Chinatown – isn’t it satisfying when you do a big grocery shop and your fridge is all stacked and full? Makes me feel so domesticated 😛 But in my halo of domestic goddess-ness, I wasn’t looking where I was going and stubbed my toe on the little 1-inch step into my kitchen. It hurt, but I didn’t think much of it and just unpacked the groceries. When I went into the bedroom to get changed, I saw drops of red paint on the carpet and got a bit confused – did I sit/step on some paint on the way home?!?! Then realised it was my stupid toe – BLEEDING! Washed it off and it still kept going and going, like a toe possessed. So in the end I just had to raise my foot high and grip my toe really hard with my hand to stop it bleeding. An hour later when it dried up, etc, I saw that the flesh had been cut in an “L-shape”, so the flap of flesh could lift off.. EWWWWW!!! No wonder it took so long to stop bleeding.