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Today was a day of “should have beens.” We should have been up bright and early, but we slept in until noon. We should have gone to the Chicago Museum of Art. But the weather did not cooperate, and instead, we spent it shopping where in an act of utmost maternal love, I spent almost the entire day equipping Paige for lacrosse, and then gave up 4 hours of my life to Forever 21.

We should have tried the Chicago Dogs and Italian Beef sandwiches. But my Asian sensibilities prevailed, and instead we went to the chicest, trendiest, most glamorous hot spot Asian restaurant in Chicago for homemade Miso Ramen soup and more pork belly.

You can’t tell but I am wearing two of Everything! 2 pants, 2 shirts, 2 socks, even two coats. There is a Full-on parka underneath that cape! That’s how cold it is…

 

Sunda Sushi – restaurant for the hip and edgy, but we managed to sneak in.

 

Pork Belly Skewers!

 

Paige practicing her chopstick skills…

 

It started snowing and didn’t let up the rest of the day.

 

Look what my wonderful daughter had made for me!

 

Chicago skyline along the Magnificent Mile!

 

Getting ready for our “date night.” Room Service and Netflix.

 

And the best movie EVER! Paige and I watch this together every year, but getting to do it in Chicago puts it over the top.

 

 

 

So Paige’s boarding school is closed for the Winter Weekend, and I flew back for a highly anticipated Mother/Daughter reunion. We are spending the weekend in the Windy City, and that nickname is no joke. Chicago is bitterly cold in February. So cold that we kept our parkas on even inside the restaurant. If I could have managed to eat with my gloves on, I would have done so.

First order of business was Chicago’s famous Deep Dish Pizza at the infamous Giordano’s. We walked 5 blocks in the biting cold nearly succumbing to frostbite and hypothermia…and had big expectations.

We were not disappointed. We ordered a Small, which actually turns out to be a 46 pound pie that looks like a pizza casserole. The menu says it feeds 2, but I think they should add “for 7 weeks” just to be accurate. – Brian Murphy, you would have loved it.

 

 

 

 

 

Our first full day in Chicago has been filled with all kinds of Firsts! First time using Uber – SO COOL! First time trying Garrett’s Mix- a strange but highly addictive popcorn combo of caramel and cheese popcorn together. It shouldn’t work, and yet somehow it does. But more importantly, the first time my 16 year old has ever successfully managed chopsticks to eat a meal. I know, I know-that is just complete parental neglect on my part. Mea culpa!

And in between all these milestones, we had the best time talking, laughing, and spending time together. And did I say lots and lots of laughing…

It’s Theatre Week in Chicago and we are taking advantage of it. Today we went to the Ballet.

 

Garrett’s Popcorn-people line up out the door for this.

 

Indulging in authentic Asian food, which is not easy to find at Culver.

 

A lesson on how to properly hold chopsticks.

 

Concentrate…

 

Ta Da!

 

Anyone who’s been around teens knows they need lots of selfies.

 

We spent a hilarious evening taking lots and lots of Selfies.

 

In the end, I just went ahead and fully embraced the whole Selfie taking thing. This is me as a mouse. Nice huh?

 

 

Sà-wàd-dee-kâ from Thailand.

Our third leg of the trip took us to Phuket Island, Thailand. Even though we’ve been to Thailand three times now, we never go anyplace except Phuket. Why?

Because Phuket is like one of those favorite meals at a good restaurant. And even though there might be other tasty things on the menu, you can never stray away from your tried and true favorite. So while I have heard there are many gorgeous provinces in Thailand, we always come back to Phuket. The weather, the beaches, the food, and the people are so vacation perfect in every way. An excellent end to our Far East adventure.

No Murphy holiday is complete without seeing this face at least a couple of times.

 

Phuket beaches are the best.

 

The recipe for a tropical paradise – soft sand, cool breezes, and warm water. 

 

Our hotel was built right up against this waterfall.

 

And another spectacular lazy river.

 

…With some excellent slides. Olivia must have went on it 25 times.

 

Even a private grotto pool and our very own slide.

 

The hotel infinity pool with the million dollar view to the sea. And notice the weather. So hard to believe it’s December.

 

Tiger Prawns are the specialty here, and we indulged every chance we could.

 

Sisters in a peaceful moment of “not fighting.”

 

The cruise was also fun. Lots of deck parties to attend.

 

Fun shows with famous characters and…

 

Even celebrity sightings.

 

Ice skating in the middle of the ocean was a thrill for us. And they made it snow…

 

The waiters totally understood kids. Olivia ordered a “Blood Soda” and the waiter brought her a “Shirley Temple” which is what she meant to say.

 

The best part of my trip was getting to spend a whole day with my dear friend Lek who flew to Singapore just to see us. 💖

 

Indulging in our Star Wars obsession.

 

We are such nerds.

 

No White Christmas for us this year, but I think we survived.

 

One last plunge into the cave dive pool…

 

Goodbye…until next time. สวัสดี ค่ะ Thailand – you are one of our favorites.

 

 

It’s no secret that I am not a country girl. I was raised in Orange County, California which is probably one of the least agrarian places in America, and I have had very little exposure to real animals. And so, while I like animals on television, close encounters with actual animals makes me very nervous.

Well Batu Caves is teeming with, you guessed it, roaming gangs of wild monkeys. In order to reach the temple you must climb 272 steep steps while feral monkeys scamper all around you and under feet.

 

See the scary eyes narrowing…

 

Getting into his monkey attack stance just before he screamed right in my face.

 

Ebola!

“Selamat Datang” – from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Batu Caves built in 1871 and consisting of 3 temples honoring Lord Murugan (the War God), Lord Hanuman (the Monkey God), and Lord Ganesha (the Elephant God) is one of the most famous landmarks in Asia. Rising hundreds of meters high on a side of a limestone mountain reaching towards a majestic cave, this 272 step temple is the most holy place for Hindus in Malaysia.

Even though we were warned that we would be greeted by birds, monkeys, and possibly even bats, I was unprepared for the sheer number of wild animals everywhere.

It was very crowded because there was an Indian Festival going on with lots of music and festive outfits.

 

The temple honoring the Elephant God Lord Ganesha is very ornate and brightly painted upon every square inch.

 

Brian refused to go inside afraid he wouldn’t be able to find his shoes afterwards.

The start of the 272 step climb to the Batu Cave temple.

 

Some worshippers prostrate themselves climbing the journey on their knees.

 

And the very aggressive monkeys everywhere who snatch food and whatever else right out of your hands.

 

Paige loved the raucousness of it all. The screeching birds, shrieking monkeys, the music and drums along with the praying, chanting and smoking incense was a sensory overload.

 

This is the entrance to the caves and another temple inside. We decided to forgo the forehead blessing since its made of saffron, sandalwood, and cow dung.

 

There are multitudes of bats flying around inside and unknown substances dripping on our heads from the ceiling. I lasted about 30 seconds in here. 

 

Olivia found a friend on our tour of the Royal Selangor Pewter Factory and Museum, the worlds largest pewter maker on the planet. Notice how excited Paige and Grace are to visit the factory.

 

For being the largest pewter maker in the world, Royal Selangor has only one factory and it’s remarkably small and old school.

 

Artisans create impressive pieces in pewter and silver mostly by hand.

 

The original Money Tree. This is one of the first forms of currency. When you wanted to buy something, you broke off one of the branches.

 

A replica of the famous Petronas Twin Towers in pewter.

 

Paige so hoping there was alcohol in this, but it’s 100+, a local Malaysian drink similar to Gatorade but carbonated.

 

Grace amusing herself in the museum by making funny faces surprising the other tourists.

 

Olivia amusing herself as only 5 year olds can.

 

The Petronas Twin Towers. Even though it no longer the world’s tallest building, it’s still really cool.

 

And it’s not made of glass like you might think. Because Malaysia’s so hot, It’s actually mainly made of steel, so the occupants won’t be cooked by the sun.

 

And some famous Malaysian culinary offerings- Chicken Curry, Turmeric and Ginger Fried Chicken, and my favorite was the Flying Pancakes. I ate my weight in those.

 

Even though Kuala Lumpur is very modern, there are little pockets of charming vintage parks around the city…next to high tech electronic billboards.

 

The view of the city from the Kuala Lumpur Tower, Southeast Asia’s highest tower. When it’s not a tourist attraction, KL Tower is a giant TV antenna.

 

Olivia frightened of the Malaysia Mask Man, even though it’s just a cut out.

 

 

Singapore – Day 3:
Anyone who has ever been to Aquatica would be hard pressed to consider Adventure Cove an actual water park.

Why? Well mainly because there isn’t a pool here that seems deeper than 5 feet and the most death defying ride (if you can call it that) is a 4 foot rope that you climb to ring a bell, and then if you are brave enough, jump to your possible death into a.. kiddie pool.

Kind of depressing that Santa weighs less than me, but I give him an ‘A’ for effort.

 

Best Lazy River ever!

 

Paige and I on the Aquarium portion of the Lazy River.

 

They even had a snorkel pool, and Olivia was a champ snorkeling for the first time.

 

What they did not spend on scary rides, was more than made up for on everything else.

 

China Town which sadly, we really didn’t have time to explore in depth.

 

This temple is not just for looks. People come and worship here all the time.

 

We didn’t know until it was too late that our Christmas Lights Tour required all of us to don Christmas hats. In the end, we just went with it.

 

Don’t they look cute? And yes, we went all over town like this.

 

Christmas Light Show…awesome in every way. These towers actually collect rain water during the non-holiday season.

 

These lights were all expertly choreographed to Christmas music and wonderful in every way.

 

My family getting comfortable and enjoying the amazing show…all except my littlest elf who is playing on her Itouch. Argh..every single trip, at least one of our kids does this.

 

Merry Christmas! I do love Christmas lights.

 

Olivia who is turning into an avid little photographer and looks like a naughty elf here.

 

Either she or one of the kids took this shot. Pretty good eh?

 

Window shopping on Orchard Street and admiring the Christmas Decorations.

 

This is white and yellow corn flavored ice cream, which I liked and of course, Brian did not.

 

No matter what country we are in, there’s always room for ice cream.

 

Christmas through the eyes of your kids is priceless and magical.

 

Goodbye for now Singapore, we loved visiting you. Now onto the second leg of our Far East Tour. We’ll see you back in 5 days!

 

 

So my friend Laura Brophy Gordon (whom I suspect is secretly Asian) recommended that I try the Tose for breakfast. And while I was totally game for it, I became forestalled by my personal kryptonite – Dim Sum.

For those of you who don’t know, Dim Sum are small plates of heaven served for breakfast in Asian countries similar to Tapas, but mainly consisting of dumplings and other indescribable goodness.

I ordered so much food, we needed almost another table (it’s that FOMO thing again). But this time my entire family descended like locusts and a meal that should have taken a leisurely 2 hours was completed in a record breaking 32 minutes. I don’t even have any good pictures because they ate the damn dumplings so fast that I had to put down my camera for fear of not getting any myself.

We love how so many places are fully decked out in Christmas finery everywhere we go.

 

I can barely take the picture fast enough before my greedy family snatches up the Dim Sum.

 

P-O-R-K dumplings…indescribably good. My family ate 24 of these alone.

 

My kids cracked up at the scrubs uniform and face masks. Clearly food is serious business here in Singapore.

 

 

Singapore Universal Studios is probably one of the best amusement parks we have ever been to…and that’s saying a lot since we have lived in both California and Florida, and I even worked at Disney for a time.

First, the attractions and decor are top notch and equivalent to anything Disney has to offer. Secondly, the Singaporeans hate the sun so there are sun shades and fans everywhere. Third, unlike Saudi Arabia, everyone here is unfailingly polite and courteous, happy to queue properly without pushing, shoving, or cutting. Tons of trees and mosquito free, this park is ideal for families with attractions and shows for every age level. We spent the entire day enjoying some of the most fun and nausea inducing rides imagined.

Singapore is not only super efficient, it’s also super cool. Even escalators are special here.

 

And the Christmas decorations are crazy beautiful. Actually almost everything is beautiful here. Notice the Muslim lady in the corner. That headdress and sunglasses…so love her look.

 

I hated the movies but loved this ride.

 

Olivia is very excited to get the Lion. She kept singing the Katy Perry song, “and you’re gonna hear me roar,” the entire time.

 

Brian found his mini me.

 

The girls getting ready to ride one of the gazillion roller coasters.

 

Look! A picture of me. Proof I was here.

 

And no cheeseburgers at this Food Court. This is Laksa (curry noodle soup), with coconut water, and dragon fruit. Brian had Dinosaur chicken nuggets.

 

And possibly the single worst ride ever! This is basically a Ferris Wheel cage that takes 12 minutes to load, makes 4 revolutions that lasts about 17 seconds, and takes another 12 minutes to unload before you can be released.

 

This was one of the best moments of the entire day…magically snow started falling. We were all entranced.

 

Poor Brian! He is always the pack mule on these adventures.

 

Hawkers Market. This is Olivia’s face when I told her she could order whatever she wanted, and Brian’s face when I added “no matter how much it costs.”

 

We did drop some serious money here, but who can blame me? So many yummy things to eat, and our stomachs only so big.

 

And notice how clean all the food stalls are. Paige left her wallet on the table and a waiter ran us down to return it to her. We really love the people here.

 

Hainanese Chicken Rice.

 

Shrimp and Pork Wonton with homemade egg noodles.

 

Roasted Duck and Pork Belly.

 

BBQ Stingray and Chili Crab which my friendMarissa Ilagan recommended, and I tried. It was super messy and totally ruined my manicure, but completely worth it.

 

Olivia hailing a taxi on the very clean streets of Singapore…

 

To see some old friends. I won’t give anything away but I will say the it’s as good as it always was. Han Solo, you had me at “Hello”.

 

And living up to the Murphy motto, “Anything worth doing is worth overdoing.” Once again, we were the last ones standing leaving the deserted mall at 1:30 am.

 

 

So for Christmas this year, the Murphys are traveling to the Far East, and our first stop is Singapore!

Our first impression of Singapore is one of tropical lushness, pristine cleanliness, and a humidity level comparable to Florida. The temperature here is balmy but pleasant ranging from 80-95 degrees.

Even though the flight itself is only 7 hours, our entire trip counting layovers, customs, passport control etc. was a grueling 12 hours. Thus, our first day on the ground was spent recovering from jet lag and enjoying our resort hotel and of course, room service.

Even though Singapore is a small island that has a very large Muslim population, the country is very progressive and seems to appreciate some pretty risqué art.

 

Everywhere are larger than life statues of human forms in various states of undress. This is from our hotel lobby.

 

Look! An ATM that dispenses gold bullions.

 

The fabulous hotel pool that we could not get enough of. This is the view from our balcony.

 

And the same view at night, which is even more spectacular than during the daytime.

 

Black Pepper Crab – a specialty of Singapore.

 

And some crazy weird desserts. Brian would not touch this, but it was actually quite good.