If you've been following me on Instagram or Facebook, you'll probably know that I'm now on a #30DaysChallenge as part of the campaign for Global Wellness Day that's happening on 11 June. How I came about this is because, well, I am one of the organisers for Global Wellness Day and it is something that I wanted to do after talking to Tomoka, the director of ESPA, last December. This year, we reconnected after I sent her my proposal for Global Wellness Day and voila, this is now what it is.

With the slogan “One day can change your whole life,” Global Wellness Day (GWD) is celebrated on the second Saturday of June every year as an international day dedicated to living well. First introduced in 2012 by Belgin Aksoy, owner of Turkey’s only destination spa and herself a cancer survivor, with the mind to promote good physical and mental health to the public by providing complimentary, educational and experiential wellness activities. By 2015, GWD had the support of more than 600 properties in 73 countries for the year’s event, and this year, 85 countries are now onboard.

#ISAYYES to #GlobalWellnessDaySG! Be like Richard Branson and @belnua! Say yes to healthier living. Take the first step! #30dayschallange starts in May! Check out www.globalwellnessday.sg and join us @sauceink this June 11th at #ResortWorldSentosa for a full day of exciting events! Need more information? Email us at hello@globalwellnessday.sg. #style #stylemagazine #sgevent #womensday #womenpower #sgwomen #sauceinkinsider #sauceinsider #saucewomen #social #Singapore #sgcommunity #GlobalWellnessDay

A photo posted by Global Wellness Day Singapore (@globalwellnessdaysg) on Apr 30, 2016 at 5:21am PDT

Global Wellness Day is an entirely not-for-profit day, a social project created by volunteers dedicated to living well. The purpose of Global Wellness Day is to ask the question, even if for just one day, “How can I live a healthier and better life?”, to direct the thoughts of both individuals and society towards “living well” and to raise awareness.

In Singapore, this will be the first year SAUCEink, together with SUGO and Resorts World Sentosa, has organised Global Wellness Day to be held at RWS Equarius Hotel. With over 70 booths booked till date, attendees can expect to get exposed to individuals and organisations from the wellness related industries will be present to share and educate the public on the importance on being well physically and mentally.

This is not restricted to just wellness industries but also food, lifestyle, retail and many more. This year’s lineup include sponsors and partners such as Strala Yoga, KFIT, Beyond Pictures, ANJE, PRINCESSA, Euforia, Hottest500, Eat Play Surf, Pilates BodyTree, Fabulous Aesthetics, Paramedics Aesthetics, Scryp, Look Good Feel Great Always, and many more. With more potential partners coming in, you can expect a day full of fun while at the same time, gaining more insights as to how one can maintain their wellness.

To find out more about Global Wellness Day Singapore on June 11, 2016, visit www.globalwellnessday.sg. Hope to see you there!

Was invited down to the launch of "Starker Volt" which is an initiative started by Starker Music to promote local musicians and talents. Every Monday, it is where local musicians take the stage and showcase their talents and perhaps get spotted by producers!

The evening was opened by local celebrity, Edmund Chen, who is the spokesperson for Starker Volt.

The ambience of the place is really relaxing as the pub overlooks a small field located at Zhongshan Park (near Balestier). I can already imagine chilling after work here with friends, sipping beer and eating chips while enjoying acoustic performances by our local boys and girls.

The opening speech was followed by great music from local bands as well as Edmund Chen hammering the tap into a barrel of Starker Beer together with the boss of Starker himself.

SAUCEink team with Edmund Chen

It was great meeting with Edmund Chen and getting to know him as a person, not just as someone whom I've seen on TV growing up. I also met Anthony Png, my ex-vocal coach back when he was still with Lee Wei Song School of Music. Yes...I'm starting to tell my age.

Do note that there are live performances everyday at Starker Pub, just that the VOLT programme is only on Mondays. Do lend our local musicians your ears and time!

Starker Pub
1 Jalan Rajah
#01-03 Zhongshan Park
Singapore 329133

Did you know that Singapore has a natural hot spring which is open the public? I didn't know that either until a Japanese acquaintance (trust the Japanese to find out about hot springs) wanted to go there. I merely tagged along.

Apparently, my parents knew about this place too but they've never been there nor did they bring me and brother there when we were younger. Looks like I'm the only one in the family who loves hot springs and soaking my feet in warm water. Yup...no wonder I'm into spas, right?

Located at Sembawang, this hot spring is very nondescript and this is the only sign indicating where it is. I find it hilarious that there's a sign telling you that you're not permitted to wash your laundry there! LOL. Hmm...would washing clothes with water from a hot spring make it cleaner?

Path towards the hot spring

The land is owned by the Ministry of Defence, which comes as no surprise since there is an army camp right next to it. You can tell that they really do not want this place to be some crowded public spot because there are really no signs and when we consulted Google Maps on how to walk there, it told us to walk beyond this gate and to make a huge turn. Hmm. Thank goodness we trusted our instincts instead.

Interesting fact: the hot spring is natural and was discovered in 1908! It was even bottled and sold under several names, even F&N had procured the rights to bottle and sell this water. Again, trust the Japanese to build onsens in this area during WW2 but they were destroyed by the Allied Forces' bombing. Otherwise, we'd probably have lovely working spas here.

Walking towards the taps, we could smell the distinct scent of sulphur. Yup, this was a legit hot spring. My friends and I were wondering how the heck does Singapore have a hot spring when we're so far away from volcanoes? Is the land here particularly shallow, which is why whoever discovered it need not have to dig very far to get to the hot spring?

The hot spring water flowing out from taps

Foot soak anyone?

There are 3 areas with 4 taps each and visitors can bring stools and pails to fill the water up and soak your feet or other appendages. If you didn't bring either, there are some lying around the area which you can grab and use but if it's all taken up, then...too bad.

Do not turn off the taps - By order

The water from the taps are really hot. One of the visitors there told us that it's nearly boiling point. It was quite funny how the 3 of us suddenly went very Japanese and said, "Oh...we should've brought eggs to cook onsen tamago!"

In order to fulfil our need (yes, need) to soak our feet, we had to tarik our water from one pail to the next to cool it down sufficiently.

We only managed to take this one shot before a nice army boy came in to round us out as he wanted to lock the place up. Yes, they are quite strict with the closing hours at 7pm.

On the way to our dinner, I couldn't help but start thinking of what else we could cook in the hot spring water besides eggs. I reckon anything that can be cooked sous vide style would work, wouldn't it? Hmm...salmon, beef...veg...yum!

Needless to say, I'm thinking of another trip to Sembawang Hot Springs for a full on picnic with family and friends! I'm also thankful that this place is free and hasn't been commercialised because although it looks a bit shabby, I like that there are parts of Singapore that aren't that manicured.

How to get there:

1. Take the MRT to Yishun station. 
2. From the bus stop just in front (facing Northpoint Shopping Centre), take bus service 858/ 969/ 811/ 965 and alight on the 4th stop (Blk 118 or opp Blk 115B). 
3. Walk straight ahead, along Sembawang Road towards Gambas Ave.
4. Turn left onto Gambas Ave until you see that nondescript gate on your left.

If you're wondering how can a facial cost $800, you're not alone. Another thought that probably popped into your head was, "What's inside? Gold? Caviar? Diamond?" Well...you're not too far off. Perhaps you're also imagining some fancy schmancy science stuff or tools that are involved.

HAACH has recently launched its latest luxe professional facial - the Diamond Age-Defying Marine Miracle (90 min). When I was given the chance to try it out, I naturally jumped at it. Who wouldn't? Especially when the tagline is to make your skin "Shine Bright Like a Diamond".

The facial was held at HAACH's new concept store as well as Singapore's first seamless curation of both beauty and wellness. Called HAACH Curation, it is conveniently situated in Wheelock Place and houses both their chiropractic, physiotherapy as well as spa services under one roof. The overall feel of the place is comfortable and pleasant.

Front view of my face before the treatment

Left view

Right view

How timely this facial was! I suddenly had a pimple that popped on my nose so it was a plea for some professional intervention.

The beautician explained to me that for this Diamond Age-Defying Marine Miracle facial, there are no machines involved because all the natural ingredients used will help to exfoliate gently, lock in moisture, rehydrate skin and encourage the strengthening of the skin's elastin and collagen. In other words, it's a lot of massaging of my face with their advanced skincare products.

After cleansing came the exfoliating. Instead of a normal scrub, a serum-like gel was used. The gel contains nano-fine diamond powder that helps to remove the dead skin cells while the rest of the ingredients will help to pull the dead skin cells together until it clumps together.

Doesn't it look like I suddenly have dust over my face or dandruff? Anyway, the beautician said that my skin is quite well taken care of (thank you Clarisonic) and although I have quite a bit of dead skin, it's not dark coloured. Ladies, please remember to scrub your face at least once a week. Otherwise, please invest in a face cleansing tool like Clarisonic or HAACH's equivalent, which costs only S$60 and the brush head is made up of super fine hairs (even finer than Clarisonic's). Do remember to ask the HAACH ladies about it.

Once that gunk was removed, my blackheads were removed and after which, came the mask part! That's where the Marine Organisms, concentrates and seaweed extracts that are rich in vitamins and minerals come in! In addition, there are 20 herbal extracts (each with its own skin healing properties and one of them is called the Melissa plant *wink*) in this power packed mask.

For every person, one such tube is cracked open just before the mask is applied. This means that the product is fresh and all the vitamins are still active.

The marine and herbal mask

I could smell the algae!!! Add that to the intense wet herb smell and my nose was completely offended. Brain had to tell the nose to bear with it. Beauty comes with a small dose of sacrifice. After letting my skin soak in the concoction for a few of minutes while I received an awesome shoulder and décolletage massage, a gel mask with the diamond powder was soon placed over it.

Herbs used in HAACH's Diamond Age-defying Marine Miracle Facial

Beauty Tip: when you open your gel/paper mask, keep the excess liquids first. Apply some more onto the mask as this help you push out any bubbles as well as to massage the liquid in a little. Then, massage that excess liquid over your neck and décolletage. It is a moisturiser after all, so good to rub it into areas that are usually neglected but are sure signs of your age. After a few minutes, there will be areas that dry up faster for sure and the top up from your excess liquid would also be rather beneficial for your face.

After 20 or 30 minutes, the masks were removed and TADAH:

My face definitely was cleaner and brighter than before the facial! It felt quite moisturised too but that would be quite natural after a facial, no? I'll tell you later why you can push aside the cynicism.

So how does a $800 facial feel? Perfectly normal - relaxing (awesome massage) and moisturising. What you're paying for is for the sheer quality of ingredients used in the products. The proof in the pudding came only a day AFTER the facial. Remember that red spot that you saw on the left side of my nose? Normally, it would take a few days for it to heal and disappear but because of the facial, I was pleasantly surprised that it was completely healed the next day!

The beautician warned me that due to the strengthening of the elastin and collagen as well as the  natural healing properties of the mask, it is normal to see white and black heads popping up the next day as they get pushed out of the pores from within.

I can only imagine that with prolonged usage of such quality products, one's skin will definitely get smoother and nobody will be able to say that you look old!

If you'd like to go for the Diamond Age-defying Marine Miracle treatment, HAACH is offering a special trial price of $99 for my readers! You can either book through www.passhen.com if you are a member or quote the promo code "PASS_MM" when you call HAACH's outlet directly for an appointment. For those who would like something a little more affordable, Pásshers get special prices off selected treatments that have also won recent awards in Harper's Bazaar! To find out more, click here.

Look at the wall of ear buds!! Was invited to Happy Plug's launch in Singapore held at the luxury boutique hotel Klapsons and what was immediately noticeable about this Swedish brand is the simplistic but yet fashionable way of packaging simple ear buds.

The candy colours scream out to you and you just want to hold the box containing the ear buds and wonder why nobody else thought of packaging earphones or ear buds this way. If monotone bright colours aren't your thing, they also have the more 'wild' versions:

I love how they have the full matching set for your phone, tablet as well as ear piece! As you can see, Happy Plugs are positioned as a fashion accessories brand rather than pure electronics. It's quite funny that the brand started when the founder, Andreas Vurul, spray painted his girlfriend's plain white ear buds pink. I hope for the girlfriend's sake that she's now the wife or she's cashing in on this some how. Hahah!

I managed to get a pair of Happy Plugs ear buds and I can't wait to try them out for sound. But as Happy Plug's tagline goes..."What is your colour?" I shall wait until I feel orangey to try them on.

Happy Plugs definitely wins hands down for best packaging. Look at how cute their cables are packed! Mind you, it may look short but each cable is 2m long. I don't think you can tell from the lighting but this series comes from their latest metallic range and I love it!

However, the main event was the real launch of the brand's latest flagship products – Sound Piece and Sound Piece Mini.

The brand story and the launch of the latest flagship products was presented by Hermine Bonde, Global Sales Director of Happy Plugs. She explained how the Sound Piece and Sound Piece Mini have grills that could be changed to suit either your mood or to blend in with your interior decoration.

Marble top

Hot pink

Leopard prints anyone?

Gold!

The various grills that you can purchase separately

I love the idea of changing the grills to suit your decor because that is a problem with a lot of electronic equipment. They either come in white/black/grey but your furniture in your home/room comes in a lot more shades than that.

Sound Piece Mini with the Rose Gold grill

Lime Green limited edition grill on the Sound Piece in another room

Luxury boutique hotel klapsons was aptly chosen as the launch venue as all 17 rooms in the hotel, each uniquely designed, have been outfitted with a set of Happy Plugs Sound Piece Mini speaker for guests to enjoy as part of the tailor-made klapsons’ experience. Just like each room at klapsons is uniquely designed, each Happy Plugs Sound Piece Mini’s front grill is customised to match the room’s interior style.

Besides the look of the Sound Piece, it has to be good as an actual speaker, right? Check out the short video that I took with the Sound Piece Mini playing Adele in the outside jacuzzi (yup, klapsons as an outdoor one in their executive suite).

I was impressed by the quality and I love how compact it is! I was sold and I really bought a mini for myself. I can't wait to get it next week and I also am getting the rose gold grill so that I'll have a classy piece to match my room's decor! It's my Christmas present to myself.

The Happy Plugs Sound Piece ($329) and Sound Piece Mini ($139) are now available through the Atlas e-store and selected resellers island-wide. For more information, visit www.soundpiece.sg

As Singapore celebrates its Golden Jubilee, I find it an opportune time to just wax lyrical about why I love my country, quirks and all, as my way of wishing my home a Happy 50th Birthday. Moreover, I think there are too many Singaporeans who complain about Singapore but there are in fact, a lot of things to be glad and thankful for.

1. Safety
As a female, I'm thankful that I grew up in Singapore and can go out till late drinking with buddies till the wee hours of the morning without fearing whether I'll be raped or robbed as I walk down the streets flagging a cab. Needless to say, it's not as if Singapore does not have any crime but I really do not need to walk around with a pepper spray in my bag.


2. Education
I'm glad that I'm multi-lingual thanks to schools forcing me to take Mandarin, plus the option of learning a 3rd language if you do well, and then teaching the rest of the syllabus in English. Like many of my peers, we do not need to worry about whether we can even go to school as government schools are free and there are various scholarships/grants/payment options to our local universities available. I wouldn't be surprised if we had one of the highest percentage of uni graduates per population. The fact that our lingua franca is English means that even if some of our population have really bad grammar etc, they still understand English a lot better others. Thanks to my education, travelling is a hoot as I do not have a fear of language barriers. Most of the time.

3. Food
We Singaporeans are soooo spoiled when it comes to food. We have variety of cuisines and prices WHILE having the ability of calling certain dishes uniquely ours. Of course other countries have tons of yummy food too. But Singaporean food is...well, Singaporean. Even my cousin who lives in the US and does not really identify as a Singaporean eats and craves Singaporean food like a Singaporean. :P

4. Convenience
Due to our efficiency as well as lack of size, Singapore is really super convenient. Want to get from one end of the island to the other? MRT is only a stone's throw away, or just flag down a cab or sit on a relatively 'long' bus journey. Want to get some groceries? There are tons of mini marts/ supermarkets or even wet markets in every neighbourhood. When I was in Japan, the nearest supermarket from my flat was a good 30 minute walk away. Ditto for when I stayed over with my bro in both Melbourne and London.

5. Less gender discrimination
A Taiwanese ex-colleague of mine once told me that many Asian women would like to be Singaporean because Singaporean women have a reputation of having the most freedom to do and say whatever they want. It never occurred to me when I was younger that other Asian women did not have the same access to education/ careers/ jobs as I did. Or that in some Asian societies, the woman is expected to give up her career once she is married and with child. Needless to say, I am very thankful that I am an independent woman and able to proudly say so. I guess that is probably a factor as to why others say that Singaporeans tend to have a bit more Western outlook in life.


There is no such thing as a perfect country, just as there is no perfect government. There are many things that can be improved but nonetheless, this is home. Truly.

My first real encounter with Taiji (or Taichi as some anglos will call it) was when my mum decided to take it up as a form of exercise some time back in the early 2000s. Like many, I brushed it off as some exercise for old folks and even laughed when she went to Chinatown just to buy those flat, blue cloth shoes just for her Taiji lessons.

Later in 2009, I found myself learning Taiji too. Who convinced me? It was Master Sim of Wu Tu Nan Taiji Gong who came to my previous workplace to give a talk about Taiji and its benefits. Years later, I contacted Master Sim again and invited him to give a workshop at my WellnessYogi RESET as I believe that, like yoga, taiji is meant for everyone and it needs an avenue to shed its stereotype.

Master Sim Pern Yiau

Master Sim Pern Yiau is a certified 5th Dan Shifu under the Wu Tu Nan Taijigong lineage. This traditional system has its roots in the holistic teachings of the great sage Lao Tze. Shifu Sim has been teaching since 2005 and has students in the U.S., Chile, Germany, Norway, Italy, Malaysia, Singapore, etc. He researches into traditional Taijigong as well as modern applications for various contexts such as healing and enhancing performance in dance, acting, singing and music performance.

Here's a short conversation with him:

When we think Taichi, an image of old folks comes to mind, is this a misconception? Is there space for the young?Yes, it is a definite misconception. Certainly most Taiji (Taichi) as practised today perpetuates the misconception. That's why Wu Tu Nan Taijigong is special. Taiji is traditionally an advanced form of self-defence. Our practitioners retain this tradition. The principles of body mechanics and Qi-harnessing used in Taiji defence are the same principles used to give us health, fitness and anti-aging properties. The thing is, how can we achieve all these through that gentle flowing practice? The secret is in understanding Qi.

Master Sim demonstrating Taijigong to Norwegian students

Do you see overlaps, connections and any possible Taichi yoga hybrids perhaps coming together in the near future?
That would be wonderful.

The essential difference between these 2, in my humble observation, is that Yoga does not have the defence component. As defence requires an understanding of forces in motion as well as stillness, Taiji teaches both in equal measure, whereas Yoga generally emphasises physical stillness. Thus, Yoga emphasises asanas whereas Taiji emphasises the moving sequence.

However, at a deeper level, both share very similar energies. Both come from long and deep cultures that investigate the holistic relationships between body, mind and spirit, between humans and the larger universe. Both find stillness in motion and motion in stillness. Both work with energy - prana and qi. Both seek balance within and outside oneself. Both lead us to strength and peace.

A Yoga-Taiji hybrid is beneficial if one does not dilute the strengths and special characteristics of each.

Modern day life is plagued with 1st world problems, how does your system benefit the desk bound worker?
Our bodies can be desk bound but our mind and spirit does not have to be. In the early stages of training, the physical exercises of taiji will help you release the tensions and ailments accumulated through a non-active lifestyle. At higher levels, because of the body-mind-energy training of taiji, you can release tensions and harness energies even at your desk!

Furthermore, Taiji is essentially understanding how to balance Yin and Yang forces. These relate not only physical health but problem-solving as well. For those who practice Taiji principles as a management or self-help tool, you might even find yourself doing better at work because of Taiji. The flip-side Yin of this is that your bosses might start loading you with more work as they sense your productivity increase! (hahaha)

However, if the bosses learn Taiji too, then they might learn how to manage their whole team better in an Yin-Yang way! One of our practitioners, Mr George Yeo, has actually spoken about this in one of his speeches in his recently published book. The speech, if I am correct, is entitled "The Field of Qi which Affects our Well-Being".

Are there modern application to Taiji? Has Taiji evolved to suit the tech age we live in?
The modern applications of Taiji are potentially endless. Because everything is yin-yang. For example: what makes the mobile phone more far-reaching (yang) than the PC? Because it is small and mobile (yin). What sites are successful, huge and all encompassing (yang)? Sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, where in their vast interconnectedness, they allow for ever-evolving personalization (yin). If you want depth, go for traditional blogs. But if you want width, go for sites like Facebook. That is why many people write blogs and then put them out through Facebook.

This way of using Taiji principles in tech-thought is to enhance. The other way is to reduce. As we become more high tech, we lose touch with ourselves, our bodies and our real environments. As we spend more time with virtual communities, we can lose touch with physical communities. Taiji helps us reconnect back to our bodies and environments.

In a way, technology is nothing but the enhancement of the human senses and bodily faculties. We are able to see with our eyes but the microscope helps us see sharper while the telescope further. The internet and TV just help us see beyond our own times and cultures. We can hear but the phone helps us hear others across great distance. We can move but cars and planes just help us move farther and faster. Taiji helps you gain greater control over your body and senses without modern technology - how to use your body and energies in much more efficient ways. Taiji is, in fact, the ancient technology of the body.

Why does Taiji make you feel better? Is there a science behind this good feeling?
Taiji does not only make you feel better, it makes you better! There is so much evidence and numerous studies done over the decades on the different aspects of Taiji. There even is a book called the "Harvard Medical School Guide to Tai Chi", which was published in2013. There is not just one science behind Taiji, but an array of sciences - biological, physical and chemical.

Taiji in modern context

You look so youthful and radiant, has Taiji helped preserve your youth?

Thank you for your kind words. I should say it this way: nothing can be preserved, certainly not youth. Change is the essence of life. However, we can learn how to effectively manage change, manage the yin-yang. This acceptance rather than resistance, working with rather than working against the processes of change, these are what helps to keep us youthful and radiant. That's what we mean by going with the flow. Most importantly, be kind to oneself and others. Kindness is evergreen and radiates!

Thank you Master Sim for your time and I most certainly am looking forward to your special workshop during our WellnessYogi RESET where attendees will learn how to feel their Qi!

A variation of this interview can also be found on the website of our media partner www.intheloop.com.sg.