Saving money to lose money

I wanted to make a video update at the end of 2013 for my 52 week challenge. I didn’t had the chance to, but I feel such an achievement that I’ve completed all 52 weeks.

rinaz.net does 52 week challenge

What I liked about the challenge is how it makes you more aware of the expenditures that you spend in a week as you track your weekly progress and how it makes you more creative on how to save more.

At the end of the 52nd week, the person can do whatever she likes with the $1,378. For me, I chose to keep it in the bank for a bit of interest. 1% isn’t a lot, considering how much banks earn. But it’s something I guess. I got about 7 euro back in interest from my bank.

However in Italy, there is this thing called a bollo which is a sort of service charge on any public service, like going to the specialist doctor, paying bills at the post office and signing up for courses.

Conto Corrente

Oh boy. It’s not a lot of money. But still … 7 euro interest, 34 euro service fee. Saving money to lose money.

Cart tells me that the bollo should be the same every year, and that I should aim to put in more money so that I get more interest to cover the bollo.

But till then, I might as well just put my savings under the mattress. Just as long as no one throws it out.

rinaz cry

Really awesome vegan food at OPS!

Cart and I finally went to OPS! last Friday. We were supposed to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary there a couple of weeks earlier, but as you know I fell sick then. But better late than never.

OPS Vegan Restaurant in Rome - rinaz.net

OPS! is a restaurant off central Rome that serves organic and vegan Mediterranean food. Cart, who is a vegetarian, first discovered this place while watching a program on TV showcasing vegetarian restaurants in Rome.

I’m not a vegetarian, but I don’t mind going veg sometimes as there are so many delicious options out there, moreover you’d have to be careful in what you consume when you eat out, as a lot of food establishments may use lard (which I don’t consume) or other animal products while preparing their food.

OPS Vegan Restaurant in Rome - rinaz.net

When you reach the restaurant, you are to take a round card at the entrance, as a sort of table reservation, also giving you a mental idea of how many empty table there are judging from the cards outside, and then you sit at the table that you like.

OPS! Is a simplistic beauty and modern looking restaurant, with it’s minimalistic black furniture and white walls.

OPS Vegan Restaurant in Rome - rinaz.net

There were a number of people already there when we arrived, but it didn’t feel crowded. Glancing around, there were various types of people there from couples, group of friends, and small families, many of them looking like yuppies. I basked in the hipster vibe.

Where Cart and I were sitting, there was a screen showing various inspirational pictures, which interestingly enough was much more fascinating to me than watching certain TV programs.

As this restaurant is self service, once you’ve settled down, you could head to the buffet table and choose from the wide variety of food and then have it weighed at the counter.

OPS Vegan Restaurant in Rome - rinaz.net

Unlike other buffets where you pay a fixed price, here you are charged 2.80 euro each 100 grams of food, excluding the weight of the plate. In a way, this is good as it makes you aware of how much you are consuming, while in a regular buffet, one tends to have the unhealthy mentality of stuffing oneself as much as possible to have value for money.

OPS Vegan Restaurant in Rome - rinaz.net

Nevertheless, for buffets, I like to try each of everything so I put a little bit of each on my plate and before you know it, my plate was crowded!  I know my plate doesn’t look pretty, but trust me when I say that everything that I tasted was absolutely divine.

Some of the memorable ones are :

  • Black rice with pomegranate and apple
  • Sauteed seitan with herbs
  • Cauliflower with linen seeds
  • Beans in coconut milk

OPS Vegan Restaurant in Rome - rinaz.net

How was the chef able to make vegan food taste so good? Everything was so flavourful, and delicious that I felt compelled to take another plate, just to get that euphoric feeling again. But believe it or not, I was already full after one plate.

My one critique though is that certain foods needed easing in on the salt, like the tempeh slices.

OPS Vegan Restaurant in Rome - rinaz.net

As full as I was, there is always room for desserts. Cart had a ‘light’ tiramisu made of coconut milk, while I had a dessert called ‘Natale’ which has a mix of red berries. And between us, we shared a chocolate and carrot cake.

OPS Vegan Restaurant in Rome - rinaz.net

I have to add that while we were there, there was a couple with their two young children sitting beside us and I heartened seeing how the kids were so readily open to eating their vegetables. And at the table in front of us, was a couple who brought in a dog so large, I thought it was a grey wolf instead.

OPS Vegan Restaurant in Rome - rinaz.net

All in all, I really enjoyed my experience here and am looking forward to visiting this place again. While it’s not that cheap to eat here, with the quality of food served here, I think it’s worth it.

OPS! Cucina Mediterranea Vegetariana a Roma
Via Bergamo 56, Roma 00198

 

A year in a post

For the past twelve months I’ve been taking a picture out of my window each month to see the changes seasonally and now that the year is almost over, I thought that I’d share the things that I’ve seen these months with you.

seasons change @ rinaz.net

January. There were no leaves on the trees at all and it’s very cold, which meant that loads of people get sick at this time and tend to stay at home and do random things. The only good thing about the cold weather is that the low humidity made me had nice skin.

At this time, I was motivated to use my new sewing machine, and thus acquired a few sewing magazines. But all it did was made me really confused.  This month, I also started training for my half marathon.

seasons change @ rinaz.net

February is still a cold month but I pushed on and hit 19km in my half marathon training, which was the longest distance that I’ve done on my own.

For Valentine’s day, I decided to give a unique gift for Cartcart, because I adore him, even though he snores loudly. I also made for ourselves mousse alla nutella, which we gobbled up very quickly.

Speaking of food, I realised that there could be nickel in the food that we eat, which is something that I’m allergic to.

This is also the month where I watched the changeling, which is probably the most depressing movie that I’ve watched in a long time. One of my favourite site, Posterous.com, closed down. And I realised that I really wanted to go to Germany.

I didn’t blog about this, but at this time, a couple of months has passed by since my accident and I’m really appreciative for the people who helped me through this very frightening moment for me and made me realise the friends whom I wanted to keep.

seasons change @ rinaz.net

March is a fun period as the weather starts to get a little bit sunnier, and you start to see see daisies growing abundantly. But you’d still need to wear a coat as the weather is still crazy anyways, not making up her mind. Like a lady, best not to provoke her.

During this month, I found a place in Rome where you could find second hand English books for cheap. I watched and fell in love with Cinema Paradiso, which is a classic Italian movie that everyone should watch.

March is also when the international women’s day is, and since it’s a tradition here to give other ladies mimosa flowers, this day was my chance to to be like a ninja and stole some flowers.

I explored Monteverde Vecchio, blogged bout how mozzerella shouldn’t be yellow or solid, celebrated my FIL’s birthday. Got checked for the first time at the gynae, wrote about easter and saw a rich woman at a public school and wondered if the rich should be subsidized.

At this month, I completed my half marathon! 21km! Probably my happiest achievement to date and I meet with my best friend for the first time :-p

seasons change @ rinaz.net

April. I love this month as trees are starting to grow their leaves again. With all the flowers blooming, and the new sprouts, the colours are so beautiful to see.

For this month, I spent Easter with my extended family and I did something silly. I made a video showing that I’m very flexible.

During this month, I got something in the mail that made me upset, and now that I’ve been driving for a while, I realised that there are people on the road who make me upset too.

This month, I went to a chocolate fair and it was awesome looking at all the different kinds there. And speaking of chocolate, I learnt that Kinder Sorpresa was banned in the USA. That’s crazy!

And for the first time ever, I participated in a soup competition! It was such great fun 🙂

seasons change @ rinaz.net

Wow, look at the trees in May!  While the temperature was getting less cold, we still needed to wear a light sweater as this month is still rather windy.

One quirky thing about Cartcart is that he talks too much. I adore him nevertheless.

And this month, my best friend Hema visited Rome and we spent an unforgettable time together! It was such an adventure! We went to a bed and breakfast in Tuscany, ate yummy food there, went to an area called Chianti and visited a winery and olive oil tour, we also visited Firenze, and then San Gimignano and then chilled at the hot Springs in Saturnia.

We also went to an outlet store where I was shocked at the amount of things she got, but I tried to be understanding, as she is a dear friend, and was in a very bad place at the time.

Me on the other hand, as I’m a cheapo, I made a dress for under 5 euro. And at this time I was missing a piece of home, so I made epok-epok. And I visited Eataly for the first time.

seasons change @ rinaz.net

It’s June and we can finally wear short sleeved t-shirts again!

I didn’t blog a lot though this month, as my computer started to have serious problems. Nevertheless, I made a new top for just 1 euro and I also made kaya. Yum yum! It’s still a long way to go till the real thing, but it’ll have to do for now 😛

With another two months to go, I wondered where to go to in Singapore. For sure, not so much Mcdougals because of the Hello Kitty madness going on.

This month, I visited a gelato festival and saw different award winning ice creams. It was really fascinating to see. Despite all the delightful temptations, it’s been a year since I’ve lost 10kg and kept at it. I guess I’m doing good!

I’ve also updated my 52 week money challenge!  (And am happy to say that I’ve accomplished it and looking forward to doing it again for 2014!)

seasons change @ rinaz.net

July is when it is starting to get really warm so I prefer to leave the house really early for my daily walks before noon hits and gets really hot.

This month, I got to see an infiorata and hopefully the next year, I’d see the bigger version in Castelli Romani.

I made another top for 1 euro and with my Singapore trip anticipating, I made a list of 10 places to eat while in Singapore.

Cart and I visited the hippy town of Calcata and then we saw something really cool while on our way to Tarquinia.

Fasting month started, so I stayed at home and tried to deal with the clutter and made Fagioli Borlottirice stuffed tomatoes and made burger buns and found a really famous youtuber followed me on instagram. It made my day!

I wondered which computer to buy and felt lucky that we were staying at home at this time, as burglary is on the rise.

seasons change @ rinaz.net

August! It’s super hot in Rome right now and during these times, you’d see a lot of shops closed and gone for vacation.

It’s also my birthday month. But I really don’t feel my age, as I feel forever 25 😛

Saw a cute Fiat 500L commercial and this month is also Hari Raya Eidilftri and it was such a busy day for us, not only for celebrating it, but also for getting ready to go to Singapore and when we were finally there, we needed time adjusting to all the changes there.

seasons change @ rinaz.net

We took Qatar Airlines to go back to Singapore, where I found out that I’d never complain about the hot weather again. It was over 40 degrees in Doha!

I enjoyed my time in Singapore reconnecting with friends and family, and found five awesome food places we tried there. And I ran my first race in Singapore! Cart and I discovered a cool bicycling parking area and wondered why not more Italians take the bicycle.

In Singapore, I got for myself a pair of new glasses as well as a new laptop and learnt how to improve a runner’s knee.

Normally when I’m back in Singapore, I try to organize a family vacation, so we took Air Asia for the first time to go to Langkawi where we did a home stay, and I had the BEST seafood in my life.

As happy as I was being with my friends and family, I think after living in Rome for several years, I’m starting to feel a little detached though. Which, when I think about it, is quite alarming for me.

Oh. I also saw a really ugly car in Rome.

seasons change @ rinaz.net

October. This is when the weather starts to get cooler and I start wearing long sleeves again and this is when it gets confusing as daylight savings ended.

This month, I experimented in making spezzatino di manzo and I found out that I liked it a lot. I found 3 gelaterie that I liked and since we are talking about food, I saw something strange in a pizzeria.

I still haven’t fixed my clawed bag. But I did figured out how to log out from Skype on an android tablet, shared how to do Tilt Shift picture easily and I became a total hipster and visited a makerfaire.

Our fridge died which became such a big drama for us till we finally got our new fridge and I joined a number of alumni pages on facebook and started aquagym where I unwillingly saw a lot of naked women.

seasons change @ rinaz.net

November and it’s getting colder that I had to use my thermal jacket while going out. The leaves started to change colours and it’s been raining a lot. I’m also starting to use my car more and the scooter less to avoid getting sick.

This month, I admitted that I was addicted to watching peppa pig and I also saw the cutest and most adorable little girl ever! And speaking of the telley, I saw my best friend in there 😉

Cart and I found a new friend in the fridge and I tried to tell a difference between an expensive and cheap sachertorte.

There was an inauguration for Singaporeans in Italy where I met quite a number of Singaporeans in other parts of Italy. I visited Viterbo as well as Basilica di San ClementeI also got a 100 litre Nutella jar! 

This month, Cart had a piece of bad news and of course, we are worried for our future. Life is tough, but we have to move on.

seasons change @ rinaz.net

And finally here we are in December. Wow, look at the trees, all bald again like it was in January.

This month, I start on probably the most scariest decision in my life, but that’s not as scary as seeing a dead rabbit head in my grocery bag but nevertheless, I managed to cook with leftover pasta.

I hear a bagpipe player outside the window, which is strange to me. I updated Marina’s Bloggariffic to wordpress 3.8.

I shared my experience on using minimalist shoes and was just flabbergasted at someone trying to cheat at the marathon.

This month marks our five year anniversary. Unfortunately, I got sick and am still recuperating. And just a few days ago, I spent Christmas in Rome with my extended family!

And thus concludes the year passed in a blog post 🙂

What to say when someone wishes you Merry Christmas and you are not Christian

The air feels festive in my neighbourhood, and it looks so colourful here with the Santa decorations, bells and wreaths on the doors and fairy lights outside the window.

rinaz.net

This year is the third time that I’ve spent Christmas in Rome.

Normally the day before, we’d spend it over my in-law’s house and we’d eat a little too much, and talk while we wait till midnight and then proceed in opening our presents.

The thing is, Christmas doesn’t have much significance to me as I never grew up with it. But I am always happy to be included with my extended family – just spending time together, bonding over delicious home-made food, watching the telley and have a nice time together.

Even though I am not a Christian, I firmly believe that there is nothing wrong in sharing happiness together.

What to say if someone wishes you Merry Christmas and you are not Christian

When I was about 11 years old, and living at my old neighbourhood in Jurong, me and my childhood friend Michael and his sister were celebrating Mid-Autumn festival. We’d be lighting up candles and then we’d walk around proudly with our paper lanterns. It was such innocent fun.

But then it was ruined when a group of kids came, walking up to me :

Tsk! You know, you’re not being very “Malay” playing with paper lanterns. This is a Chinese custom. Stop it! You are being disrespectful to your race!

Of course, being so young, I didn’t have the capacity to express coherently how I felt. But I knew that I wasn’t doing anything wrong and I was genuinely happy spending time with Michael and his sister. I couldn’t understand why anyone could be such a kill joy.

The irony now though, after five years of living in Rome, I think I am slowly losing my enthusiasm for spending Hari Raya here. Compared to Singapore, I don’t have a big family here. So when I try to invite people over, they don’t seem to share the same enthusiasm, which doesn’t feel fair considering that I do try hard to care when it comes to their holidays.

rinaz.net christmas

Is it so wrong to feel this way? Perhaps this is something that most migrants feel when they live overseas for an extended period of time.

What Italians eat when they are sick

Mangiare in bianco, or to “eat white” is an Italian term where you eat food as bland as possible with little or no condiments. The justification to that is when you are sick, you are encouraged to eat simple food that’s easy for digestion.

Some examples are grilled chicken breasts with some olive oil and lemon juice, minestrina (which is like a very watered down version of minestrone) and boiled rice or pasta with a little bit of butter or olive oil and parmigiano.

rinaz.net pasta burro parmigiano mangiare in bianco

All them looking plain and devoid of colour which brings the term – dieta in bianco.

Which brings me to the theme of this post. I fell sick on my fifth wedding anniversary. So romantic!

Cart and I planned to go out for dinner at a vegetarian restaurant but as fate had it, I had blocked nose, horrible cough, aching body and most peculiarly, aching jaws. So we spent the evening at home instead, cuddling, looking at old pictures of us from when we first met and our milestones till now.

rinaz.net

Despite all my valiant attempts at self medication, I still didn’t feel any better by Friday morning, so I spent the day crashed and passing out at my in laws, of whom I’m so grateful for taking such care of me, after seeing the doctor.

What to do? It is sick season after all.

My only worry is how this will be throwing off the momentum of my #rinazdoes42km training. I still want to continue it, although for now the most important thing is to focus on healing myself 🙂

My experience using minimalist shoes

Week 2 done, another 14 more weeks to go till #rinazdoes42km!

Am still feeling good and motivated, although seeing the amount of people starting to get sick, there is a risk that I could get infected too. I really don’t want to fall ill in this crucial time!

For today’s blog post, I thought that I’d blog about the minimalist shoes that I’ve been using to since August.

A little back history. While I was in Singapore in the middle of the year, I met up with my friend Kris while hosting my get together.

Rinaz.net Gathering in Singapore

Kris is an avid runner who has participated in numerous running events, including the Singapore Marathon. I mentioned to him about my bad knee, and that was when he recommended me to give minimalist running shoes a try.

According to him, regular running shoes can be harmful because the thick soles increases the impact of a heel-strike which leads to injuries and knee pains in the long run.

While the thing about minimalist running is that it makes you land on your forefoot directly below your centre of gravity, so you feel more stable and less impact.  It also stimulates and strengthens the muscles in the feet and the lower legs.

Barefoot Running

After using his minimalist shoes and changing his gait, Kris found out that it has helped to strengthen his calves and ankles as well as greatly improved his Plantar Fasciitis condition.

It all made sense to me and I loved the philosophy of minimalistic running. Thus I was keen to give it a try. By the way, a fun fact!

Barefoot Running

I was amused to read that after winning the marathon, Abebe Bikila got endorsed by a shoe brand, but he found them uncomfortable. In the end, he chose to continue to run barefooted in the next Olympics while carrying those shoes!

Cart and I managed to drop by a New Balance shop in Orchard Road and I tried several of their Minimus line.

It was an interesting experience for me as the clerk would ask you to walk on a treadmill and examine your gait. Judging by the way you run, they will recommend the type of shoes which they think best for you.

Barefoot Running with rinaz.net

In the end, I got for myself a Minimus WR10V2. It has a 4 mm drop, are extremely light, and it almost makes you feel like you have nothing on. Quite scruffy now that I’ve been using it for some time.

rinaz.net New Balance Minimus

Originally, I wanted something more serious and subdued, but all the women’s pairs were loud and colourful and I had to resign myself to them. Nevertheless I can’t deny that they are quite cheerful looking. In fact, there were a number of people admiring them while I was doing my race by the bay.

rinaz.net Merrell Vapor Glove Rose

I also got a pair of Merrell Vapor Glove quite by chance while meeting up with our dear friend Jerrick at Vivocity. I happened to see them while we were at the Royal Sporting house. Having a  0 mm drop, I loved how thin the soles were. You could practically roll it up.

rinaz.net Merrell Vapor Glove Rose

With this pair, I can feel the ground more – every pebble, every branch … even dog poo, if you are unlucky enough to step in it.

Luckily, they are both easily washable and dries up really fast.

For the moment, I use the New Balance as my main running shoes and the Merrell for shorter runs or as a backup. In the event that they get worn out, I am just worried that either I can’t find them in Rome, or that they are crazy expensive. My New Balance shoes were about $120 SGD (roughly 70 euro) while the Merrells were on offer then at about $80 SGD (roughly 40 euro)

So far in Rome, minimalist shoes doesn’t seem that popular based on what I’ve observed in a commercial centre in Rome and while going out on my regular jogs. Which is strange, considering that Vibram, provider for the sole of most barefeet running shoes, is founded in Italy.

rinaz.net Revolution Barefoot Shoes

The above are the few minimalist shoes that I’ve spotted out in the mall near my house. You can’t roll them up though. There’s also a Merrell store there but their variety was limited and they didn’t carry mine. The closest to resemble it was meant for men and were too big for me. They were also quite on the pricey side.

I also saw Nike claiming to be minimal with their Free line, but I don’t really consider them to be, as the cushioning looks very thick.

Coming back to my experience in using my shoes, I’m taking to them extremely well now, but it did take a while for me to get used to them. I ran slower than usual on purpose, and had to consciously remember to land on my forefeet.

Barefoot running vs Regular Shoes

Because I was stimulating parts of my legs and feet that I don’t normally do with my former shoes,  on the first few runs, instead of my thighs aching, I felt aches in my soleus. It feels good though when I ease them over on my foam roller.

For those thinking of taking up minimalist running, I strongly don’t recommend you to run as you do normally do when using them for the first time. Even though they are extremely light and makes you think that you can run fast in them, it takes a while for the body to get used to them. Also, strength and stretching exercises are very important and cannot be emphasised enough.

I did that mistake and the pain that came after that was not pleasant to say the least. I didn’t run and focused on healing myself for some weeks.

The odd thing now that I’ve run with both, I actually prefer the Merrell over the New Balance because it has a bigger toe box space and I feel the ground more, which probably sounds odd, but interestingly, I feel more comfortable in them when I run.

rinaz.net Barefoot over regular shoes

This probably means that I’m ready to progress to Vibram Five Fingers – the type that Kris uses. They look so strange though.

Digressing, looking at the picture above (I used it to demonstrate toe box space), I really don’t want feet like the one on the left. A certain someone has been scaring me that my feet looked as if I had bunions and that I might need surgery in the future.

rinaz.net Bare feet

I don’t want! I don’t want! I don’t want!