Instagram has been on a roll lately (hurhur no pun intended) with its new features, algorithm-driven feed, business profiles, Insta stories and now, Instagram is beginning to remove some of its "less used features" as well. and that feature happens to be my favourite on Instagram — Photo Maps.
It's my favourite feature since I started travelling this year because I liked occasionally browsing through my travel photos and slowly filling up my photo map. I even once tweeted that I can't wait to fill up my Instagram's map but I guess now that dream is shattered :(
A quick check online showed that I'm not the only one sadden by this sudden change but it seems like complaining won't help either. While I understand this could be for the safety of the general public who tagged their homes but why should we be responsible for their, for a lack of a better word, stupidity?! Ugh.
I'm sure no amount of whining or complaining will bring our maps back considering how Instagram was so adamant about the algorithm timeline even though it caused a huge uproar. I only wish they issued a statement before hand so I could have captured a screenshot of my maps before it was removed.
Instagram then VS Instagram now (third button for "my maps" is now missing)
It's my favourite feature since I started travelling this year because I liked occasionally browsing through my travel photos and slowly filling up my photo map. I even once tweeted that I can't wait to fill up my Instagram's map but I guess now that dream is shattered :(
A quick check online showed that I'm not the only one sadden by this sudden change but it seems like complaining won't help either. While I understand this could be for the safety of the general public who tagged their homes but why should we be responsible for their, for a lack of a better word, stupidity?! Ugh.
I'm sure no amount of whining or complaining will bring our maps back considering how Instagram was so adamant about the algorithm timeline even though it caused a huge uproar. I only wish they issued a statement before hand so I could have captured a screenshot of my maps before it was removed.
Yaaasssss. At last, I found the time to edit my Taiwan travelogue, featuring the night markets I visited and cheap shopping spots I found. Have you heard of Shilin, Shida, Raohe and all the night markets in Taiwan but don't know which one to go to? Wufenpu, Ximending, ATT4FUN, Breeze Center, Taipei 101 Mall — too many shopping spots to choose from, where can you grab the cheapest deals? Check out how to get there, the nearest MRT and what I think about those places in my video.
So that's all the shenanigans I was up to when I was travelling solo in Taipei. I still have part two coming up, where I hung out with my Taiwanese colleagues and lived a somewhat local life, so hit the subscribe button if you'd like to see more ;-)
After spending weeks in Taiwan and being exposed to different Chinese words that I never knew existed, I came to realise my favourite Chinese phrase is still 暧昧. There's no exact way to precisely translate these words into English while retaining its proper, original meaning, and I think that's the beauty of Chinese, or even languages in general — some words just can't be translated.
I have to mention it's amusing to see how everything falls so beautifully in place sometimes. I've always been somewhat of a wild soul captivated by my love for the unknown, and living alone for the first time during my recent Taiwan travel only magnified that. My burning desire for travelling amplified, I became more independent, learnt to let go of things that don't belong to me, adapted a slower pace of life, and most importantly, I rapidly discovered new things about myself.
I'll be honest — if I were to visit Gold Coast again, I'll definitely return to Dreamworld but not Movie World. I'm not a fan of most Warner Bros' cartoons (no thanks, I'm not interested in Batman, Superman etc.). Coupled with the fact that I fell sick and the infection was at its peak on this day, I couldn't enjoy myself to the maximum.
That being said, if you're a fan of their products, you should drop by because their merchandise stores WILL BE YOUR HEAVEN! Unlike USS in Singapore, their souvenirs are actually reasonably priced and they even have an outlet souvenirs store where you can get their past season items at almost half price! I got a t-shirt (kids size!) for only SGD $5 — would you believe that?!
We got our tickets online yet again (thank god for technology) so we manage the skip the queue in the killer summer heat in Gold Coast. You can get your Movie World tickets online for 30% cheaper — click on the link if you're interested in the deal. Again, like I always mentioned, it's a lot more convenient to buy your tickets online because it's cheaper plus you don't have to queue to buy tickets at the entrance of Movie World when all you want is to get in immediately and play your hearts out!
(written 15 January 2016 — within 24 hours of our break up)

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I know this won't be the last time I mourn over our relationship yet at the same time I'm aware that nothing will change. Talking to you again only opened up the wounds I thought I healed. My mom always said you have to be with someone for two years before you see their true colours. A little after our second anniversary, this happened. Ha, mothers know best, don't they?
Tonight I sit on my sofa again, hugging the bunny you surprised me with back when we were dating. Funny how you bought Fluffy for me so that I would throw away the bunny my ex gave me and now you joined my list of ex-boyfriends. I wanted this to work out. I wanted it to.

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I know this won't be the last time I mourn over our relationship yet at the same time I'm aware that nothing will change. Talking to you again only opened up the wounds I thought I healed. My mom always said you have to be with someone for two years before you see their true colours. A little after our second anniversary, this happened. Ha, mothers know best, don't they?
Tonight I sit on my sofa again, hugging the bunny you surprised me with back when we were dating. Funny how you bought Fluffy for me so that I would throw away the bunny my ex gave me and now you joined my list of ex-boyfriends. I wanted this to work out. I wanted it to.
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| (photo credit: Reuters, grabbed from Channel News Asia) |
As Singapore praises our golden boy, who's also a record breaker by the way, for making a splash at Rio 2016, celebrates our first ever Olympic Gold at Rio 2016, and listens to the sweet, magnificent sound of Majulah Singapura being played in the Olympics for the very first time, I can't help but wonder — what if Joseph Schooling was born poor?
“It's time to move on.”
Just how many times have I chanted this to myself? Did I truly believed that by iterating this line, I can effortlessly shrug off the thought of you? That my recollection of you will fade as hours race by? That the notion of what could have been will stop creeping into my mind as the first light creaks through my windows at every crack of dawn?










