Born in the vibrant city of Singapore with a unique Eurasian blend of Portuguese and Chinese heritage, my journey has taken me from the bustling streets of Singapore to the serene and open landscapes of Sweden. My educational pursuits in Singapore culminated at tertiary level with two separate Master degrees, after which I embarked on a new adventure in 2002, moving to Sweden. In Sweden, I pursued with deep interest, the knowledge field of applied linguistics, particularly corpus linguistics research methods, earning a doctoral degree from one of northern Europe’s largest universities, the University of Gothenburg. I currently work as Project Manager, focusing on EU and international projects, at RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, at the Division of Bioeconomy and Health, Department of Agriculture and Food. My office is located in Mölndal municipality. Mölndal, known also as the Valley of Mills, is located about ten minutes by bus ride from the city center of Gothenburg to the south. If you’re ever traveling south from Gothenburg to Malmö, whether by train or car, you will likely come by Mölndal municipality. In these pages at cmariec.com, you’ll find my lifestyle musings on culinary and travel adventures from Singapore to Sweden, and from when I lived and worked the Arctic City of Tromsø (2018 to mid-2022). SINGAPORE | SWEDEN | NORTHERN NORWAY Life in Singapore Pursued all academic interests in Singapore, of which the post-graduate years were founded in two separate disciplines. In 2000, graduated with two separate Masters Degrees: (i) Master of Science in Information Studies at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore (ii) Master of Arts in the English Language at the National University of Singapore (NUS). In 1999, represented the Republic of Singapore at the Miss Universe Pageant in Trinidad and Tobago. With this came a variety of film, educational TV, media, and ambassadorial work for the Singapore Tourism Board. Life in Sweden In 2002, moved from Singapore to Sweden in order to pursue a PhD in Gothenburg, where a number of international corporate head offices were located that all had a substantial business presence in Singapore and also Asia in general. In 2009, graduated with a PhD in applied critical linguistics from the faculty of humanities at the University of Gothenburg, with a cross-disciplinary thesis entitled, Swedish management in Singapore: a discourse analysis study, looking particularly into the concepts of assimilation, integration and hierarchy, at top management levels of Swedish-Asian corporations in Singapore. 2013, as research fellow at the Centre for International Business Studies (CIBS), School of Business, Economics and Law at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, researching the future implications of increasing Asian-Swedish cooperation within the field of international business. The project is entitled Gothenburg in Asia, Asia in Gothenburg, funded by the Anna Ahrenberg Foundation. The project is aligned with the 400 years anniversary of the city of Gothenburg in 2021, and falls under the broad category of Kunskap Göteborg 2021 initiated by city representatives of Gothenburg, Göteborg & Co, University of Gothenburg and Chalmers University of Technology. 2015, was granted the Flexit post-doctoral scholarship by Bank of Sweden Tercentennary Foundation (Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, RJ) for a three year project together with the Swedish-Swiss multinational enterprise ABB. From 2015-17, the research will take place at ABB Corporate Research Sweden HQ in Västerås, and at CIBS during 2017-18. The research focus of the project is how new technologies are perceived and accepted by users and customers, using linguistic methods of data analysis. More information can be found at RJ’s website, at Riksbankens Jubileumsfond (RJ) Felxit 2015. Life in Northern Norway (2018-2022) 2018, late summer. I acquired new work as Market Scientist at Nofima. Having moved to the county of Troms in August, I’m currently enjoying myself, exploring the island city of Tromsø. From the 1900s, this city became known as Paris of the North due to how the people of Tromsø were exceptionally stylish and sophisticated in contrast to the fishing village preconception that many might have of a city located in the Arctic Circle. In my years in Sweden, I have known Sweden to be called the land of the midnight sun. During the long summer mights, it was beautiful to sit and watch the sun’s languid pendulation between east and west, touching the horizon out at sea before going up again. Northern Norway takes this languid pendulation of the sun to the extreme. It is not only known as the land of the midnight sun, but it is also the land of polar nights and the northern lights. This is my new adventure. And in these lifestyle blog pages, you’ll find my personal thoughts, insights and musings. Cheryl Marie Cordeiro | PhD MSc MA ACADEMIC REFLECTIONS | CV LIFESTYLE BLOG

By Raphael Thexeira

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A birthday card, from Raphael Thexeira.

This card was sent by artist Raphael Thexeira, for my birthday which falls on Valentine’s Day.

I’ve been receiving the warmest and coziest birthday and Valentine’s Day greetings and well-wishes over Facebook and I’m thoroughly overwhelmed sitting out here in sub-zero temperatures in the west coast archipelago of Sweden. A light blanket of frost has covered the entire landscape overnight – what a sight to wake up to and what a feeling of warmth!

Thank you all, for birthday greetings and well-wishes!

I’m wishing all readers a wonderfully romantic celebration of love on St. Valentine’s Day ahead!

Cheryl Marie Cordeiro

You tiao in Penang, Malaysia

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From a street-side hawker in Penang, these deep fried ham jing peng, which are deep fried buns with a sweet red bean paste as filling, are ready to go!

Deep fried bread sticks or youtiao and its variations such as the ham jimg pengs in the above picture are a simple treat in Southeast-Asia. They’re usually eaten at breakfast with a good cup of thick kopi-O (black coffee), but they can be enjoyed throughout the day as a finger food as well.

Fried bread sticks and fried buns with various fillings can most conveniently be found at hawker centers in Singapore and at street-side hawkers in Malaysia. They’re also found in other Asian countries such China, Philippines, Laos and Vietnam.

The lady with her street-side stall. Just behind her is the backstreet lane of several shophouses in Penang, Malaysia.

During my trip to Penang, Malaysia, late last year, I found some youtiao at a street-side hawker near the Pulau Tikus market. I stood and watched as the lady in a sky blue apron, expertly kneaded the dough into shape and dropped them gently one by one, into a wok filled with hot oil. She seemed to do this without effort, something of a testament perhaps, to the number of years she’s already been doing this. Continue reading “You tiao in Penang, Malaysia” →

February snow in Sweden 2009

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Me, in a vintage fur hat, found in a second hand store in Sweden.

It snowed some through the night in what I belive was the heaviest snowfall of this winter in the Swedish west-coast archipelago. Temperatures are around -1 deg C to +1 deg C so the snow melts away pretty fast.

I love it when the snow covers the ground, turning all grey asphalt to pristine white! Unfortunately, the current temperature doesn’t allow the snow to pile up too thick and soft. No skiing, no snowman building, no snowball fights! Continue reading “February snow in Sweden 2009” →

A diamond and sapphire feather brooch / pendant

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A diamond and natural sapphire brooch and pendant.
Text and Photo © JE Nilsson and CM Cordeiro 2009

A diamond and sapphire brooch and pendant, set in 18k white gold in the form of two touching feathers for that scarf in place or against a single toned sheath dress. The natural blue 4.05 cts sapphire is individually selected for optimum color, clarity and cut for its size and to be worn indoors where even in minimal light. The brooch/pendant is created with a total of 1.4 cts pavé set brilliant cut diamonds.

Width (at widest point): ca. 2.5 cm

All pictures are taken in natural daylight against a linen backdrop.

Swedish white cabbage meat wrap or Kåldolmar

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Cabbage wrapped meat packages frying on a 19th century wood stove.

This traditional Swedish dish has its origins in the Middle East where the Swedish King Charles XII and his army took shelter for a while during a war with Russia. The dolma, which is the Turkish name of a common cabbage wrapped meat dish is thought to have been imported name and all into Sweden by the early 18th century. Today kåldolmar is an old fashioned traditional staple food in Sweden that sadly, fewer and fewer can find time to cook.

Making these cabbage wrapped meat packages takes quite some time. You can expect to set aside an entire day or the best part of the afternoon to do this. A great weekend activity if your weekend allows for it. On the upside is that they deep freez well and you can make a large batch of them in one go. It is also not very expensive. What goes into them is mostly time.

The kåldolmar or cabbage “dolms” are served warm with boiled potatoes and lingonberry jam. Continue reading “Swedish white cabbage meat wrap or Kåldolmar” →

The restaurant Zum Dachs in Munich, Germany

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Standing near the entrance of Zum Dachs, with the owners of the restaurant, the Grbesas.

It was already early in the evening when we decided to stop in Munich for dinner. We had driven by car over the Alps, through the Bremer pass, all the way from Venice. We turned off the engine of the car in Austria and basically freewheeled down into Bavaria.

I eventually understood that it was time to take a break since my travel mates had gradually fallen more and more silent, and were by now answering my chirpy comments on nature and architecture with grunts. The only thing that appeared to catch their interest were occasional bovines grassing in the fields along the road, as if they were already fried and in-between two hamburger buns.

It was definitely time to stop for a meal.
 
Venice had left a distinct impression on me of ridiculous prices and bad food. The memory of the food experience in Venice lingers in my mind as something close to having been robbed in broad daylight and without really grasping what had happened, you realize that your wallet’s gone and you’re still hungry. Alright, perhaps that’s an exaggeration but to eat well in Venice you need personal recommendations guiding you to the few restaurants that haven’t as yet got tired of tourists. Continue reading “The restaurant Zum Dachs in Munich, Germany” →

Chingay 2009, Singapore!

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The beautiful people at Chingay 2009! L-R: Lanette Stuart, Sarah Nicole Conceicao from the Eurasian Association (EA), Singapore. Photo: Courtesy of Sarah Conceicao.

The logo on the left will bring you to the official Chingay Singapore 2009 website where you can purchase tickets to the event.

Chingay, one of Singapore’s most colourful annual street carnival is about to take place on 30th and 31st January, so I thought I’d share with you some pictures from pre-Chingay to whet your appetites before the real blast off of a show!

Having its roots in Penang, Malaysia and then moving south in celebrations to Johor and Singapore, Chingay, which is the Hokkien word for “the art of costume and masquerade”, originated as a simple procession of floats.

As a child, I remember having witnessed these floats, which were usually large vehicles, lorries or trucks that were colourfully decked with lights and transformed into mini-stages of sorts for those performing in them. Each float told a different story and had different accompanying music.

The first Chingay parade was launched in Singapore in 1973, and it was so well received by Singaporeans that it became an annual event. The parade didn’t always have a fixed location, with the procession touring diffrent housing estates annually. But since 1985, the permanent venue for the event is at Orchard Road which allows for tourists and Singaporeans alike to join in the festivities.

I loved Chingay as a child, and today, Chingay 2009 in Singapore is bigger than ever with invites to international performers and costumes so splendidly colourful!

Dancers from Sylvia McCully’s dance school who form part of the EA dance troupe for this event, in front of a Portuguese Carrack. Photo: Courtesy of Sarah Conceicao

Perhaps more fun than watching the show is performing and being a part of it. This year, the Eurasian Association (EA) of Singapore has joined forces with Cedar Girls and Sylvia McCully’s dancers to form their troupe for Chingay 2009. The atmosphere is electric and the excitement is in the air for the performers!

L-R: Lanette Stuart, Jamie Yun, Michelle Loh and Sarah Nicole Conceicao in their costumes of Spanish inspiration, is designed by Debra De Cotta. Photo: Courtesy of Sarah Conceicao

Sarah Conceicao who is part of the EA dance troupe fell in love with the costumes and dancing of the EA dance troupe:

Then came Chingay. My mum was actually in it last year, so this year I got my chance. There was no way I was going to give up the opportunity.

I also joined mainly because of the people that I’d meet along the way, full dress rehearsals and all…everyone has been really friendly throughout the whole process.

Its been alot of hard work. But its alot of fun.

Behind the scenes: putting on make-up in preparation for the full dress rehearsal of Chingay 2009. Photo: Courtesy of Sarah Conceicao.

Practice for the event began in November 2008 with vividly alluring costumes specially designed by Debra De Cotta for the EA dance troupe. You can catch the EA dancers on a stage on the City Hall steps, on 30th and 31st January, 2009.

The dance to be performed at Chingay by the EA dance troupe is choreographed by Sylvia McCully. Photo: Courtesy of Sarah Conceicao.

Some members of the 4,000 strong performers at Chingay 2009. Photo: Courtesy of Sarah Conceicao.

If you’re planning to be at Chingay 2009, you can expect 13 Floats with 4000 performers from 40 local organisations. Cultural groups from 8 different countries such as India, Philippines, Thailand, South Korea and China will also be part of this event.

There are after parties too at this year’s Chingay celebrations and the locations for the various parties / events can be found at the official website.

I think one can expect to have an absolutely smashing time at Chingay 2009!

The spirit of Sue Wong

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Cheryl Marie Cordeiro in Sue Wong

A brown beaded halter-neck evening dress by Sue Wong.
Model: Cheryl Marie Cordeiro. Photo by Geoffrey Pereira.

A surefire way to kick off a glamorous evening is by picking the right dress. This slinky number by Sue Wong and her inspirations – Garbo, Dietrich, Lombard – certainly fulfills her desire to bring glamour and romance to the modern woman.

Sue Wong began designing under her own name in 1985 and in 1999, her Nocturne label, which showcases elegant evening wear (and is one of my favourite labels to have for evening wear) became an immediate success. Intricately beaded, soft on the body and one that offers a stunning silhouette to the wearer, are her signature traits in evening wear.

Miss Universe 1999 pageant in Trinidad and Tobago – 6th from the 6th TAG

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Miss Bolivia Universe, Susana Barrientos Roig in her National Costume for the international Miss Universe 1999 pageant held in Trinidad and Tobago. Her home town is Santa Cruz, Bolivia.

I had a tag from Chey of Stilettoed Praline to pick out the 6th picture from the 6th folder of my photo albums folder and write a story about it.
Continue reading “Miss Universe 1999 pageant in Trinidad and Tobago – 6th from the 6th TAG” →