[Event] Doors to “HELL”owee​n – The Terror Maze @ Downtown East D'Marquee (WIN TICKETS!)

I can't emphasize how much I love the season of Halloween and the thrill it instills in me.

It's more than just dressing up!!

Strolling haunted houses, experiencing"ghosts"jumping out of every dark, unseen corner..Screaming out loud with friends and laughing at each other's silliness.. There is NO REASON for me not to love Halloween!

I was honored when I received an invitation to Downtown East for an exclusive Preview of Doors to "HELL"oween - The Terror Maze.

(Thank you, Zenna!)

Ah, in case you are not aware - This event is a collaboration between Downtown East and a team of Year 2 Singapore Polytechnic students. (Being an ex SP student, I feel so proud!!)

If you are wondering what is lurking around the darkness at Downtown East during this Halloween season, here's a *sneak* preview and exclusive photographs. Don't worry, there's loads more in store for you when you are physically there!

And OHHH... ...

Do stay tuned to the very end of this entry as YOU, my beloved reader, can get the chance to WIN a pair of tickets to this Halloween event, too! (And all you need to do is to answer a very simple question!!) 

Do you know that there are 16 trails in the terror maze?!!!

It made me so excited that I couldn't wait to step foot into it and experience it.
The anticipation was killing me more than anything else.

Was greeted by this large sign when I reached.

*squeals in excitement*

I could feel the Halloween atmosphere around Downtown East (I love their decorations!)

Imagine walking down the walkway and feeling the creeps already...

We were issued 4 tokens that can be used for photobooth, make-up session (there was a talented make-up artist present whom was able to recreate any scary-looking wounds on your hand/face), carnival rides and games!!!

Holy. It's like having all of my favorites in one!

Pardon my ugly nail polish, LOL. Ahem.

Being the vain old me, I decided to go for a photobooth session before bracing myself for the Terror Maze. 

There were a variety of costumes and props available for us to try on, and GUESS WHAT COSTUME I PICKED FOR MYSELF?!?!

Yes... It's none other than... ...

Qing Dynasty Princess costume! (Or more commonly known as "Princess Pearl" costume - Huan Zhu Ge Ge)

I know you are laughing!! Stop smiling at your screen - I can feel it. Hmph.

Just so you know, I have always been a HUGE fan of such ancient costumes (I even have one myself at home!) and seeing it as part of the photobooth costumes made me squeal like an excited little girl.

Must take more, must take more.

There are still tons of photos I have taken of myself in costume (Gosh, I am such a camwhore queen), but I shan't post all of them here!!

And there was instant printing services in which I was able to take home a hard copy as a momento.

Thank you sooo much for the wonderful service!!

Here it is.

Pardon the blurry photo. I was trying to take a photo of a photograph!

NICE?!?! I'm a Qing Dynasty Princess leh, don't play play!

Finally, after all the photo-taking fun... We were told that the Terror Maze was ready and awaiting us.

"OH YES!" I squealed.

While standing around the entrance of the Terror Maze, I thought it was my imagination when I heard what seemed to be evil laughter echoing from inside.

"HIEK HIEK HIEK HIEK! HA HA HA HA!!"

*shivers*

Oh dear.....Do I.. Do I.... really... have to go in?

It was then that the doors to the entrance opened... 

In no time, I was engulfed in darkness as I stepped into the unknown world of fear. I totally had no clue what was in store for me except that there would be ghosts lurking around and observing my every move... 

As the place was simply too dark, I had no choice but to activate flash for some of the photographs that I'll be posting here (Believe me, it feels completely different when you are physically there - It's DARK!)

Caution! Now I've been warned....

One of the scary settings.

(The photos are not taken in sequence. I actually went TWICE to the maze - First to experience the terror and second to capture photographs! See? I sacrificed myself to face the terror twice just to capture photos for you readers!! How noble. )

The maze has different parts that we needed to conquer ... It just seemed to get spookier as we walked deeper into it...

Some of the photos are not in clear state as there were smoke. Yes, the ATMOSPHERE!!

Notice this somehow ugly-looking witch sitting at this long dinner table below? He/She was seriously scary and has a thunderous voice - loud enough to have me scrambling off to the next part of the maze.

A clearer look at him:

(As we got further from him, he said "Don't look back".... The tone was so scary, lah! )

The maze seemed to be endless while you are in the midst of it. And there is no turning back.

Lend me a helping hand??

(I was extra careful when crossing this....It seemed as though there were hundreds of hands reaching out to us..*imagination running wild*)

Now. Don't forget that these look so much more scarier in real life.

The hands looked kinda' real!!!!! Yucks.

Spotted this huge black thing lying at a corner. I had no idea what it was. A corpse?

(For a moment, I was afraid that it would suddenly move and jump at me!)

Trying to act brave inside a haunted maze

Right.. This is one scene I will NEVER forget.

Did you guys spot anything weird in the picture?

No? Look again. Closely.

YES. THOSE WERE REAL WORMS (They are harmless though) wriggling around on that freaking skeleton. 

EEW.

But I was not exactly worried as I did not get near to those wriggly creatures.

Came across a few faceless "nurses" as well that reminded me of Silent Hill. (One of them was even holding an injection needle and looked like she was ready to strike anytime! Not to mention that she looks like a mannequin) 

You know what is it that I find scary?

That I couldn't differentiate between what's a mannequin and a real person! 

There were several times when we had a scare as what we thought was fake suddenly moved. Urgh.

... So yes, we eventually survived the Terror Maze, not once... But twice! 

Time seemed to pass exceptionally slow when we were in there.

When we came out, we headed for the fun make-up session.

Finally... A time to sit down, relax and let the make-up artist do the job.

She was able to create any "wounds" on any part of your face/hand. 

Urgh ...Looks sick!!

There were many other fun activities there other than the Terror Maze. It was like a small carnival (Does Uncle Ringo ring a bell to you?)

 Do try these out when you are there. Trust me, it's much MORE scarier than it looks.

I didn't give much thought when I agreed to climb up this harmless-looking cliff.

And BELIEVE ME when I say I SCREAMED while sliding down at the other side. I SCREAMED so loud that a young little kid (who happened to witness me sliding down) was screaming with me too. Funny shit!!

But it was hella' FUN, really. Try it with your friends if you are there - The experience will be unforgettable.

There is also a wheel-looking thing that will spin you 360 degrees - I admit I was too scared to sit on it. So I just stood around and watched others.

If you are in for a totally harmless, nothing-to-be-afraid-about activity, there are carnival games as well for the young and old.

And you can win soft toys as well!!!

I WON 2 CUTE PANDAS there!!!

Photos are not very well-taken, but here they are:

CUTE RIGHT?!

And yesss... Here's a pic of myself and lovely Shirley from Downtown East. She was really kind and extended such great hospitality by bringing us around the area! Thank you so much, Shirley, and it was a great pleasure meeting you!

Now that I have enjoyed my share of fun, IT'S YOUR TURN!!

Yes - Here's a really simple contest that you can win yourself a pair of TICKETS to event on 2nd November 2014!

How to win the tickets?!

Watch this below video first:

And answer the following simple question: 'Which tarot card did The Fortune Teller represent?' Submit your answer to me at: catherinejaevans@hotmail.com with the following details:
Subject Header: I want to win tickets to The Terror Maze! Answer: ____ Name: _______ Contact number: _______

Contest will end on 31st October 2014, midnight.

Winners will be contacted on 1st November 2014 for the collection of tickets to the event.

Hurry... The terror awaits...

More information about the event:

Venue

Downtown East D'Marquee

Date & Time

29**, 30 Oct** |5pm - 11pm

31 Oct & 1, 2 Nov**| 1pm - 11pm

Ticket Price

NTUC/nEbO Plus! Members: S$30

Plus! Members: S$35.00^

Public: S$35.00

[HALLOWEEN Review] Sentosa Spooktacular 2014

It's the month of October and this means that my blog will be clogged with Halloween-related entries!

Knowing that I am a HUUGGEE Halloween fanatic, my dokiboy secretly purchased tickets to Sentosa Spooktacular (He even topped it up with Express passes *cries*) as part of my birthday gift. The tickets are NOT cheap, definitely.

Thank you, my dokiboy. :')

As some of you may have heard about it, I lodged a complaint to Sentosa Spooktacular last year due to the horrendous waiting time that scarred me. 

(FYI, I purchased normal tickets last year)

Personally, I would say that purchasing NORMAL/STANDARD tickets to Spooktacular is pretty much pointless as you will find yourself spending the entire time queuing up rather than enjoying the experience in the haunted houses.

In other words, if you do not have the budget to top up for express passes - then be prepared to queue your asses off.

Since I had the luxury to have express passes this year, my experience was a complete opposite this time round.

Fancy that - We actually completed the WHOLE of 3 haunted trails in LESS than 1.5 hours. 

THIS AMOUNT OF TIME IS EQUIVALENT TO THE WAITING TIME OF 1 HAUNTED TRAIL WITH A STANDARD TICKET.

So much difference when one holds the express ticket, eh?

With the express ticket, we got to cross an alternate lane that granted us fast entries into the haunted houses with almost zero waiting time (while those with normal passes were still queuing at the back in another lane).

Unlike last year's version in which Spooktacular had 5 haunted trails, there were only 3 this year. (They were, however, built on bigger scales)

And of course, more wandering "ghosts" (Probably they expanded their budget this year to hire more scare actors, LOL)

I was actually prepared to dress up as Queen Elsa (Heck, I even purchased Elsa's costume and wig!) but ended up dressing up as a cross breed between Elsa and myself due to a last minute wig crisis.

What a waste of my money. Duh.

I had to dress down (My Dokiboy surprised me with an Elsa crown which I wore on my head happily that day. LOL) and here I was.

With one of the random wandering "ghosts".

I love this setting! It made me look... Mysterious. *smiles*

Uncanny resemblance. Sisters?

*cough*

And... This is my favorite :) I call it "Immortal Love". Don't we look like a sweet couple? LOL

Was kinda hungry after exploring the 3 haunted trails and we settled down to have dinner -Kampong style. Haha.

Satay and Seafood Tom Yam set!

(Not cheap either)

Sorry that they weren't taken in an appetizing manner as I took them under darkness using camera flash.

Surprisingly, the food wasn't that bad. They actually tasted good. 

Overall, I would say that my Spooktacular experience this year was great. (I will still emphasize that its due to the express ticket) I doubt I will say the same if I were holding a standard ticket.

So what's my favorite trail at Spooktacular, you ask?

I guess it would be "The Swimmers" or "Alone".

(I love that they created the atmosphere like the movies! The Swimmers will make you feel like you are trapped @ a haunted swimming pool and there were even water dripping down at some corners!)

From physical reconstruction of the scene to even the SMELL. they've nailed it.

I shan't talk more about it so as not to spoil the surprise! (NO SPOILERS!)

Do keep a lookout for more Halloween-related entries coming up in my blog before 31st...

Till then, Enjoy your Halloween and have a great one!!

Singapore Flyer - FrightFest 2012

(If you wish to look at our Halloween makeup/costume without the hassle of reading my long-winded post, then please scroll all the way down.)

Gosh, I can't even begin to tell you how SUCKY of an experience it had been for my friends and I at FrightFest 2012 (Singapore Flyer's Halloween event).

It was such a letdown that our anticipation were exchanged for disappointment and anger.
I mean, we NEVER thought it would be THAT bad.
Now is the best time to unleash my complaining talent as a SG COMPLAIN QUEEN.

This was what happened:

We reached around 7 plus to complete our Halloween makeup and rushed down to queue up for the entry to the "Haunted Trial".

Here's the deal: They kept us waiting in the queue for more than 2 freaking hours. We were only allowed entry at 10.30pm!

Can you imagine that? 

I mean, it's not like we CAN'T wait. But the waiting time just to enter a SMALL compound is JUST. TOO. MUCH.

It's not like there were many Halloween attractions there to keep us entertained.

  THERE WAS ONLY ONE ATTRACTION. 

ONE ATTRACTION THAT KEPT US WAITING FOR 2 HOURS AND EVERYTHING LASTED ONLY FOR 15 MINUTES.

(They only allowed a small group of people to enter. Judging by the crowd, they should have allowed MORE to enter! Don't they know how to adjust to situations and manage the event?!)

I did hear that they do have other fringe activities such as Bazaar, etc. 

And guess what?

We couldn't even enjoy those activities because most of our time was spent on WAITING! When we came out from the trial, EVERYTHING was OVER. 

The Bazaar had closed, etc, and we didn't even have time to walk around and explore things on our own.

To make matters worse, we were told by the staff that NO PHOTOGRAPHY was allowed while inside the haunted trial. (This explains WHY there isn't any photo of the haunted trial in my entry here.)

Damn.

Hello??!! THE TICKET COSTS $25 EACH, with MOST of our time spent on waiting for a sucky 15 minutes trial (AND NOT EVEN SCARY AT ALL), and YOU DON'T EVEN ALLOW PHOTOGRAPHY FOR KEEPSAKE PURPOSES?

Then what is the point of organizing a Halloween event if we can't even have the leisure of taking photos?

I have personally went to many other places in Singapore who held similar events (even LARGER-SCALE than FrightFest 2012), and the most BASIC thing they allowed was PHOTOGRAPHY. What is FUN without photos?

So what is the problem with FrightFest?

Is it because your makeup artist(s) did not do his/her job, and that is why you do not want us to take photos of the "ghosts", for fear that their poor makeup will be exposed?

OR

Is it because you are so ashamed of your own event that you do not wish people to take photos for comparison with other organizations?

What a huge joke!

The ONLY photo that we, the PAYING customers, were allowed to take was the entrance area -IN FRONT of a makeshift GREENSCREEN. 

They will insert the background using computer effects =_=. They don't even have a life-like REAL background.

(Come on, the staff were even dressed in such an unprofessional manner. They just don a cape over their home clothes, complete with a skeleton mask that anyone can get for a cheap price from Cold Storage.)

And those staff were actually expected to be the highlight of the photo-taking. 

Worse still, FrightFest actually CHARGED money for each photo taken using THEIR camera. In other words, we CANNOT use our own camera. The only way to have a momento of the event is through them. Money suckers, no?

YOU ARE NOT HUMAN IF YOU DO NOT FEEL THE LEAST BIT OF ANGER from being treated this way as a paying customer.

Waiting 30 mins to 45 minutes is still considered fairly reasonable, but 2 freaking hours is way overboard. What more fun can we have since we cannot even go anywhere after the wait as the shops had closed, etc?

In summary,

We spent so much time putting on our makeup since afternoon, we queued from 8.30pm to 10.30pm, entered the trial that lasted less than 15 minutes, came out to wash off our makeup AND RUSHED FOR THE LAST TRAIN HOME.

 (Fortunately for us, WE MANAGED TO BOARD THE VERY LAST TRAIN BACK). 

Yes, Thank God.

That was it.

We spent our highly anticipated Halloween in this manner. How pathetic.

A TOTAL waste of MONEY, TIME and EFFORT.

(Gosh, how can they even have the cheek to SELL so many tickets to people and yet unable to fulfill its main purpose??)

没这么大的头 就别戴这么大的帽!

If Singapore Flyer continues to keep up this kind of standard, I strongly advise them NOT to organize such events anymore in future.

They only had ONE and ONLY trial that is built around a small area. And it really beats me how the queue can be THAT long for such an area.

For your info, my group isn't the first and only one who complained. I heard people around us TALKING about the queue because it was just too much. 

It was not even a worthy wait. Trial was too short, and it wasn't even scary.
(Their area is apparently not dark enough to create the atmosphere!)

The only FUN we had was our own FUN by scaring random people in the queue. The reactions were hilarious.

That was it. 

Seriously, I won't be a returning customer for future years.

It was my FIRST time to FrightFest and an unpleasant one. Probably it will be my last if they did not do anything to improve the situation.

I feel sorry for anyone who has plans to attend the event.

You are basically paying to WAIT :)

Be mentally prepared.

===================

Our look for Halloween 2012:

(Both Wen and I transformed into temporary makeup artists and came up with this look for Ah Miao.)

What do you think? :)

I am personally pleased with the results because there were people who were scared of her and even screamed! 

And that's myself and Wen:

My 3 lovely friends: ~

So much effort. So little fun.

Oh well.