A tropical Santa for the sweet tooth-s.

When I was younger, ice cream was sold by an old man on a scooter with an attached fridge box and a big Magnolia umbrella to shield it from direct heat from the sun. A mobile ice cream stall, completed with its own cow-bell to signal its arrival! The ice cream was homemade with three distinct flavors- chocolate, vanilla and strawberry, and my personal favorite would be all three flavors rolled together. Uncle Ice cream liked to stop in the car parks of the HDB flats or somewhere near a junior school where six to twelve-year-olds like myself would throng his scooter-stall, all chirping for ice cream like chicks scrambling for worms. Sweaty magical moments, those were.

These days cheap prepackaged ice cream is more commonly available in off-white dreary ice cream fridges at convenience shops or supermarts. For a more expensive taste, there're always Häagen-Dazs, Swenson's, or even just Crepes n' Cream. Having ice cream sold at fixed venues like those might allow one to satisfy her ice cream cravings anytime but I would still vote for Uncle Ice cream any time. Sometimes it isn't so much about the ice cream. It's the element of surprise or unknown. Back then, we would wonder in class if Uncle Ice cream was going to be there outside the school today, and hoping so much that he would. If he wasn't, no doubt we kids would be disappointed but it would also make us look forward to the next day when we would again hope that Uncle Ice cream to make a stop near us. In time he was almost like our Fairy Godfather, complete with all the sweet goodies that he brought along where he went.

Since this month, Uncle Ice cream had been making guest appearances near where I live. No, it wasn't the traditional homemade ice cream anymore, but it brought back those sweet times (pun intended!). Despite a bulging waistline, I just ate a thick durian slice sandwiched between two crisp undersized biscuits.

And yes it was still yummy.