Weird Xmas by the Equator

You can always tell how many people are in the house by counting shoes.
Xmas Day crew  - Jane, Sophia, Myrna Sweet, Cathryn, Tess, Ellen, Evangeline and Amie
Who doesn't like presents?

Tess checking out the tree.
Sophia got some big Santa pants.

The hood will come in handy when the mercury dips below 83.
Filipino Maha Blanca - desert with a message.
Heavy frying.
The spread
A good fake tree is key.
Homage to the folks in Cali.
Elijah holds a prime tree spot.
The Gimbel siblings and their faahhhthah
Lena, Tod and more.....
Sophia and Myrna styling.

Party girls at the Xmas Eve Bash.

"I know snow - it comes in a can"
Singapore's passion - the photo in front of some gaudy or tacky decorations.

A pair of Santa's helpers looking for people to help.

Christmas Eve in Singapore is like New Years eve in Times Square.  People party, hit the streets, wear Santa hats, spray fake snow from cans and then count down to Midnight.  All that was missing was the big crystal ball to drop and Dick Clark.

All the stores were open on the 24th and opened as usual on the 25th.  I think it all has to do with an identity crisis caused by too many people of different ethnic and religious backgrounds. Not sure how to keep all the recent holidays straight (Hari Raya Haj. Deepavali, upcoming Chinese New Year and more) and not wanting to appear to favor any particular beliefs, the good Government of Singapore has decided that keeping all holidays commercial is a win win.  More tourists, more shopping and spending.  Every day is a day to buy, give and party!

We got sucked in.  Went to a nice party last night, got up today and exchanged gifts (highlights  - my Wii, Sophia's gold earrings and iPod dock and Myrna's new Motorola RAZR phone), cooked and had a bunch of Myrna's friends for late afternoon dinner.

We came, we ate, we drank, we spent - we even got caught up in the countdown and canned snow. I do like the idea of walking around in shorts, flip flops and tee tee shirt 365 days a year though.  

Holiday Cheer!

Dressed up for the holidays!
Tropical Santa.
Myrna and some of her elves.

The holidays are upon us!

We lit the the lights for Hanukkah a few weeks ago. A bit strange to do so in a place where very few people even know it's a holiday. Even so, the candles burned well as we kept them in the freezer until lighting time. We did the prayers and even sang the dreidl song. Myrna was impressed with our strange ritual.

Next we sought out a Christmas tree. We know where you can get real trees from the USA or second rater real ones from Europe but we heard they last about three sayd before dieing a fast sad death. Our search turned to artificial trees. The fake trees here go from really, really bad fakes which look like coat hangers and construction paper, to white retro funky ones, to pre decorated and lighted ones to not quite so fake looking but very pricey. We opted for the later. With our really high ceilings we had to get a 7 footer to even have a hope of not having it look like a Charlie Brown tree in the living room. I carried the tree home from the Paragon mall, located about 3 blocks from our house. I had it on my shoulder and Sophia brought up the rear to make sure I didn't whack anyone as I passed by. The streets have been extremely crowded with shoppers on the weekends and that day was no exception. I do believe had I not been about 5 inches taller then the average Singaporean I would have decapitated many people. Lucky the tree box on my shoulder either cleared or just grazed the heads of most passers by.

I set up the tree (it took a whole two minutes) and put on the lights. We started to decorate it with a number of ornaments we brought from the Us (a few of the many we have) and some new ones Sophia picked up (even the lousy ones are very pricey). We also decided to make ornaments with our family members' pictures. The "project" was fun. Most of the people from both Sophi and my family as well as Myrna and her friends are represented. Lena, Elijah, Rachel and Benjie, little Josh, Myrna's niece and of course Mitzvah are all there to see. Some of Myrna's friends stopped by one night to pitch in.

One of the unique tree problems we have is the tree is near out air well, it seems to get splashed when it rains. Unlike back in the US where Milwaukee and the east coast have had cold and snow, here it is the rainy season. It rains every day, sometimes in buckets. In fact as I write this it is pouring big time while the sun was out about 20 minutes ago. Anyway, we have carefully laid the presents out of harm's (rain's) way.

Going to a party Christmas eve, opening presents at Midnight, then having a bunch of Myrna's friends over for Christmas day dinner. A Puerto Rican - Filipino- Jewish extravaganza!

Holiday greetings to all! Hoping you all enjoy good health, good fortune and good times!

The Big One!

Singapore Airlines launched the first A380 plane a month or so ago. As a big traveler and airplane-a-phobe I had to snap a few pictures when I saw it at Changi airport a few weeks ago. It's a double decker and it doesn't look as big as I thought it would. They do have 1st Class "Suites" for two. Free drinks, a bed, a huge TV but they discourage "mile high" club membership activities....

Viva Espana

Sophia, happy after a plate of Paealla.
Festive Castllian dress.

Mmmm, a vat of boiling pig legs!

Best cheese plate ever.

Sophia en el cafe afuera.


La finca (farm) in the outskirts of Madrid.

Jamon de Serano

Cool fino from a cask.
Upstairs in the manor house.
The grounds
Flamenco! Ole!
Mas flamenco!

Resting in the plaza.
Sophia and her hero - Velazquez (didn't he play for the Mets?)
Waiting for the tapas bar to open
Statue?
Or real person!

Sophia and I recently traveled to Madrid. It's a short 13 hours from Singapore (Ok compared to going to the US). Spain proved to be a refreshing respite from life in Asia.

The pictures speak for themselves - we ate great food like paella, tapas, churros, fine cheeses, jamon and sausages. Drank Rioja, Finos and cerveza. Visited museums like the Prado, the Museo de Reina Sofia and the Museo Archiologico. Strolled through flea markets, fancy shopping streets. Walked into local hangouts and well known places.

Cool your Dogs on Hot Coals

Demetra, Sophia, Myrna and Ronak looking for hot coals to walk on
Even Ronak knows Ganesha
I wore my team India cricket shirt to blend in with the crowd.
You want to stay on this Deity's good side!
A last look at one of the alters before heading home.

A few weeks ago, as part of the Deepavali season here in Singapore, the Hindu Thimithi Festival (http://events.skyteam.com/sisp/index.htm?fx=event&event_id=62781) took place at the Sri Mariamman Temple. (http://www.usp.nus.edu.sg/post/singapore/arts/architecture/srimar/1.html)

Myrna and I happened upon it last year and missed the coal walking so this year we had a plan. Sophia, Myrna, and me along with work friends Ronak Patel and Demetra Merikas started the evening out with a really tasty Nepalese dinner at a restaurant called Ghorka in Chinatown. (http://www.streetdirectory.com/restaurants/singapore/reviews/restaurant-Gorkha_Grill-1884.php ) The food was really good - Momo appetisers (small filled samosas), great mutton and really fine naan, all washed down with cold Kingfisher beers.

After dinner we wandered over to the temple, which is about three blocks away. The paper said the fire walking was Monday with festivities starting early and the actual walking taking place quite late. As we walked towards the Temple entrance we were able to see that there was a big crowd inside. You see, everyone needs to remove their shoes before entering and there were about 500 pairs of sandals and other assorted footwear all over the sidewalk on both sides of the large doors. We deposited our shoes in the pile and went in. there was a lot of activities but not hot coals or burnt footed devotees. While Ronak, our Hindu expert, was misidentifying the various statues of well known Hindu deities, I found some guys to ask when the walking was set to begin. Sadly, the men who I asked laughed and said that the walking took Place at about 2AM that morning. I guess it was actually Monday, but as usual the local paper, Sraits Times, was a little vague in their description of the exact timing.

We hung around the temple for a while soaking in the ambiance and soon headed our separate ways. Well, at least we had a good dinner that night!

A Yen for a Haircut

Sisters Jesica and Jolene pose in front of Jesica's picture.
Sophia in the midst of her transformation.
I'm up next for my trim.
Jolene smiling for the camera.

When we first moved to Singapore Sophia tried several hair places. There was the $500 treatment that took 4 hours. She left the salon looking great with perfectly straight hair and a chic style. By the time she walked the three blocks to our house it looked like and afro (not that there's anything wrong with that). She tried a very cheap place and wouldn't you know - it was a lousy doo. I got my first cut in Asia at a hotel in Bangkok and it was fine but it is kind of a long way to go every few weeks for a trim.

At some point someone recommended we go to Yen's. Yen's is one of the 1000s of hair places in Singapore and one of probably a dozen places in the Holland Village area. It's on the third floor of a kind of a shopping mall. The mall is not plush by any means and has a grocery store, some gift shops, tailors, clothing stores, a few foot massage and manicures places and several salons. It is frequented by a lot of expats who live in the area.

So we went and we keep going back. Beautiful sisters Jessica (Yen) and Jolene are in charge. Jolene makes the business work and Jessica cuts hair. They are really nice women who came to Singapore from China many years back and started their business. They can both be found at the shop 6 days a week (the place is open all seven days), pretty much all year round. In addition to a nice cut I also enjoy a great shampoo and scalp massage on their flat bed shampoo tables.

It all adds up to a very nice experience. (Sorry to my barber of over 30 years, the Gus Man!)