Josh?
Lena?
Sophia and the fence sitters.
I hate when my family comes to town and doesn't call!
"No - I don't see the banana in there"It was a gala weekend here in Singapore. Sophia's birthday, Chinese New Year kick off and four days off to see a little more of our home island.
We've been here for about 9 months and it was about 1 year ago we first visited Singapore to see if we wanted to move here. In that time I've traveled like crazy and we have eaten our away around the great foods of Asia but we haven't really explored much of Singapore beyond our neighborhood and a few others. there are many attractions here like a great zoo, night safari, bird park, art museum, history museum, science centre and even some place that they fill with snow so these tropical folks can take the family to a place where they can slip slide and make snow balls. We've been to none of these places. Picked off a few this past weekend.
Saturday we went by subway and then bus to the Changi Prison Museum. http://www.changimuseum.com/ There we learned about Singapore during World War II. Basically the Japanese invaded (around the same time as Pearl Harbor) and took Singapore very quickly from the British, Australian, Malaysian and Indian forces defending the place. The Japanese took over from 1942 to 1945 and treated people very harshly imprisoning many, enslaving others and killing countless. the museum was small but very informative and really illustrated the hardships of war.
Saturday night we had a great home made Indian dinner cooked by my friend and colleague Ronak Patel's mom. Ronak's Mom is here visiting for a few months from the US. The food was fantastic. We loved the samosas, dal, chicken, spicy potatoes and the super spicy pickles and chutney.
Sunday was Sophia's birthday! It was a quiet day and we went to the Tiffen Room at Raffles Hotel for tea followed by champagne at the lovely outdoor Courtyard bar.
http://singapore-raffles.raffles.com/ When we got home Myrna and her friend Jeremie had backed a nice, real birthday cake. Later that night we visited the Singapore River HongBao 2007 celebration. Kind of like a combination of a bad carnival (complete with ancient rides and carny games), booths selling everything from cups of corn to good Karma, exhibits of giant blow up pigs, drums and scary Chinese guys and a big show with acrobats, dancers, singers and more. The show (which we watched for a little while) was the best part of the event. We saw some great acrobats diving through big rings followed by women balancing, spinning and then juggling big parasols with their feet. The crowds were huge but everyone seemed to be happy.
Monday was fun because everything was closed. I think that the first two days of Chinese New Year is the only time anything closes here. Our neighborhood is in the heart of the shopping district and while we are close to everything and anything you would ever want it is always jammed with people. The sidewalks are crowded and people run into you all the time just trying to navigate the crowds. Monday it was like a ghost town, Even the mighty cash registers at the big department stores like Robinsons (http://www.robinsons.com.sg/ ), Takashimaya (http://www.takashimaya-sin.com/)and Isatan (http://www.isetan.com.sg/index.jsp ) were resting. If you wanted to buy Prada, Chanel, Louis Vuiton or Zegna you just had to wait. We loved having open sidewalks and the ability to stroll. Since Chinese New Year is really a time for families it was strange to see the city without most of the people of Chinese descent out and about. It looked like a Western city for the first time. The only places open were the Indian and Muslim restaurants and food stalls so we ate at on of the really good, cheap, outdoor Muslim stalls.
Yesterday was a day to see some of the natural wonders of Singapore. There are actually a few places that have not been turned into malls and food courts. One of them is the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (http://www.wildsingapore.com/places/btnr.htm). Home of a rain forest and Singapore highest point - 163 Metres (530 feet). As a point of comparison Vail is 3500 feet. The wildlife was really outstanding with so many species of birds and animals. It was a little crowded so we didn't spot the giant lizards or the lemurs and I was on the lookout for monkeys. We walked, climbed and dragged for about 5 K and then finally saw what I was looking for. there (near the parking lot) were my brother Josh, nephew Elijah and niece Lena and about 50 more monkeys. I was surprised to see them in town and was upset they had not called to let me know they were here!
We finally headed to lunch and then home and thus concluded a very nice long weekend.
We've been here for about 9 months and it was about 1 year ago we first visited Singapore to see if we wanted to move here. In that time I've traveled like crazy and we have eaten our away around the great foods of Asia but we haven't really explored much of Singapore beyond our neighborhood and a few others. there are many attractions here like a great zoo, night safari, bird park, art museum, history museum, science centre and even some place that they fill with snow so these tropical folks can take the family to a place where they can slip slide and make snow balls. We've been to none of these places. Picked off a few this past weekend.
Saturday we went by subway and then bus to the Changi Prison Museum. http://www.changimuseum.com/ There we learned about Singapore during World War II. Basically the Japanese invaded (around the same time as Pearl Harbor) and took Singapore very quickly from the British, Australian, Malaysian and Indian forces defending the place. The Japanese took over from 1942 to 1945 and treated people very harshly imprisoning many, enslaving others and killing countless. the museum was small but very informative and really illustrated the hardships of war.
Saturday night we had a great home made Indian dinner cooked by my friend and colleague Ronak Patel's mom. Ronak's Mom is here visiting for a few months from the US. The food was fantastic. We loved the samosas, dal, chicken, spicy potatoes and the super spicy pickles and chutney.
Sunday was Sophia's birthday! It was a quiet day and we went to the Tiffen Room at Raffles Hotel for tea followed by champagne at the lovely outdoor Courtyard bar.
http://singapore-raffles.raffles.com/ When we got home Myrna and her friend Jeremie had backed a nice, real birthday cake. Later that night we visited the Singapore River HongBao 2007 celebration. Kind of like a combination of a bad carnival (complete with ancient rides and carny games), booths selling everything from cups of corn to good Karma, exhibits of giant blow up pigs, drums and scary Chinese guys and a big show with acrobats, dancers, singers and more. The show (which we watched for a little while) was the best part of the event. We saw some great acrobats diving through big rings followed by women balancing, spinning and then juggling big parasols with their feet. The crowds were huge but everyone seemed to be happy.
Monday was fun because everything was closed. I think that the first two days of Chinese New Year is the only time anything closes here. Our neighborhood is in the heart of the shopping district and while we are close to everything and anything you would ever want it is always jammed with people. The sidewalks are crowded and people run into you all the time just trying to navigate the crowds. Monday it was like a ghost town, Even the mighty cash registers at the big department stores like Robinsons (http://www.robinsons.com.sg/ ), Takashimaya (http://www.takashimaya-sin.com/)and Isatan (http://www.isetan.com.sg/index.jsp ) were resting. If you wanted to buy Prada, Chanel, Louis Vuiton or Zegna you just had to wait. We loved having open sidewalks and the ability to stroll. Since Chinese New Year is really a time for families it was strange to see the city without most of the people of Chinese descent out and about. It looked like a Western city for the first time. The only places open were the Indian and Muslim restaurants and food stalls so we ate at on of the really good, cheap, outdoor Muslim stalls.
Yesterday was a day to see some of the natural wonders of Singapore. There are actually a few places that have not been turned into malls and food courts. One of them is the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (http://www.wildsingapore.com/places/btnr.htm). Home of a rain forest and Singapore highest point - 163 Metres (530 feet). As a point of comparison Vail is 3500 feet. The wildlife was really outstanding with so many species of birds and animals. It was a little crowded so we didn't spot the giant lizards or the lemurs and I was on the lookout for monkeys. We walked, climbed and dragged for about 5 K and then finally saw what I was looking for. there (near the parking lot) were my brother Josh, nephew Elijah and niece Lena and about 50 more monkeys. I was surprised to see them in town and was upset they had not called to let me know they were here!
We finally headed to lunch and then home and thus concluded a very nice long weekend.
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