Fujiwara Kankoo

Shopping Streets (IV) - Orchard Road, Singapore

2012-01-11T21:56:00.000+08:00

I was flabbergasted when I read the headlines "Poll: Orchard is world's top shopping strip" (Straits Times, 10 Jan 2012). It came out top in cleanliness, top in quality retail staff and friendliness.

My first thoughts were No Way! Better than Ginza, better than The Stroget, better than London?
Then I thought, yes why not? After all the survey was done by the french Presence group. I work in market research for a local media company and we know Presence. They are renowned for their mystery shopping as, for example, AC Nielson is for TV ratings. So there's no reason for me to doubt the results.
It was just a typical case of not accepting the prophet in your own country.

The ION at Orchard Road, Singapore.

I must admit it was a surprise but Orchard Road has, especially the past few years, seen some spectacular malls coming online. I must admit too that perhaps I was a bit jaded initially.
I have always sung praises about the Japanese stores and the way they attend to your needs. Singapore's store staff have a long way to go before coming near the Japanese levels. But according to this survey they are better? At least according to their international group of mystery shoppers.

I'll do a more detail write up on the shopping along Orchard Road at a later date. Promise.
Now that Orchard Road is at the top, it deserves more from me at least, being my home base.

Shopping Streets III - Japan

2011-12-17T22:23:00.000+08:00

When you are in Japan, there's always one thing that you will notice that's different from any other country you visit. The way their local shops are set up in a cooperative known as a shopping street. I've mentioned about the shopping streets in Kyoto previously - Kiyomizuzaka and Sannenzaka.

In any city, you will find shopping streets like Oxford Street in London, Rodeo Drive in LA or Orchard Road in Singapore. These are major thoroughfare with malls and brand name shops along the street usually on both sides. More often they will be known locally as Main Street or High Street shops.

But in Japan, the shopping streets are distinctly different and have a unique flavor all of its own. The shopping streets tend to comprise small shops banded together rather than having malls or brand name shops.
Famous shopping streets in Tokyo would be Takeshitadori in Harajuku, Nakamise Street at Asakusa, Ameyokocho at Ueno or Sunshine 60 Street at Ikebukuro. These are unlike 'Main Streets' like the Ginza, Shibuya or Shinjuku which are dominated by major departmental stores.

In these 'neighborhood' shopping streets, you will find that shops are usually of no particular type. You will typically find restaurants next to clothing stores, cafes next to market stalls, shoe shops beside pharmacies. These shops are mainly owner occupied and most work under an informal association arrangement and you will find that many streets are covered with a roof over the street.

Typically, these streets are 100m to 200m long and going through these streets are a must if you visit Japan. The shopping streets usually do not have vehicular traffic so you can safely browse along the streets most of which have their wares all laid outside to attract customers.
The atmosphere and friendliness of the shopkeepers are completely different from those of the major departmental stores on 'Main Street' shops.

Jurong East Interchange, Singapore

2011-12-16T00:15:00.004+08:00

The Jurong East Interchange was built in the 1980s to cater to commuters working in the Jurong Industrial area. The interchange will operate its last day today, 16 December 2011.

The Jurong East Interchange will be demolished to make way for the planned Jurong East Integrated Transport Hub. This will be developed over the next 10 years in line with the other developments in the area like the Jurong Hospital & Medical Centre and the malls being built there now.

A temporary bus interchange was built beside the Jurong East MRT Station and will serve commuters till the new Jurong East Transport Hub is completed.

Once the old bus interchange is demolished, another of Singapore's heritage is dust.
With that in mind, I was at the interchange yesterday to capture some of its last moments.

You can see the photos of the old & new temporary interchanges on my photo blog here.

Passing of an era - The Hillview Railway Bridge

2011-11-26T13:30:00.016+08:00

So it has finally come to pass. The day that I thought I would never see the light of.
After more than 80 years, the Malaysian railway line has been dismantled and with it the freeing up of the bottleneck at Hillview Road.

I wrote a blog back in Nov 2010 about this bottleneck just after Singapore and Malaysia came to an agreement to remove the KTM railway line from Singapore. (Link here)

The traffic bottleneck at Hillview Road.

Yesterday, while online with another ex-resident of the now demolished Princess Elizabeth Estate, SK Yum, I learnt that the railway bridge pictured above was dismantled that very day we were chatting. So I missed the opportunity to document a historic moment when the bridge was taken down.

The bottleneck will soon be a thing of the past, much to the joy of all the residents of Hillview and Bukit Batok, as well as for motorists who use that stretch.

I am not sure when the bridge was built but when my parents moved into Princess Elizabeth Estate in 1953, it was already there. So it must be at least 60 years.

Back in 1953, when Princess Elizabeth Estate was built, the road was the only access from Upper Bukit Timah Road to the estate. It remained the only access road in, until the early 1970s when Hillview Avenue was extended and connected to Jurong Road at the other end.

The road was originally called Princess Elizabeth Estate Drive.
As the Hillview area developed, it was renamed Hillview Avenue.
But as Hillview Avenue extended and branched off with more developments, that short stretch from the Hillview Circus to Upper Bukit Timah Road was hived off and renamed Hillview Road.

Here are some photos I took today, a day after the dismantling.

Soon this will also just be a part of people's memory, when they remember that there used to be a bridge at Hillview Road.

The Hillview Bridge with the railway line on top.
This was taken in July during the 'open' period for visitors after the train services ended.

Hillview Road with the bridge dismantled. 26 Nov 2011.

The concrete beam still across is a height warning and collision barrier. Soon to be dismantled as well.

Watch in high definition. Select 720p ---------------------------------------------------^

The collision barrier has been removed. Photo taken on 12 Dec 2011.

All that's remaining is the height warning gantry, which ironically has become the obstruction itself!

Orchard Road Singapore

2011-11-23T20:05:00.002+08:00

I was down at Orchard Road yesterday to shoot a video for my annual Christmas greeting card.
Despite being a Tuesday, it seemed more crowded than usual.
That was when I thought of Shibuya in Tokyo and so did a short video on the crossing at Cairnhill Road.

Free tickets to Japan

2011-10-16T13:17:00.004+08:00

In view of the tremendous decline in foreign visitors to Japan following the triple disaster of March 11, 2011, the Japan Tourism Agency, a government agency, announced a 1.1b Yen budget to give out 10,000 FREE airline passages to Japan. (Announcement here) *

Lucky travellers will be required to apply on the Internet by taking an 'examination' and also to provide a planned travel itinerary for scrutiny. They are also expected to use social media to disseminate stories of their visit while on their stay in Japan, especially on the safety aspects.

However, please note that the plan is still under government consideration and will not be in effect until April 2012. You can watch out for future announcements on the JNTO website.

I expect that many scammers and fraudsters will take advantage of this and will entice gullible people to part with their hard earned money.
So beware of any non-official advertisements about the free tickets.

* the announcement was reported by the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbum but is in Japanese.
You can use Google translation if you don't read japanese.

Visiting Punggol after 30 years.

2011-10-15T23:46:00.009+08:00

Punggol is a region in the north east of Singapore.
It is slated to be the model for Singapore's 21st century towns.
The masterplan calls for riverside residences, 'ala Sydney Harbour style, waterfront housing and lifestyle.
A model of sustainable eco friendly suburban living.

I have not been to Punggol (sometimes spelt Ponggol) for more than a generation!
To me, Ponggol recall memories only of the pungent pig farms at Buangkok.
You used to be able to tell you have arrived at Ponggol simply with your nose.

One other thing I remembered was the small roadside shop, near the bus terminal at the end of Punggol Road, that would eventually grow to be the famous Ponggol Seafood Restaurant today.

Punggol was so remote in my days that nobody went there unless you lived there or had a really pressing reason to be there. The last time I was there was at an invitation from Fr John Khoo, a diocesan Catholic priest, to visit his family home and to drop by the St Francis Xavier Major Seminary located there.

On hindsight, I think he probably had a devious reason to take me there.
Who knows, if it wasn't for the smell of the pigs (I really mean the animals, not the seminarians), I might have become a man of the cloth today?
Anyway, that was 30 years ago, and that's how long I have not been to that area since!

Punggol today, of course, has developed along with the tremendous growth all over Singapore.
Pig and poultry farms are no longer found and the area is now a sprawling sub-urban HDB estate.
The biggest thing to happen there recently is the plan to redevelop the entire region into a new waterfront lifestyle town.

Now that there's a direct connection from Bukit Batok to Punggol by MRT train, I thought I'd pay a visit after all these years and and see what the excitement is all about.

These are the pictures I took at Punggol today. There's still a long way to go.
Click the link here.
My Waterway@Punggol

Related links:
Venice of Punggol?

Crowded Tokyo trains worse than Singapore's MRT?

2011-10-12T18:59:00.011+08:00

Whenever you see complaints about our crowded MRT trains, some readers will always bring out examples of other city trains, especially Tokyo commuter trains. For example in these videos...

(Youtube video by TheFatFinger)

(Youtube video by d0b33)

I have worked in Tokyo previously and I have been on those rush hour trains and truthfully, they are not as 'bad' as they are made out to be.

Yes, it is very crowded (Tokyo has 12.7m population) and it's true that people are packed like sardines into the trains as in the above video, but that only happens at the peak of the morning rush.

However, there is a cultural difference in Japan.
The overcrowding is accepted as a way of life in Tokyo.
During rush hour, you are packed into the train but everyone understands the situation.
Everyone knows the need for each other to commute to work or to get to school on time.

If you are in a rush hour train, you expect to be squashed cheek by jowl.
You will be shoved from all sides till everyone settles into their own comfort zone.
You know there is no room for any movement except to stand constricted till you get to your destination.

However, Japanese etiquette makes the journey tolerable.
The Japanese typically avoid any action that will make others uncomfortable.
Nobody uses a mobile phone on the train.
Nobody takes out their ipad or newspaper to read.
Nobody chats in the train.
The Japanese are fastidious about cleanliness, so there is absolutely no odor of any sort.
And if you are carrying a briefcase or backpack, you stow it in the overhead rack to make room for others to stand more comfortably.
And, they stand in orderly lines waiting to board the train.

What happens when you reach your destination and you are in the middle of the car?
No worries, just one word 'sumimasen', and everyone near the door will get out to let you through, automatically!

Whenever, I take my friends on a tour of Tokyo, I make sure that they get this unique experience of taking a morning commuter train. They have all survived and I have yet to loose a friend on the train system. In fact, they are happy to come away with this unique experience.
I only tell them, if you are near the door, get off! let people out or you'll be stampeded!

The level of tolerance is vastly different from Singapore.

Although, our MRT system has been running more than 20 years, education on train etiquette was never ever emphasized. Bad habits have taken root and is now very hard to eradicate, so there is no comparison at all.

Grab poles & handles are available even near the door areas.
During rush hour, some seats are folded up to make more space for standing.
Bulky bags are stowed on the overhead racks.

Singapore Changi Airport - Time Lapse video

2011-09-30T21:39:00.002+08:00

Here's the video I promised you shot from the Changi Airport Terminal 1 Viewing Mall.
It was taken this afternoon from 12 noon till 2.00pm but the video is compressed into a time lapsed movie of 2 & 1/2 minute duration. Taken with my Olympus EPL1 camera.

Watch in HD for better quality. Select 480 or 720p. ----------------------here ^

Diorama of Singapore life

2011-09-26T22:37:00.002+08:00

The pace of life in Singapore is simply too hectic.
Everyone seems to be in a headlong rush towards total burnout.

Here's a video I shot today on our pace of life.
We don't seem to have the time to stop and smell the flowers 'cos we're always rushing off somewhere!
Unfortunately, today, of all days that I was available to do the shoot, the sky just had to be overcast the entire day.

Do sent me your comments below. Enjoy.
The video is in full HD. Select 720p and you'll get better quality.

Viewing Gallery at Changi Airport T1 is open

2011-09-21T20:18:00.008+08:00

I had a pleasant surprise today when I dropped by Changi Airport Terminal 1.

If you are a plane spotter, you will know that Changi Airport terminals T2 and T3 are very unfriendly for plane spotters. The viewing gallery is placed within the upper levels overlooking the inside of the lower level (the transit hall) before looking out unto the apron, through the panels on the lower level.

They designed the public viewing area almost 30 meters away from the outer glass panel. This makes it near impossible to see the aircrafts on the apron. Probably in view of security.

I knew that renovations had been going on at the older Terminal 1, at least it was the last time I visited. When I was there today, I popped by to see if the public viewing area was just as bad as T2 and T3.

Surprise #1. Renovations were completed.
I later learned that it was completed months ago.

Surprise #2 . The viewing gallery at T1 extends right to the apron wall ! Yes!
This means an unobstructed view of the aircrafts on the tarmac.

Albeit, you can only see the central apron between T1 & T2, but that's a vast improvement over the miserable viewing conditions at T2 and T3.
My guess is that glass technology has improved so much to allow this new freedom?

The viewing gallery, now called the Viewing Mall, has a front about 50 meters long which affords a very wide view over the central apron.

Curiously, the floor just beside the glass front is transparent.
You might get an initial fright if you step onto the glass panel and then look down at your feet to see the floor 20 meters below! The picture above shows people standing on the glass floor panel.

When I was there this afternoon, there was a private party going on to welcome the Finnair "Angry Birds" plane which had flew non-stop all the way from Helsinki. It arrived about the time I was there (but not on my account). That's the Finnair plane in the background in the picture above.

The Finnair party which I was not invited to.

I'll be back one of these days to do a video of the aircrafts on the tarmac. Stay tuned.

Singapore Quarry Park

2011-07-09T00:19:00.012+08:00

The Singapore Quarry Park is part of the new Dairy Farm Nature Park.
It is however located at the farthest southern end of the 63ha park.

Click the picture for a detailed view.

Though the track is paved and is a gentle walk from the park entrance, the Quarry is about 3km from the park entrance, or about 1.5km from the nearer Car Park A at the junction of Upper Bukit Timah and Dairy Farm Roads.

Click on the map for detailed view.

I used to live at Fuyong Estate located between Dairy Farm and the Singapore Quarry.
This was at the time when the quarry was still in operation.
I can remember the daily 12 noon siren followed by the dynamite blasts.
Blasting took place once a day and the reverberations could be felt almost a kilometer away.

The quarry is now defunct. It was closed in the late 1980s when quarrying activities were moved offshore and allowed only on Pulau Ubin. The old quarry was recently converted to a nature park and wildlife reserve.
Ever since the Singapore Quarry Park was opened to the public, it has become a nature lovers and photographers mecca. Rare bird species like the Little Grebe can now be found, along with monitor lizards and dragonflies.

Here's a short video clip I made today of my visit to the Singapore Quarry Park.
It has a tip on a shortcut to the Singapore Quarry if you don't want to trek the 3km route!

The end of the Line.

2011-07-05T00:20:00.016+08:00

After more than 50 years, the Malaysian KTM railway line and the land it sits on were finally surrendered back to Singapore on 1st July 2011. The railway tracks will soon be dismantled while the government ponders over the fate of the strip of land that runs from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands.

With the exception of the Tanjong Pagar Station, which is now gazetted as a national monument, the rest of the infrastructure will disappear by the end of this month. These include the bottleneck bridges at Hillview, Hindhede and Sunset Way which I previously wrote about. (click here for that blog)

Today I visited the truss bridge at Upper Bukit Timah and wandered along the tracks up to Hillview for a last look. Not surprisingly, so many others were also there to capture that last piece of memorabilia before it's all gone.

That bridge near the Rail Mall holds a bit more memories for me than any other part of the railway line. For about 10 years between the 70s & 80s, I lived at Fuyong Estate which is located just beside that bridge. (Rail Mall is part of Fuyong Estate, here in this blog).

The truss bridge over Upper Bukit Timah Road.
Fuyong Estate is located just on the left of the photo.

The railway line is open to visitors till the end of July.

More pictures of the railway can be found on my photo blog here.

Postscript (9 July 2011)

Access to the tracks from Chia Eng Say Road (top photo) was a bit bit treacherous on the day I visited, but within the week, someone had graciously carved out a temporary flight of steps (above).

So now it'll be easier for anyone who want to look at the railway one last time.
After July, it will be out-of-bounds to the public.

Aim at the fly

2011-06-23T15:53:00.005+08:00

Okay, I promise this will be the last of my toilet blogs!
(I know when I gotta go, I gotta go.)

I was at the new Terminal 3 at Changi Airport last week when I took a leak at the toilet near the Basement 3 Food Court.
Inside the mens' urinal, there is a fly near the drain hole. Not a real fly but one that imprinted onto the urinal! The obvious thing a man will do is to pee at the fly.

This simple but brilliant brainwave was created back in 1999 by the staff at Amsterdam Schipol Airport who proved that the little fly improved cleanliness on the floor by 85%.

Now maybe the authorities will have to reword their infamous warning to Fine $500 for not flushing or Shooting the fly!

I was told that a similar problem arises in the ladies with some who 'hover' instead of sitting.
Wonder if anyone can come up with another brainwave for the ladies?

Crappy street food in Taiwan

2011-06-17T15:06:00.006+08:00

In Taiwan, there’s only one thing that stands out for me and that’s their street food.
And when you talk street food, there’s only one place - Shihlin District in downtown Taipei.

On my last trip a few years back, I was brought to my favorite outdoor eating place, but my Taiwanese friends wanted to introduce something different. They brought me to a new concept theme restaurant located there called Modern Toilet.

Yes, you heard right. It’s a restaurant based on a crappy toilet theme.

The décor includes porcelain toilet bowls for seats, sinks for tables, showerheads, shower curtains and other sanitary devices that you normally classify as unmentionables.

Before you get visions of unhygienic or unsanitary or funny smells associated with street food, the theme restaurant is quite pleasant. Food is served on crockery that’s shaped like commodes, urinals and the serviettes are plain toilet rolls, of course.

The menu is divided into 2 sections called Go Poo Poo & Go Pee Pee for food and drinks, and the dessert is ice cream shaped like dog poo served in a squat toilet bowl. The food I remembered was pretty okay though some looked pretty stomach churning.

I didn’t take any photos at the time but I managed to find some and extracted them from the web. (copyright belong to the owners)

Modern Toilet Restaurant Taiwan

You don't need to pull down your pants to sit

Food is served in bowls shaped like 'bowls' of course.
Drinks in urinals. The poo shape is a cover for the soup bowl.

Ice cream in squat toilets! yummy.

Now, this really looks scary! Gives a whole new meaning to curry.

I hear that they are quite successful now and going regional with their franchise.
Besides Taiwan, they can now be found in Hong Kong, Thailand and even Japan.

Flushed with success and their idea didn't go down the drain, I guess.

Asian Toilets

2011-06-15T15:27:00.003+08:00

I was browsing through my old travel photos and came across one I took at Narita Airport in Tokyo. This was of an Asian squat toilet at the modern Terminal 2.

For an occidental person, esp European or American, this must be a unique sight.

Being used to having a seat, it must be extremely uncomfortable even at the thought of squatting to do your business.

And strangely, even if it's just a 'hole' in the ground, there are different manners of using a squat toilet!
The Japanese squat facing the back, i.e. towards the raised portion.
Whereas in other S.E.Asian countries, they face the front.

Not that this matter anyway and it doesn't make any difference to your bowel movement.

It's just a matter of the country's toilet etiquette.

The Japanese toilet flush has 2 options, 'large' and 'small', referring to the amount of water needed to flush away urine or solid matter.

As an Asian, these squat toilets are very familiar to me but more often now, especially in Singapore, these kind of toilets have given way to the pedestal type.
In fact, in my home we only use the pedestal type and I've been living here for the past 26 years.
So even I hardly ever use a squat toilet anymore. If ever I had to use a public convenience, I would still choose a pedestal over the squat.
It's tough on the knees!

Strangely in Japan, while the public conveniences all have squat toilets, their homes and most of all hotels have the latest, modern and most high-tech type of pedestal toilets.

Compared to American or European type where it's simply a functional bowl, the Japanese pedestal toilet come fully equipped with seat warmers, auto flush, auto bidets, spray jets. The latest models even have deodorizers and music to mask body function noises.

By the way, if ever you are in Japan, please note that the public toilets do not provide toilet paper.
It's called a 'toi-re' or more politely if you are asking, ote-arai, meaning hand-washing room.

Here's one safety video you will pay attention to

2011-06-15T00:54:00.000+08:00

The airline safety video usually begins the moment the aircraft is pushed back from the terminal.
Most airlines have a similar video or live demonstration of the safety procedures and features.

However, some passengers, usually frequent flyers, seem to take the instructions for granted and don't watch or listen to the instructions.

Here's how Air New Zealand came up with a video to ensure that passengers will want to watch.
Cute play on the words "Nothing to hide, bare essentials and take a second look"

St Mary Singapore & St Mary Tokyo

2011-06-12T16:57:00.012+08:00

No matter how hard you try to prevent it, there are times when your mind drifts instead of being focused on the event that's actually taking place at the moment.

It happened to me this morning while I was attending Mass at St Mary.

I put it down to certain factors for this happening.

One was that the air conditioning wasn't working properly while the humidity was increasing with almost a thousand faithful in the congregation.

The other was the less than inspired delivery of the homily by the priest.

(mea culpa, no offense meant)

While Franciscan Friar Joe spoke of how the early apostles were inspired during Pentecost, my mind drifted towards the ceiling of the church. There the architect had designed a skylight in the form of a crucifix which lets sunlight into the church.

Skylight at St Mary of the Angels, Singapore

While looking at it, I was reminded of another church which has a similar concept.

St Mary Cathedral in Tokyo is located at Ikebukuro, within walking distance from the Sunshine City Prince Hotel where I usually stay during my visits to Tokyo.

Designed by the great Japanese architect Kenzo Tange, St Mary Cathedral is a beautiful edifice in a cruciform design whose walls soar up to a skylight that lets in natural light to illuminate the interior.

When you enter the cathedral, your eyes are magnetised and drawn to look automatically from the stained glass panels behind the altar towards the skylight at the ceiling.

It never fails to happen with anyone when they first enter the building.

I am sure that this was purposely done by the architect for dramatic effect.

St Mary Cathedral, Ikebukuro, Tokyo

From idle musings about St Mary Cathedral, my mind further drifted to think of some other buildings that I remembered seeing in Tokyo that were all designed by Kenzo Tange.

These are all famous icons not only of Tokyo but of Japan.

Some of the great buildings designed by Kenzo Tange are:-

Fuji TV Building at Odaiba, Tokyo Bay.

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building

Tokyo Olympic Stadium and Gymnasium at Yoyogi Park

The Cocoon Building at Shinjuku

Kenzo Tange also designed the UOB Bank building in Singapore.
Who's that statue at the front? Never mind him, he's just a white man.

Isn't it strange that how in just a minute or two, your mind can stray from the missal to illuminated crosses to cathedrals in Tokyo to Olympic buildings and banks and then back again?

What? Oh, "Let us pray"?

By the way, it might interest you to know that Kenzo Tange died in 2005 and is buried at St Mary Cathedral. It's really worth your while to see this place if you are ever in Tokyo. Better than the usual tourist traps and it's free.

Tokyo Disneyland

2011-03-06T22:09:00.008+08:00

My first visit to Tokyo Disneyland was way back in 2002. Since then, I have been back there a total of 6 times, actually 4 times to Disneyland and twice to the adjacent Tokyo Disneysea. I was reminiscing and browsing some old photos when I came across this....

Pretty mundane, if you think about it, but what struck me were the lines of baby prams and strollers. You have to be there to see this really unique Japanese trait. Somebody parks their stroller in the open space, and pretty soon, everyone follows in neat order. Row after row, like in a car parking lot, except that there are no lines or markings on the floor.

It simply just happens. You notice this happening at all the attractions, rows and rows of neatly parked baby carriages. And these disappear soon after the ride finishes only to be replaced again in short order by the next group of visitors. Amazing! Such discipline.

Here are some photos of Disneyland taken during my last visit in 2008.

Entrance to TDL

Tomorrowland, futuristic pavillons

Space Mountain, indoor roller coaster through the dark universe, scarry!

Cinderella's Castle gift shop, ha ha.

Cinderella's Castle

Cinderella's abode seen from Adventureland tree tops

River ride, do your own rowing!

Musicians

Marching Band

Gift Shop

Diplomacy untangle bottlenecks

2010-11-20T10:44:00.006+08:00

The prime ministers of Singapore and Malaysia had recently resolved the decades old impasse over the KTM railway running across the island of Singapore. This rail line (including 33 feet of land on both sides of the track) literally splits Singapore in half from north to south. From the Causeway at Woodlands right into the heart of Singapore to the station at Tanjong Pagar. The land that the rail sits on belongs to Malaysia, being 'given' by the past colonial government.

This resulted in the most usual immigration clearance found no where else in the world.
By going through the Malaysian immigration point at Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, you legally 'enter' Malaysia without even leaving Singapore . What's more, technically you can 'leave' Singapore and 're-enter' by simply getting off the train at Woodlands without ever leaving the country. What a headache for immigration authorities! Haha.

Hillview Road passing under the RTM railway track

My own personal interest on the event being that, finally after decades, I soon won't be stuck at the bottleneck that is Hillview Road. Hillview Road passes under the KTM railway track but as the land belongs to Malaysia, the road has never been widened ever since it was built.

Over the years the underpass evolved into a major choke point. The 2-lane road, fine as it was when built in the 1950s, became a constriction to the growing development in the area. Hopefully, this will be resolved in July 2011, when the Malaysians return the land to Singapore.

I guess the same goes for 2 other bottlenecks caused by the KTM railway line that I know of.

One is at Sunset Way at Clementi and the other at Hindhede Road near Bukit Timah Hill.

Road constriction at Sunset Way, Clementi.

Bottleneck at its worst at Hindhede Road, 1 lane passable only.

Uniquely Singapore?

2010-03-24T18:07:00.003+08:00

No, this is not about the recent hoopla over the Singapore Tourism Boards' change of tagline from Uniquely Singapore to Your Singapore.

My Japanese friend, Aki Fujiwara-san, the namesake of my blog, was visiting recently and our chat turned to things that we found unique to certain places. I don't mean landmarks like the Eiffel Tower or Statue of Liberty, but more like what is the one significant thing that says you are at a certain place and no where else!

She had asked what is the thing that tells me I am in Tokyo and not in another city?
It's really difficult to pinpoint... Japanese signage? love hotels? trains crisscrossing all over the place?
In the end I settled for building covered in tiles. In Japan, practically every modern building is covered with wall tiles instead of plaster, brick or other materials. It's the uniformity in the great diversity of facades in each Japanese city.

When it came for her to say what she found uniquely only in Singapore, it really surprised me because I guess Singaporeans turn a blind eye to this and it would take foreign eyes to bring this to our attention. And what might this be?

"Lamp-posts in Singapore are all covered with grafitti or marks of it's removal. Yes, EVERY lamp post bears these marks. When I see this, I know I am in Singapore."

I am embarrassed.

Phi Phi Island vlog

2009-12-09T11:26:00.005+08:00

1 December 2009.
Video blog of my trip to Phi Phi Island, Phuket Thailand.

Getting scammed in paradise

2009-11-28T21:20:00.015+08:00

Phuket is no longer the paradise island that it once was.
Ever since the backpackers let it be known back in the 1980s that this was the place to be, everyone wanted a piece of the action.

With over 5m tourist arrivals a year, the flip side is that the same numbers also attract the low life out for a quick buck. These are the scammers, cheats and mafia types who does nothing more than ruin your vacation.

Scams are run all over the world especially in tourist areas. I don't profess to know a lot about them but I've been to Thailand enough times to at least give you a bit of advice in case you are thinking of heading out there.

Taxi and Tuk-tuk scams
Know that the taxis and tuk-tuks in Phuket are all part of some kind of mafia group. They form cartels and one can't simply ply where they like. Areas like Karon, Kata and Patong are 'controlled' by these mafias to the exclusion of others. For example, you can never flag down a taxi on the roadside in Patong. They simply won't (or won't dare) stop for you. You have no choice but to take a tuk-tuk. Unless, of course, you called for one to pick you from your hotel.

The taxi scammers start right from the airport. Woe be you if you arrive without a confirmed hotel booking. Firstly these airport taxi touts charge you a higher rate to take you to your destination or hotel. Once you get into their taxi, they would very nicely inquire if you have a hotel, if not they happened to know of some 'good' hotels. Along the way you would be told that he needs to sign off at his 'office' - 2 mins only, he'll tell you. So happens that his 'office' would be a travel agency where you can get tours or hotel rooms! How fortunate for you!
These guys not only get a commission for bringing you in, but they'll also demand a cut from the hotel where they'll place you. No guessing who will end up paying the extras.

Solution? Do not hire a taxi from the airport touts. Instead, when you arrive at Phuket Airport, head to the right of the Arrival Hall. There is a taxi stand where government licensed taxis called 'Taxi Meter' are waiting. The cost of a Taxi Meter, with their published rates to Patong for example, is 450 THB as compared to at least 600 THB demanded by the touts. Unfortunately, many tourists do not know of the existence of this taxi stand.
Tip: get the Taxi-Meter driver's name card so you can always call him for the return trip to the airport.

When you get to your dream resort, you are now faced with another hurdle. The Tuk-tuks.
In the tourist areas of Karon and esp Patong, the tuk-tuks rule the roost. There is simply no other mode of transport unless you rent a car or motorbike on your own. The government taxis have been muscled out of their turf (some say with official collusion).

The Tuk-tuks not only charge an exorbitant price but many a times you'll end up at places not intended by you. The most common ruse is "Oh, that place is closed today, but I can take you to another temple, restaurant, shop, etc". These guys then take you to places where they get their cut and you the hapless tourist end up paying more for stuff you may not want.

Solution? Insist firmly that you wish to go only where you want, or you'll take another tuk-tuk. Do negotiate the price beforehand and ensure that the price is for the trip and not per person.

Although, I may have made it sound like the entire place is full of scammers, just remember that tourists do get fleeced more easily that others. It might be a bit difficult for you as the place may be unfamiliar. So a bit of read up before the trip is always advised.
Generally, the Thais are friendly and warm but as a visitor, take everything with a pinch of salt.

Other scams I'll try and blog later will include:-
Short changed when using large notes.
Jet-ski scam
Timeshare scams
Hotel - 'only suites are available' scam.
Jewelry shop scams.

Weird and bizarre

2009-10-27T22:53:00.023+08:00

Recently, Discovery Channel featured an Indonesian man who was afflicted by warts that grew out of control and made his limbs appear to be like tree bark and roots. It was really bizarre as he did look half man half tree.

That got me thinking more about strange and bizarre stuff that I had seen over the years on my travels. I started to list some of the weird and perhaps bizarre things i had seen that I might want to blog about. The list went like this...

Mystery Road at Jeju Island, where vehicles roll uphill.
Japanese love hotels. The ultimate in kitsch!
Phallic festivals in Japan.
Thaipusam at Batu Caves (not weird but bizarre penitents)....

Top left - Japanese Love Hotel
Top - Phallus Matusri in Kanagawa Japan
Left - Thiapusam at Batu Caves.

Then it struck me that one of the weirdest and extremely bizarre places can actually be found right here in Singapore! It called the Tiger Balm Gardens a.k.a Haw Par Villa.

Haw Par Villa was built sometime in the 1930s by a philanthropist Aw Boon Haw. On a hillside by the sea (now reclaimed), he built a mansion with a sprawling garden and decorated the garden with dioramas depicting Chinese virtues, tales from folklore and Chinese mythologies.
Thrown open free for public viewing, the Tiger Balm Gardens must have been one of the earliest theme parks here. I still remember being there as a child with my parents in the 1960s. As a child it was already a scary place for me.

What is really weird and bizarre about the place are the statues depicting life, or rather what life would be without religion or virtues. It is a place highlighting human failures and faults. Macabre scenes of hell and punishment dominate the dioramas.

Unfortunately, the Haw Par Villa appears to suffer from an identity crisis. You are not sure what the theme park is all about. It's as though someone with a deranged mind designed the place. You have scenes from Chinese folklore like the Monkey King to the Statue of Liberty, from Japanese Sumo wrestlers to graceful Thai dancers. Scenes of human virtuosity to horrific scenes of gruesome torture. Really weird.

The most infamous of all the dioramas there is the depiction of the Ten Courts of Hell according to Chinese beliefs. Hell seems to be all gore, torture and mutilation. Hey, aren't they dead already? Apparently the dead do still feel pain and the officials in Hell just love to give them more pain. Well, it's hell, right?
Here are some pictures of the weird dioramas.

Sadly today, Haw Par Villa, or sometimes called the Tiger Balm Gardens, is an anachronism.
The statues, themes and gaudy colors just won't cut it with today's generation.
Compared to other theme parks today, with exhibits housed in air-conditioned environment, with multimedia presentations, looking at statues at Haw Par Villa is downright passive and boring.

Previous attempts to update and modernize Haw Par Villa have failed miserably and today it is best served only as a fading memorial to the legacy of the Aw Brothers' philanthropy.

Phuket, Thailand - Video blog

2009-10-18T09:05:00.007+08:00

I am trying now to document all my travels with video. So instead of a descriptive blog, you'll be seeing more video blogs (vlogs). Enuff said..... enjoy the video.

Burasari Patong Resort, Thailand

2009-10-17T08:33:00.004+08:00

I stayed at the Burasari Resort Hotel at Patong in Phuket Island during my last visit to Thailand earlier this month.

This boutique hotel main claim to fame is the Floyd's Brasserie, owned by celebrity chef Keith Floyd. Keith Floyd died in September 2009. I won't be doing a review of the hotel here in my blog as I have already done a review at Tripadvisor. You can read that review here. (Click here).

Simon Cabaret, Phuket Thailand

2009-10-13T17:47:00.008+08:00

The Simon Cabaret is a lavish Broadway style stage show. With elaborate costumes and sets and dance pieces set to music. The great attraction about the Simon Cabaret is that all the performers are transvestites or transgendered. In Thailand, they are called Katoeys, neither male or female but socially accepted as a 3rd gender. The show is similar to the Tiffany Show at Bangkok and Pattaya.

Here is a short snippet. The restriction on cameras and video recording devices during the performances made it a bit difficult to get good pictures. Sorry for that.

No more free stays at Laguna Phuket!

2009-10-09T16:41:00.011+08:00

Exactly a year ago, I posted an article detailing how you can get a free 3D2N stay at the famous Laguna Resort in Phuket. (for that article, click here)

Earlier this week, I was back in Phuket and was passing through the JungCeylon Mall at Patong Beach. There I noticed the Laguna Holiday Club sales booth was still functioning as usual. I was on the verge of actually thinking about getting their free holiday. Paused at the booth, but then I noticed that their freebies for attending their sales pitch had changed.

The 3D2N stay at the resort is no longer available!

They had blocked out this option from their list of freebies. Watch the accompanying video and you can see a white piece of paper blocking out what was once their premier bait to get you to listen to their pitch.

The other freebies were still available though; Laguna tour certificates, 2 rounds of golf at Laguna Golf Club, dining or shopping vouchers, a 90 min spa treatment at Angsana Spa or 2 tickets to the Phuket Fantasea Show and Theme Park. Quite substantial rewards in itself actually.

But no, I didn't stay for their sales pitch on the Laguna Holiday Club timeshare scheme..... well, maybe one day if they re-introduce the 3D2N free stay.

Bukit Batok Nature Park Prequel

2009-09-25T08:20:00.017+08:00

Sep 25, 2009

Having mentioned in my last post about visiting the Bukit Batok Nature Park prior to it becoming a park, I remembered and dug out the few old photos I had stashed away somewhere.
I know my siblings are going to have a field day laughing at the pictures below. These were taken 30 years ago when I was just out from the army and was working as a quality inspector for Mercedes Benz. They show me 30 years younger and maybe also 20 kilos lighter.

My job as a final line quality inspector required that I took the newly assembled cars for a test run, road test we called it. Along the test route, we drove to the abandoned quarry, where the rough track road served as an excellent place to check for rattles from the various car assemblies. Then it was up the slope to Bukit Batok summit where we tested steering alignment by simply rolling down the slope in free gear.

The photos shows Bukit Batok nature park and Bukit Batok hill prior to the re-planting frenzy that NParks Singapore did after they took over. Bukit Batok for years was quite bare and the tower and summit could be seen from afar. Today, it's much better, looking like a forest reserve with all its greenery.

Click on the photo for a larger image

At the abandoned quarry, long before the revamp.

The pond had already started to fill with rainwater and natural runoff.
I reckoned the pond to be about 20-30ft deep.

In the background - Bukit Timah shopping malls and view towards the obscured city.
Forestation was then what we called bulukar secondary forest.

At the bare summit of Bukit Batok with Bukit Timah Hill in the background.
The cliff face in the background was the then active Singapore Granite Quarry.
Upper Bukit Timah Road in the valley divides Bukit Batok from Bukit Timah.

In front of the WWII Japanese Army-built steps. The RTS (Radio and Television Singapore, now Mediacorp) Tower was the original. This was replaced with a newer tower in the 90s.
To know more about the history of these steps, please watch the video from the previous blog entry.

Bukit Batok Nature Park, Singapore

2009-09-22T09:13:00.016+08:00

Tues, Sep 22, 2009

For someone who considers taking a shower exercise, going to the nature park two days in a row must surely be a record of sorts. Walked about 5km in my sandals on Sunday along the Dairy Farm Trail (click here for that blog) and yesterday trekked the Bukit Batok Nature Park in my flip-flop slippers.

Had purposely worn my sandals and slippers, because in these footgear you are forced to walk slowly. In turn, this will give you more time to really appreciate the surroundings. Even made it all the way up to the top of Bukit Batok. Ha ha, had wanted to say 'summit' but it being only 120 metres high, summit sounds so exaggerated.

Bukit Batok Nature Park is just a stone's throw from my home, and yet it would have been the 2nd or 3rd time only that I've been there. The last time I went, my son Jason was about 3 or 4 years old. He's now in his early twenties. Talk about time flying by!

The park was reclaimed and revamped from a dis-used granite quarry by NParks Singapore around 1988 onwards. They've done a magnificent job!

It might interest you to know that I had actually been to the quarry just after it had ceased operations sometime in the early 1980s. I had a job testing new Mercedes cars and one of the test routes took us to the abandoned quarry to test the car for rattle.

Of course, we made plenty of stops at the quarry pond for breaks. The bare granite cliff face was already an awesome sight at that time. Today, vegetation is starting to cover the magnificent cliff.

This is a video I made on my walk yesterday of the Bukit Batok Nature Park. Hope you like it.

Jim Lim, my friend in Cambodia

2009-09-15T22:52:00.013+08:00

Holiday season is here again.
Actually I need to clear my annual leave or it gets forfeited, lol.

So I started planning for my next trip two weeks ago.
T'was supposed to be a short break somewhere nearby.
Penang and Langkawi were on top of the list.
That was, until reports of the continuing regional haze and the H1N1 epidemic relegated Penang and Langkawai to the back burner.

Then it came to the alternatives - Bali, Angkor Wat, or Phuket.
Angkor Wat was in the lead. I'd never been there. But is it safe? landmines?
Fear of the unknown God once forsaken place made me think ...maybe Phuket be better??

But then, been to Phuket too many times already, not so exciting anymore....
But then Phuket has wonderful spas and beaches....
But so has Bali.....
but then Bali is more expensive, further away, and worst of all, all flights in seem to be in the evenings meaning you loose a day.....???
Eeenie, meenie, minnee, moe? scissor, paper, stone?

This morning I made up my mind. The beaches and the spas, and the cheap Thai food, won.
Booked myself a room at the Burasari Resort with a Silkair package thrown in for less than $400. So I was all set.

This evening, my ex boss, ex co-worker and still good friend, Jimmy Lim, posted a note on Facebook. "Finally, I have a Guest House Pub & Restaurant."
Guess where? Siem Reap, Cambodia, just outside of Angkor Wat !!!

Arrrggghhhh!!! Jim, you should've posted your piece yesterday, I shot back at him!
That would have been all the push I needed to determine my holiday destination.
But as Jim said, "No worrries man, next time."

So if any of you are considering a trip to Cambodia, especially to Angkor Wat, please look for Jim at Siem Reap. His address is in one of the photos below, or I can help you get in touch with him.

These are some pictures of Jim's Place in Cambodia taken from his Facebook.

Travel Movies - Tokyo Bay

2009-08-18T17:06:00.009+08:00

Odaiba, Tokyo Bay

Odaiba is an unusual place to visit in Tokyo. Located in Tokyo Bay itself on reclaimed land, Odaiba was touted once as the city of the future. This was until the Japanese economy burst its bubble in the mid 1980s and has never really recovered from that episode. Development in Odaiba had been sputtering all along until recently when it now boasts some pretty sophisticated and futuristic buildings.

I can think of only 2 reasons why anyone would visit Odaiba. First is the Rainbow Bridge, the new icon of Tokyo, and secondly, especially if you are a follower of J-dramas, the Fuji TV Center built by Tange Kenzo. A trip on the driverless train, the Yurikomome, makes the scenic view of Tokyo Bay along the way worth the while.

Baggage claims

2009-08-07T08:58:00.007+08:00

I have been fortunate that in all my travels in the past, I have had only 2 major incidents with my luggage.

The 1st was when my bag was mis-directed and sent to Hawaii while I was coming back from LAX (Los Angeles) on United Airlines. From this incident and from the level of service provided by the airlines, I swore never again by UA!

The 2nd, and more heartbreaking, was a case of folly on my part. Returning from work in Tokyo, I was too lazy to lug my laptop along. In those days, a notebook weighed like it was made from bricks. And I stupidly thought that if I padded it enough and placed it in the middle amongst my clothes, it should be okay. My $2000 NEC never made it back home alive. sob sob.

These are the unglamorous side of flying. The lost luggage and the anxiety waiting at the belt must count amongst others, like tension at the custom check and immigration counters. Luckily I have not had any occasion to make claims against any airlines yet.

One of the great thing of the internet now is the speed at which grievances against bad service is quickly made known. Here is a incident which happened in the USA which sent United Airlines reeling.

Dave Carroll, a musician, was refused boarding unless he checked in his Taylor guitar. Something he had never done with other airlines as the guitar was his bread and butter. United told him simply he can't board if he won't check in the guitar. And guess what happened?
From his window seat, he actually witnessed the baggage handlers throwing his band's instruments on the tarmac, including his guitar!

He spent nearly a futile year trying to get the airline to compensate him for the damage. In exasperation, he decided to make a grievance video and post it on the internet. I must say it is one of the best complaint letters I have ever seen. Here it is from Youtube.

If you can't beat them, befuddle them!

2009-08-02T15:10:00.010+08:00

My son returned from his studies in England this week.
Having to carry all his books and research papers back, his baggage was severely overweight. The limit from BA was 20 kg but his bag was at least 30. He was prepared to pay excess at Heathrow.

At the check-in at Terminal 5, the counter lady had such a strong British accent that he really had difficulty hearing what she was saying. He knew that she was saying the bags were overweight, just that her pronunciations were almost unintelligible.
So he decided to play along by speaking Chinese,

"excuse??" "wat??" "don understand" and even "li kong si mi?" were the only 'english' phrases he used.

And guess what, he didn't have to pay excess and got checked through to his Qantas A380 flight without a hitch!.

Well, at least I know his overseas education is starting to pay off.

Cosplay at Harajuku

2009-07-25T22:06:00.010+08:00

Harajuku district in Tokyo has always been the epitome of youthful exuberance. Off beat, irreverent and often rebellious in nature, Harajuku has a life of its own.

Takeshita dori (street) just opposite the Harajuku train station is the place where this youthful subculture flourishes. Ever-changing and always trend setting, this is where the happenings are.

Cosplay, or costume roleplay, is the activity where the Japanese youth dress up as their anime or manga comic characters. Harajuku is where cosplay events dominates the weekend. The area just south of Harajuku Station is the grand mecca for all things relating to cosplay. This culture has even spread to areas outside Japan, including Singapore which has a large cosplay fraternity.

I shot this video around 2005.
Sorry for the low-resolution as some of you had mentioned the slow downloads.
If you want to see a high res version, click here

How to light up a gas water heater.

2009-07-09T08:44:00.013+08:00

Light up a gas water heater? Why is this in a travel blog, you may wonder?
Just bear with me and all will be evident as you read on.
This little bit of advice may become a life saver for you some day.

Gas water heaters use natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas, as its name implies, to heat water for bathing or other uses.
Unlike a gas stove where you use a lighter or a static spark to ignite the gas, a gas water heater uses a constantly lit tiny little flame to ignite the gas.
This tiny flame, called a pilot light, heats a sensor that detects if the pilot is lit. If it detects that the pilot is lit, the sensor releases gas which ignites and heats the water. If the pilot light is not lit, then the sensor detects that there is no flame and does not release gas to be burned.

Simply, this means that the pilot light must be lit for the heater to work. Therefore, to heat water in a gas heater, you must first light up the pilot lamp. On all heaters there is a button or switch marked Pilot that must be turned on while you put a flame (match or lighter) to the pilot tube. As easy as that.

In Singapore, 99.99% of all water heaters use electricity to heat the water. To work the heater, simply throw the switch on. This probably also means 99.99% of all of us have never turned on a gas water heater before.

Many years ago, I traveled to Germany for a trade convention in a small town. Flying from Changi to Frankfurt, then on a domestic transfer to Saxony took almost 16 hours. This was in late winter and the temperature averaged -10 degrees C outside during the day. Brrrrr.

In that small city, the few hotels available were fully booked up for the convention and so we had to rely on home-stay accommodations. This is very common in Europe where families rent out their spare rooms, or entire apartments, to conventioneers. My colleague and I managed to secure an apartment all to ourselves.

After that long tiring flight, all I wanted was to get cleaned up and off to bed for the night. Got ready for a shower and then, wham! how do you turn on the gas heater???? My colleague and I were stumped by something as simple as not knowing how to turn on a gas heater! Nothing in our lives had prepared us for this situation.

In the dead of winter, there is no greater torture than not having a hot bath. So imagine us desperately needing a shower and the water was near freezing.

If you have never used ice cold water to bathe before, let me tell you that you will never ever want to experience it a second time. Frankly, I can still remember the cold shock, the shudders, the screams and speed which I had to soap and rinse, towel off, get dressed and dive into my blankets to get warm again.

So, if ever you are in a small town in Europe in the dead of winter and the gas heater does not work, light the pilot lamp first!

Travel Movies - Arabian Coast

2009-07-07T22:59:00.005+08:00

Most people know of Disneyland, be it in Anaheim, Paris, Hong Kong or Tokyo, or even their American cousins, Walt Disney World and Epcot Centre. Yet strangely, quite a lot will scratch their heads when you mention Disneysea. Disneysea??? really?

Disneysea is Disney's only water-theme park and is located next to Tokyo Disneyland. The park centers around seven Ports of Call, namely Mediterranean Harbor, American Waterfront, Mysterious Island, Mermaid Lagoon, Arabian Coast, Lost River Delta and Port Discovery.

Rides are based on Indiana Jones's adventures, Jules Verne's 10,000 leagues under the sea, and the little mermaid Ariel, amongst others.

Here's a clip on the Arabian Coast.

Travel Movies - Meiji Shrine, Tokyo Japan

2009-07-05T19:09:00.007+08:00

Within the heart of busy, bustling and fast paced Tokyo lies one of the most serene and peaceful green havens to be found.

This is the Meiji Shrine, located next to Harajuku, built in 1920 to commemorate Emperor Meiji. He was the first emperor of modern Japan, having regained power back from the Shoguns in 1868. It was he who pushed Japan from a feudal country into the modern westernized country that it is today. He was the emperor in "The Last Samurai" who finally defeated all the traditionalist warlords with modern weapons. He died in 1912.

Video was shot in 2004 at the Meiji Shrine featuring a traditional Shinto wedding procession.

Travel Movies - Shinjuku

2009-06-30T16:09:00.010+08:00

Tokyo, Japan

Shinjuku is where the metropolitan government of Tokyo is located.

Also the busiest train station in Japan and a major shopping district.

It has the most vibrant entertainment area in Tokyo.

I'll be posting snippet of various places in Japan, starting with this one of Shinjuku, Tokyo.

My Sydney videos attracted comments that they preferred to see the location instead of my friends, so I am cutting out the personal stuff and just showing you the places.

Travel videos can be quite boring for viewers, especially if you can't relate to the people in it, I guess. Anyway, enjoy the coming series. Drop me a comment if you wish.

Taking the mickey out of your guided tour

2009-06-29T17:53:00.015+08:00

I have never been on a guided tour.

More precisely, I have never been on a packaged group tour before.

With all the negatives you hear over the years about group packages, I still wonder why people would want to join those.

I guess it could be the worry of being in an unfamiliar place, of not knowing what to do or where to proceed that makes a lot of people join these tours. Then of course, there are those who prefer everything to be arranged for them without the hassle of doing it themselves. Convenience, I guess, is the word. That's the trade off for losing a lot on your tour.

All of my travels have been as a Free and Independent Traveller (FIT), or as we say here, Free & Easy. (Just for your info, the term F&E may not be understood by people outside Singapore)

Being free to plan my own itinerary gives me the freedom to do what I want, when I want it and for how long. As opposed to being with a group tour, where you are constantly herded and sent to places where they want to take you and where they get the best commissions from the retailers.

Let's face it, the tour guides are all part of the same circle in the tour trade. I scratch your back, you scratch my back. Of course, they will take you to those itinerised places as promised, but notice how the focus is a lot on taking you places to make purchases? bargain shopping? You are really left with minimal time to sightsee those places on the itinerary.

For example, a lot of my friends who have been to Disneyland have not stayed there beyond sundown. That's usually because of their tight program, they are rushed to another place, or to check into another hotel for the night, or for dinner, et cetra, etc. Sad to say, places like Disneyland do offer a lot of spectacular events at night, like laser light shows, fireworks and floats, which a lot of group tours may not get to see. You have to follow their schedule, alas.

For those of you who may have had the experience of the above, here's a short clip on Disneyland's night parade called Disney Electrical Parade Dreamlights. If you missed that at Disneyland, I am sure you would have also missed a lot on your guided packaged tour too.

Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras

2009-06-28T16:41:00.016+08:00

I have many Australian friends and all the time they revel in telling me that Australia is the Lucky Country, with its laid back attitude and their belief that nobody should work on weekends. Weekends are for family, friends and the BBQ.

The 1st time I travelled to Sydney was about 15 years ago. And so, with that in mind, I really had such a shock when I first arrived early one Sunday morning.

On the taxi ride to my hotel at Darling Harbour, I saw people drunk and literally lying all over the roadside and in the public spaces. Groups of young people, older folks, guys and girls decked out in costumes and loitering all over the city. My first thought was "Oh my god! the sydneysiders do really take their Saturday nights seriously!" They were everywhere, smashed and plastered, with tons of Fosters and XXXX beer cans littered everywhere!

When I told my business partners later that morning, they had a huge laugh and said that I had just missed the greatest party that Sydney celebrates every year. The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.

The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras started off in the late 70's as a gay pride protest movement which has since developed into the biggest gay & lesbian event in the world. Held each year in Feb or March, the event gives a significant boost to the economy of Sydney each year. People from all over the world, straight or otherwise, travel there to be part of the event. I'm told Sydneysiders make a beeline in the opposite direction during Mardi Gras weekend!

It is a time for the gay community to show off. Closet gays and lesbians come out in droves and are all socially accepted. The aim seems to be "let yourself go, be who you really are and enjoy life"

Thus, it was that, when my friends wanted to visit Sydney, I made sure that we travelled during the time when the Mardi Gras was on. It is a party not to be missed. In fact, you can describe it as the Mother of all Parties. Google it and see what you have been missing.

With all that said, I now present the 4th part of my Sydney Trilogy. See! I so clever, know how to squeeze 4 episodes into a trilogy, ha ha. (By the way, I managed to do it in 4 parts not 5, so I'll spare you some pain from watching my boring home movies.)

In this last part, we took a cruise around beautiful Sydney Harbour, watched a cultural show and, of course, became part of the Mardi Gras event. Enjoy

Travel Movies - Sydney Part 3

2009-06-28T14:49:00.007+08:00

Part 3 takes us to the Bay areas. Rose Bay, Double Bay & Watson's Bay are the more well known shores in Sydney Harbour. Sydney does possess one of the most beautiful harbour anywhere and it was formed eons ago when the Pacific Ocean broke through what is know today as The Gap. You may remember The Gap from Mission Impossible III which was filmed there.

From The Gap, we proceed to Bondi Beach. Famous for being the beach 5 minutes from the city. You can go for a swim during your lunch hour! Bondi is filled with sun-worshippers daily. Movie clip has fleeting scenes of nudity and if you are a minor, please skip the movie.

Here is Part 3.

The clip ends at The Rocks, the area first settled by the English settlers. This is now a conservation area and the best place to buy Australian native products, especially opals.

Can you really afford to eat here ???

2009-05-14T09:29:00.018+08:00

I work at the frontline serving customers. There are times when it is a pleasure to serve them but a lot of times they can be very trying. And there are times when we do make mistakes, sometimes unknowingly.

So you'd think when others make mistakes you would be more forgiving? Hmmm, I wonder..? A funny service gaffe occurred last night while I was at the mall.

I had just come from withdrawing some money from the ATM. Felt a bit peckish but didn't want to have a full meal. So I decided on a burger.

"I'd like a mushroom swiss double burger, please". "Just the burger?" asked the auntie at the counter. "Yes, please."

"The burger is $5.25!" she said with a slightly cynical look.
I looked at her for about 2 exquisite seconds. I knew what she meant.
She was trying to put across that if I were to pay another $1.05, I would get a drink and fries as well. But that mean mischievous streak in me started to rear its head.

Dramatically, I started to look myself all over, pretending to see if my shirt was dirty, smelly or full of holes. Then in a purposefully manner, took out my wallet and pretended to count the stack of 50s that I had just withdrawn, making sure the auntie saw it!

"Ahh, yes,,,, I think I can afford a burger tonight, thank you."

The auntie, with what you'd called a priceless look on her face, then realised what she said was a big blunder. Served her right for embarrassing me at the queue.

"Will that be dine-in or to go?"
" Take-away please"
I was sure she was thinking Go, go, get away as quick as possible.

I was mean. mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.
Just having some fun with the service staff ha ha.

Creepy walkabout

2009-04-29T08:45:00.014+08:00

Fort Siloso, Sentosa

Fort Siloso gives me the creeps. It may appeal to war history buffs, gun buffs or military types but for people like me who just happened to stray inside out of curiosity, the place is really creepy, more so 'cos I was alone.

It's a war museum relating to the capitulation of the British in Singapore and the occupancy by the Japanese during WWII. Built around the former British Army gun fort at the western end of Sentosa, Fort Siloso is the only restored fort left in Singapore. Albeit, the restoration was quite nicely done but it looks more like a park than a fort now. Too much vegetation.

Remembering that the place used to be called Blakang Mati (death behind you), and knowing that soldiers fought and died there, and with lots of old pictures showing you macabre scenes of the war, the whole atmosphere is really morbid.

It gets worst when you descend into the tunnel complexes! Boy, then it gets really really creepy. Dark, dank, smelly and full of twists and turns, your mind wanders and the hair at the back of your neck begins to stand . You worry that you will get lost and won't be able to find your way out, or worst meet the ghosts of the former POWS in there! That's the feeling you get wandering underground in the tunnels.

I'm not too sure of this place or what's it supposed to be, a gun museum or a replica of the old fort? In the end it appears to be a bit of both, sigh.

Here are some pictures I took of the guns there. Click for a larger image if you really want to, haha.

At least there's a myth I learned that was broken... We all know of the infamous " ...guns that pointed South when the Japanese invaded from the North..."
The guns at the fort were in fact rotated and pointed north to pummel the Japanese army during the Battle of Singapore in 1942. Token action a little too late.

31 flavors at Baskin Robbins is passe!

2009-04-19T19:36:00.016+08:00

The temperature today was a sweltering 33 degrees indoors!
I am a sucker for real ice cream and there nothing better on a hot day than digging into a tub of cold sweet delicious ice cream. Was doing just this when it struck me that I never did tell you all of the weirdest ice cream place you can imagine.

At the Sunshine City Complex in Tokyo, where I usually stay at the adjacent Prince Hotel, there is a theme park right within the shopping mall itself.
Namco Namjatown, which was set up by the japanese video game manufacturer, is not the usual outdoor roller coaster type amusement park. It has several distinct attractions like Gyoza Stadium, serving all kinds of gyoza from all over Japan, video game world with the latest Namco video games, a haunted town area, and best of all... Ice Cream City!

There are about a dozen or so shops each selling various types of ice-cream, each unique in its own way. The Japanese call them Gelato instead of ice cream.

There are endless shelves and freezers full of freshly made creameries with all kinds of flavors imaginable.

Ok, the place is not weird but some of the flavors available can really freak you out.
The variety of flavors run the entire gamut available. If you are just a vanilla, chocolate or strawberry fan, then you will be sorely disappointed with what they can offer you.

Garlic, wasabi, pumpkin, really black and gooey sesame, tuna, octopus, squid, sea urchin and believe or not cow tongue flavor! And that's just for your appetizer.

Then there's miso, ramen, sakura flower, lavender, seaweed, curry, soya sauce and horrors, basashi - horse meat! I kid you not!
If you can get over your initial revulsion (and maybe prejudices), then Ice Cream City is more than just an 'amusing ' place to be.
By the way, I had my favorite pistachio, wrapped in nori seaweed and crepe, Japanese style.
Yes, they do sell the usual flavors too.

Sea Urchin ice cream, anyone?

Flavor of the month... COW TONGUE ICE CREAM!

Just another of the quirky stuff you find in Tokyo.
And people wonder why I always go back there. hahahaha.

Tokyo Feb 09.

2009-03-07T12:14:00.029+08:00

This was meant as a draft but I guess I'll just put everything here till I get some time to organize and write a bit more about it. These are some of the events (using the term that my pictures were organized automatically by my iMac's iPhoto program.) that I went to on my trip to Tokyo last month.

Jizo statues. Originally, Jizo was venerated as the guardian saint of aborted, still born or miscarried babies. These statues are sometimes accompanied by little piles of stones, or wearing bibs or baby clothings left by grieving parents.

Tokyo Tower, 333m tall and icon of modern Tokyo. Elevator crush to get visitors to the mid-250m level. 3 elevators only moving thousands up and down everyday. Sigh.

Akihabara - All things weird and wonderful

2009-03-05T15:33:00.019+08:00

Akihabara Electric Town, Japan

Akihabara, nowadays shortened to Akiba, is the gravitational center of all things you imagine the modern unconventional japan that is. Especially if you think electronics, gadgets, anime, cosplay, maid cafes, internet and all things that are weird and typically Japanese in nature.

Remember the time when Sony introduced the Walkman? Walk Man? The mind boggled at the 'japaneseness' of this word. Today we understand instantly but back when it was launched, you wondered whether to laugh or cry at the mangling of such terms.

And this is what Akiba is all about. Here in this city within Tokyo, the Akihabara Electric Town is the epitome of Japanese quirkiness.

The main focus in this place is consumer electronics. You find the latest gadgets here long before it is introduced to the rest of the world.
I remembered back in 2002 when we were still selling normal 29" and 34" large CRT TVs (I work for an electronic retail store) and had just begun selling 14" & 21" LCD TVs, our jaws dropped when we saw whopping 42" LCD TVs being sold here! Hitachi it was, I can still recall.

Today, Akiba has evolved from purely electronics to the internet and video gaming arenas and more especially into the center of the anime revolution. Anime is the Japanese form of cartoons and animation. And this place continues to evolve, with maid cafes being the current craze.

Here in Akiba are found all the unusual things that you would normally only fantasize about out. Almost everything you want can be found in about 400 to 500 stores surrounding the Akihabara train station. Building after building, each 7, 8 or 10 floors tall, all catering to a certain aspect of the electronic trade.
I went into Pockets, the store you see in the picture above top left (under the bridge). It sold nothing but used Apple products, all re-conditioned and looking new. G4 Macs were going for only US$300!

However, not everything is computer related. The building next door called Merci Love is an adult store with 8 floors of paraphernalia ranging from truly unmentionables for all your wildest fetishes to adults toys. to new as well as used uniforms and used underwear. (Whatever for, I'll leave that to your imagination)

Akihabara is that quirky side of Japan that you want to see. There is really nothing in the world that comes close to its uniqueness.

Postcards on my blog?

2009-03-04T22:04:00.016+08:00

My sister Sue was browsing through my latest blog entries and commented that my photos were suspiciously like postcards. Postcards?? Postcards!!!??? I am sure she meant it as a compliment.

Well, I do admit that about half a dozen pictures in my blog don't belong to me but credit has been given to its rightful owners. But most definitely all the others photos are NOT postcards scanned and inserted.

All these were taken by me with my trusty little Casio 10 megapixel EX-Z200 digital camera. I used to dabble in photography with my Nikons and Canons but that was in the days of celluloid films. Today I just carry as small a camera as possible which is wonderful for traveling.

On the other hand, I do readily admit that all my pictures are doctored, or in today's terminology, photoshopped.

And why not? It's not cheating or deception. There's a whole host of programs out there you can use to enhance, embellish and correct all your mistakes prior to letting the whole world look at your pictures. I'd rather look at photos that are nice and presentable than to look at boring raw footage.

I've been using Photoshop since it was called Photoshop ver. 3 back in the 1980's. And I can tell you that all major magazines of supermodels from Sports Illustrated to Vogue have been photoshopped. In the old days it was called airbrushing.

Enhancing your photos not only gives you the satisfaction of perfecting your lousy shots but also, I am sure, reduces the pain for those you present it to for viewing.

For example, some of the pictures from my last couple of postings against the original raw digital photos....

Original ------------------------ Photoshop

Original -------------------------------Photoshop

Original ------------------------Photoshop

Some of the obvious mistakes we amateur photographers all make are capturing too much details, buildings that are tilted and not vertical and the horizon not being leveled. These are very common mistakes which with a little manipulation can make the picture so much better.

So there, Sue, definitely no postcards here. But with a little photoshop magic you can make your pictures to look like postcards.

Sakuratei- Finding a gem in Tokyo

2009-03-03T15:11:00.013+08:00

Harajuku, Tokyo, February 22, 2009

Since my last posting about dining on Monjayaki back in Sep 08, the truth was that I had not had this dish despite the number of trips I've made back to Tokyo since then.

Thus, it was to the greatest of satisfaction that I found Sakuratei in the back street area of Harajuku. This delightful little restaurant, with its youthful and friendly servers, may be a little off the usual beat for tourists at the moment. But as Harajuku is still spreading from the main Omote-sando and Takeshita-dori areas into the back lanes, this restaurant will soon, no doubt, be right in the midst of the growing Harajuku cultural area.

Sakuratei is located right at the edge of the residential area. I had found the place after walking right through Takeshita-dori, that youth and fashion mecca street, and into an entirely new area which I had yet to venture, and was on the verge of turning back when I spotted this semi-hidden gem.

There are about 20 tables which can can seat 2-6 persons and their specialties are Monja-yaki and Okonomi-yaki. The decor is fun and youthful in keeping with the Harajuku culture.

They have an excellent menu which, because I was gaijin (foreigner), was given to me in the English version. Accompanying this menu were also instructions on how to cook your monja-yaki. Nothing could have been easier.

Cooked Monja-yaki (..I hope!!)

In my previous posting on recommending you to try Monja whilst in Tokyo, I would now specifically direct you to this gem of a restaurant in Harajuku. You won't be intimidated by the strangeness of this Tokyoite dish here and I can assure you that it is delicious. Goes along great with some sake or beer.

Crossing outside Harajuku Station

Ghibli Museum, Mitaka

2009-03-02T17:24:00.016+08:00

Even if you've not heard of Studio Ghibli, you might have in fact seen some of their anime. These include the 2002 Oscar winning animation, Spirited Away, or more recently, Ponyo by the cliff over the sea.

Since the 1980s, they have been producing classics like My Neighbor Totoro, Howl's Moving Castle, Laputa:Castle in the Sky, Kiki's Delivery Service, Nausicaa and Graveyard of the Fireflies.

If you have not, then you might want to watch this short compilation for a quick overview of the genius of Hayao Miyazaki and his Studio Ghibli films.

Please Click on the picture if the top Youtube clip didn't appear.

On my recent trip to Tokyo, I just had to make a trip to the Ghibli Museum. It was almost like a pilgrimage to see the holy of holies where Miyazaki dispenses out his blessings on the world in the form of Totoro, Kiki, Ponyo and the likes.

Ghibli Museum is located in the city of Mitaka, about 15 mins out of Tokyo by rapid express train. To gain entrance to the Museum, an advance ticket purchase is required. Strangely, the tickets can only be ordered through the Lawson convenience stores using their Loppi ticket machines! For those who can't read japanese, it can be quite intimidating I tell you, but luckily, the Lawson store clerks were only too happy to help out bewildered gaijins like me!

Inside the Museum. Photography not allowed! hee hee.

Entrance to the Museum

The gardener Robot from Laputa:Castle in the sky.
It looks after the garden on the Museum rooftop.

Salariman's domain - Ikebukuro japan

2009-03-02T12:52:00.015+08:00

Ikebukuro, Tokyo Japan

This area was largely unknown to the tourist trade, being home to smaller corporations and suburban workers or salariman (salaried employees) as is commonly called by the Japanese.

However, Ikebukuro (pronounced Ee-ke-bu-kro) actually has the 2nd busiest train station in Tokyo after Shinjuku and is the terminal for the Narita Express and subways like the Ginza and Yurakucho lines. Deviously, the train station was built by 2 major departmental stores, the Seibu and the Tobu, built directly above the tracks. These are humongous stores where you can literally get lost within. You are fed directly off the train platforms into the department stores with its enticing sales and food outlets. Talk about retaining customers!

Over the past years, Ikebukuro has come into its own and is now a tourist mecca due to lower prices here than in more popular localities like Shinjuku, Shibuya or Ginza. More so, with the construction of more mega-malls like the Sunshine City, Amlux Toyota showroom, Louis Vuitton showroom, Mitsukoshi and Parco department stores. Yet, it still retains an old charm of Japanese culture with its myriad small neighborhood shops.

Ikebukuro at night

Amlux building houses the Toyota Showroom and Museum.
A must see destination for sporting and car enthusiasts.

Family Mart is just one of the several convenience store located all over Tokyo.
Commonly known as 'conben'. Others are 7-11, am~pm and Lawsons.
Buying your necessities from these stores saves you lots of money.
You can also have meals within most stores.

Japanese goods store in Sunshine City mall

A Pachinko & Gaming parlour.

A Discount Store with its typical Japanese signages.

Back from my hiatus

2009-03-02T11:58:00.013+08:00

Tokyo, 21st - 25th February 2009

It's been a while since my last posting... 3 months i guess...writer's block, sloth, lazy or whatever. I just couldn't get around to putting my thoughts into the blog.

Just got back from another visit to Tokyo. 21st to 25th February. Temperatures there averaged 5 deg Celsuis. Nice and cold.

As usual, booked into the Sunshine City Prince Hotel.
"Irrashaimasse. Welcome back, Mr Tann."
Well, things already starting to look good if they greet you like that. Of course, being a member of the Prince Club International entitles you to some privileges at their chain, but better was yet to come. If you do travel, I'd encourage you to sign up for any in-house programs. It doesn't cost you anything and you always benefit from it.

"We've given you a room on the top panorama floor, 37th floor, Room 3732. We hope you enjoy your stay with us."
The 34th to 37th floors of the Sunshine City Prince are the executive floors. Although having the same tiny room size as the others, the amenities are a little better. You get little niceties like real drip coffee, a Simmons pocketed spring bed, better toiletries like shaving foam and facial cleansers, and even branded soap and shampoo from Pola Cosmetics. Small stuff but it makes you 'feel' better, hmmm. And the ubiquitous Japanese automatic toilet!

And then, of course, there's the view of Tokyo from that height.
Unfortunately, Ikebukuro is not Shinjuku or Roponggi with iconic views of Tokyo. It's a 'suburban' sprawl, if there's such a thing within Tokyo. The place is so massive that there's no demarcation from one area to another. I am beginning to really like the place and this trip gave me the full opportunity to explore every nook and cranny there.

The view of Ikebuburo, Tokyo from the 37th floor of Sunshine City Prince Hotel.
Click on the picture for a detailed view.

Toileteries from Pola Cosmetics in the bathroom

Japanese auto toilet.
You just do what comes naturally and it does the rest for you,
including warming the seat. ha ha.

Only the air is free, pay for everything else.

2008-11-08T16:49:00.024+08:00

The Equinox @ Swissotel, Singapore.

It was the Thai beef broth I had for lunch. Their custom of using sugar, salt, spicy and sour in their cuisine had left my throat slake the whole afternoon. Even the two cups of Cappucino at Cedele Raffles City wouldn't quench my thirst. I desperately needed water by the time I arrived at the Equinox with my dinner date.

We arrived just as the restaurant opened and apparently they had just turned on the air-conditioning. It was still stuffy and warm inside, adding to my discomfort.

" Could I have a glass of water please?"
"Will that be still or sparkling?"
" Tap will be fine"
"I am sorry, sir, we don't have tap water."
" You wash your dishes with sparkling water?
Ok, nevermind. Could you tell me where I can find the Gents please?"

Despite what you hear about the waters here being recycled from the sewers, tap water in Singapore exceeds WHO standards and is safe to drink!

The Equinox is located on the 70th floor of the Swissotel complex, which was once the tallest hotel in the world, but now only holds the title for South East Asia. It was my 2nd visit in as many months there.

Personally, I think the place is overrated and is not value for money for the food. I was there only because I owed my dinner date a treat and she had not been up to the top level before.
Dinner was Black Angus steak and Coconut Chicken Soup with Cloudy Bay wine to complement the meal. And yes, we did order still water later, after all.

What makes the dining worthwhile is the view you get from the 70th floor. Go early before dark and you get to see the sky and city lights changing before your eyes.

click on any picture for a larger image

For the curious, the round thing sitting on top of the building seen clearly in the bottom left photo is rumoured to be the getaway spacecraft in case of an alien attack on Singapore. It's reserved for the Men In White who curiously all work within the vicinity of that building. You can read more of that alien technology rumours at this satirical website.

But caveat emptor!
(wow, this word sure is being abused these days with the banking guys having to find excuses for the big debacle in the financial crisis.)
And I use this here because while you are taking in the view at the Equinox, they are laughing all the way to the bank!

You have to pay to see the view from the top. At $20 a pop!
This is entered into your dining bill.

At the top of the bill, it says "Window seat $20"! @$*#%#!
Hey, I sat facing inside the restaurant, doesn't that mean I should get a discount??

.

Shopping Streets - Kiyomizuzaka & Sannenzaka

2008-10-25T21:39:00.017+08:00

Kyoto, Japan.

In eastern Kyoto, when you visit the Kiyomizu Temple (a World Heritage site not to be missed !), you will definitely pass these 2 shopping streets. These are the 2 stone paved streets that lead up to the temple compound and has been the only way for worshipers and tourists alike for past 400 years.

These streets have been around since the temple was founded and have houses lining both sides that are still typically japanese shophouses. Most are wooden and in keeping with the traditional outlook of the whole area. Thank God for that.

And this is what makes the place unique. You seemed to have been transported back in time and actually expect or hope to see samurais round the corner! Japanese residents in yukatas and Maikos in kominos still occasionally trod through cobblestone pavements. You know you are in Japan and you imagine "This is what Japan should be like!"

Although catering mainly to the tourists, these streets provide a unique glimpse into the Japanese way of life. Souvenirs are not the usual tacky shopping mall stuff (though it's also there) but you get offerings of many traditional Japanese goods like handmade parasols, fans, pottery & kyoto dolls. And this makes the world of difference to other shopping streets, even of those in japan.

One thing you must sample are the various types of Japanese cookies, yatsuhashi. These are all prepared in the traditional manner and are the usual omiyagi (gifts) which the Japanese themselves give to their friends and colleagues to mark their visit to that place.

Searching through the narrow alleyways and side streets along the steep incline will also reward you with unique japanese inns, cafes, and horrors, vending machines shops. Luckily, these ugly symbols of Japanese life are not so obvious here!

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

2008-10-18T11:59:00.016+08:00

ROTFLOL ! It's the funniest thing I've read in a long time.
What made it more incredible was that it was stated by the country's Home Minister during their Parliament session. Yup, it's official.
Here's how it was reported in the local press....

Friday October 17, 2008
Policemen beat a retreat

KUALA LUMPUR: A police beat base located in the Chow Kit area of downtown Kuala Lumpur has been shut down because the “presence of criminals could make it unsafe for police officers". Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said the beat base was located in a dirty area where police faced the possibility of being exposed to contagious diseases. The presence of criminals also posed a threat to the safety of police officers.

He said this in a written reply to Dr Lo’ Lo’ Mohamad Ghazali (PAS - Titiwangsa). Dr Lo’ Lo’ had asked why the beat base along Jalan Haji Taib was closed considering that vice activities were high in the area. She also wanted to know what kind of action had been taken by the police to curb vice activities in the Chow Kit area. Syed Hamid said police were in the midst of finding a new location for the beat base.

In an immediate response City Chief Police Officer Deputy Comm Datuk Mohd Sabtu Osman said the beat base was not shut down but had been relocated to bigger premises near Jalan Raja Bot. “We moved there to provide better service as we have increased our manpower and need more space,” he said. Dr Lo’ Lo’s question was the 30th in the Order Paper and hence did not get a mention in the House during the daily one-hour Question Time.

However, Dr Mohd Hatta Ramli (PAS - Kuala Krai) managed to raise the matter when he interjected during Azmin Ali’s (PKR - Gombak) speech during the debate on Budget 2009. Dr Mohd Hatta said that if the police themselves felt unsafe in a beat base, it would be even worse for the public. “Maybe it would be better to put the beat base in the army barracks.”
Dr Mohd Hatta then managed to raise the issue again during his own debate on Budget 2009 saying that Syed Hamid’s response was irrational and hoped he would clarify his written answer as this was not the kind of police the people wanted. “The police are there to make a place safe. If they themselves are scared and run away, how can we hope for others to want to be there?” he asked. Dr Mohd Hatta said if the place was dirty, it was up to the police to organise gotong-royong activities to clean it up. He added the only kind of contagious disease in the area was sexually transmitted, adding that getting infected was a matter of choice.

Copyright _ 1995-2008 Star Publications (M) Bhd (Co No 10894-D) Managed by I.Star

The cops gotta move out because the place seems to be infested with not only with unsavoury elements but also contagious diseases. Notwithstanding, the natural fear of criminals, maybe the cops have been too fraternizing with the locals in the red-light district??? Well, guess it's all in the kampong spirit of gotong-royong*.

*gotong-royong=malay language, for community self-help programs

How to get a free resort stay in Phuket, Thailand

2008-10-16T11:24:00.019+08:00

.Pristine sand beach at Phuket

Seriously, there is a way to get a free 3D2N stay at a 5 star resort at Phuket, Thailand. What's more, it's nothing less than the renowned Laguna Resorts at Phuket! The Laguna resort complex comprise 6 major resorts including the Banyan Tree, Dusit Laguna, Sheraton Grande, Allamanda Resort and Laguna Beach Resort.

The only catch is that you got to sit through a presentation on the Laguna Holiday Club scheme while you are already at one of the associated Laguna resorts. Yes, that scary word... Timeshare!

I first heard about this when I was in Phuket in 2005, exactly 6 months after the devastating tsunami. Rates were understandably at rock bottom. I had a suite for only S$350 at the Dusit Laguna and this included the Silkair return flight! The Dusit Laguna resort was in the direct line of fire by the tsunami but by then it had been substantially repaired, though there were still signs of the devastation in that area, but that's another story...

Dusit Laguna Resort after the tsunami 2005

Anyway, how do you get that free stay?
This is how: whenever you stay at a Laguna associated resort anywhere, you will receive a welcome call from the Holiday Club inviting you to a presentation of their timeshare scheme. This high pressure, albeit, no obligations talk lasts 2 hours but you will be rewarded for your time with an offer of a substantial lunch or dinner, or a US$100 shopping voucher, or a 3D2N stay at one of the Laguna Resorts in Phuket.

It was on the day of my departure and as I had time to spare, I agreed to listen to their talk. Truthfully, they were nice, professional, persistent but not too overbearing. In the end, I opted for the free lunch, as I was already in Phuket and had no thoughts of returning anytime soon.

So if ever you are at the Angsana Spa Resort or the Banyan Tree in Bintan, just attend the Holiday Club presentation and you will get a free 3D2N stay at a Laguna Phuket resort. You just need to make your own way there.

By the way, this is not a paid blurb for the holiday club scheme, ha ha, but I wouldn't mind another free stay at Phuket though. Click on the link here and drool.
Sawasdee.

Freezing Beer in an instant

2008-10-06T15:45:00.005+08:00

What has this to do with a travel blog???
Well, actually nothing but these are some tips you pick up when you travel around, and end up at foreign watering holes with nothing better to do.

This is a method on how you can freeze beer instantly. Any beer will do but I am using the clear bottled Corona so that you can see the actual freezing process happen in front of your eyes. It's not a trick.

What to do when you are not travelling II

2008-10-06T15:00:00.004+08:00

If you had seen my attempt at the coke trick in my earlier posting, just wanted to say that the illusion was done correctly except that the videography wasn't too good then.
But you won't believe the comments I received from doubting Thomases!
Anyway, here's another attempt and i hope you can see it better this time. Enjoy.

Setting off the airport sensors

2008-09-29T14:36:00.012+08:00

The last three trips I made this year had me setting off the airport security sensors.
It happened once at the Budget Terminal, once returning home from Tokyo Narita and once at Phuket. The reason?

Gory, isn't it !!!
That's the platinum implants in my spine to correct the slipped disc problems I had last year.

Got the X-rays off my doctor today when I went for that 'see me in 6 weeks' consultation. And the prognosis? "Nothing seems wrong, continue with the medication, acupuncture and come back in 2 months."

The screws and pins will make the 2 vertebrates fuse in about 2 years time.
Medically, it's termed as L4 and L5. This is the most common place where slipped discs occur. It's there permanently and need not be removed. I hope.

And it's what's been tripping off the sensors each time I pass through the security panels at airports. I get stopped every time and each time when they do a manual scan on me, they always think it's my belt buckle that set it off. Of course, I'm not going to bother telling them my medical history, so long as I get passed.

Strangely, it had never happened at Changi Airport; not counting the Budget Terminal.
Hmmm, I wonder?

A painful trip

2008-09-16T19:06:00.015+08:00

Warning: The accompanying picture may make you squirm!

On August 10th, 2008, exactly 10 months to the day that I had my spinal operation, my bliss ended with a most unpleasant trip. This trip unfortunately brought back nothing but pain.
This wasn't a trip to anywhere. I tripped and fell, sprawled flat on my face.

First thing I did was to check that everything's OK.
No problem, up and atom.

Then five days later, the pain down my right leg was so bad that my ortho specialist had to give me a fast pass to his office. X-rays showed nothing out of place. Everything was intact. The surgery was healing well. The platinum implants were still secured but the pain was still excruciating. Maybe just a contusion, said Prof Hee, I'll give you some painkillers, see me back in six weeks time. Total damage: $85 for the x-rays, $120 for the consultation and $35 for the painkillers...see me in 6 weeks! hello?

For the next two weeks, the pain became really unbearable. I simply couldn't get out of bed without pain shooting down the length of my leg. But the strange thing with this daily morning ritual was that once I managed to get up and about, the pain slowly diminished and after an hour or so, I was able to walk almost normally.

Finally, on the advise or more like threats from the missus, I decided to seek adjuvant treatment. This was to the neighbourhood sinseh for acupuncture! This young China trained practitioner, Dr TK Neo, at Bukit Batok Funan TCM had treated me last year before my surgery.

Four days after the acupuncture treatment, the pain was completely gone! I just couldn't believe it myself but I was so relieved.
Went for a second session today just to touch all bases.
And the cost? just $20! Take that NUH!

This is a picture of me undergoing acupuncture today. It's not a pretty picture (see the big tummy?). Total of 17 needles. Six on the legs, one each on the head and hand, and the rest on the tummy! ouch!!

Argghhh!!! that's really me! Ouch Ouch Ouch!

By the way, here's something really funny to watch......
It's in Teochew even.

I'll drink to that !

2008-09-11T18:04:00.013+08:00

For years, the accepted view on drinking whilst in flight has been that you will get drunk more easily due to the high altitude, cabin pressure, changing time zones , etc.
Well, all that's been debunked now with the studies conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration and reported by The New York Times, Sept 1st, 2008 (click here for the article)

In that study, researchers tested subjects in simulated high level and ground level conditions. They found NO difference in blood alcohol levels.

This means that you won't get any more lightheaded in flight than you would on the ground.

And all these years I've been holding back! Reports of dehydration, air sickness due to excessive alcohol intake must have been a ploy by the airlines to lower costs and maximise profits! hee hee.

So the next time the stewardess asks "coffee or tea", take the Dom Perignon. Afterall, it's still free and with the rising fuel costs, who knows how much longer that will last.

Just hope that the pilots didn't read the New York Times article.

Monja at the Ginza

2008-09-07T18:42:00.019+08:00

Flashback to 1996.

You know how you sometimes get flashes of nostalgia?
I had just picked up my Japanese dictionary when out popped a photograph which I had all but forgotten about.
It was a group picture taken in 1996 at the Dai-ichi Ginza Hotel in Tokyo.
Well, this picture sure brought back some memories.

We were the official delegation sent by the Singapore government's then Trade Development Board (TDB) to showcase Singapore at the Japan Data Show, a major Japanese IT convention.

I was there to present a video conferencing system using PCs over the ISDN telephone connection. (The internet was too slow at that time to do real video conferencing)

There were 4 delegates, Raphael & Thomas (centre) and Winston (at right) accompanied by Karen Tan, the TDB officer. The gentlemen with the ribbons on their lapels were the commercial secretaries from the Singapore Embassy in Tokyo.

For most of us in the group, it was either the 1st or 2nd time in Tokyo. It was only my 2nd visit and at that time I could hardly manage more than a few simple phrases in Japanese. So imagine us trying to sell technical products in a country where the people hardly spoke English! Thank goodness we were assigned interpreters for the trade show.

The Japanese are very strict time keepers and the Data Show ended promptly each day at 5. This meant we actually had a lot of time visiting places in Tokyo after the show. One of the places we went to was the Ginza, where we had a most unusual dining experience.

Winston, who is an architect, was most interested in those pencil thin buildings all along the Ginza. Back in 1996, real estate in Ginza was priceless and every inch of space was utilised. This resulted in buildings hardly more than 15 to 20 feet across in width!

Curiosity led us up to some of these slim buildings, which we realised were not used only for offices but had boutiques, restaurants, pubs, bars, banks as well as apartments.

At one particular building, we were welcomed at the door somewhere on the 6th floor.
It turned out to be some sort of restaurant but none of us knew what kind of restaurant it was!
The staff did not speak English, none in our group of five could read the menu, there was no plastic food showcase to point at, so we all just tried our hilarious best.

Turned out that the restuarant specialised in, and served only MONJA.
What in the world is Monja??! Up to then, even we didn't know.
Monja as we slowly found out is a very fun food and should be eaten in groups.
It's the Tokyo version of Okonomiyaki ! (Get it now?). Well, sort of anyway.
Remember, this was when even okonomiyaki was still an unknown entity in Singapore, not like it is nowadays. But whereas, okonomiyaki is served more like a pizza or pancake, monjayaki certainly is not!

It's a 'what ever you wish, what ever way you want it' dish that you cook yourself on a hot plate griddle set in the table. You are given the basic ingredients, batter, fish, meat, lots of cabbage, other vegetables, and whatever else you want.
Mix it all up, pour in onto the hot plate, it let cook till a bit burnt and then using really tiny tiny spatulas cut off bits and eat straight off the griddle! A dash of mirin or soy sauce, or even mayonnaise, adds to the flavour.

There's no right or wrong way with Monjayaki. But it can be really delicious.
Best eaten with good company and beer.
Here's how it looks like.......
If you are ever in Tokyo, you must try this. Just remember to tell them you want to try real Tokyo monjayaki and not okonomiyaki which is actually from Osaka.

Ja neh.

What to do when you're not travelling

2008-08-21T18:27:00.008+08:00

August 21, 2008

I've done this trick in front of people many times and I realise that doing it on video require a better videographer than simply setting the camera on the table top! haha.
Treat this as a rehearsal while I try and find someone who can video the event later, ok?
There's a bit of editing, because the camera fell, which in no way affected the illusion.

In case you can't see what happening, the new coke can is emptied, then re-sealed and re-opened and poured out again. You can almost make out that the container has doubled its volume. Well, this is temporarily back on request by my sis. Until the new video is out....

No such thing as a free lunch?

2008-08-15T22:46:00.012+08:00

No takers for a free trip!

In the year 2000, I gave up my job traveling on business and took on an ‘earth bound’ job. Over the past years I had travel almost everywhere, including making round-the-world trips. One of the perks was frequent flyer points.
I had milege points from almost every airline program including Star Alliance, One World and independents like EVA, ANA, MAS etc.

In Nov 2001, I was informed by Star Alliance that 125,000 points were to expire by 31st Dec that I had to utilize or forfeit.

I offered all my colleagues a free trip to almost anyway. You think they would jump on this chance? No! None of them actually believed I was genuine. There's no such thing as a free lunch! they said.

With the deadline almost due, I finally decided that I would take a trip by myself then to London and by First Class on SIA. In all my years, I had not flown first class and this was the opportunity of a lifetime, and it took exactly 120,000 points for a 1st class ticket.

The day before I was due to make the booking, I bumped into Joyce, a colleague whom I remembered had just got married to Fred, who used to work with me at another branch.
“Hey, how would you and Fred like a free honeymoon anywhere in Asia?” I asked.
“No catch, just that I had to go along and you have to pay for your own hotel and meals”

And so it was that Joyce and Fred made their first overseas trip to Japan with me in February 2002. We flew Business class on ANA. Stayed 5 days and toured Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Nara.

The following year when again I had to utilize my frequent flyer points, you can bet there was no shortage of eager friends!

Changi Airport ANA Business Class Lounge___________ Fred & Joyce

Joyce & me______________________________ Tokyo Japan

My sister in Texas

2008-08-13T19:25:00.009+08:00

13 August 2008

My sister Jenette, lives in Texas, in a city called Grapevine, near the Dallas-Forth Worth Airport.
She tells me that she's planning a vacation to San Francisco very soon.
Just wanted to tell her 2 things.

Firstly, go before 15 September 2008, Jen. That's when the (US) airlines will cut 15% of their schedules due to the high cost of fuel. This means less seats available and pre-planned schedules will be in jeopardy.

Secondly, to tell you about Rule 240.
Rule 240 is all about flight delays, getting bumped or having your flight cancelled. It affects only american carriers with flights originating in the US. It's something which most airlines will not tell you about but it's in the 'conditions of carriage' fine print which you would probably never read anyway. Knowing this rule would mean the difference between fuming at the airport and jetting away as scheduled.

Simply put, Rule 240 says that in the event of a delay or cancellation which is not caused by weather or for reasons which the airline has no control over, then they are obliged to put you on the next available flight out. Mechanical faults, aircraft arriving late, crew missing etc are reasons which the airlines are responsible for and for which Rule 240 applies.

Rule 240 also mean the next flight to your destination and not on their next scheduled flight. It can be on any other airline. Exceptions are airlines that don't have interline code sharing like Southwest, Jetblue, etc, so avoid these.

If this happens to you, simply ask for the supervisor or shift manager and tell him you are invoking Rule 240. It will be better if you asked for it and not demand for it. You can imagine the desk crew being harried by all the upset passengers about the delay or cancellation. A nice request will be usually be more receptive to the check-in personnel, who are empowered to changed your ticket.

So much the better if you can check the departing flights available beforehand and make a suggestion like "I'd like you to put me on the Delta that's departing in 45 mins". Remember, it need not be the same airline that you've booked on.

Of course, the airlines will try and put you off by offering vouchers, meals, or what not to keep the business. They'll be further obliged if you can prove you have a connecting flight to catch, even to an international destination like Singapore. They have to make the arrangements all the way to your final destination.

Happy vacation, Jen, and hope you won't need to 'Rule 240' 'em

Safe cracking at Nirwana Gardens Resort

2008-08-06T00:05:00.022+08:00

2 August - 3rd August 2008.

My store had been undergoing renovations for the past 3 weeks. I have not had a break for the past 14 days. So it was a godsend when I was given the weekend off to 'recharge my batteries'. "Go take the weekend off and come back fresh and ready for the grand opening of the store" .

So where do you go on a weekend break? The spa resort at Bintan!
And it so happens Pricebreakers had a special running for Bintan Resorts at $118.

Angsana Spa Resort? Sorry, fully booked for the weekend.
Banyan Tree Spa Resort? Sorry , no room available.
The neighbouring Nirwana Gardens Resort? Sorry, fully booked for the next 2 weekends. Urgghh. There goes my weekend spa!

So I did my own searching on the Net and what did I find out?
Angsana was full, Banyan Tree was full, but Nirwana Gardens had rooms!
So I took the chance and booked a Deluxe (meaning 'sea-facing') room at $185.

In travel terminology, you gotta be careful with descriptions such as 'sea facing', 'near the beach', 'deluxe', etc. They literally mean what they write and not what you assume it is.
For example, my room was about 100m from the seafront. Yes, it's facing the direction of the sea but there's about 100 metres of development in between, which they conveniently forget to mention in the brochures.

But the good part was that I got upgraded to a Suite!
What better way to chill out. Sitting on your own balcony with your cold beers instead of being cramped in a 'deluxe' room.

This was the sea facing suite that i was upgraded to.
The sea is somewhere behind the trees.
(click on the pictures for a larger view)

Relaxing meant the spa treatments. Though Nirwana Resort had an in-house spa, it was the trusted Angsana Spa and Banyan Tree Spa that I went to.

The spa treatments really deserve a writeup of its own but now I just gotta tell you about the safe cracking incident at Nirwana Resort which i witnessed and actually captured on film!
The audacity of the Resort staff taking a safe from the guest's room and cracking it open to get at the contents!

Ok ok, so it was the safe from my own suite and wasn't an Ocean's Eleven heist haha.
Typical of Murphy's Law, I had tried out the safe a few times opening and locking it to make sure it works. Once assured that I got the combination right, I placed my mobile phone, wallet and passports into the safe and, voila, the safe wont open again!

The front desk sent the night manager who tried his earnest to unlock the safe using their special electronic unlocking tool. Three times it failed causing the safe to go into a security countdown mode which meant no one could do anything for next 30 minutes. So in all, wasted an hour and a half including 2 calls to their Singapore support office and still the safe won't open.

In desperation, the manager said that he would call engineering the next day to cut open the safe. The pictures above are of that safe cracking operation.

You won't believe how easy it was!
Took less than a minute to cut the weld in 2 places at the back and simply remove the back panel. Now I know how secure the room safes are! Next time put your stuff at the front desk security boxes, but I suspect it can be just as easily opened.

Drinking Pure Water - Kyoto, japan

2008-07-21T02:26:00.027+08:00

Have you ever been to a place where suddenly you feel in awe? You feel a presence of sanctity, a feeling that the place is sacred? A feeling of unspeakable greatness surrounding you or a mysterious presence? And that you feel really small in comparison with your surroundings?

You start to ponder philosophically at your destiny and of those around you. You wonder about your place in this world? Places like the Grand Canyon and the Vatican makes you do things like that.

You also get this feeling when you visit the Kiyomizu-dera temple complex in the eastern hills of Kyoto Japan. There is a pervading sense of holiness, of sacredness and calm in this temple.

Kiyomizu-dera is built on a mountain side, with the main hall overhanging a cliff. Several minor temples and shrines are spread over a vast landscape on the mountain. When you enter the complex, notwithstanding the fees and crowds, you will immediately feel that this place is special. It's a feeling which can't be described and must be experienced yourself.

Legend tells of a buddhist priest Enchin, who in year 780, discovered the source of pure water flowing from Mt Otowa. The temple complex you see today is built around this water source.

This is the Otowa-no taki, where 3 streams flow out from the mountain and falls into a pond.

Pilgrims to this shrine drink from these 3 streams which are said to have spiritual and therapeutic properties. The 3 streams are said to confer Wisdom, Health and Longevity. Kiyomizu means pure water.

On a lighter side, this temple complex also contains a shrine dedicated to the God of Love. This is the Jishu Jinja, where supplications and prayers are made for marriages, love and childbirth.

One curiosity in this shrine are 2 large boulders placed about 40 feet apart. If you can walk with your eyes closed from one boulder to the other, you will find love.

Following is a short video of visit to Kiyomizu with some of my colleagues.
They simply can't get enough drink of Pure Water !

By the way, the pictures of Kiyomzu-dera above are not mine but were taken off the Net and enhanced a bit. I don't seem to have a picture of it in clear weather.

It seems every time I visit Kiyomizu, the pure water come from the sky instead! hee hee.

ja neh

Eating pies in the loo!! - Sydney, Australia

2008-07-18T10:44:00.021+08:00

When you visit Sydney, Australia, the usual places you'll be taken to would be the Sydney Opera House, The Rocks, Sydney Harbour Bridge, Sydney Tower, Bondi Beach, etc.

But there is one place that will say you've not been to the real Sydney if you don't visit it.

I was introduced to this place by an old friend, Fr. Alban Mitchell ofm, a franciscan friar , who had promised to take me to the finest dining Sydney can offer. Bells were already ringing at that time. A poor humble friar going to the finest dining in Sydney?

Fr Alban Mitchell ofm (1927-2006), taken at Sacred Heart Convent, overlooking Rose Bay, Sydney Harbour, Australia.

This 'fine restaurant' is located in the naval dockyard area of Sydney called Woolloomooloo, affectionately called the 'loo'.

Harry's Cafe de Wheels is a pie cart but not just any 'pie cart'. It's an icon, it's famous, it's australian as koalas, it's unique and it's an institution in Sydney.

The list of celebrities who ate from this pie cart reads like an Oscar night and Fortune 500 put together. Yet this pie cart serves everyone from the curious to the well-heeled, and is literally standing room only. There are no seats at this pie cart. hee hee.

Famed for its Tiger Pies, which personally I felt overrated, but they have truly delicious meat pies.
It has great atmosphere amidst its setting there.

I'll give them a free plug here, http://www.harryscafedewheels.com.au .

Maybe they'll read this and send me a coupon for a Tiger Pie?

This is a clip taken on a visit to Harry's Cafe de Wheels with some of my friends in 2004.

Toronto, Canada

2008-07-15T00:38:00.017+08:00

I made 2 visits to Toronto, Canada back in 1998. The first time was for a quick look at an upcoming franchise called Shred-it, and the 2nd was for a 3 week stay learning the franchise.

Whenever I think of Toronto, 3 things always pop into my mind.

These are CN Tower, Niagara Falls, and Mississauga.

It was a long journey from Singapore to Toronto. Flew on Cathay Pacific (wonderful choice) via Hong Kong and Anchorage. The aircraft took what is known as the 'Great Circle'. This meant flying over the North Pole. On a flat map, it looks like a long rounded journey but in reality it's the shortest distance between the 2 points.

The CN Tower was the tallest concrete building in the world at that time. Situated in Toronto beside Lake Ontario. It is owned by the Canadian National Railway, hence CN. On a clear day, it is claimed, you can see 100 km distance.

Going up the tower in high speed elevators is literally a ear popping experience. The view from the top, needless to say, is awesome. They even have a panel of flooring made out of tempered glass and your legs go like jelly trying to walk across the glass floor, looking more than 300m down to the bottom!

Niagara Falls.

The most impressive thing you notice about Niagara Falls is the sheer volume of water that constantly pour over the edge! Unless you've seen this yourself, there are simply no words to describe this wonder. It's hard to fathom that there's so much water pouring over the Falls every second for years and years.

And of course, only crazy tourists will ride on that tacky Maid of the Mist boat up to the base of the falls! You will get drenched for sure, that's why they give you a free poncho, haha.

Mississauga is a suburban town to the east of Toronto. In fact, the reason why I wrote this blog was that just last week in The Straits Times, there was a full page write up about a Singaporean lady who migrated to, and was writing all about her new hometown of Mississauga.

Mississauga was where the headquarters for a franchise called Shred-it was located. In 1998, I was in a partnership to bring this franchise from Canada to Singapore. This involved having to stay in Toronto to learn the business for 3 weeks before qualifying for the franchise.

Mississauga at night.

Aschaffenburg, Bavaria

2008-07-13T14:37:00.016+08:00

Even the name Aschaffenburg sounds so romantic - 'City by the flowing Aschaff brook'. This small German town in Northern Bavaria, about 30 km from Frankfurt, holds dear to me as it was here that my friend Karlheinz Kuebert showed me the finer side of Germany.

Karl, an avid mountaineer and entrepreneur, lives in Aschaffenburg and from his base here brought me all over West Germany (at that time, before re-unification).

Karl lives in a picturesque cottage on top of a hill with 6 apple trees in the yard. He makes his own apple wine from his trees.

Aschaffenburg has a mild cool climate and is surrounded by forests and hills. It's one of those fairytale towns that you always have in your mind. The city is still traditionally centered around the old market but, of course, today development in the city makes it look like any other busy city centre.

It is also renowned for it's pork knuckles, a must have delicacy when you are there. There are several castles there, schloss, as it's called in German. The most famous is the Johannisburg schloss, pictured here. built many centuries ago, I can't remember.

By the way, Aschaffenburg is where I also have my only foreign bank account. A German numbered account at that! Last time I checked there was still nothing in it. haha. Still waiting for someone to make a deposit!

These are the German inns where I stayed in Aschaffenburg

Hannover, Germany

2008-07-13T07:22:00.018+08:00

Was rummaging through my old stuff when I came across this gem.

A vintage film clip on my very first visit to Hanover, Germany back in March 1996.

CeBit is one of the 3 major computer and IT shows in the world at that time. The other 2 being Computex in Taiwan and COMDEX at Las Vegas. But back in 1996, CeBit was the biggest of the 3 shows held annually in Hannover, Germany. Every major player in the IT industry, and any wannabe who intends to make a name for himself, will and must participate at CeBit.

This clip was also my very first attempt at video editing, using a borrowed Sharp 8mm Viewcam.

The place was Hanover, the provincial capital of Saxony Germany. It was winter and the temperature I remembered was -5 degrees in the morning and was just above freezing during the day.

Watching this clip brings back memories of my time spent in Germany, which I would tell you about in my next write up. Meanwhile enjoy the clip.

Back to Bintan - Angsana Spa again

2008-07-01T16:20:00.024+08:00

June 27-June 28, 2008.

It's been a while since I was at the Angsana Resort & Spa. The main reason being cost. It's actually cheaper to make a 3D2N trip to Ko Samui or Phuket, or even Bangkok, then to spend 3D2N at Bintan!
For this simple reason of economics and value, it simply doesn't make sense to spend so much and, then again, Bintan has nothing much to offer in comparison to Ko Samui or Phuket.

The only compelling reason is that you can make a day trip there, whereas Thailand would entail staying at least 3 days to make it worthwhile.

I wasn't going to blog about this trip but then someone close to my sis had casually mentioned that perhaps my jaunts to Bintan were not all that altruistic. Is he really going for the spa? hahaha.
So Brad, here are the pictures to prove it. (By the way, my sis lives in Texas)

Click on the pictures for a larger view

The rooftop spa treatment pavillion.

The essential oils used for spa therapy.

The Angsana Spa and the view from the pavillion.

The Angsana Resort

Who's this?
She was the guest on the ground floor. (I stayed on the 4th floor)

The Beach

This is the Pantai Grill, buffet dinner right on the beach

Breakfast at the resort Lotus Cafe

And finally, the ferry home

So in a nutblog, that was my day spa trip to Angsana Spa last week.
The downside to going to Angsana/Banyan Tree is that all the prices are in US$.
The 3 hr spa treatment I had was US$120, dinner US$40, buffet US$28, etc.
The overnight stay cum breakfast and transportation was US$165
The neighboring spas at Bintan like Nirwana Resort, Bintan Lagoon, Mayang Sari or even Club Med are less expensive and charges S$.

Whenever I go to Bintan, there is always at the back of my mind, the tinge of sadness and the irony of the situation there. It seems Bintan Resort was created through commercial lobbying and political manueverings that saw about 10% of the island given over to developers to make it Singapore's beach playground. Sadly, the locals are relegated to being workers and are actually restricted completely from resort area and pristine beaches. They just can't get past the security cordons.

This brings to my mind what I saw happened exactly in Mauritius, the other island resort paradise in the Indian Ocean. There also their world famous pristine white sandy beaches that ring the island have all been sold to major resorts and developers. What remains for the Mauritian general public are the basically the rejects. The islanders are also denied access to the best beaches renowned for its clear waters and deep sea fishing. Sad.

If you want to know a bit more of Bintan, which nevertheless, is still a nice place to spend some quiet time go to http://www.bintan-resorts.com

Map copyright of Bintan Resorts

Tokyo Japan, May 2008

2008-05-26T10:37:00.014+08:00

I learned something new about blogging 'live' on your holiday trip.
As said in my last musing, i wanted to give you all a daily update of my stay at Tokyo. Well, it just sound so easy but believe me, don't try it! It's heartbreaking.

I stayed at the Sunshine City Prince Hotel at Ikebukuro in Tokyo. The room had a high speed internet connection but going through the local provider, the interface was a lot in japanese kanji.
But my major problem was not being able to get my photos uploaded without a lot of difficulties. In the end, I simply gave up and this also made me loose my enthusiasm for taking more pictures during the trip. Any way, most of what I snapped are now uploaded onto my web albums at Picasa and webshots. Go there for a look.

On this trip I did 2 things which I would not normally have done.
The first was riding ALL the roller-coasters at Disyneyland, and,
secondly, went shopping! Something my companions will tell you I hardly do.

The 2nd day in Tokyo was to Disneyland. Rode all the available rides, including Space Mountain and Splash Mountain. These were awesome, hair-raising screamers but FUN!

On this trip with my friend, Christina, who turned out to be a compulsive, impulsive shopper, and putting someone like that in a modern trendy shopping city like Tokyo is like leaving a child in a candy store! I also ended up buying stuff for people for whom I still wonder if they deserve it?

Well, what I learnt also was that Burberry Blue Label are the most prized items to take back to Singapore! Ended up with 3 Blue Label wallets.

Day 1. 15th May - From Tokyo

2008-05-15T21:38:00.020+08:00

Landed at Narita Airport at 7.30am after 7 hours on ANA HN902.
Uneventful fight except for the difficulty in getting some sleep.

We had 3 options to get from Narita Airport into Tokyo.
1.) by the NEX Narita Express Train 1800yen,
2.) Airport Limousine bus 3000yen, or
3.) by taxi for US$180!

Obviously, you’d think we take the train.
But no, I opted for the Limousine Bus for several reasons.

The Airport Limousine Bus takes a more scenic route than the train but best of all it comes with a free Tokyo metro subway pass valid for a whole day unlimited travel within Tokyo.
This already makes it worth higher price of the bus ticket. And besides, the Limo Bus goes right to the hotel front door, whereas it’s a 10 minute walk from the train station dragging your luggage!

Arrived at the Sunshine City Prince Hotel at 9.45am.
The ’Sunshine City’ does not refer to the city of Tokyo despite Japan being ‘the land of the rising sun’.
It’s a massive city complex with malls, 60 storey office blocks, hotels & entertainment located in the 2^nd largest Tokyo suburb called Ikebukuro.
Being a member of the Prince Club International, I was hoping that we would get an early check-in but unfortunately, the hotel was full till check out at 12noon.

So instead of the planned 'early check-in, then Disneyland' itinerary for the 1st day, we switched to touring Tokyo city itself.

The usual tourist traps at Asakusa, Ginza, Ueno, Shibuya

Dinner at Shinjuku.
It’s only 10 mins from Sunshine City which meant we can stay till the last train at midnight. This is the Tokyo that most people visualise. It’s Neon City, garish, bright, loud and different. Recently featured in movies like “Lost in Translation” & “Tokyo Drift”.

This is my hotel room on the 23rd floor and the view of Tokyo outside the window.

Good Night

Tokyo for the 18th time.

2008-05-14T16:17:00.008+08:00

Day: minus 1.
Changi Airport. Waiting for departure.

Another short 4D3N visit. Just to enjoy my favorite city again.
This trip was a on, off, on again, off again, on again event that sort of dampened the whole spirit but anyway, I was determined to go regardless. Even my traveling companion kept changing.
If my count is right, I guess the 18th for me.

Since the expectations of all my kakis seem pretty high this time, especially since they knew I was travelling but had them all guessing the destination and with whom I was going with. So for those whom I said ‘Bali this time’, apologies. It’s Tokyo, Japan, as half of you guessed right.

I will describe my itinerary on a daily basis on my blog from my hotel room each night starting from the 15th .
You can email any request to my personal email at hjtann@mac.com.
I will upload all the daily photos to my picasa web album so you can see where I’d been during day.

Signing off from the free terminal at Changi airport.

Traveller's nightmare - lost luggage!

2008-03-14T20:49:00.010+08:00

When you travel often, inevitably someone will ask if you had some strange or funny incidents on your travels, usually about lost luggage, turbulence, etc. Well, there is actually one very hilarious incident about a lost luggage. The funny part is that I had not even left the country nor even arrived at the airport and had my luggage lost!

Back in 2002, the MRT had just started a new direct train service from Boon Lay to Changi Airport. Was going to Tokyo and thought why not try out the service. Lugged my luggage to the station and had to transfer at Jurong East for the eastbound train to Changi.

At Jurong East station, by coincidence, a Chinaman (Chinese expatriate working in Singapore) with his wife and child, were beside me on the same platform also heading for Changi Airport with their luggage in tow. We all entered the same cabin but sat opposite each other.

At the time when this new train service started, the train had specially installed racks for bags and luggage near the doors. I placed my Samsonite on the rack and the Chinaman placed his 2 bags beside it.

Further along at Tiong Bahru Station, the Chinaman's wife and child got off the train. When it departed, the Chinaman suddenly realised that his wife was still holding on to his train ticket.
In a panic, he started asking around if anyone had a mobile phone he could use, to call his wife. The only one who had, said that unfortunately he had to get off at the next station which was fast approaching. So the Chinaman said that he would get off with the kind young man to use his mobile phone.

When the train stopped next at Outram Station, the Chinaman grabbed his 2 bags from the rack and got off the train. I know you're thinking.... he took my bag, but no, hee hee. ....wait for it...

There was a young lady with her boyfriend seated next to me. And just at the moment that the train sounded "Doors are closing", I heard her say to her beau " Hey!, he left his bag behind!!"
In a flash, she got up, rushed across aisle, grabbed MY bag and tossed it out the door just a fraction before the doors slammed shut!

"That's mine!", I screamed. We both looked at each other, the girl red with embarrassment and I red and flustered. And we could both see the Chinaman outside waving his hands frantically saying "It's not mine! it's not mine" as the train pull away from the station.

Of course, I had to stop at the next station and rode another train back to Outram to pick up my luggage , which luckily the Chinaman had presence of mind to hold for me till I arrived.

That was the only other time I had lost my luggage on my travels.
The next time, I'll tell you about this same Samsonite luggage who decided to go to Hawaii for vacation while I was heading for home from LA