eXtra turkey

I read in yesterday's papers that there's a spike in food wastage during the Christmas season and well, don't we all have EXTRA turkey leftover? So to assuage guilt, I've added into the curry devil I made.

That kinda saved me the guilt trip. The original store-bought turkey...

Whaddaya know, tomorrow's the last day of 2009. I'm so looking forward to ending this terrible blotchy year. Wishing you everyone in advance since I'll be away from keyboard, celebrating!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

ABC Wednesday round 5

And so this is Christmas

Sweetly sing the angels.
Christmas carols around the fireplace,
glow of a choral symphony,
singing silent night,
what child is this.
The story of Christmas,
guiding star of Bethlehem,
the holy grail, an anthem of
joy to the world,
repeat the sounding joy (repeat).

The flight of flute and oboe
strangely instrumental
brings celestial longing,
brightens up the world tonight.
Warmer, drawing closer to the light,
we wish you a Merry Christmas
and a Happy New Year (repeat).
The Christmas tree
aglow, flickering candlelight burning
the scrooge of our hearts.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Reverie - Cirque on Ice

Happy outing to the ice skating circus show in town - Reverie - Cirque on Ice.

It's a show that fuses circus acts with ice skating, with incredible soundtracks in a dream-like setting. Kind of creating a new genre like what its producers say. There's a moment when my friend turned to me and said, and that's when the Chinese acrobats will start bringing out the plates. So predictable that, so what we're saying is that the Chinese should know how to break out and bring an avant garde edge to their world class acrobatic acts. Take the cue from this show which takes Cirque du Soleil to the ice skating rink.

What's most mesmerizing are the trapeze acts, to me. The props and costumes are lavish couture pieces, creating a sense of spectacle though I missed out on their relationship to the storyline. There's a storyline but it's lost in the mist of pure acts of human grace.

The show which premieres here in Singapore runs at the Arina stadium near the Indoor stadium till 27 December 2009. Be advised to seek out the toilets at the Indoor Stadium pre and post show as the portable toilets at this temporary venue mar an otherwise delightful outing.

You can view rehearsal and interview clips at Youtube here.

Wheel of fortune

Actually not. But the end of the year surely signifies a completion of a revolution of 365 days so here's a wheel to symbolise that. It's a water feature at Raffles Link.
I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas this week and wonderful blessings ahead, and for a good turn of the economy in the new year. Season's greetings to all.


ABC Wednesday round 5

Tis the Holiday Season

As Christmases stacked up year by year, it's easy to lapse into indifference. Yet for my little nephew, it will be his first Christmas, celebrated in the US!

Still, the holiday spirit is slowly snuggling up to me (due in part to the cool weather) and for those who celebrate Christmas, it's just a great way to wrap up the year, surrounded by family and feasting. It's a useful marker.

So here're my images of Christmas...the Christmas holly hanging on the door, the crib, that's ours...as for the Christmas tree covered with poinsettas and the gingerbread house, I borrowed those from Pan Pacific Hotel coz they're nice.. for further infusion of the holiday spirit for this post.

Happy holidays everyone.


Ellipsis

Elizabeth Gilbert on Creativity

Totally captivated by Elizabeth Gilbert, author of the New York bestseller Eat, Pray, Love, talking about the process of creativity and how not to lose your mind in the process by externalising it as a thing outside of self, a collaborative with an external muse, so to speak, a kind of paranormal thing. The ending is so inspirational.

I've read and enjoyed reading her journey in the book a while back. After watching the video below, I reached for the book which is collecting dust on the top of my bookshelf. Funnily, this is what I flipped to:

"Two nights in a row now I've had dreams of a snake entering my room. I've read that this is spiritually auspicious (and not just in Eastern religions; Saint Ignatius had serpent visions all throughout his mystical experiences), but it doesn't make the snakes any less vivid or scary." This is in the section on India, the 'pray' part. Immediately it held my attention because I had a dream about reptiles and have wondered since what it meant. Talk about serendipity.

I'm looking forward to reading the sequel which will be out pretty soon I guess. I think her message to writers, dancers, composers, et al,  is important: to not be daunted by naysayers and keep on showing up to do the thing you do.

Very convenient - Crowne Plaza

Crowne Plaza is located right at Changi  Airport. Imagine you have an early flight and you just want to be right at the doorstep of Singapore's international airport resting assured that your backside is already in the airport. Well, I guess that's the main idea? The hotel looks like a scintillating rectangular jewel box. In the bottom photo, you can see it next to the control tower. In the top photo, you see it's directly connected to Terminal 3. It's also connected to Terminal 2 and 1 via the skytrain. Of course this means you have all the F&B choices within the hotel or those located in any of the terminals. It's more suitable for short stay travellers who won't be making repeated forays to the central areas.

ABC Wednesday round 5

Wagyu steak

My son had his first taste of Wagyu steak at Swensons, Terminal 3, Changi Airport yesterday.

It was juicy and bursting with taste.

It cost something like $49 and if you top up $4.90 or something like that you get a free flow of the salads at the salad bar. There was a good assortment as you can see. So mummy took the salad.

Tonight he tells me he's thinking about it and dreaming of having another order of it. 

Food trip Friday

Broadway Beng

The review in the Straits Times sucks but diss the review.

I fear lame jokes but while there're misses the hits make this a bang for your buck local musical. I know getai can be such a cheena scratchy old record but I did like one Hokkien song in particular which Sebastian Tan, Beng extraordinare delivers with aplomb. I love love the spoof of Les Miserables and of Queen (both the English monarch and the band).

We're people who straddle two cultures, and when Sebastian splits between Western musicals and getai, on a stage no less than the Esplanade, we've reclaimed our birth right and well and truly embraced both our mastery of Western and Eastern cultures in one sitting and we should send screaming applause down the aisles. As Sebastian urges the audience to say, 'HO SAY!' (translates roughly *thumbs up*)

OK, this one's strictly for locals. For the uninitated, a Beng is, according to the Coxford Singlish dictionary,
 'an unsophisticated Chinese boy, usually Hokkien. Stereotypically, he speaks gutter hokkien and likes neon-coloured clothes, spiky, moussed hair and accessories such as handphones or pagers, all of which are conspicuously displayed. '


A Lian is the female counterpart.

The musical runs till this Saturday. Just go watch it!!! Support local talent and not just foreign talent!

Underpass art

There're always some art installations in the underpass going to the Esplanade. It's called the tunnel.

The medium is paper, specifically storybook pages. Out of this paper comes pop out 3D art with a heavy penchant towards teddy bears. Painstaking, meticulous, mostly miniature, except for this big paper teddy bear with a crinkly red bow.

The creator, Cindy Harjatanaya from Indonesia, uses storybook scrap paper to depict the idea of children's perception between reality and fantasy. By bringing these fabled characters to real life, she blurs the line between reality and fantasy.

ABC Wednesday round 5

Taoist prayers

My World - Turn of the century mansion

Look at this, a dilapidated mansion. I couldn't tell you how old it is, but am guessing it's as old as the turn of the last century. Will it ever be restored? Wh0's the owner? Questions...I took the photo in 2006 and can't confirm its location. Dang~

It reminded me of Grey Gardens, which is this majestic mansion in East Hampton, New York, that decayed along with its occupants, a mother and her daughter, both called Edith Beales, who were relatives of Jacqueline Onassis, wife of John F Kennedy. They became famous because of a 1975 documentary film and more recently a film of the same name (2009) starring Drew Barrymore as Little Edie and Jessica Lange as Big Edie. It's an intimate portrait of the two eccentric recluses, a reality show before its time.

Here's a clip based on the original documentary. The mansion still exists having been beautifully restored by its new owners.




My World Tuesday

are you a social media addict?

Are you, are you?

Thai spirit house

A Thai spirit house is a shrine to animist spirits placed in an auspicious spot to appease spirits. It is commonly seen in Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries, less common in Singapore. This one sits at the corner entrance to a food centre along Sembawang Road.


ABC Wednesday round 5

Prata Place

This is like a off-the-road diner and it's popular for serving up prata for breakfast. Prata is dough fried on a girdle.

The Indian kitchen. I note a big pot on right (can't see in picture) with a sign which says soup kambing which is a mutton broth. That must be for lunch or dinner. There're Indian curries at the counter for you to order if you wish to order chicken or mutton pieces in your curry. If not you get a meatless curry as a dip for your prata.

We order the side of mutton curry. This is the prata kosong (or plain prata). You can order prata with fillings of cheese, chocolate, banana, etc if you so wish.

Here's another view of the exterior. It's nestled in the Springleaf Garden estate (1 Thong Soon Ave) which is along Upper Thomson Road.

That's my World