Vietnam!

Was away in Ho Chi Minh City from the 24th Dec to 27th Dec. Was rather surprised of the distance and the time it took to get us there, a mere 1 hr 40 mins, even faster than going to Bangkok.

Day 1: Christmas Eve
We got through the customs alright and we were glad that there was a airport pickup in a comfortable SUV. The first thought that came to my mind was: "Wow there's hell a lot of motorcycles!" In addition, there were no traffic rules to speak off as well. The best way to cross the road is to actually close your eyes. Magically the motorbikes will move away for u but dun bet on that for the cars and buses.

Had lunch and dinner at Pho 2000. Apparently, it's a chain restaurant specialising in vietnamese beef noodles, aka pho. The restaurant is famous as apparently Bill Clinton had stopped by for a bowl of noodles and the restaurant was full of his pictures.

After a filling lunch, we went to Ben Thanh market. Similar to Chatuchak in Bangkok but cooler, the market is huge with everything you will ever need. Shirts, t-shirts, tailors, food, watches, bedsheets, etc, etc are all there. Managed to do some shopping and got myself a nice fake Breitling watch! Somemore it's automatic :-)

Ended the day with dinner at Pho2000 as all the restaurants were booked for Christmas Eve.

Day 2: Christmas Day
After a good nite sleep at the Bi Saigon, we headed out of town to explore the famous Cao Dai Temple and the Cuchi Tunnels. The Cao Dai Temple was really an interesting visit. The whole religion of Cao Dai was interesting as it's the combination of many different religion. The temple was grand and designed in an interesting way with dragons and bright colours all round.

Our next stop was the Cu Chi Tunnels. Amazingly 250km of tunnels were dug in the area during the Vietnamese war and the size of the tunnels were ridiculously small. Not for the fainted hearted!

The bus ride was pretty bumpy as well and it took us forever before we reach our destination. Interesting tour at a very affordable US$6 per person. Well worth the experience!

Day 3: Boxing Day
Woke up early as there were plenty to cover in our last proper day in HCMC. Went to the Reunification Palace where it was there where South Vietnam surrendered and reunited the country.

Tried to go to the War Remnants Museum but it was closed during lunchtime. Had lunch at the upscale Temple Club. The food was excellent and for the price we paid, it was definitely worth it! We decided to head off to the spa soon after that. After much convincing, I did the foot scrubbing, parafin treatment (read soaking your feet in hot wax) and thai massage. Total cost - US$25! Very good value for money!

Day 4: Last Minute Shopping!
Decided to visit a salon for a haircut and we read in Lonely planet about Toni & Guy, no not the famous american brand but a salon opened by a Vietnamese-American named Toni. It took them nearly an hour to cut my hair as it included shampooing, facial, massage and finally the hair cut. An interesting experience to say the least.

Last minute shopping and home sweet home!

Looking forward to my next holiday in Phuket on 1st Feb! :-)

Spa Retreat!

Took the opportunity of a public holiday to enjoy a spa retreat! Before the retreat, we went to watch the movie "Enchanted" and it was really good. A mix of humour and good special effects had us roaring with laugher....

Now more abt the spa retreat. The spa is situated in Cathay (you can guess roughly which one issit) and it had a spa pool (read jacuzzi). We spent half an hour in the jacuzzi and it was heavenly. The pool was big and they even had Ribena for us next to the tub. The jacuzzi was followed by an hour massage and I must say that this is one of the best massage I ever gotten before. I am usually not a person that likes massage cos of the pressure on my muscles. However, I enjoyed this a lot cos there was a lot of loosening up of your joints, etc. Really worth it!

A well-planned holiday! Can't wait for the Christmas break coming up!

3 years of agony

Have been pondering for some time but decided to do it after much thought. Yes, I am talking about putting on dental braces. People have been asking me why do I want to do something that are usually done by teenagers but I did not have the opportunity to do it when I was younger.

It's a long process and there is an operation coming up in 1.5 years time. Am worried about the length of time and the operation but I decided that I should do something soon before my teeth gets wore out.

Thanks for all the encouragement people have been giving me. It feels like you have been hit by a baseball bat after the first few days of putting on the braces but I am fine now. Slowly eating back normal food again.

3 years and counting.....

Nation Serving

Will be away for reservist for the next 3 weeks....time to put on my greens again to serve the nation. Hopefully a good break from work!

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang!

Took the chance to catch Chitty Chitty Bang Bang last night on their world tour. First caught it in 2005 when I had a free afternoon in London. I remembered wondering around Oxford Street and initially wanted to walk to Haymarket to catch Phamton but was too lazyy and chanced upon the Palladium at Oxford Street. Was intrigued by the musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and thus decided to watch it. The interesting part was that I managed to get the best seats in the house for the cheapest guy due to the friendly guy at the counter. In addition, the lead was played by Brian Conley, a famous British comedian and he was excellent. Enjoyed myself thoroughly.

2.5 years later, the same musical came to Singapore and I had no hesistation to watch it again. It was Gala night yesterday but there was nothing fantastic or extraordinary. The musical was fantastic and the songs were very "sing-able". Especially love the comedian act from the Vulgarians. There was this scene where they said whether they could be English and still vulgar and the answer was that that would be American.

For fans of musicals, go catch it before the end of the run in December. Definitely worth your money!

Bridal Show

Attended my first bridal show at Traders' Hotel last Saturday. Was a pretty last minute thing but thought it might be interesting to go take a look. The show included a fashion show from one of the wedding gown providers but the highlight was the food. It was essentially like high tea that includes things such as sharks' fin soup, lobster bisque, interesting salads, sushi, steamed groupa, roast chicken, duck, etc, etc. The dessert menu was also superb that included nonya kuehs, mango pudding, cakes, rice ball dumplings, etc.

And the bonus was that it cost $11 per person. Definitely worth the value. The search continues for more shows! :-)

Who is this?

Apologies for the long long hiatus. Got back from Japan on the 10th of Oct but it has been a whirlwind 2 weeks. Have done up my photos for my Japan trip. For those interested, you can take a visit at http://cheewing.multiply.com/photos/album/18/Japan_2007_

Will attempt to tell more stories about the trip but the trip was really great. A lot of good food (I think you would have guessed from the pictures taken) and great scenary.

At Asakusa, we chanced upon some celebrities as there were a whole load of people following them. Not sure who they are but took some pictures for others to identify....any clues?

Japan here I come!

Will be away to Japan on holidays for 11 days starting this saturday. Sianz...a 6 am flight but looking forward to it very much....really need a good break.

More updates when I return!

JBJ

Ever heard about the play "The campaign to confer the public star on JBJ" The play first played last year and was at first curious but the title. The play returned this year and I managed to catch it on Tuesday. I must say the first part of the play is smart. JBJ, as everyone knows, is a opposition leader in Singapore and thus his name is tabooed and worse, who would have thought of conferring him a Singapore award?

Thus, to create the sense of curiosity, a fictional JBJ was created as the Secretary General of WP, Wildlife Preservation. Smart play with a lot of interesting reference to everyday's issue like PM wearing a maroon shirt at the National Day Rally, etc, etc. The second act also takes a poke at the civil service....rather amused by it.

The main plus of the play is that it is only performed by 2 person. In the first act, the guy is the main character with the female lead (Pam Oei) taking on multiple roles. The roles are reverse in the second act.

Simply fabalous...go watch it before the end of the run!

No more earthquakes pls

For most people, the earthquakes over the past week or so had been rather terrifying due to the tremors experienced in certain parts of Singapore. For me, I experienced some form of swaying in my office as I am situated on the 24th floor. Last thursday morning, I could feel the tremor as I was in the bathroom and I could feel the water in the pail moving.

However, for me, that is another added dimension due to the earthquakes. For a matter of fact, I oversee the met service in Singapore and thus was called upon to update people on top regarding the earthquakes. Two weeks and 2 precabs later, I am definitely a more hardened person in dealing with such emergencies.

No more earthquakes pls!

27

I turned 27 on Sunday...low keyed event. Another new year to look forward to.

Six Affairs

Just thought that this is damn funny...

Six Affairs

The 1st Affair:

A married man was having an affair with his secretary. One day they went her place and made love all afternoon. Exhausted, they fell asleep and woke up at 8 PM. The man hurriedly dressed and told his lover to take his shoes outside and rub them in the grass and dirt. He put on his shoes and drove home. 'Where have you been?' his wife demanded. 'I can't lie to you,' he replied, 'I'm having an affair with my secretary. We had sex all afternoon.' 'You lying bastard! You've been playing golf!'

The 2nd Affair:

A middle-aged couple had two beautiful daughters but always talked about having a son. They decided to try one last time for the son they always wanted. The wife got pregnant and delivered a healthy baby boy. The joyful father rushed to the nursery to see his new son. He was horrified at the ugliest child he had ever seen. He told his wife, 'There's no way I can be the father of this baby. Look at the two beautiful daughters I fathered! Have you been fooling around behind my back?' The wife smiled sweetly and replied, 'Not this time!'

The 3rd Affair:

A mortician was working late one night. He examined the body of Mr. Schwartz, about to be cremated, and made a startling discovery. Schwartz had the largest private part he had ever seen! 'I'm sorry Mr. Schwartz,' the mortician commented, 'I can't allow you to be cremated with such an impressive private part. It must be saved for posterity.' So, he removed it, stuffed it into his briefcase, and took it home. 'I have to show you something you won't believe,' he said to his wife, opening his briefcase. 'My God!' the wife exclaimed, 'Schwartz is dead?!?!'

The 4th Affair:

A woman was in bed with her lover when she heard her husband opening the front door. 'Hurry,' she said, 'stand in the corner.' She rubbed baby oil all over him, then dusted him with talcum powder. 'Don't move until I tell you,' she said. 'Pretend you're a statue.' 'What's this?' the husband inquired as he entered the room. 'Oh it's a statue.' she replied. 'The Smith's bought one and I liked it so much I got one for us, too.' No more was said, not even when they went to bed. Around 2 AM the husband got up, went to the kitchen and returned with a sandwich and a beer. 'Here,' he said to the statue, 'have this. I stood like that for two days at the Smith's and nobody offered me a damned thing.'

The 5th Affair:

A man walked into a cafe, went to the bar and ordered a beer. 'Certainly, Sir, that'll be one cent.' 'One Cent?' the man thought. He glanced at the menu and asked, 'How much for a nice juicy steak and a bottle of wine?' 'A nickel,' the barman replied. 'A nickel?' exclaimed the man 'Where's the guy who owns this place?' The bartender replied, 'Upstairs, with my wife.' The man asked, 'What's he doing upstairs with your wife?' The bartender replied, 'The same thing I'm doing to his business down here.'

The 6th Affair:

Jake was dying. His wife sat at the bedside. He looked up and said weakly, 'I have something I must confess.' 'There's no need to,' his wife replied. 'No,' he insisted, 'I want to die in peace. I slept with your sister, your best friend, her best friend, and your mother!' 'I know, I know,' she replied. 'Now just rest and let the poison work.'

Where's my wallet?

Had a terrifying experience losing my wallet on the 8th of September. Was at Liat Towers banking in a cheque and the next minute it was gone. Thoughts of the processes involved in getting replacement for all those important documents floated in my mind. I immediately cancelled my credit cards as those were potentially the most vital things. Then contacted staff at Liat Towers to help me looked out for my wallet. In the end, the search was in vain, had to make a police report to report the loss of my IC, etc.

Sunday morning, I received a phone call very early in the morning. It was from Citibank and they said that SOMEONE ACTUALLY FOUND MY WALLET! Actually spoke to the kind lady who found the wallet at Liat Towers. I must have left it there while I was banking in my cheque. Felt so relieved and thankful for that person!

I must remind myself to be more careful in the future and be thankful for the fortunate event.

Appalachian State???

I hope I got the spelling correct..appalachian state. You must be wondering what the hell I am talking about but for people who studied in Michigan, this name will stay with us for the rest of our lives. Last saturday, our beloved wolverines was beaten by Appalachian State, a second rung football team from North Carolina. The pain was worse considering that the loss was at the Big House.

What happened to the all conquering Michigan team that so nearly went to the BCS Championship game? Was looking forward to this season as the schedule have been favourable. We will be playing Notre Dame and Ohio State at home with the tricky tie probably only at Michigan State. Alas all our dreams are shattered with the loss.

Anyhow, let see how the season pans out considering that this is only the 1st game of the season.

Go Blues!

Tiring Weekend

Had a tiring but rewarding weekend. Went to IKEA on saturday to get a new wardrobe. The toughest part was actually lugging it into the car. We had to convert the v-com seat to a bed and manage to slide in across the car's length. Not that easy considering that the wardrobe weighs 40kg. Was actually quite surprised that the assembly was rather simple. Took us 1.5 hours to assemble and was actually quite proud of our achievement. Unfortunately, the wardrobe is not mine. :-)

Sunday was equally tiring as my whole family decided to wax and polish the car. My arms are aching from removing all the old scratch marks and now the cars appeared brand new.

Productive weekend and hopefully a productive week ahead!

Drowned with Sashimi

Other than visiting Grand Copthorne, I also took the opportunity to visit Ikoi, a Japanese restaurant at Miramar Hotel. I heard many rave reviews about this place from many friends and have been wanting to go there for ages but somehow, they are always fully booked. Managed to get a seat at the bar counter for dinner and was gladly surprised by their selection.

First stop, sashimi. They served many different varieties of sashimi, salmon, tuna, yellowtail, cuttlefish, octopus, snapper and swordfish. We had a grand total of 3 plates of raw fish and it was heavenly. Next stop was tempura, katsu, tori karaage, chawanmushi, seafood soup, miso soup, etc, etc.

The quality of the food was excellent and totally no complains. Oh, I forgot it's a buffet and the price is pretty reasonable at $30+++/pax.

Fireworks Galore

Every year, other than the National Day Parade and New Year's Eve, the yearly Fireworks Festival is something to look forward to for fireworks lovers. Enjoyed last year's event but the thought of squeezing with millions of people is simply not enticing.

This year, I watched the fireworks on the 17th of August from Tampines. Even though we were so far, we could still see most of the fireworks. Quite spectacular I must say. On Saturday, we decided to go to Grand Copthorne at Havelock. Was actually quite surprised by the view that we got and except for a few construction sites, our view were perfect.

A perfect place for a romantic evening. If anyone is interested, Room 1816 at Grand Copthorne Waterfront is definitely worth a visit when there are fireworks!

Garibaldi

Went to spend a "romantic" evening at Garibaldi, an Italian restaurant at Purvis Street. I had heard about this restaurant for some time and heard that they were very snobbish and the food was only so-so.

So I braved myself and we reserved a table last Tuesday. We probably arrived early compared to others as the restaurant was pretty empty. We started with the bread and it was heavenly (later we found out that the bread costs $7 for half a loaf). It was our first time there so we requested for the antipesti palate. It was very good with all the variety. The soup that we ordered, pumpkin soup with crab was heavenly. The soup was sweet with the crab meat and with the bread....

The main course was not that fantastic. I had the linguine with crab. I thought it tasted pretty ordinary for the price. The finale was the dessert, simple tiramisu but made to perfection. Well worth the price.

Overall, the experience was good. The service was very good as well. However, not a place for the price sensitive (yup, that includes me :-(). Maybe for the next special occasion!

Vittorio

Listened to a fantastic album by Vittorio Grigolo, an italian singer. His voice is fantastic and very soothing. Reading about him at Wikipedia and found that he is the only person in Italy to be given the chance to skip military service so that he could concentrate on his career. Wow!

One of my favourite songs of the album is Bedshaped, a song previously sung by Keane. I liked both versions a lot and the tune of the song is always ringing in my head. Another song is "You Are my Miracle", a duet with one of the members of the Pussycat Dolls. The lyrics are really meaningful.

Let me know if anyone is interested in the album!

Joke of the Day

My colleague sent this to me and I found it hilarious. Enjoy!

11 AM

There was this case in the hospital's Intensive care ward where patients always died in the same bed and on Sunday morning at 11a.m., regardless of their medical condition.

This puzzled the doctors and some even thought that it had something to do with the supernatural. No one could solve the mystery as to why the deaths took place at 11 AM.

So a world-wide expert team was constituted and they decided to go down to the ward to investigate the cause of the incidents.

So on the next Sunday morning few minutes before 11 a.m., all doctors and nurses nervously waited outside the ward to see for themselves what the terrible phenomenon was all about. Some were holding wooden crosses, prayer books and other holy objects to ward off evil........

Just when the clock struck 11...

Santa Singh, the part-time Sunday sweeper, entered the ward and unplugged the life support system & plugged in the vacuum cleaner.

The Simpsons!

For anyone who is not a Simpson's fan, go watch the movie! I would say that the Simpsons is one of my favourite shows on tele (Seinfeld counts as my other strong favourites for sitcoms) simply because it is so simple. The show basically touches on common issues with a very humourous touch. Started watching it probably in secondary school but at that time could not really understand most of the jokes but as I got older, I realise that the issues they talk about are very real and honestly funny if you look at it from their perspective.

Saw the trailer for the movie probably 1 year ago, when they did a spoof on the Superman movie where Homer is actually superman. I think the movie came at a right time as people have been waiting for it for the past 18 years. The storyline was also apt as it covers environmental issues and made a few spoofs as well to jazz up the movie.

All the favourites were included in the movie with some exceptions such as Side-Show Bob, etc. Some of the scenes that sent me laughing were:
1) Chief Wiggum's son screaming out the Fox's theme music
2) Homer complaining of paying to watch something which can be watched free on tele
3) Homer praying that Flanders is gay
4) Of cos, spider pig and Harry Plopper
5) Cocoa done up by Flanders
6) Homer being toss between the rock and a hard place

Ok, I think that's all the summer blockbusters for now. The next big movie I want to watch is Ratouille! :-)

Bored!

This upcoming week will be boring! Work is killing me but somehow this is also the time that I am most lonely. Anyone keen to catch up for this week, do jio me? :-)

Gastric Flu

Been struck with gastric flu for the past week or so.....been a horrible feeling but still trying to pin down the source of it as quite a few of my loved ones are also affected.

Just hope to recover fast!

Harry Potter Mania

Yes, every 2 years, Potter mania begins when a new book is published. The journey is finally coming to an end when the 7th book is published on 21st of July. Have been a Harry Potter fan since 2000 when my senior brought the first book to our ski trip in France. After arriving back from London, I immediately ordered all 4 books available at that time and read them all within 1 week.

Somehow, potter mania can convert many non-fantasy fans to instant Harry Potter's fanatics. The movies have also helped to crystallize some of the thoughts many people would have on the plot and characters. Just watched the 5th movie and I must say I am impressed. My impression of Book 5 is that it is long and draggy but somehow the movie has managed to capture the main essence of the book. Kudos to all the actors/actresses as well for bringing out such a good movie.

Now the wait will be over in slightly a week's time when the final instalment of the book is released. I can't wait! :-)

Relaxing Weekend

Finally, a weekend away for a relaxing break. Nothing fancy, just a weekend away at Sentosa. We stayed at Rasa Sentosa resort for saturday. Reached the resort at about 7pm as I had to meet some friends earlier and our Die Hard 4.0 movie. Ta baoed KFC as well. :-)

The disappointment started when we arrived at the hotel. The hotel did not had our reservations and we nearly ended up without a room. When we got to the room, the room was a big disappointment. Very basic and simple and the television is even smaller than 21". The toilet did not have a shower screen and did not even have a holder to hold the shower head. Considering the price we paid, it was definitely not worth it!

However, the trip was more to recharge ourselves since it has been more than a month since my exams. Am super tempted by the Bintan Lagoon discount...maybe in end August :-)

Movies Finally

It's been a month after my exams and finally can start to watch movies again. Here is the list of movies I have watched since the end of my exams on 3rd of June.
1) Shrek 3
2) Pirates of Carribean: At World's End
3) Transformers
4) Die Hard 4.0

I must say this summer is really fantastic for movies as there are so many blockbusters coming up. The next 2 of my list are Harry Potter and The Simpsons.

Somehow, we have been revisiting Golden Village more often compared to Cathay. :-)

One year ago, when I retired my old 6610 and bought a new phone, I was over the moon with the new purchase. Alas, the phone (a Nokia 6280) did not live up to expectations. In my short 1 year stint with it, it has broken down twice and made me spend countless hours waiting at the Nokia Service Centre. The latest problem was that the speaker was not working. For the past 1 or 2 months, I have been fiddling with my handsfree set or talking on the loudspeaker.

Last saturday, I finally got my new phone. Something new for a change and a Sony Ericsson K810 to play with. The functions are cool with its 3.2 megapixel camera with all the frills of a normal digital camera. To top it all off, it looks damn good as well. :-). Still trying to get a hang of using it for messaging and trying to manoevure my fat fingers around the keys but I am certainly very excited!

I am addicted

Yes, my friends, I am officially addicted to Zara shirts. Was out shopping on Tuesday and I think I tried a grand total of about 10 shirts. I am actually already a proud owner of 2 zara shirts and am glad to add another one on Tuesday.

The shirts are pretty pricey at 90 bucks a piece but I must say the quality is pretty good and the design are smart and current. Am keen to try Massimo Dutti and Charles Tywritt as well....now I am having an oversupply of shirts :-) Not that I am complaining.

It's Over

Yup, the agony is finally over. Six gruelling hours of exams is finally behind and it's definitely a weight off my chest. The exam was ok, I thought I tried my best so I have no regrets. Saw quite a few friends at the examination hall as well.

Now the exams is finally over, there is so much to look forward to. Finally a break from studying every weekend! :-)

Final Lap

6 months ago, I was busy preparing for my CFA level 1 exam. 6 months on, never would I expect to go through this torture again. Yes, the adventure has not stopped and the worse thing is this time the stuff are much more tougher and there are so many things to read and remember.

I have been studying non-stop for the past 1 year. Really can't wait for this exam to be over and hopefully take a 6 months break before embarking on another adventure.

One more week to go and I will be free. :-) Wish me luck! I need plenty of it.

PS: Apologies to everyone for not updating this hogwash for so long. :p

43 days...

We had started a new streak after our 22 days and 12 days streak and it started on the 30th of March and ended on the 11th of May. A total of 43 days!

It was unfortunate that we had to end the streak but I guess it's for the best!

:-)

May Day

Haiz...May Day has come and gone...have to wait for the end of the month for the next public holiday.

Anyway, it was still good break from work but unfortunately most of the day was spent studying. Am in panic mood already since it's one month and one day more to go before the exam day. I am still pretty lost by a lot of the concepts and definitely need to work harder. Thus I have already decided to take 1 week leave in 2 weeks' time to concentrate full time on it. Wish me Luck!

Anyway, May Day was good in general and I manage to get a massage as well. Not really very friendly but overall it was good. I have too much chronic pains and thus it was a good relief. :-)

Dinner was spent at Katong eating Ampang Yong tau foo...simple pleasure in life.

Invincible!

My colleague passed me this movie "Invincible", an inspirational movie about how one overcame the toughest odd to succeed. Somehow this movie did not make it to Singapore probably due to Singaporean's unfamiliarity with the sport even with Mark Wahlberg as the lead actor.

The sport concerned is American football and the story begins with a bartender, Vincent Papale who had always dreamed of playing for his beloved Philadephia Eagles. In America, in order to play professional sports, you have to go through the ranks i.e. to go through college, play for your college and get selected by the professional teams. However Papale never did that.

The Eagles were a faltering team in the 70s and it was only when new coach Dick Vermeer came in and he decided to hold a trial for anyone to try out for his team. Papale impressed and was selected for the team. As a member of the special team, he was famous for intercepting a punt and scoring a touchdown playing against the Giants.

The movie highlighted that nothing is impossible in this world! For those who are interested in the movie, do get it from me. :-)

I still have another American football movie to watch and it's also another inspirational one starring Matthew McConaughey and Matthew Fox called We are Marshall!

Busy, Busy

It's been a busy April thus far. Work has been increasingly like crazy and now my portfolio is left only me and another colleague. It gets me thinking whether it is sustainable working in this line for long. I know friends working in various sectors and most of them are having problems coping with work stress as well.

Somehow, the pace in Singapore is always to cheong and get as far ahead as possible in terms of career and make as much money as possible. For me, coming from my background, money is definitely important but I guess I have a new priority in life. To be able to balance one's career and personal life is never easy and definitely one has to take sacrifices to reach a balance point.

Not sure why I am grunting about this when in fact the civil service is raising our pay. Let's just say I am quite satisfied with my current state and I have no complains. The key question will come when my bond ends in 3 years time and that's when I need to make the crunch decision.

Alright enough grumbling for now! Any comments are welcome.

Bangkok!

Had a wonderful weekend at Bangkok last week. The 2 photos should be enough to describe my trip. :-)We spent the 2 days at Banyan Tree and am I impressed. Actually after their hotel experience, I can't wait to spend it in their resort either in Phuket or Bintan.

Did quite a bit of shopping as well, including going to Pinky Tailor to make some shirts. Am fully stock now with 5 new shirts and 2 pants! :-)

Ah....now awaiting my next holiday....

PS: More photos available upon request. :-)

Gotcha! Part 2

Gotcha once again! Just to clarify that I did not go to the Falklands recently :-)

At least the hard work is paying off.

Cat out of the Bag!

Another cryptic message here...

Music & Lyrics

Managed to catch the Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore's movie over the weekend. I must say the storyline really suck big time. Very poorly stringed together and somehow it felt that the writers had lots of great ideas and were forcefeeding it into the movie.

However, there are lots of pluses on the movie as well. Firstly the acting were genuine and sincere. Not going did Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore stand out, Brad Garrett (more popularly known as Raymond's brother on Everybody Loves Raymond) and Kirsten Johnson (the tall chick from 3rd Rock from the Sun - and man she has really put on weight) were outstanding.

The bonus of this movie were the songs. I was surprising impressed by Hugh Grant's singing. Most of the songs were very well-written and the songs are really stuck in my head. I reproduced the lyrics of Hugh Grant's Don't Write Me Off Just Yet:

It’s never been easy for me
To find words that go along with a melody
But this time there’s actually something on my mind
So please forgive these few brief awkward lines
Since I met you my whole life has changed
It’s not just my furniture you’ve re-arranged
I was living in the past but somehow you’ve brought me back
And I haven’t felt like this since before Frankie said relax
And now I know based on my track record
I might not seem like the safest bet
All I’m asking you is
Don’t write me off just yet
For years I’ve been telling myself the same old story
That I’m happy to live off my so-called former glories
But you’ve given me a reason to take another chance
Now I need you despite the fact that you’ve killed all my plants
And now I know that i’ve already blown more chances
Than anyone should ever get
All I’m asking you is don’t write me off just yet
Don’t write me off just yet…

Batam!

Apologies for the late posting. I had my yearly divisional retreat at Batam this year (really missed the company of last year and our eating bonaza). Had to wake up super early to catch the ferry and we only managed to reach the resort at 9am so as to maximize our time there.

Did the usual discussion about our workplan and it was a quick one as everyone was raring to go for the leisure section. We started with go-karting straight after the discussion. It was a hot afternoon but I think everyone enjoyed the adrenaline in such high speeds. Probably helped me lost some weight as well. :-)

Lunch was pretty sucky but the massage was really good (Am looking for a better one when I go to Bangkok at the end of the month). And that's marks the end of the retreat. Pretty rush in a sense but it was great getting out of the country!

Time really flies. I am going to mark my 2nd anniversary working soon.

Show time!

Yes, the past 2 weeks had been super hectic preparing for the budget debate but it's finally showtime tomorrow. Our current timing is from 1pm to 4pm. Hopefully everything will go smoothly and can celebrate! For faithful readers, let me know if you want to see the speech I wrote after tomorrow.

Am looking forward to the end of the ordeal.. Batam awaits this Friday :-)

12 Days and counting....

Yes, 12 days on and still counting....let's just hope it will never end!

Update: Correction - The streak has extended to 15 days already :-)

Update 13/03/07: The streak has ended at 22 days!

Aftermath of the Budget

Today marks officially the beginning of the end. A total of 26 "cuts" for this year for our budget debate. A near 100% increase from last year. The next few days will be very painful. I shall not even think about it!

Gotcha!

Been sifting the internet to find this famous headline in 1982 when Britain capture back the Falkland Islands.

Here it is:Need I say more :-)

Crunch Time

Ok, the budget has been announced. Crunch time for the rest of the civil service now. A hectic 4 days of getting questions and another week of busy preparing for replies. The year certainly fly past and soon the end of the road is near!

Onward march!

Happy Friendship Day and...

Happy Friendship Day to everyone. For those who have their special someone, Happy Valentine's Day!

Chinese New Year beckons!

Revival of Chinese Movies

Managed to watch 2 Chinese movies over the past weekends and I must say I am quite impressed. Most of the time, I do not bother going to the theatre to watch Chinese movies as they are shown on tele quite quickly normally after about a year.

Incidentally both movies I caught were in Cathay and starred Louis Koo.

The first was Happy Birthday. A romantic and touching movie about a couple who had an on-and-off relationship over the past 20 years. They became apart during their studies but somehow still manage to maintain a close relationship. The movie ended with a dramatic twist and I guarantee that it would make any girl weep (pls note :-))

The second movie was the Protege. A local production starring international stars such as Andy Lau, Daniel Wu and of course Louis Koo. The story revolves around a drug cartel fronted by Lau and him looking for a protege to look after his business. His protege actually turned out to be a police spy and he was determined to bring to an end the drug trade. Excellent movie overall!

Hmm...what the watch this weekend? Epic Movie anyone? hehe...

Superbowl 41

Took my customary leave on 5th of Feb to watch Superbowl 41. It's been a tradition for me to catch the Superbowl since I was indoctrinated to the sport of American Football during my one year stint in Michigan.

This year, the Superbowl featured the Indianapolis Colts and the Chicago Bears. The Colts have been the team to beat over the last 5 years. With star quarterback Peyton Manning, Colts have arguably the best QB in the league but each and every year, they have been stopped by the Patriots (the team I support) during the play-offs. Chicago have been a lucky team thus far. Using a rookie quarterback, Rex Grossman, they depended much on their defence to do most of the work.

Had actually watched Grossman play way back in 2002 when he was the starting QB for Florida Gators. Michigan was facing the Gators for the Outback Bowl and we soundly thrashed them. Thus had never been impressed by him and was rather perplexed why Chicago did not field their experience QB, Brian Griese (another wolverine alumni).

The game started explosively with Chicago scoring with the opening kick-off. The Chicago defence dominated the first half and it was only because of Grossman's fumbles and interceptions that led to the Colts picking up points.

Overall, an exciting match and worth the off I took. Now, a long break before the season restarts in Aug/Sept.

Bhangraman Part 2

Part 2 of Bhangraman!

Bhangraman

For those who studied in UK, you probably would have watched this show "Goodness Gracious Me" It is a skit show with 4 Indians basically making fun of how indians trying their darnest best to assimilate to the British culture.

Among my favourite skit is the "everything indian", "cheque pls" and of course Bhangraman!

Enjoy!

Charles and Keith Visit

Decided to post our Charles and Keith's visit photos online. Was quite impressed that they actually finished the showroom on the day of our visit.

Maybe can save for a pair of Pedro shoes soon :-)

Post course Withdrawal Syndrome

Am currently suffering from post-course withdrawal syndrome. It's been three days back at work since my two week course and it has not been easy thus far. All my coursemates have also been suffering from the same syndrome. Work seems to be coming in non-stop :-(

Have to look forward to the weekend and Superbowl on the following Monday. Bears vs. Colts!

Charles and Keith

Part of my course was also to learn more about entrepreneurship and how as civil servants we can provide a conducive environment for such people to flourish. Thus our visit to Charles & Keith, a local women's shoes retailer who has done very well internationally.

We actually manage to meet the brothers Charles and Keith. Both of them were young and already so successful. They told us about their story and it was really a rags to riches story. They started by helping their mum at a shop at AMK in the early 90s (incidentally the shop was near the OCBC bank in AMK). They then decided to develop their own brand and started at Amara. Their business multipled exponentially and thus far they have more than 50 shops all ard the world.

What struck me most is their humility. They told us that they did not do well in school and thus had decided to strike out on their own in the business world. They were very sincere about our visit and in fact they rush to finish their showroom at their new HQ for our course.

Their next step is actually to go into the men's market. That is where the brand PEDRO is from. Too bad we did not get any discounts or loyalty cards from them. We did get both Charles and Keith's namecards, so hopefully that will count for something. :p Anyone want to buy new shoes?

Focus Adventure

Just found some of the photos for the teambuilding adventure that I attended last Monday.

Mousetrap Tower
Group Photo

Next President of United States of America

My friends - meet the future of America's Democratic Party - Barack Hussein Obama. Bornt to a mixed marriage, Mr Obama is sweeping America's off their feet.

Mr Obama is young and charismatic and had just declare his interest for the United States Presidency. He is still an unknown as he had only 2 years in the Senate so far but his support is gaining strength.

Just watch this video to see his declaration speech (watch out for the twist at the end)

Enjoy!

2-week break from work

I must say I am quite fortunate. I am currently on a 2-week course called the "Executive Development Course" It brings together various people from the different government agencies to learn more of civil service as a whole and to understand the key challenges facing it in the future.

First day of the course was fun as it was a team-building day at Sentosa. The activities were facilitated by Focus Adventure and they were very good especially the facilitators. Most of the teams were indoors as it was raining quite heavily. One of the more interesting game is confidence building game through mousetrap. Not many people would know how to set up one and it was really quite a painful experience. We were then supposed to build a tower consisting of the "activated" mousetrap. Our team managed to 12 levels!

The next 4 days were mostly lesson-based with some discussions in between. One more week to go before going back to work!

Really must enjoy this week!

Crazy Week at Work

Have been crazy at work since the new year. Bosses returning after their holidays and decided to add more stuff to do.

It has not help that I am bogged down with so much problems as well.

Anyway, not really concerned anymore. Am on course for the next 2 weeks. Looking forward to that.

End of College Football Season

Yup, it's the end of the College Football season in US. Unfortunately, Michigan did not produce the goods and were soundly beaten by USC by a score of 38-18. It was a disappointing end to such a incredible season. Again 2 losses in the final 2 games for the third year in the row. Next year, quite a few of the class will be graduating. Will have to hope that suitable replacements will be found.

On a similar note, Ohio State Buckeyes were thrashed by the Florida Gators (famous for Gatorade). The professional NFL season is coming up to the exciting part...Superbowl in 4th of Feb. Time to apply for leave.

Botak Jones

Finally went to try the famous Botak Jones over the weekend. Have been hearing so much about it and never had the chance to try it. The good thing is that it is right near my place in AMK. Actually pretty near where my grandmum used to stay at Blk 608 Ang Mo Kio Ave 5. The coffee shop looks pretty ordinary but the fragrance of western food soon overwhelmed you.

I was expecting a long queue and so I went at about 5.30pm. The coffeeshop was already rather crowded and it was not long before the queue started building up. Managed to place our orders before the queue started and we had to wait a staggering 30 to 45 minutes.

For the records, we ordered the botak burgers and the cajun chicken. The burger was rather ordinary and rather tasteless. The cajun chicken was good. Well grilled and tender. The good thing was also the cajun fries and the servings were huge. Thus for about 5 bucks, you get quite a decent serving. May try the other stuff on the menu soon...

PS: Personally there is another western food stall that I like and that is at Crawford Lane (just behind the ICA Building at Lavendar). It's variety are really good and they have some weird serving such as Maryland Chicken, etc. The food is also very cheap. Next to the same western food stall is the famous Hill Street Bak Chor Mee (previously at Marina Square). The queue there is also ridiculous!

Kyushu

Decided not to do a detailed write-up for my Kyushu trip. For detailed breakdown of our trip, you can visit mf's blog: http://gnoofyem.blogspot.com/

I have posted my photos at the following weblink: http://cheewing.multiply.com/photos/album/16?mark_read=cheewing:photos:16

Comments are welcome pls

PS: Yes, I do snore :p

Quiet Christmas

This must be one of my quietest Christmas. Back in 1999, I had wanted to spend Christmas yearly at an exotic place. Ok, from my memory, here's where I was in Christmas

1999 - Bordeaux (French Backpacking trip)
2000 - Val Torens (Skiing in the French Alps)
2001 - Isle of Scilly (Christmas with the Nicolles)
2002 - Washington DC (My first solo trip)
2003 - Cannot remember
2004 - JC friends' gathering at Xinda's place
2005 - Seoul/Bangkok
2006 - Home!

I guess now that I have started working it is not as easy to travel. Not sure where I will end up next year.

Post Christmas

Well, Christmas has come and gone and very soon the new year is upon us. I have been thinking on what I have accomplished over the past year and I struggle to come out with anything. I would think work-wise I have put in a lot of effort but I am not sure whether I am neglecting other areas. I really should put in more efforts to do some more ECAs and maybe attempt a few radical things that I have been wanting to do.

I guess I have one last week to do all the thinking. Not sure what I can accomplish but I really look forward to 2007.

Kyushu here I come Part 2

Yup, the day is finally here. Was rushing like crazy today to finish all my submissions and work before leaving early to pack. Much more stories to update when I am back next Tuesday! Have to sleep early now to wake up at 530am to catch the flight!

Help! Help!

Was rushing for Khet and Yin Hua's wedding on Sunday night and was running slightly late. What made it worse was that my lift decided to break down 2m away from the ground floor. Thus was stuck in a small lift with a delivery man for about 25 minutes. It was an interesting experience and was glad of the efficiency of Singapore's service. Someone was actually on standby on Sunday.

Talking about weddings, I attended 2 Navy ones over the weekend. Somemore it was the same batch of sword bearers. Next month , I will have 4 more. So broke!

Disappointments galore!

I thought the CFA exams would be the end of all the agonies and I can finally relax. Alas, quite a lot of bad news and disappointments since yesterday's evening:

1) Kena big time arrow at work. Now have to finish a fluffy paper by the end of the week as everyone is disappearing for holidays soon.

2) Just found out that our Japan trip to Kyushu cannot be extended for us to explore the other parts of Japan. Was actually looking forward more to the free and easy section where we can really explore Japan in proper. Thus a shortened holiday of only 6 days instead of the intended 2 weeks!

3) Log into ESPN first thing this morning to find out who would be competing in the BCS Championship game for College football. My optimism was increased tremendously yesterday as the much expected team to qualify, University of Southern California (USC) failed to beat UCLA..thus leaving the BCS spot wide open for either Michigan or Florida. Unfortunately, the computers have chosen Florida instead of Michigan to go to Glendale, Arizona. A sort of consolation is that Michigan would at least be in the Rose Bowl. This exciting match would match the Pac 10 vs the Big Ten and would be the repeat of the Rose Bowl 3 years ago. Michigan would be pitted against the very tough USC on New Year's Day







Anyone keen to host the game for all the crazy Michigan's fans to gather in Singapore!

Go Blues!

Finally Ended!

Yes, my CFA ordeal is over...for now!

Was quite an experience taking the exams and manage to see several familiar faces as well during the exam proper. I must say this is one of the most brain-engaging exam lasting 6 hours in total. Definitely not one for the faint hearted.

Nevertheless, no point crying over spilled milk. Just have to pray for the best and enjoy my December.

Once again, thanks to all who have supported me thus far!

CFA Panic!

Firstly, would like to thank everyone for your well wishes and the help to help me prepare for this super tough exams. 4 more solid days of preparing before the actual day on 3rd of Dec, Sunday.

Wish me luck!

Secretaries Galore

Chanced upon this quote from the old British sitcom "Yes, Minister". Certainly very apt and funny for someone working in the civil service.

Sir Humphrey (the Permanent Secretary) briefs Hacker (the Minister) on the Department's workings:

'I am the Permanent Under-Secretary of State, known as the Permanent Secretary. Woolley here is your Principal Private Secretary; I too have a Principal Private Secretary and he is the Principal Private Secretary to the Permanent Secretary. Directly responsible to me are 10 Deputy Secretaries, 87 Under Secretaries and 219 Assistant Secretaries. Directly responsible to the Principal Private Secretaries are plain Private Secretaries, and the Prime Minister will be appointing two Parliamentary Under-Secretaries and you will be appointing your own Parliamentary Private Secretary.'

'Can they all type?' joshes Hacker.

'None of us can type, Minister,' Humphrey responds, 'Mrs. Mackay types; She's the secretary.'

'Pity, we could have opened an agency,' Hacker quips.

'Very droll, Sir,' replies Humphrey.

'I suppose they all say that, do they?' Hacker asks.

'Certainly not Minister. Not quite all..." answers Humphrey.

It's Not Over yet!

Woke up at 4am this morning to catch the game of the century, No 1 Ohio State vs No 2 Michigan. Manage only to obtain the streaming at about 1am and thus only slept for a short while before waking up to watch the game.

The game started off explosively with both sides scoring touchdowns on their first drive. Then it was advantage to Ohio State. Their offensive were awesome and the Wolverines were no match for them. The half ended 21-14 with the Buckeyes holding the advantage.

The second half was an even match and Michigan were close to tying the game till a controversial personal foul gave Ohio State a first down when they were 3rd and long. Michigan's fate was sealed when the on-side kick were received by Ohio State and they ran the clock down.

So much emotion was in this game and even though Michigan lost, it's not the end of the story. The Bowl Championship game is now between the Buckeyes against ???. The three teams in contention are Michigan, USC and Notre Dame. USC and Notre Dame will face each other next week and USC has the advantage in that game. If Notre Dame were to win, then Michigan should qualify for the Finals as they trashed them 47-21 earlier in the season. If USC wins, then it is all open to contention.

Nevertheless, the Wolverines are assured of at least a BCS Bowl (most likely the Rose Bowl) and it's already a huge improvement from last season's 7-5. Within the next 2 weeks, we will know the schedule for the games on New Year's Day.

Go Blues!

The Greatest Match ever!

For curious friends who have noticed about my new MSN nick, here's a short explanation.

This saturday will see one of the biggest sporting rivalry in US that has lasted for more than 100 years. It is the football game between Ohio State University (Buckeyes) and University of Michigan (Wolverines). This match is always the last game of the season in the regular season and the games have always been riveting and guarantee to keep you on the edge of your seat.

Let me start with some basic explanation of college football. In America, universities compete in their own regional divisions before competing nationally for the overall championship. The mid-western universities compete in the Big Ten Championship and there are numerous college championship as well such as Pac-10, Big 12, ACC, SEC, etc. The No 1 team in the country will play the No 2 team for the overall champion in Jan. This year, both No 1 (Ohio State) and No 2 (Michigan) are from the Big Ten Division and the match this saturday will determine who goes to the overall championship (Rose Bowl this year).

Being a wolverine, I really hope that Michigan can pull off an upset and finished 12-0 for the entire season. However, the game will be played in Ohio State and Michigan usually do not play well there. I am optimistic that even if Michigan lose this game, we would still be eligible for the overall Championship. Thus a repeat of the same match this saturday could take place in Jan in the Rose Bowl.

Go Blues!

Two years on...

Ok, today is the 2nd anniversary of my humble Nissan Sunny.

Still remember the day when I got it and we got lost at Tampines and took us like 2 hours before we reached home. Time really flies fast. This trusty car has gotten me to many places and here's to many more years to come!

Visiting the Istana

Had the chance to visit the Istana for the first time in my life. No, it's not for a leisure visit but to help up in an event that my Ministry was organising.

My job was simple, to identify the vehicles coming in and to inform the organisers of the big shots coming in. It was an interesting view of the rich and the famous, all of them coming in their posh vehicles. The food served was wonderful and a true reflection of our nation's heritage. We took turns to try out the different hawker food and took note of the various hawkers that were called up to cook for the event.

Also met a previous officer from my NS unit. She is currently a ADC to the president. Very impressive.

Will post some photos when I have the chance.

Quiet Week

This week have been a quiet week compared to the previous week when I was rushing like crazy to finish my trip report and catching up on my work. Another factor of being a quiet week was that the big boss was not around. Well, the new week is starting once again and I forsee the calm before the storm...

Getting Sick more and more often

My sick frequency used to be once every 4 to 5 months. Last got sick in Aug and am sick again....something is seriously wrong with me! Need to do something...any suggestions?

Zero Sugar Coke

Good news to all Coke fans, I have found the solution to all you coke drinkers without worrying about your health. Meet Zero Sugar Coke!

I got this drink in Australia and I must say it taste quite good. Fortunately or unfortunately it still contain some sweetners in it but unlike those in diet coke.

I am sure people are hoping for this to be brought to Singapore. I know some people who are.

Updated on 26th Dec:
Heard that 7-11 is bringing it into Singapore. More Coke pls :-)

Scare of flying?

Whenever I am in a plane that is ascending or descending, I will always remember a British Midlands advertisement I saw when I was in UK. It said whenever you feel pressure building up in your ears, squeeze your nose, swallow and think of Des Lynam. Des Lynam is one of UK's most popular football pundit and until recently was the host of the housewives' favourite "Countdown".

Somehow, the soothing image of Des Lynam always work for me as well :-). Hope it helps someone.

Kiwis

Have been in New Zealand for the past 3 days. Arrived in Auckland and then spent a day in Wellington before returning to Auckland yesterday. So far the trip has been good with so many good stories to listen and been learning a lot from the Kiwis.

Will provide an update once I am back...still have the Melbourne leg to go. :-)

Goodbye Paul

Was quite shock when I read on BBC the demise of Paul Hunter. For those who are huge snooker fans, you would definitely have remembered the "David Beckham" of snooker. With his boy-band looks, he could have made his millions in showbiz but instead he chose a career in snooker.

Snooker is a huge sport in UK. During the Masters and World Championship, BBC2 will show non-stop snooker for 2 weeks straight and my housemates and I got hooked onto watching the art of snooker. During the time when I was living in UK, Paul Hunter won consecutive Masters in Wembly and both victories were astounding come-from-behind victories. For a man only in his early 20s, he was able to dominate the table and also come from behind to beat his more illustrious opponents such as Ronnie O'Sullivan, Stephen Hendry, Mark Williams and many more.

It is unfortunate the sport has lost such a young and budding talent. Goodbye Paul

David Cameron's First Performance

Watched David Cameron's speech yesterday and found it rather refreshing. My personal favourite part of the speech is attached:

Think of any issue - not just crime - and then think of Labour's response.

This Government's way of doing things - the old way of doing things - is so familiar, and so depressing.

Ministers hold a summit.

They announce an eye-catching initiative.

A five-year plan.

Gordon Brown generously finds the money for it.

The money gets a headline, but no-one knows what to do with it.

So they create a unit in the Cabinet Office.

A task force is set up.

Regional co-ordinators are appointed.

Gordon Brown sets them targets - after all, it is his money.

Pilot schemes are launched.

The pilot schemes are rolled out across the country.

They are evaluated.

Then revised, re-organised and re-launched.

And then finally, once the reality dawns that the only people to benefit are the lawyers, accountants and consultants of Labour's quango army...

...with a pathetic whimper - but no hint of an apology - the whole thing is just abandoned.

We've seen too much of this in the past nine years.

Headline after headline but absolutely no follow-through.

It is a story of ignorance, incompetence, arrogance.

A story of wasted billions - and disappointed millions.

Somewhere out there, there is a place where Blair and Brown will never go.

It's dark.

It's depressing.

It's haunted by the failures of nine years of centralisation, gimmick and spin.

It is the graveyard of initiatives, where you'll find the e-University that died a death,
the drugs czar that came and went...

...the Individual Learning Accounts that collapsed in fraud and waste, the tax credits that were paid and reclaimed...

...the Connexions service that flopped, the Strategic Health Authorities that were dropped...

...the marching of yobs to the hole in the wall; the night courts that never happened at all.

And still they keep coming, those hubristic monuments to big government, the living dead that walk the well-trodden path from Downing Street and the Treasury to New Labour's graveyard of initiatives.

The NHS computer: delayed, disorganised, a £20 billion shambles.

Forced police mergers: the direct opposite of the community policing we need.

And then the perfect example.

ID cards.

When a half-way competent government would be protecting our security by controlling our borders...

...these Labour ministers are pressing ahead with their vast white elephant, their plastic poll tax, twenty Millennium Domes rolled into one giant catastrophe in the making.

One year old!

Ok, my blog has turned one! Not exactly one considering that this blog has been started in Dec 2004 but was never written till Sept 2005.

All the 2500 plus of viewership, thanks so much! This blog was started more to record some of my thoughts rather than attracting readers but still thanking everyone who has spent time reading this.

More comments in the future would be much welcome. To another year of writing...

David Who?

David Who?

Was flipping the Economist today and saw this picture of David Cameron, the recently anointed leader of Britain's Conservative Party. Hmm...still am not sure why the Economist used this picture, is it to cast him in better light, to show his casual side, showing that he is like any other man on the street, I wonder?

David Cameron has done well since he was appointed leader of the world's oldest political party last Dec. With the constant pickering between Blair and Brown at the other camp, David Cameron has been appealing to the people and showing them how a Conservative government would be like under his leadership.

In fact, Mr Cameron resembled Mr Blair when he first won leadership of the Labour Party 12 years ago. Young, rejuvenating, he has fired up the Tories. The other additional bonus for him is that he will not be facing Mr Blair in the next election but a rather drab Gordon Brown.

Today, he will deliver his first speech at the Tory Party Conference as leader of the party. We await what he has to say. Anyway, it's still at least 3 years before he can prove his worth!

Kyushu here I come!

So much to write but so little time! Ok first thing first, I AM GOING TO JAPAN! Could not resist the temptation to go back to the Land of Rising Sun once again. This time we are going to Kyushu for a more scenic view of Japan which will complement nicely to my 2004 trip to Japan.

A 7 day tour of Kyushu followed by a 6 day adventure on our own. Any Japanese contacts help will be greatly appreciated! So much to planned

Before that, a trip to Australia and New Zealand first next next week. Not sure how much leisure there will be but since it is my first time to the region, I am going to take it easy!

Upper Pierce Reservoir

Decided to finally ventured into the unknown and go jog in Upper Pierce Reservoir Park instead of the usual Bishan Park and Gym. It's near the Prata Place at Upper Thomson Road and it's a long drive in the middle of nowhere before you look in awe at the park. It is very scenic with Bukit Timah Hill as the background and the reservoir in the foreground.

Decided to find a good jogging road and somehow ventured into Singapore Island Country Club (not really sure whether jogging is permitted). Did a light jog on sat before returning to explore more today. Tried jogging to the Tree-Top Walk today and found that it was closed at 5pm. Now I know how to get to the tree-top walk from Upper Pierce Reservoir.

Maybe next week I will explore the Tree-Top walk before exploring Lower Pierce Reservoir Park. Am keen also to explore some unbeaten tracks in Singapore as well. Anyone keen to join? :p

This way please

Ok, I have been missing for the past few weeks but I have a very good reason for that. I was working as a liason officer for the past 5 days or so and I must say the experience was fun, fun, fun. Let me try to recap the happenings during the event:

Day 1
Received the delegation from the airport and everything went smoothly. Within 10 minutes, we were off in our swanky BMWs to Marina Mandarin. After letting the VIP check-in, I accompanied their staff officers to collect their passes for the meetings and also did some shopping at Funan. Brought them to Suntec and they shopped for some glasses (total cost: $1000). It was the first time I learnt of "transition and progressive lens". The short day thus ended with the delegation wishing to take a rest after their long flight.

Day 2
Started the day at 0800 accompanying the delegation to the Singapore Mint. They had wanted to outsource their minting services to Singapore as their minting is currently being done in Paris. More shopping around the Suntec and Marina area. Did some night-time sightseeing in the car and they enjoyed themseleves

Day 3
The real action begin trying to coordinate all their meetings but luckily they were all in Suntec. Had a party in the evening but they were tired and so went back to the hotel before the end of the party. Did more shopping (Sony-Ericsson P990 x 3 each costing $1,388)

Day 4
The meetings are starting to wind down and thus the delegation decided to drive round the city to soak in the sights of Singapore. Brought them to Sim Lim as well (purchasing T10 Sony camera, DVD player, Sony-Ericsson K800 and one Samsung phone). They had a dinner at the Honourary Consul-General's home at Ridout Road and it was one of the largest house I have ever seen. We dropped them off and had our dinner (yummy chicken rice) with the drivers at Margaret Drive.

Day 5
It was Bon Voyage to the delegation. Before that, had to rush down to the Malaysian High Commission to sort out their visas and sending them off to the airport. They shopped more in the airport and were really thankful for our services.

We were glad that the delegation really appreciated us and they were wonderful people to bring around as well. They had also did a lot to contribute to our economy (I would say they contributed well over $20k to our economy) During the meeting, I got to meet new friends and even got to know that my driver was the first person to bring in DVDs into Singapore. Overall, I would definitely volunteered if Singapore get the chance to host such events again.

PS: My work did not end after sending the delegation off as I still got calls asking me when the delegations was leaving 24 hours after sending them off. :-) No complains...everyone's just doing their job.

PPS: Will see what photos I can find to attach to sum up my adventures

Movies

Happened to watch 2 excellent movies over the past 2 weeks:

1) An Inconvenient Truth
This excellent movie by Al Gore had raving reviews when it was launched in the USA and now I know why. It tries to capture the essence of climate change into lay-man's language by using cartoons, animation and slides to show the possible impact of climate change to the world. It is sad that so much politics is happening around the world and 9 years since the signing the Kyoto Protocol, many countries are still bickering on their quotas and they have to do. The world had previously ban CFCs to prevent the ozone layer from further depleting and thus reducing carbon dioxide emissions should be the top priority for many countries.

I strongly encourage all to watch it if you have the opportunity when it opens nation-wide in Singapore in Oct/Nov.

2) The Devil wears Prada
Cute, heartwarming and chick flick and probably the few words that came to my mind after the movie. It was entertaining about life in the fashion industry and how tough it is to work under a boss from hell. Good acting to bring out a smart, intelligent movie!

Ok, the next 2 weeks will be hell for me due to S2006. See you guys around!

Comeback Post

Been missing for the past few weeks and here's an update on myself

1. Went for the National Day Parade all thanks to mf for getting the tickets. Was an exciting event and was quite fun to attend the last parade at our National Stadium. My pictures from the event are attached at the following url: http://cheewing.multiply.com/photos/album/15
2. A massive fire occured in my block but luckily several floors down. My car got featured in the Straits Times due to the fire and am currently swarmed with insurance agent coming door to door to sell fire insurance. Damn annoying!
3. Am currently planning to custom-built some furniture for my flat. Quite excited as I will be finally getting my own study table and some bookshelves for all my books
4. Been glad that the violence in Lebanon have stopped but the peace is still very fragile. To my ex-roommate Wael, hope everyone in Lebanon is getting back to normality
5. Been sick over the past week. I blame it on the delicious raspberry-coated almond nuts that my boss bought over from the States
6. Finally found out the country that I will be serving during next month IMF/World Bank Meeting in Singapore. Quite excited by the prospects :-)
7. If everything goes well, hopefully a trip to New Zealand and Australia for work!

Ok, enough of random thoughts...Will try my best to keep updating.

HELP!

I have been staying pretty silent on the Lebanon conflict so far till now. Today, I received an email from my Lebanese room-mate when I was in London. It was such an emotional email that I decided to publish here:

Hi,

I was really touched to receive your email... thank you very much for your concern and understanding...

unfortunately, despite all the prayers and demos, and the horrific pics, it seems nothing is convincing the world at large, and in particular the US to agree on a ceasefire...

depsite the killing of 4 UN officials, nothing was done..

this morning, around 3am lebanon time, a whole building full of civilians was brought fully to ground.. at least 40 bodies were recovered for now, but number expected to double as many innocent families were hiding there.. 23 children were among those.. some of them were children with disabilities...

that was again in Qana.. the famous village were in 1996 the israeli DEFENCE (?!?!) forces bombed a UN centre killing 116 innocent women and children... we did not forget those yet.. now a fresher memory is engraved in our hearts, eyes and minds...

this is not the peace USA and israel claim they want... this is not fair.. not human..

WHY? our souls cost less as arabs or citizens of developing countries...

we, you and me, are the future of this world.. let's try to make it better... keep those pics in mind when you vote next time.. when you pay your taxes....USA sending weapons to israeli thru glascow, and blankets to the lebanese.. how ironic.. we will kill you and make you homeless, but no worries, we will give you some food and water to drink... ENOUGH....

UN can not take a decision coz USA has the right to veto..WHAT DEMOCRACY IS THAT!!!!!

be the voice of those innocent children, tell their stories... I am sick of being called anti-semitic... for God's sake, I AM SEMITIC.. those killed are SEMITIC... ask people around you and friends to read more, to open their eyes, to seek the truth....

my Lebanon is destroyed and Dr. Rice and Mr. Bush understand the israeli position...

my people are killed, and the world is condemning.. what about ACTIONS!?!?

We want peace more than anyone else... we never asked for war... give the lebanese their land and prisoners who some were detained for now for more than 28 years without trial... stop invading their air borders and terrorising them... this is peace we want.. for all!!!!

Please spread these words to your friends, maybe one day, people and their leaders in this silent world will wake up from their ever-lasting coma!!!!!!!

Thank you...

Another helpless lebanese in Dublin

SALAM

The Israeli have committed international massacre and yet no one is taking action. Yes, Hizbollah is a terrorist network and should be flushed out but to the extent of killing civilians is inexcusable. Did the British bomb Northern Ireland to flush out the IRA or the Spanish to destroy the Basque region to eliminate ETA? In addition, we are talking about invading someone's sovereign right!

The Americans really need to wake up to their international role and by acting as a "silencer" in these issues, they are really showing their support for the Israelis. The response so far from the UN have been rather muted as US holds a veto in the votes in the security council. No amount of international condemnation seems to be able to move the Israelis.

To Wael (my lebanese friend), hope that your family is doing well in Beirut and may peace reign in Lebanon soon

PS: Am thinking of putting up a petition on the Lebanese cause. Do leave your comments if any on this issue pls

Pioneers forgotten

2006 is the year that Singapore lost of 2 of her founding fathers of independence: S Rajaretnam and Lim Kim San. Unfortunately not many people knew of what they have done for our nation state till they have passed on. Rajaretnam was Singapore's first diplomat and was the one that crafted Singapore's pledge. Lim Kim San served as a bedrock in Singapore's Cabinet over the early years and held key positions in the government before moving into the private sector.

Why have most people not even heard of these founding fathers such as David Marshall, Lim Yew Hock, Goh Keng Swee, Toh Chin Chye, Ong Pang Boon, etc, etc? One of the main reason is due to our education when only Lee Kuan Yew had been glorified in our history textbook. Either through accident or coincidence, our students learn nothing of the post-independence events except for the fight against communism.

These founding fathers including Mr Lee Kuan Yew sacrificed their youth and their career to ensure Singapore reached the stage it is now. Let us show an acknowledgement for these founding fathers and also ensure that their legacy are never lost to history.

This way, sir

Am on course for these past few days and the course have been enjoyable thus far. Learning the finer art of protocol was certainly very interesting and learning from the experts as well.

The food was excellent as we were learning the art of fine dining. Not sure what will be served tomorrow after buffet, chinese and western.

Most of the coursemates were all from MAS and somehow I feel that's a missing link there between myself and the people there. Not sure why as well.

Anyway one more day of enjoyment before going back to work on Friday!

Back from Diving

Open Water Course completed! The weekend in Pulau Aur was fun and enjoyable unfortunately the boat ride there was a bit too long for comfort. Left Singapore at 730pm on Friday, reach Mersing at 1130pm and Aur at 400am. The boat was I would said unique - no seats but beds for people to sleep to get over the sea sickness.

Upon reaching Aur, we had to wade through the low tide before reaching our huts. Pretty basic accomodation but we slept like a log due to the tiring boat ride. Soon we were all awake for breakfast to get ready for our first dive. Spend some time briefing and it's finally time to gear up. Pretty basic and the first 2 dives were all testing all the basic skills. Had to drink some seawater initially but once the skills were completed, it was fairly straight forward.

On our third dive, our instructor felt that we were good enough to follow the advanced group and here we go to Pulau Pinang (NOT PENANG) and manage to see a puffer fish! The kiasu Singaporean in us decided to wake up early on Sunday so as to squeeze 2 dives before we depart at noon.

Aur was definitely a nice place even to come and relax. The coconut trees and the beaches were excellent and the hospitality was impressive. One thing about diving is the eating. Food was the norm betwen every single dive either it's doughnuts, maggi mee, bbq dinner, lunch, etc.

Except for the long boat ride, I am certainly looking forward to another dive trip. Maybe to Tioman!

PS: Will hope to post some pictures once our instructors have given us the pics.

Off to the Sea

Finally decided to sign up for the PADI Open Water Diving Licence since my work place was subsidising a fair amount for a trip up to Pulau Aur (4-5 hour boat ride from Mersing :-( ). So am I off for the weekend to see some fishes, corals, turtles and whatever lurks beneath.

Am looking forward to a 4 day course next week as well where I will learn the finer art of protocol and peeling prawns without using my hands!

Nice break in Penang

Finally decided to take 3 days off work to travel to Penang to visit a good friend who is only back in the region once every 2 years. Went up to KL by coach and I must say it was super luxurious. The ride included dinner, massaging chair and a entertainment system which had tonnes of movies and even had Summerslam! (Must try Transtar if you are visiting KL) Reached KL well ahead of time in 4.5 hours and then it was another 3.5 hours ride up in a comfortable Camry to Penang. Only reached Penang at about 130am.

Penang is always a nice place to visit especially this was my first visit since 2002. It's relaxing place where the pace of live is slower and everything there is well affordable. I always value visiting Penang where it's really a mix of everything a tourist would want to go for. Historic Georgetown is a pleasant place to walk around and if you fancy a bit of beach front holiday, there is always Batu Fringgi. Not forgetting the excellent food as well at super affordable prices.

Did some shopping at Factory Outlets and bought some tau sar piah back as well. Had an excellent seafood dinner at the Tsunami Village Restaurant.

The three days break was also excellent due to the World Cup timing. Was able to watch all the second round matches and even won a small bet! :-)

Back to work again!