9 Aug 2011 – The Red Dot between Malaysia & Indonesia!
To family, friends and to those sharing my birth-town of SIN, regardless if you are in SIN or anywhere on this planet, have a wonderful celebration and enjoy SIN National day and the National Day Parade.
Was sent off to boarding school in Dublin/Ireland 1965 when SIN just declared its independence and became the Republic of Singapore then. The NDP and fireworks are more impressive for every year but unfortunately usually not in SIN at this time! The beautiful song Home has been performed for some NDP, but for me home is where the ♥HEART♥ is! And whoever says that beautiful music does not stir the emotions is tone-deaf 🙂
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7g-PUjbusQ&feature=related
This year in Norway where the memory wandered back to 1967 – touring Belgium, Germany, Denmark & Norway with my father! The last night of the tour was in Balestrand/Norway@Kvikne’s Hotel where Ole, a charming young man approached to ask father’s permission to dance with me. That gesture and courtesy made this incident unforgettable!
Balestrand: an idyllic village in the heart of the fjord country with spectacular views had a pop of under 1,000 then (2010 pop was 1,344). Kvikne’s Hotel, built 19th century is one of the most famous buildings there and was made popular for European visitors in the early part of the 20th century by Kaiser Wilheim II who visited often. Pix credits to different sites. B/W pix from 1967 are in SIN.
The recent bombs and shootings here got me to make an attempt to locate friends from the Norway days. Managed to find Ole thru’ FB to discover that he is a famous author, journalist and film-maker now located in Canada! Hopefully we can re-establish some contact. It would be nice to hear what has happened and what is happening to friends when the memory is still in tact! The innocence is still within and may I never grow to old to treasure the once upon a time in a far far away land 🙂 🙂 🙂
We don’t receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us or spare us – Marcel Proust