30 Oct 2017 – Linn, Katy & Ellie

Fri: still searching for pix. TGIF. Happy 93Bday to Ellen, the best grandmother for my 2children&the best great-grandmother for my 6grandchildren. Pix from 1960s-2000s.

How is it possible that she was in her 40s when we first met? That is the age my first-born is now! Where has all the time gone?? I find myself asking this question more than others!! Time has a tendency to play tricks on us as the years go by.

Sat: can you guess what this pix is – here is bigger pix. Like in life, some things are not what they seem to be until the whole pix is revealed. Was just meditating when this image caught my eyes again and it has happened some time ago. Not sure why only now did I decide to take a pix of it??

Am sooo proud of my first-born Coach Linn Hall and #1&#2+friends who made it to States for XC. What an achievement. Congratulations and will be keeping my fingers crossed for them and myself this coming Sat 4Nov when I will be in PEK giving the TEDx talk.

https://www.ted.com/tedx/events/23414

Sun: early morning walk on EC Pk with Clement, this time round walking towards the airport instead of the direction to the Gardens By The Bay. Stopped for a cuppa and a bowl of MeeSiam breakfast@EastCoast Food Village. Forgot the camera on the bench, thank goodness it was early and was still there when I turned back to find it.

This must win the most unusual race – The Urgent Run!! with a row of portable Johnny by the path…

A good climbing tree! Has been awhile since being on the Bedok Jetty, many ppl out fishing this morning.

Spotted some ppl far out paddle boarding and was trying to get nearer to take a pix.  What are the chances of bumping into a nephew from London when taking an early Sunday morning walk with another nephew SIN?? Welcome back to SIN Andrew, did not even know that he is here visiting!

Last minute shopping at the airport (saving 7%GST) before flying off tomorrow. Not sure how much access of FB, Hotmail or WordPress there will be in China, so if no words, just means limited or no access. An early Happy Halloween to all celebrating.

A grandmother pretends she doesn’t know who you are on Halloween – Erma Bombeck

26 Oct 2017 – From 1950s – 2010s

Mon: tkx for lunch with Pat&Peggy who is preparing for her WOC to be held in Ecuador and her trip to Peru after the WOC. Looking forward to seeing her pix and hearing about her trip.

Appreciate Clement for helping me to upload WeChat for the China trip. Shopping&dinner@IKEA – happy to finally get a magnet strip up for the knives. Delighted with new Christmas lights.

Tue: appreciations to Leonard for checking the laptop as it has been scaring me with a black screen occasionally! Had a surprise inquiry from KwongLeeBank/1 posting from Roger. Passed on the messages and info to the others who have more seniority than I have to handle this. This is regarding 14Uncle Danny LAM TinChong who was married a couple of times but has no children. Pix credits to Roger.

My father in law is the chairperson of the SamChingKong old folks home in Hulu Langat. MrLam was brought in by his so called secretary who has been living with him for 30years, but lately when we tried to contact him, the no is no longer reachable. My father in law has been talking to him and he has some memories about his relatives that stays in Singapore and he misses them. So by just luck that he gave us a few hints like KwongLeeBank, his dad’s name. We saw your blog, I ll attach his IC to u ya. Hope u can let us know what’s his life story.

Wed: checking out pix to use for the TEDx talk and got caught into a web of memories!! One pix for every decade starting 1950s with my parents and siblings@5Temenggong Rd, 1960s – somewhere in Ireland and it is the only pix of me I have from my boarding school days.

1970s – Skittenelv/Troms, Norway pulling May (6-7months) in the sleigh. Those were the days (nearly 40yrs ago!) when I could still pull my baby in the sleigh on ski trips 🙂 1980s – TN/USA en route moving from CA-FL. 1990s – welcome Jeff into the family – Casselberry/FL, USA.

2006 – Pat&David’s wedding with #3, the only one of my grandchildren born in SIN. 2014 – Linn’s 40Bday, one of the best day of my life with the whole family together – only shot of my whole immediate family with me in Boston,MA/USA.

Quite amazing – would like to visit this when completed in 2019, a perfect treat to myself if I survive till then! Wonder if it will be like being in a submarine??  Watching the quiet underwater realm in a big aquarium is exceptionally calming and hypnotizing for me. Above 3pix downloaded from below link.

https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/snohetta-unveils-design-europe-first-underwater-restaurant?mbid

Thu: tkx Zarina for dinner@Soup Restaurant VivoCity. Nice to catch up and show you where Michael (may he RIP) used to visit during the CNY – nostalgic to be in the neighbourhood of my childhood home-grounds.

The Food Republic here must be one of the better ones,

festive with the red lanterns and foods tastefully presented. Looks like we will both be travelling and will not catch up until Dec.

16 Oct 2017 – Mother Of #1–#5

Sat: way to go #1(130)&#2(129) and having Coach Hall both as mother&coach is a good thing – Girlpower. Pix credits to Elizabeth Niciu.

Tkx Gel for producing the intro video in preparations for TEDxKeystoneAcademy Off The Beaten Path project (4Nov). Looking forward to meeting and talking to different people, thank you to Audrey for the invite. Above 3pix downloaded.

http://www.tedxkeystoneacademy.com/

Pre-dinner drinks with Les&Ivy@Harry’s. Appreciations to YeeJit’s group for dinner@RiverpointJumbo***opposite Clarke Quay, a historical riverside quay by SIN River. The river has been the centre of trade since modern SIN was founded in 1819. During the colonial era, Boat Quay was the commercial centre where barge lighters would transport goods upstream to warehouses at Clarke Quay.

Tkx for post-dinner drinks@Les&Ivy. What an evening – feeling no pain after 45mins bus ride and all I could do was to brush my teeth and crashed.

Sun: farewell breakfast for YeeJit@Old Tiong Bahru Bak Kut Teh****肉骨茶 The name literally translates from hokkien(dialect) as meat bone tea, and at its simplest, consists of meaty pork ribs simmered in a complex broth of herbs and spices. Despite its name, there is in fact no tea in the dish itself; the name refers to a strong OolongChinese tea which is usually served alongside the soup in the belief that it dilutes or dissolves the copious amount of fat consumed in this pork-laden dish.

A new way to present tofu and delicious fresh fish-head served by the owner himself who speaks Cantonese that YeeJit still speaks and understands! Had to take a nap in the afternoon, must have had more than enough foods&wines this week to last me for the year! Safe journey back to Perth for YeeJit&his group. Cannot believe my eyes, passing thru’ Orhard Road – Christmas decorations are up!!!

Mon: Happy Bday to niece Patricia. Condolences to Yoshie and her family for the passing of her father-in-law (89), may he RIP. Another new area to figure out getting to&from the wake.

A Statue Red weather warning is in place as Ireland prepares for Storm Ophelia. Take care and be safe, Irish family, friends and everyone in Ireland! This poem came to mind with thoughts of the Ireland&Norway days…

http://irisharchaeology.ie/2015/01/tonight-i-fear-not-the-vikings-an-early-irish-poem/

‘Bitter is the wind tonight
It tosses the ocean’s white hair
Tonight I fear not the fierce warriors of Norway
Coursing on the Irish sea‘

13 Oct 2017 – TGIF On This Friday 13th!

Tue: gravlaks in process.

Cooking is all about people. Food is maybe the only universal thing that really has the power to bring everyone together. No matter what culture, everywhere around the world, people get together to eat – Cooking is all about people. Food is maybe the only universal thing that really has the power to bring everyone together. No matter what culture, everywhere around the world, people get together to eat – Guy Fieri

Grocery shopping@Parkway and took the time to enjoy a cup of Matcha tea at the Japanese Food Fair.

Treat@Glory for an ice-coffee and popiah made up of lettuce, stir-fried turnip, carrots, beansprouts along with the cooked egg,  prawns – it is then wrapped with a thin popiah skin made from wheat flour with fresh garlic, chilly-sauce and sweet bean sauce inside.

One of my favourites, especially with good fresh ingredients.

A short walk around before dinner@Jo’s.

Wed: welcome to YeeJit who is born in SIN ️immigrated to Australia when he was 8 and here is attending a conference. His father, uncle Vincent being the importer for fresh produce here in SIN in the 1950s was the one who first introduced me to the taste of fresh strawberries, asparagus and ShanghaiBlackBeanEel when I was a child. Appreciations to Les&Ivy for hosting a welcome dinner with his champagne, wines and yummy mussels.

Gravlaks, smoked-duck, German potato-salad, local fruits and kueys. 

Thu: a walking tour started with the best PrawnMee@Blanco Court Prawn Mee 白兰阁街大虾面 on Beach Rd, continuing to HajiLane.

Arab St area where those lamps and the vibrant colours from the Middle East never fail to fascinate me. Food seems to be what he remembers best (same for me 🙂 ) from his childhood days!

Have been seeing this camera building when on the bus and been wanting to find out what is it all about – turns out to be a VintageCameraMuseum@Jalan Kledek but did not go in this time round.

http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/arts/the-big-picture

Had to take a pix of these colourful HDBs before they get torn down. Into Little India where the ambiance for the upcoming Deepavali (Wed 18Oct) is well-worth the time for all to check out.

Good to meet with YeeJit’s group to introduce them to LauPaSat 老巴刹, literally translated to OldMarket also known as TelokAyerMarket for dinner. Satay indoors on this wet evening. Drinks with a view@LeVeL33. Tkx for good company, dinner&drinks to all. Fortunate to get on the bus before the sky opened up.

Fri: TGIF on this Friday13th and a safe weekend to all. Ever wonder what the big deal is about this silly date? It turns out the history of Friday13th is complicated. There are superstitions about Fri, superstitions about the number 13 – which together seem to create the fear of Friday13th. Most of these superstitions are rooted in religion…

9 Oct 2017 – Is That For Real???

Fri: 2above pix downloaded. Happy Children’s Day and TGIF. Like the positive link below – perhaps the obsess with food on this Red Dot is not such a bad thing afterall. Have been often asked why I choose to live here and at this stage when age is catching up, food, conveniences, safety, weather, etc are good enough reasons; of course do miss the kids+grandkids, but am blessed that I see them regularly.

http://thefinder.com.sg/singapore-expat-life/living-singapore/dear-world-heres-what-life-without-guns-singapore-expat-andrea

Tkx to Yoshie, Seb&Adrian for being such sports to agree to a take-away moonlight dinner@EC Pk. The StarWars chopsticks came in handy then!

Ice-cream@MacD where they were being further sports when I locked their mobiles up and believe it or not, they were those 4 were the only ones there 🙂

Sat: Happy Bday to bro Leslie. Tkx for yummy home-cooked dinner to niece Daisy and good to see 四 嫂 who is camera-shy, but looking well after her successful non-invasive heart procedure in SGH. Lovely evening after a downpour in the late afternoon.

Sun: Good Sunday morning from SIN. Happy Bdays to Larry, Angelina, Audrey, Erin, HengSun/G. Rains are in the forecast – those in my neck of the woods, stay dry and to all be safe.

Catching up with family after a busy week with another busy week ahead. Visited bro Steven@UnitedMedicalCare and was caught in a heavy downpour. Had to sit 10mins at the bus stop let the heavy rains to subside. At this stage of his life journey, wonder if a view of a church side by side to a temple will help him to reflect on his life?

Tkx to niece Daisy&grand-nephew Darryl for an enjoyable evening at HollandV. Dinner@SushiTei***

Dessert@SundayFolks****an independent dessert café known for its handcrafted ice creams and sweets.

Tastë – gastronome grocer in the basement@HollandV RaffleMedical building. Is this plastic bag for really biodegradable??? Bought the purple sweet potato and beet chips to try, verdict, later postings.

Good cheese section there.

Mon: getting ready for another busy week with guest from Perth. Dill&salmon shopping@Mustafa as Gravlaks will be on the menu for Wed and this has to be prepared at least 24hrs in advance. Have not found anywhere whose prices of dill (and I need plenty in this dish) can be compared to Mustafa. Indulged with 2 favourtie dishes and a lemongrass drink from DinTaiFung@CitySquareMall for lunch.

There is a lot of interesting product coming to market already. Bags and bottles and cups and such made of potato starch and other fully biodegradable materials. In some sense, plastic is more chemically complex. We ought to be able to simplify – Edward Norton

5 Oct 2017 – No Way To Start The Week&Month 🙁 

Mon: condolences, thoughts and prayers to those affected in the Las Vegas shooting – 50+dead, 500+injured, 64yrs local gunman Stephen Paddock, killed himself.

http://edition.cnn.com/2017/10/02/us/las-vegas-shooting-live/index.html

Going down memory-lane with PA – Victoria Theater&ConcertHalls, Empress Place,

The Arts House (Old Parliament House) unaware of the on-going Lotus Sutra Exhibition 法华经展 — A Message of Peace and Harmonious Coexistence.

Late lunch@OneRafflesPlace foodcourt, The Arcade, where Uncle BengWah, Hong&PA’s father’s office was located many moons ago.

Clifford Pier built in 1933, was a landing point for immigrants and other sea passengers. A red oil lamp used to hang from the pier as a guide to seafarers, earning the pier the Chinese name 红灯码头=RedLampPier.

The pier was used as a terminal for tourists and day trippers who boarded small boats and ferries heading for the Southern Islands. Today no longer the location to board boats or ferries but an affluent lobby/eatery (known for their Heritage Afternoon Tea) to The Fullerton Bay Hotel with views of the Maine Bay financial area. MBS, Esplanade&the surroundings &Monti.

Galleries with post-boxes of the past and the bakery@Fullerton Hotel.

Soul vistas where 2artistsIdris Ali &Jeffrey Wandly explore SIN streets, landscapes and landmarks in watercolour, ink and acrylic to capture the essence and soul of our city.

More shopping back@Little India again.

Tue: Grandmother Tongue****@SOTA. It is the story of anyone lucky enough to grow old and therefore unlucky enough to no longer fit into the boxes a society requires to build its future. Excellent performance by, especially JalynHan who is in her 50s and played the 80+yrs grandmother.

http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/arts/grandmother-tongue-a-play-about-an-old-woman-who-understands-only-teochew-is-a

Wed: Happy Mid-Autumn 中秋節快樂 to those celebrating. This festival is synonymous with colourful lanterns, moon-cakes and admiring the moon (if weathers permit!). Today is 八月十五15day of the 8month in the Lunar/Chinese calendar – lovely cool&wet to start the day with happy memories.

Pix credits of #6 to May, looks like also a wet day in OSL. Receiving pix of the grandchildren always put 🙂  on the face and in the ♥

https://amylamsg.com/2011/09/12/mid-autumn-2011/

An afternoon in Chinatown to do some last min shopping and some snacking at my top favourite location for shaved-ice@Mei Heong Yuen Dessert****味香园甜品 – pix credits to Leonard.

Tkx to Jo for dinner and appreciations to Pat&David+Lucas&Beth for the short evening walk. Good-night and thank you to the beautiful and full Moon for the attempts to show face in between the clouds.

Thu: sending PA to the airport. Safe journeys to her and bye for now – who knows when our paths will cross again?

So, old friends, now it’s time to start growing up, taking charge, seeing things as they are, facing facts, not escaping them, still with dreams, just reshaping them, growing up –  Stephen Sondheim

1 Oct 2017 – Bye-bye Sep 2017

Fri: TGIF and good news! Have used this carrier many times within Norway, EU and the US,

https://amylamsg.com/2017/05/11/hello-usa/

and have been looking forward for their flights to SIN. For a budget airlines, one does not expect too much, as long as flights are safe&on-time and that it is clean. Now, it will be easier and more affordable to visit May&family+my Norwegian friends. 2pix below downloaded.

http://uk.businessinsider.com/norwegian-direct-flight-london-to-singapore-for-less-than-150-2017-9/?IR=T

An interesting talk, Why Arctic Climate Change Matters To SIN by Dr Jan-Gunnar Winther.

@NLB (The Pod, Level 16) with a good view of the city. Met up with UIT rector, Anne Husebekk who of course knows the whole Hald family+Claire&her dad in Tromsø!

https://www.nlb.gov.sg/golibrary2/e/why-arctic-climate-change-matters-to-singapore-a-lecture-by-dr-jan-gunnar-winther-75303651

Sat: Happy Birthdays to sis-in-law Mabel, niece Daisy and grandniece Valerie (in black) – 3generations sharing the day and the last of Sep bdays! Pix downloaded and cropped from their FBposts.

If the below news is for real, SIN will not have much competition to keep its ranking for being one of the busiest ports in the world! Map downloaded from below link.

http://www.theindependent.sg/kra-canal-is-dead-says-thai-ambassador-to-kuala-lumpur/

Sun: tkx Linn for these pix, bringing back fond memories from the AT thru’hike. Strangely enough was just thanking MissWiggy’s (AT fellow-hiker), family for Trail Magic@Carvers Gap 31May 2005! And now it is The Fabulous5 who are on the AT!

HokkienMee, another of PAs craving before she heads back to Vancouver. SweeGuan@Lorong29, one of the best (personal taste) and prices, S$6-8! have gone way up compared to the last time I was there, many moons ago!! The cook was not too happy with me taking pix today. Usual hawkers price for a plate is about S$3+ but probably less prawns&squids.

HokkienMee has its origins in the cuisine of China’s Fujian (Hokkien) province. Consists of egg noodles and rice noodles stir-fried with eggs, prawns+squid; served and garnished with vegetables, small pieces of lard, sambal sauce+lime.

Am not so sure if I agree with Bourdain where other matters are concerned, but where SIN food is concerned, I am with him for some of the foods. 2above pix downloaded.

Only here does one find the singular, exquisite mix of Chinese, Indian, and Malay dubbed ‘indigenous fusion’ by local chefs – Bourdain

https://explorepartsunknown.com/singapore/bourdains-best-lines-singapore/

3 Happy Bday CHONG SiongYin

6 Happy Bday David WONG

7 Happy Bday Leslie LAM

8 Happy Bdays Larry LAM, Audrey WONG and KONG HengSun

12 Happy Bday Karen SCAF-BENHAM

13 Happy Bday David YUNG

16 Happy Bday Patricia LAM

21 Happy Bdays Steve LAM & Dee HALL

27 Happy Bday Ellen HALD sr

29 Happy Bdays LAM KwokLock & Kiera CHUA

31 Happy Bdays Adeline LEE, Mark BOROWSKY and Happy Halloween

28 Sep 2017 – To Little India

Tue: meeting up with 四 嫂(who just turned 80 and will be admitted to SGH next week for heart procedure) and Daisy for lunch in Chinatown  She is in good spirits and their house-help seems a promising one. Was tempted to get this promotion@OG but decided against it as the present life-style does not justify for one, but might be good to have when away making food for the MaGnificent6

Wed: tkx PA for another breakfast@Carlton Hotel***Like this shot of a sleeping rickshaw bicyclist with the far background of the Carlton on top of the reflection of CHIMJES.

National Design Centre – Building Memories cover featuring the former National Theatre 国家剧场 designed by AlfredWong, PuiAh’s cousin. VWvan for Calvin 🙂

PA was craving for SotoAyam=Malay chicken-soup and one of the best (personal taste) can be found at Pondok Makan Indonesia@270 #01-123 QueenSt.

LASALLE College of the Arts appropriately located@1MacNallySt – fond memories of bro Joe, someone who crossed paths during the IGAS committee days! Was blessed to have known him.

Albert Court – old against the new effects with the HDB blocks and the row of shop-houses’ architectural design. The courtyard here has a nice ambiance for evening drinks.

Rohor Rd – where the entrance into Little India is now beautifully decorated with colourful&cheerful lights especially as Deepavali (18Oct-celebrated by Hindus across the world to mark the triumph of good over evil and light over darkness) gets nearer!

After some shopping, dinner@Mustafa Rooftop Garden/Kebabs & Curries***is a nice location to cool down and chill before walking back to the hotel as tomorrow is another day and looking forward to another goodnight sleep zzzz 🙂

Thu: In Time To Come**Tan PinPin’s documentary on everyday scenes in SIN does not speak to me nor did it catch my attention in other ways. One of the few thoughts in my mind was when a tree was being chopped down – a pity but then the roots of the Ficus benghalensis, Banyan Tree are known to destroy buildings, etc when left to grow. So it had to make way for more buildings…

http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/immersing-viewers-in-the-mundane

In Time To Come is distant, cold and sometimes surreal observation of Singapore society. The film is in itself a time capsule – Luciano Barisone