Post Great Race

My working week ended with dinner at Bliss in Ang Mo Kio with a reasonable sized group from nearby MAE branches. We were mistaken for a Humanist group, apparently made up of agnostics, atheists etc who were having a gathering at the same restaurant.
On Monday morning the usual group met at Bishan for a walk to Stadium. The stadium was a hive of activity as workers were preparing it for the South East Asian Games which start on June 5th. There are 11 countries participating in 36 sports. The organizing committee is obviously trying to whip up enthusiasm in this generally non-sporting nation, with lots of red banners flying from HDB flats, posters exhorting people to wear red for Singapore and decorations on the MRT. Obviously not too many of the runners in the photo are eligible to run for Singapore...or any one else for that matter!

Singapore loves rules, even at sporting events.

After forgetting on Friday that I was supposed to be meeting up with my cousin Lyn and her son David, I managed to catch up with them for dinner on Monday night, with Robert and Maria. We had drinks in Telok Ayer passing some very interesting sculptures on the way...ideas for next years Great Race organisers! 

We ate at  Lau Pa Sat or Telok Ayer Market which has long dominated the local landscape with its striking presence. A true Singapore landmark, it was gazetted as a national monument in 1973.

Situated in the heart of the financial district, the market’s distinctive octagonal shape and ornamental columns were first conceived by British architect George Coleman. When the market had to be moved from its original waterfront location and rebuilt in 1894, Municipal Engineer of Singapore and Scotsman James MacRitchie retained its essential shape, but added a graceful clock tower and a new cast-iron supporting structure. The frames were cast in Glasgow before being shipped to and assembled in Singapore.Today, after several facelifts and restorations (its most recent was in June 2014), what you see is still in line with MacRitchie’s original vision. It is a marvel to observe how the soaring arches, fretted eaves and slender Victorian columns topped with intricate filigree work – wrought from the most solid iron – have achieved an airy, delicate lace-like effect.The market has long been converted into a hawker centre offering the best of local cuisine. 

Lau Pa Sat Hawkers Centre

The rest of the week went by catching up on domestics that had been overlooked for the last few weeks, returning to the swimming pool and getting this blog up-to-date.
On Friday I joined with June,Libby and Eric for a walk around Bukit Brown Cemetery, also known to the local community as Kopi Sua or Coffee Hill. It was a public Chinese cemetery that had been established in the early 20th Century. It was the biggest Chinese graveyard outside China.

 In the 1970s, the cemetery faced the threat of being cleared for redevelopment, but it was eventually granted reprieve. Now, the cemetery is home to many bird species and wild life, and has as such become popular again–this time, with nature lovers. Unfortunately a large number of the graves have been removed to make way for a 4-lane road which is under construction. Some of the graves are amazing, there are many beautiful shady trees and despite the heavy machinery we still managed to see a number of birds, some for the first time.

banded woodpecker, pink-necked green pigeon

The Great Race has arrived

With the Great Race happening tomorrow Sunday night called for a quiet night so I joined Libby and Eric at Saturdays for dinner. After returning home it was a quick check to make sure I hadn't forgotten anything before retiring for the night.
Monday morning dawned rather overcast and by the time I arrived at the starting point at Dhoby Ghaut it was bucketing down. Luckily there had been some sort of event in the area over the weekend and the marquee was still in place so we took advantage of it to stay dry. By the time teams had arrived in all their splendour, photos taken and tasks handed out the rain had stopped. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves although there had been a couple of changes in Gardens by the Bay in the last 2 weeks which caused some minor hiccups.
Despite Libby assuring me that Keep Calm Until Fifty (red) were not planning to win they couldn't help themselves and managed to beat Fifty Shades of Great (black) by 1.5 points. The costume award went to Jubilee, (white) who were channeling Greek gods/godesses.

Because the Great Race took up Monday this week our usual walk was moved to Tuesday...no rest for the wicked! Fortunately it wasn't such an early start as many of the places/activities we wanted to see don't get started early. We began with a walk around Geylang where the shophouses along Geylang Road are protected from redevelopment.

It is also a red-light district of Singapore. The houses in Geylang operating in sex practices are easily identifiable; their house numbers are large and bright red. There are many temples, churches and mosques in the area often side by side, all with interesting individual touches and architectural details.

After a short break for a reviver, we moved in to the Joo Chiat area. In 1993, Joo Chiat was gazetted as a conservation district. As a result, shophouses and bungalows reflecting the typical architectural styles of the turn of the twentieth century have been preserved, as well as many unique and straits eclectic style Chinese shophouses which give the area its true flavour. The area is also known for eateries specialising in Peranakan delicacies.

In 2011, Joo Chiat was declared Singapore's first Heritage Town. It was chosen, in part, because of strong efforts to promote its Peranakan culture.
We finished off with a very tasty chicken rice lunch at Kalang plaza before an early night after 2 rather tiring days.

On Wednesday I had to go back to TTS to make my colonoscopy Appointment after signing the permission papers. They do love their queues in Singapore...you take a number to register, then join the queue to wait to be seen. One and a half hours later I had signed a permission slip, bought the mixture for the colonoscopy and made an appointment!

On Friday Libby and I travelled out to Sembawang to check some of the finer details of the start/finish points as it is going to be on the walk list for term 3. 

Aptly named Canon ball tree, locals playing Pentaque, a real beach

The Beaulieu House is a house built in the 1910s, as a seaside house for the David family. When the Sembawang Naval Base construction began in 1923, the British took over the house. It served as a residence for the senior engineers during construction, and during operation of the Naval Base, the senior officers resided at the Beaulieu House. Now, the house is gazetted as a Conservation Area by the Urban Redevelopment Authority. It houses a seaside restaurant and venue for weddings and parties.

At one point we thought we were in the middle of The Amazing Race but it turned out to be a school children's version. Of course Libby couldn't resist reading the clue!

Beaulieu House, The Amazing Race (not), one of the many black and whites.

As we made our made our way back to the MRT we passed through a large area of black and white houses which are still used by military personnel from Australia, NZ and America.

After work on Saturday night LIbby and Eric generously shared their genuine pasta with bolognaise sauce which Eric had whipped up earlier. We washed it down with some very tasty homemade sangria.

Parent Teacher Meetings week 2

After a slight mix up June joined Libby and I at Joe's for drinks on Sunday night...Eric was not feeling well and Peter was in China. Bev led us on Monday's walk from Boon Lay to Jurong, through the Chinese Gardens. They were built in 1975 and designed by Prof. Yuen-chen Yu, an architect from Taiwan, the Chinese Garden’s concept is based on Chinese gardening art. The main characteristic is the integration of splendid architectural features with the natural environment. The Chinese Garden is modeled along the northern Chinese imperial style of architecture and landscaping. There are a number of different areas within the garden including a Japanese Garden, The Live Turtle & Tortoise Museum and the Twin Pagodas

Watching the watchers, stork billed kingfisher, baby coppersmith barbet waiting to be fed.

Although Eric was unwell Libby decided she would still like to mark their wedding anniversary so it became a girls night out. Bev, Jo and I were happy to oblige so we headed in to Telok Ayer to try an area I had not eaten in before. We were very pleased to find wine for $6/glass and no ++. We then headed to Kasbar for a delicious Middle Eastern meal.

On Tuesday night I went to Serangoon to watch The Water Diviner. Despite some of the scenes being harrowing to watch, I did enjoy the movie. It was very exciting to see places that we had visited in the last 12 months on the big screen and I thought Russel Crow did a very good job both as actor and director. It was good to see a movie offer another point of view, although I did find the ending a bit schmaltzy.

After the movie a few of us adjourned to Grapevine for a reviving drink/meal.

On Wednesday morning it was back to TTS to get the results of last weeks CT scan...all good. After I'd left the premises and was almost at work the Dr. called and said the specialist had reviewed the scan and felt I should have a follow up colonoscopy just to check on last years 'bulge'...Oh Joy!

Thursday was more GR stuff and Friday was a walk from the Smith's back gate to Punggol Park along the PCN. Peter joined us and his very exciting news was that he has a job, at an international school, starting in August.

As Jo was celebrating her birthday on the weekend a group of us travelled in to town after work on Saturday night for dinner at Lau Pasat. Jo is renowned for her unusual headwear, she has a hat for every occasion, so we all honoured her celebration by doing the same. After dinner we took the lift to 1-Altitude, the highest rooftop bar in the world, a spot I had not previously visited. Because it occupies the rooftop of One Raffles Place Building, it has spectacular 360 degree views. 

Parent Teacher Meetings Week 1

After work on Sunday the usual diehards; Libby, Eric, Peter and myself, met up for drinks at Joe's. It was not a late night as I knew I had a big week ahead with lots of Great Race research as well as Parent Teacher Meetings beginning on Wednesday. 
It was a relatively easy walk on Monday from Labrador to Vivo City and as I was continuing with Great Race research after the walk I didn't bother to take my binoculars, so we were very lucky the little purple throated sunbird landed on a branch very close to us.

After another day of GR research on Tuesday I joined Robert, Maria and Elizabeth at Chomp Chomp Food Centre, also known as Serangoon Gardens Food Centre. It is a well known food court in Singapore. This food court is famous for offering a myriad of mouth watering local dishes such as Hokkien mee, satay, carrot cake, bbq chicken wings, grilled stingray, popiah, fried oyster, and prawn mee. Elizabeth was in need of a last taste of Singaporean Hawkers food before she flew out to Hong Kong on Wednesday morning. She is off to start a new job, just as soon as her visa comes through.

Wednesday and Thursday were taken up with a CT scan (following up from last years colonoscopy) and more Great race research/meetings.

The week ended on a positive note with a very positive appraisal from my Annex Head as well as a number of positive feedback comments from parents. For the first time, we were asked to give the parents a feedback form during PTMs. All our responses have been positive and it is very rewarding to be appreciated by name in what was meant to be a general response.  

Neil and Lorraine

Shortly after arriving at work on Sunday, some old friends turned up to collect the key to Rio Vista, as they were having a few days with me on their return journey to Australia. They had been visiting grandchildren in the UK for 4 weeks so spent Sunday resting until I finished work. We ventured down to Punggol Park for dinner as it is so convenient.
Neil and Lorraine decided they would like to join our walking group on Monday morning. Unfortunately for them it was one of our longest walks, and very hot but they coped remarkably well.

After returning home they 'discovered 'our pool so we spent a bit of time cooling off before getting ready for a night out. 
Lorraine and Neil are in a wine club back home and some of the other members had talked about the wine fairy in Singapore so she was on their wish list. After dinner at Blue Jazz, where we were joined by Bev, Libby and Eric, we strolled over to Divine Wine Bar to watch the wine fairy at work.

We spent Tuesday morning exploring Gardens by the Bay, where I was able to fine tune some Great Race questions, while Lorraine and Neil admired the area. In the cloud dome we were impressed with the lego display!

After Neil and Lorraine departed for the airport I dashed over to Robert and Maria's to farewell Elizabeth off on the next phase of her life journey. We were joined by Craig and Melisa a very pleasant young couple who work with Robert and Maria at the Kovan branch of MAE.

After a staff development day at Bishan on Thursday we had Friday off for May Day. Now that I have my own binoculars I was allowed to go back again. Libby, Eric and I managed to see quite a few interesting birds including the very beautiful copper throated sunbird. Searches are made much easier when you see a number of photographers, with long lenses, all pointing in the same direction. We probably would have overlooked the sunbird without this 'pointer'. It seems I am destined not to see a hornbill in Singapore as Libby and Eric sighted one flying overhead as I was answering my phone!

scarlet backed flowerpecker, lineated barbet, pied oriental hornbill, copper-throated sunbird

After returning home for a short rest I joined Libby, Eric and Peter at a new watering hole, called Saturdays. It is conveniently located not too far from their back gate, and even better there is a bus stop at the door at which I can catch a bus almost to home. It could become an occasional alternative for Sunday drinks.

More of the Same!

With Peter away and others otherwise occupied, it was just me and the Smiths for dinner at Wild Oats on Sunday night. I love the proximity to home and the setting by the lake is superb but unfortunately the food does not always meet expectations. Added to they will not give you a glass of water so we always say we wont go back again but I find myself still going there occasionally. 
Monday's walk from Kent Ridge to Vivo City is always a pleasant, if hot, stroll with a great variety of scenery. I did finish the walk although I felt a bit shaky at one point and chose to take the easy option at the end by giving stairs a miss in favour of a gentle slope. 


There was a MAE social outing to Pulau Ubin on Tuesday which involved a 10 min ferry trip from Changi. Pulau Ubin is a small island (10.19 km²) situated in the north east of Singapore. Granite quarrying supported a few thousand settlers on Pulau Ubin in the 1960s, but only about a hundred villagers live there today. It is one of the last rural areas to be found in Singapore, with an abundance of natural flora and fauna. The island forms part of the Ubin–Khatib Important Bird Area (IBA), identified as such by BirdLife International because it supports significant numbers of visiting and resident birds, some of which are threatened.It was pleasant to be near the water although it was a very hot day. Most of the small group chose to hire bikes but Robert and I decided we would take a walk. We meandered in a different direction to the way I had been 2 years ago and managed to see some old favourites like the magpie robin, with its beautiful song  and another new one for me the white rumped shama, which also has a melodious song. Some of the others saw the Hornbills but not me! 
Everyone returned their bikes in one piece (bikes and bodies) before returning to Changi for lunch at the Changi Village Hawkers.

Asian glossy starling, white rumped shama, magpie robin, olive backed sunbird

Peter returned from his trip to Australia in the evening so I met up with him and Libby and Eric at Plonk for their cheap Tuesday Pizza deal. As it turned out the food was cheap, but not so our drinks!
This week's  Great Race Quiz results flowed in on Wednesday night with only one slightly premature response arriving on Sunday night, but being week one we let the team resend on Wednesday. It was a pretty simple quiz, especially if you used the internet, so the majority of teams had 100%.After A Great Race meeting with the other team members on Thursday all seems to be on track. 
On Friday morning Libby and I went for a walk in the Botanic Gardens to give the binoculars a spin. I am very happy with them as you see so much more than with the naked eye. Disappointingly there was not a lot of bird life about but it is a pleasant place for a stroll anyway.

Luckily Friday had been such a pleasant day because I had a lousy day on Saturday. It began with sitting at the bus stop for 30 minutes waiting for my bus meaning I didn't arrive at work until.8.30. This was compounded by the information that a colleague was going to be away all weekend so my Sunday downtime was gone again. All in all I was out of sorts all day, but managed to cheer up enough to share a meal with the Smiths at their local hawkers at the end of the day. The sight of Libby with a couple of bottles of apple cider dispelled my bad mood for the day!

Sri Lankan Dinner

Sunday night saw just 4 of us eating an Grapevine before an early night. This weeks walk was great for me as it was only a 15 trip to get to the starting point to walk through the last remaining Kampong in Singapore. I had a discussion one day with a neighbour about her growing up in a Kampong near Changi. She expressed sadness that there were none left and was very surprised when I said I had visited one very close to home...I'm not sure that she even believed me!

We finished our walk at my local hawkers for lunch, after a circuit of Punggol Park. I was able to put my binoculars to good use and even identified the Pygmy Woodpecker by myself.

After a morning of Great Race investigations, which have to remain secret for now, I spent the afternoon preparing for a Sri Lankan dinner at Rio Vista. With contributions from Libby, Eric, Maria and Helen we had a delicious meal. It was also Nepalese New Year so Peter decided we need a photo of the Trekkers for Cule, which turned out to be one of the more sensible photos of the evening.

The number of empty bottles in our kitchen the next morning could have accounted for the slowness experienced by many of us the next morning.

A number of us had been lucky enough to see a family of Spotted Wood Owls some time back but Helen had missed out, so on Thursday a few of us headed off to Eco Green and Pasir Ris Park to see if they were still in residence. While we were out of luck on that score we did see the baya weaver birds at work on their amazing nests and a coppersmith barbet feeding its young. The binoculars have earned their money already!

Blue throated bee eater, coppersmith barbet, baya weaver bird

We have also discover that the single tree remaining across the river from us, is a resting place for quite a variety of birds. I was able to identify a small flock of blue throated bee eaters which make regular visits.

I spent Friday afternoon at the Smiths working with Libby on the P3 Community lessons as many of us agreed that the unit needed a revamp. We had a successful afternoon and are both happy with the unit we can hand on to Renee.

We were all surprised to learn that the directors of MAE have granted us a holiday on August 7th in honour of LKY and we also have Sunday August 9th off for the SG50 NAtional Day. I'm expecting that Renee will be inundated with requests for LSL for Saturday 8th August. 
On Friday night the first of the Great Race quizzes was sent out. This one was anagrams of celebrities celebrating their 50th birthdays in 2015...an easy one to get the teams talking!

 

Binocular Time

Sunday night saw Kovan, Punggol, Bishan and AngMo KIo colleagues meeting up for a meal (well for most of us) at Bliss in AngMo Kio. It is quite a pleasant setting with reasonably priced meals but unfortunately the staff were a bit overwhelmed by the large group and 2 of our party went home hungry!

Monday morning we had an early start as this weeks walk was one I had been looking forward to for a while even though it is quite a distance away, invovling 3 train lines and a bus.

Sungei Buloh is a wetlands area in the northwest corner of the island, which has an abundance of bird and animal life. We were quite a large group but we still managed to see some interesting birds and even a crocodile lurking in the swamp.

Common Flameback Woodpecker, scarlet sunbird, tailorbird and collared kingfisher.

After a day of very frustrating blogging I met up with Libby and Eric for dinner at Punggol Point, an area we had been talking about visiting for some time.

In 1942, 400 Chinese civilians were massacred here as part of the Sook Ching Massacre. The place has been declared as a national heritage site. There is a plaque commemorating this incident.The Sook Ching, meaning "purge through cleansing") was a systematic extermination of perceived hostile elements among the Chinese in Singapore by the Japanese Military during the Japanese occupation of Singapore and Malaya, after the British colony surrendered on 15 February 1942.

The area has undergone extensive redevelopment, and reopened as Punggol Point Park on 20 November 2011.Although it is only accessible by bus or taxi there are a large number of seafood restaurants and it was very pleasant sitting on the verandah enjoying the sea breeze. The view over the Johor Straits improved after dark when the port facilities were lit up.

We finished up back home with a nightcap so Eric could have one small taste of Michael's Yamazaki whisky.

On Thursday Great Race plans got underway with Kris, June, Amy and I meeting at Kovan to decide on a theme etc. As it is such a big year for Singapore, celebrating its 50th Birthday, we decided on a birthday theme so it is time for the partying (and preparation to begin.

After visiting Sungei Buloh on Monday I was keen to revisit in a smaller group, but i was informed that I couldn't go until I had my own binoculars! So Friday saw Libby and I head off to a shop they had used before in Holland Village, to make a purchase. The binoculars Libby and Eric use were no longer available there but they did have some excellent German Steiners. I couldn't decide so we travelled in to Little India where I finally bought a pair of Vortex which I am very happy with. Libby subsequently went back and bought the Steiners.

Lee Kwan Yew

When we returned to Singapore we found a city full of sad faces at the loss of their founding father, Lee Kuan Yew (LKY). He lay in state while thousands of people queued for ours for a thirty second viewing. The partner of one Punggol colleague joined the queue to pay her respects. One child told his teacher that on Sunday he "had to wear black and cry!" Our office staff watched the state funeral on their computers, becoming quite tearful at times. Across the country there is a series of sirens to warn of impending disasters. They were used to start, and end, a minutes silence to honour LKY which we did in our classes.
After such a sombre day a number of us travelled to Holland Village to catch up after our break and hear various travel stories. 
The next morning we were minus our usual walk leaders so Libby and I did the honours from Bishan to Ang Mo KIo and didn't get lost even once.

Tuesday afternoon saw a large group of us travelling in to Somerset to see the 2nd Best Marigold Hotel which was very easy viewing and provided us with a few laughs. We then moved on to SQUE Bar  and met up with the remaining social committee for dinner.

I woke on Wednesday to a cryptic message from Michael regarding scans and blood tests etc! It turns out that perhaps 4 international flights in 2 weeks is not great for your health, especially if part of the 2 weeks is spent as a passenger in a very small car for long periods of time! He has a 20cm blood clot in the calf muscle of his left leg. He has now joined the brigade of elderly people on medication!

As Michael had also accidentally taken the dongle I need to carry out my internet banking I was grateful that Emily and Josh were coming to Singapore for their honeymoon, after their original plans to go to Vanuatu were blown away! On Thursday they came out to the Heartlands for lunch and an inspection of Rio Vista...comments were 'it's like living in a resort!'

Good Friday dawned with the delightful prospect of no work so we had a girl's BBQ (plus Peter for a while). After a few drinks we decided to go for a walk along the Park Connector but only got as far as the Showhome at WaterBay, the condo being built next door. The poor girl who got lumbered with the slightly tipsy, in no position to buy, group of women, was very gracious and patient.