SQ332 - Choose your seat!

Last time I took SQ332 between Singapore and Paris was nearly 3 months ago. If you remember I was raving about the quality of service and the comfort of the flight due to the lack of passengers (see here). Well, I was far from guessing it could be even better (for the passenger but worse for the airline). Today, the flight had to be my best flying experience ever (and I can say I have flown quite a bit over the past 20 years!). 7 passengers in between first and Biz (for 50 seats) and 24 passengers in Economy (for 228 seats). It really gives you the impression of flying your own private plane which is a delight on such a long haul flight. I wonder how long SQ will maintain this day flight for? I have always suspected that the people travelling for Business purposes were choosing to fly the night flight in order to get a full day at work so this day flight has never really been full but never that empty neither! I also hear rumours that SQ might replace the B777-300ER by an Airbus380 on this route shorlty. If that's the case they will definitely merge those two flights into one. That's sad because I find it to be the perfect timing. Departing Singapore by 2 pm and arriving by 9 pm in Paris on the same day is just perfect.

It's Dim Sum day!

Today is Sunday. In Hong Kong it is Dim Sum day. If Cantonese sunday Dim Sums have exported well as far as Melbourne for example, good ones are still difficult to come by in Singapore. Some weeks ago we enjoyed Crystal Jade at Takashimaya, but for something a bit more 'real' we discovered Victor's Kitchen at Bugis today. It has the usual Siew Mai (steamed minced pork dumplings) or Har Gao (prawn dumplings) and also steams some lovely custard buns as the close-up in the picture above shows (like in the Moon cakes you even have a piece of yoke in the middle). And everything is cooked on demand to add to the freshness.

Victor's Kitchen at Sunshine Plaza, #01-2191 Bencoolen St, Singapore

Open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am-9pm

Chef's Special

Despite the fact Singapore Airlines screen up to 500 inflight entertainment possibilities I usually never use it since I spend most of my flights sleeping. I might also be picky but there always is at least one or two movies I wouldn't mind watching. From their latest selection I was pleased to see a Spanish movie called 'Fuera de Carta' from Director Nacho Garcia Velílla starring Javier Cámara. It is a perfect Spanish comedy playing with clichés as only spanish can without being boring or too vulgar and remaining very witty. I am not sure which countries this movie has been screened at but if your local cinema happens to screen it you will definitely spend a very enjoyable hour and half.

Oh joy!

I personally find long day flights to be a bit more tiring than night flights as my body clock usually is not in a sleeping mode. But that is valid for long flights like the Singapore-Paris leg that is nearly 14 hours. The plane was really empty today which made such a difference. Only a handful of people in Biz and maybe 50 passengers in Economy. That gave us the impression of flying a private B777 with more air hostesses than you could ask for. As a result the service was even better than usual and I can say I had the best beef in the sky ever. So tender. The food generally tends to be better out of Singapore rather than out of Paris strangely enough. Overall, a very enjoyable flight.

Fernando Botero

The Art exploration continues in the streets of Singapore. I was telling you about Niki de Saint Phalle the other day so here is one of the Botero sculptures. This one is temporary but there are quite a few of his sculptures in the streets of Singapore. Whoever is in charge of the Art commisionning for Singapore City must have had something for Botero. Actually, I read somewhere there was an exhibition organised by the Singapore Art Museum some 4 years ago and featuring at least 20 of his pieces. At over 1 Ton each, it is possible Singapore preferred to purchase them rather than paying for the shipping back and forth. (Probably not the case, but anyway...)

Monkey Say Monkey Do!

I still have quite a lot to discover in Singapore. We just went for a stroll in MacRitchie Reservoir park and were amazed by how extensive the primary forest remains. We made a 10 kilometres walk in the middle of the virgin forest. If not the heat and the thunderous threatening weather, I am sure we could have walked much more than this. Wildlife is extensive considering we are in the middle of a highly developed urban environment. Squirrels, goanas, birds and of course monkeys. Most surprisingly, contrary to many other places we have visited in Asia, monkeys in Singapore are quite frightened of humans. It is probably due to the fact that it is strictly forbidden to feed them and fines are hefty if you are caught doing so. In Bali, for exemple, monkeys are quite aggressive and do not hesitate to come and steal from your pockets.

Art in the Streets

You could be forgiven for thinking you are in Paris. The Niki de Saint Phalle composition you can see on this picture is one of the numerous Art pieces currently displayed in the streets of Singapore. You have some imposing statues from Fernando Botero, numbers from Robert Indiana, characters from Jean-Michel Folon and other pieces scattered around the busiest streets of the City. It is quite amazing to observe the hordes of pedestrians passing by without even noticing what is on display. Shopping seems to be much more interesting...

Opera Gallery

Hidden in a corner of Ngee Ann city (Takashimaya on Orchard) you can find the Opera Gallery. It has branches in Paris, New York, London, Venice, hong Kong, etc... and is very active on the Arts scene. It is quite amazing though to discover some Picasso, Dali, Calder, Miro or Vlaminck in a small gallery like this. If it were Europe, you would have to queue and purchase an expensive ticket to view these artworks, but as it is in Singapore, it is for free and there is hardly anyone visiting the gallery.

From Nowhere to Nowhere

Everytime I take a ferry out of Singapore there is, most of the time, a boat going from / to Nowhere. I first found it strange and I was then explained one day that there were boats going to International waters for gambling purposes. Gambling is still illegal at the moment in Singapore even though they are currently building huge casino complexes. Anyway, it is always mysterious to have boats going nowhere. Imagine yourself being at the airport and seeing planes adverstised as going nowhere! You would really wonder what is hidden behind this, wouldn't you?

Bamboo Poles

One the specificity of Singapore is that accomodation is widely subventioned by the State. It is estimated that 80% to 90% of the Singaporean population is currently living in HDB flats (I also hear that rents go as low as 40 SGD per month for 3-bedroom appartments and some unscrupulous tenants rent them out for 50 times that amount, that's a ridiculous profit!). As a result, suburban style highrise accomodation towers compose the main landscape of the City-State. All the HDB come equipped with pole holders to enable their users to dry their linen. Rows of windows with (originally) bamboo sticks are therefore also part of the Singaporean image.

Holland V(illage)

Holland Village is located near the Buona Vista MRT station in Singapore. I have not checked the exact history and do not know why it is called as such apart from the fact that its landmark is a windmill that you can see somewhere in the distance on the above picture. What came first? The windmill or the name? Anyway, it is a small enclave full of eateries as well as a few interesting shops. I sometimes go there for some cheap (or not so cheap) meals for lunch. It is too much of an expatriate hangout to my liking but it still manages to retain a different spirit that makes the place interesting.

Sunday

It is so enjoyable to have a lazy Sunday from time to time. I have actually kept my past weekends so busy that I had no time to rest as much as I would have loved to. But today started by a late morning in bed, followed by a late breakie. We then went out with a friend to Pulau Ubin to enjoy a very nice bike ride and walk. And came back to have a late lunch at Clarke Quay (picture above) after the clouds had cleared. The afternoon turned out to be quite beautiful with a lovely blue sky that is so rare in this City.

かわいい

The Japanese influence. McDonald's hamburgers are boring and disgusting! But I am quite curious to try the new Wasabi Filet-o-Fish accompanied by its Wasabi Shaker Fries. I have actually just received this ad in my inbox and if I had not just eaten a big late lunch I would probably have already gone out to try this one in my local burger joint...

Maria Cristina Barcelona

Not sure when this one came out but the latest Woody Allen movie Vicky Cristina Barcelona is a damned fine movie especially as seen from a Singapore perspective. It is exactly what Singapore is not. It is all about freedom and non conformism. Far from the moto you can read on the school boards here "moulding the future of our nation". Whose dream is that to have everyone coming from a single mould? Scary... Anyway, to come back to the movie, the fact the action also takes place in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Barcelona, surely helps to the pure moments of happiness we spent while watching this flick last night. Highly recommended.

Singapore Biennale '08 - Pt. 2

Last Sunday I visited the Biennale at City Hall. Today, being a public holiday, I took time to visit the free set up called the Central Promontory Site. The place itself is very interesting since it is a temporary shelter made out of containers. The addition of columns make it look like a modern Roman temple. Unfortunately, the space is underused and to the exception of a couple of displays I was not particularly overwhelmed by the Artworks proposed (neither in quantity nor in quantity). Nevertheless, it remains a very interesting idea and experience and I am sure in the evening you can also enjoy some nice views over the cityscape...

Bugis Junction

The crossing at Bugis Junction has been an ongoing problem. It sometimes takes up to 10 minutes to cross that section of the road since barriers in the middle of the island restrict the passage to a narrow lane and the hundreds of pedestrians get blocked in the middle. You often have to wait for two or three traffic lights before progressing to the orther side. I am surprised the Singapore Land Transport Authorities are reluctant to take actions for a problem that has been plaguing this very touristical area for years.

Singapore Biennale '08

Singapore's City Hall has been invaded by maggots! No, it's not a joke...! Or is it? The Singapore Biennale '08 is on and one of the places of choice to see some of the sharpest modern Arts in the area is in the old City Hall that has temporarily been converted into an exhibition hall. Yemenite Zadok Ben-David's Blackfield, Desiree Dolron's portraits, Taiwanese E Chen's installation, Korean Jong-Gun Han's bottle gourds or Argentinian Charly Ninjensohn's video installation are some of the highlights. But the creatures nobody can avoid are the giant maggots invading the corridors leading to City Hall's former restaurant. This comes from the creative mind of Vietnamese Artist Ngoc Duong Pham. The biennale is on until the 16th of November so don't waste time...

East Coast Park Wildlife

Wildlife is a big word since I do not think those turtles are actually native to this pond and surely have been introduced but it was a lovely day today cycling around East Coast Park under beautiful skies and stopping by that pond where only the bravest turtle decided to stay for a photoshoot. All the others plunged back into the water afraid I might eat them.

Bird Nest

Some time ago I reported about the Birds Nest breeding places in Indonesia but I never actually showed how a bird nest looks like. Well, as you can see from the picture above it has nothing to do with the bird nests we are used to in Europe. They actually come from a little bird called the Edible-nest Swiftlet of the swift family which is found in South-east Asia. Its nest is made of solidified saliva and is used to make the famous bird's nest soup.

F1

So here we are, here we go. Back into Singapore's life. And what is on everyone's lips at the moment has to be the Formula One. Not much I can report on this since I have absolutely no interest in the whole thing but what you can see on the picture above is a view above Singapore at dusk. The lights over the Formula One track are on which really highlight the path. As you may know this will be the first City night race in the world.