Row, Row, Row Your Boat

 In Ohio, I was used to living through all four seasons. We'd have hot summers and freezing winters and it was just a fact of life that you'd likely get stuck in a snowbank at least a few times a year. In Singapore, we pretty much only have one season- wet.

There are two official monsoon seasons in Singapore, which last from December-March and June-September, respectively. However, rain isn't restricted to these periods and you can pretty much expect it to rain anytime you'll be making plans outdoors. Right now we're in the middle of the Northeast monsoon season, which is characterized by long, frequent, heavy rains with northeastern winds. And living up to it's reputation, we've hardly gone a day without rain; in fact, right now it's been raining hard nonstop for the last day and a half or so with no sign of stopping.

(really, what are we supposed to do when we can't walk two steps outside without getting drenched)

The rain put a bit of a damper on any plans we could make to explore around outside, so we've been marathoning movies and eating lots of junk food (mamee ready to eat noodles, kueh lapis and DJ Bakery chocolate explosion buns have been on the menu today). And making paper boats to float down the drains. Hey, as long as we know it'll be raining we might as well make the best of the situation.

(I was holding the umbrella so Pris could take this picture at the risk of dying of pneumonia. I know, I'm too giving),

We used the instructions here and learned how to make our boats. It was much easier than expected and they did float just fine. Even better, they're in the rough shape of the gold ingots used as old Chinese currency, perfectly fitting just before CNY.

We floated them in a few of the bigger puddles around our block before we thought to try dropping them in the rain drains. We could tell the water was running but didn't realize how fast it would move until I'd already dropped it, hence the blurry pic taken before the boat whizzed past Pris on the other end. There was seriously only about a second and a half between that first and second shot.

Alas, just after this shot the boat ended up disappearing underneath a little rock bridge put for easy crossing over the grate. It was a pretty fun way to pass a little of the time stuck indoors, give it a shot next time it's raining!

Lots of Pig in the Year of the Rabbit

Needless to say, it's been getting busier and busier as Chinese New Year draws closer. A constant medley of traditional festive songs fill the air wherever you go. Fortune cats squint cheerfully down at customers as they haggle with vendors for the best prices. Stepping into Chinatown is like stepping onto and into a red carpet. Nearly every shophouse lining the narrow, bustling streets is filled to the brim with all manner of goods in every shade of red imaginable. Decor, floor mats, storage containers, signage - the color red is auspicious in Chinese culture, symbolizing good luck and prosperity, and you would be hard-pressed not to find it everywhere during an occasion such as this.  

 Very popular during Chinese New Year, but not uncommon otherwise, bakkwa (also known as bah kwa) is a smoked, preserved pork snack normally sold in thin, square slices.  It may be served alone or together with other foods, and is sometimes be cut into circles to represent coins (wealth). Prices for bakkwa hit a high around this time of year, with some brands which normally cost 23SGD per kg going up to as high as 50SGD per kg! 

The queues for bakkwa get ridiculously astoundingly long, sometimes taking up to three hours before reaching the front of the line (you can't even see the bakkwa shop in question in this picture):

I'd introduced Michelle to bakkwa a couple months back (when it was cheaper) and trying a bite of it at first she didn't seem too impressed and described it as being "similar to beef jerky". After eating a full square slice of bakkwa the opinion was upgraded to "delicious". I quite enjoy bakkwa myself and we both treat ourselves to a couple slices sometimes, but for now I'll wait for the prices to deflate. Ching chong.

Tong To-Tong Chiang

With Chinese New Year on the way, everyone in Singapore is gearing up for the celebrations throughout the country. Personally, I'm gearing up for the two days of paid leave from work.

Chinese New Year this year falls on February 3 and 4 and is a time when relatives go from house to house visiting their family members, eating some of the millions of CNY biscuits, and either giving or receiving ang pow (red packets filled with money and often given to children, sometimes unmarried family members).

The biscuits really are fantastic though! And there's no shortage of selection. So far my favorites are kueh baulu (actually Malaysian but everywhere right now), kueh bangkit, and almond biscuits, though Pris tells me I need to try the pineapple tarts as well!

We've got some celebrating right outside the door as well. They set up a stage where a singer performed a few nights and some sort of shrine where people are lighting incense as an offering. They're very decorative and beautiful~

Mandarin oranges are another auspicious symbol of the new year, so we're seeing plenty of miniature mandarin orange trees being sold and placed in front of businesses. They're very cute!

Now that some Chinese New Year events have started popping up we'll probably head down to one or two and check it out sometime in the next few weeks. Looking forward to seeing my first CNY in Singapore!

A Trip Back in Time: Pulau Ubin

This Sunday we took a trip to one of Singapore's 63 islands, Pulau Ubin (or Granite Island, for those who don't speak Malay) to escape the stress and hectic lifestyle on the main island.

Like something out of an old picture book, Pulau Ubin is a far cry from today's industrialized Singapore. No McDonalds, no skyscrapers, not even many people!

To get access to the island we took a bumboat for $2.50 SGD, about a 15 minute boat ride from the Singapore coast. Luckily when we arrived the boat was just full enough, so we didn't have to waste any time waiting around. The first few minutes off the boat see plenty of people. There are a few small eateries and tons of bike shops (as low as $2 for a bike rental per day! If only it were so cheap at East Coast Park!), so there were a good number of tourists hanging around.

From there we decided to hike to Chek Jawa, about a 45 minute hike through the tiny island to the east coast, where there is a vast ecosystem and plenty of cool things to see. Unfortunately, this area has been claimed by Singapore for land reclamation and may not be around as early as next year unless something changes.

Imagine our surprise at seeing no one else making the trip! I think this was the first actual quiet I've had in the last 8 months since arriving in Singapore.

We picked the perfect day. Since we're in the middle of monsoon season it has been raining just about every day for weeks, but the skies cleared just long enough for our day out. We even had a nice breeze and good cloud cover the majority of the time!

After being eaten by dozens of mosquitoes, we finally made it! Like the rest of the island, there weren't many people around so we took the opportunity to relax in the sun and enjoy the nice breeze a while before moving on down the board walk.

Chek Jawa is definitely worth the trouble to get out! Absolutely beautiful and very interesting. We saw mud skippers and a few different types of crab along the coast as the tide went out, although the elusive horseshoe crab never made an appearance. If nothing else I'd recommend it for the ability to get away from the crowds of people for a while.

Around the boardwalk we eventually came to a tall observation tower in the mangrove. Climbing up was kind of scary and we could feel it swaying in the breeze from the top but the views were gorgeous. Around that area we came across one last thing:

Real wild monkeys! It was my first time ever seeing wild monkeys so I was pretty pumped. One of them stole another visitor's orange and was munching away.

Overall we've agreed we'll definitely give Pulau Ubin another few visits at least. The peace and quiet was relaxing, the views were spectacular, and overall the day was amazing. Definitely worth a look at to anyone coming to the little red dot!

Beautiful Sunday at the Esplanade

The Esplanade plays host to various art festivals and performances, and today the both of us swung by the oddly-structured arts centre to catch The Music of John Williams, performed by the Singapore Wind Orchestra.

The size of the concert hall and the number of people who came to the concert was a lot bigger and much more than we expected! (But then again, considering the concert was free and Singaporeans are suckers for anything they don't need to pay for...) The concert lasted an hour, during which the musicians performed several pieces from famous movies such as Star Wars, E.T, Indiana Jones and Jurassic Park. 

 

This concert was the first of three (free!) concerts that will be featured in the Esplanade starting from January and lasting till March. The next one up is on the 20th of February and is titled "Oh My Valentine", featuring a series of love songs from artistes such as Nat King Cole and Utada Hikaru.

Singapore Signs Are One of a Kind

There are plenty of things one can find in Singapore that we just don't have in the West. It's taken some getting used to and even if I may never be able to pass by a sign like the one below without snickering, I've at least become accustomed to seeing them around.

Of course, this is just one tiny example of the many unusual signs here, maybe I'll make a habit of snapping a photo when I come across them from now on, but heck, I already stand out enough without making myself look like a tourist.

Durians are something you're not going to find in Ohio without a good search, if at all, so the fact they are enough of an annoyance here to warrant putting up a sign in the MRT itself is a bit of culture shock. For those who don't know, durians are stinky fruits native to Southeast Asia. Apparently they have a consistency like thick custard, though I can't say I've tried one yet, they stink way too much and make the whole area smell bad!

Fortunately, they aren't an annoyance quite enough to warrant a fine.

A little something

It's about midnight and I'm just heading off to bed, but I thought I'd post a little something as means of contributing to this joint-blog before I did.

I’ve been through 01/01/01, 02/02/02, 03/03/03, 04/04/04, 05/05/05, 06/06/06, 07/07/07, 08/08/08, 09/09/09, and 10/10/10. And so will most of you who happen to come across this blog as well.

Just a little something to think about~

Happy New Year!

It's 2011 and though we're late on starting, late is better than never.

Pris and I (Michelle) will hopefully be updating this at least once a week, that was one of our resolutions. So whether you're one of our friends or family or just dropping by we hope you enjoy reading about our adventures and trials in Singapore!

We thought we'd bring in the New Year with a good traditional breakfast at one of the nearby hawker centers this morning. The usual traditional Singapore breakfast starts with two soft boiled eggs, which you get raw in a cup of boiling water and leave to cook for about five minutes. Once they're done, you crack them open and eat with soy sauce. Added to that you'll find toast with butter and kaya, a traditional spread made from coconut, sugar and egg, and a cup of coffee.

Since neither of us drink coffee we got one iced milo and one hot milo, which we think is a huge improvement.

Happy New Year, everyone!