In any case, Vivian Balakrishnan, our Minister for Environment and Water Resources must be a busy man lately. He has to combat mosquitoes, fan off haze and also deal with petty cleaning issues at hawker centres with the Aljunied-Hougang-Punggol East Town Council (the name is such a mouthful, might as well just rename as Blue Town Council or Not White Town Council). Each of the three are just as important.
Here is a nice song dedicated to all frustrated Singaporeans to remind us that our forefathers did not have it easy either. When they first arrived in Nanyang, it was foggy too:
After watching these videos made by Counter656, you are never going to look at playing with action figurines the same way. Here are some of my favourites:
The videos are all scripted and produced solo by a 30-years-old Taiwanese part-time university teacher in his home, with nothing more than his computer and some software. He made the videos for fun.
Respect.
Then again, I hope he has many real-life friends outside his room and away from his computer. Although I respect his works, there is something depressing thinking about a grown man spending so much time playing with action figurines…
Last Friday (14 June), the 30th anniversary celebration of Casio G-SHOCK kickstarted with the launch of Singapore’s first ever Casio pop-up store at ION Orchard Atrium Level 1. From now till 23 June 2013, the pop-up store will be displaying the latest and most exclusive G-SHOCK and Baby-G timepieces, along with a special limited edition G-SHOCK designed in collaboration with Maison Martin Margeila.
G-SHOCK + Supra Footwear
G-SHOCK + Be@rbrick
G-SHOCK + Stevie Williams
Thirty years ago in 1983, the founding father of G-SHOCK, Kikuo Ibe, created the original G-SHOCK after two years of trials and over 200 experimental prototypes. G-SHOCK eventually emerged as a global phenomenon, known for its innovative shock-absorbing and high water resistant material.
G-SHOCK Red & Blue series
Series of red G-SHOCK watches
Gravity Defier
MR-G with titanium case
Baby-Gs
When I was in my secondary school, owning a G-SHOCK watch makes you very cool in school. I remember saving hard to buy one together with two of my close pals. We even went down to the G-SHOCK warehouse to beg the retailer to sell it to us at a cheaper price (we succeeded). To date, I have more than seven G-SHOCK watches. All of them are still functioning, including the ones I bought more than two decades ago!
The interior of the pop-up store is designed to be a walk-through museum, featuring 30 new and creative G-SHOCK designs conceptualised by G-SHOCK fans in Singapore as part of the “Design A Casio G-SHOCK” competition held in March this year.
Some of the watch designs submitted by fans
G-SHOCK with butterfly wings
Punk-rock G-SHOCK
There will be a “Casio Shock the World Party” to follow, whereby the top designs among the 30 entries will be announced. The winning design will win a pair of tickets to Japan, among other attractive prizes. Do go check out their designs, I was very impressed by some of them.
The “Casio Shock the World Party” is actually part of the “Casio Shock the World Tour”, which has visited 35 cities around the world since 2009, including Paris, Barcelona, Berlin, Mexico City, New York, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Sydney, Bangkok and Tokyo. It is slated to make a stop in Singapore on 19 July 2013. Keep a look out for it.
The Casio pop-up store will be open from 10.00am to 10.00pm daily till 23 June 2013. Selected limited-edition watches displayed at the store will be available for purchase at the nearest G-Factory outlet at Basement 3, unit B3-65B in Ion Orchard.
Particularly note-worthy is the exclusive G-SHOCK by Maison Martin Margiela (GA-300MMM-8). There will only be 48 pieces of this exclusive model available for sale in Singapore:
Limited edition G-SHOCK by Maison Martin Margiela
A well-acclaimed fashion brand founded in 1988, Maison Martin Margiela designed the bespoke timepiece inspired from the G-SHOCK GA-300, an orignal design by Casio. Each piece features Maison Martin Margiela’s signature “0 to 23″ logo engraved on the back case of the watch and is tagged with an exclusive serial number.
Priced at S$399 each, the G-SHOCK by Maison Martin Margiela is available since last Friday, exclusively at G-Factory outlets at Plaza Singapura (#03-63), ION Orchard (#B3-47) and Takashimaya (level 1), while stocks last. Pre-orders or reservations are not available and consumers are limited to buy only 1-piece each.
The stars who were present include Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Luke Evans and Gina Carano. Here are some of the pictures taken during the press conference:
Evans and Carano were extremely friendly and obliging.
Gina Carano used to be a mix martial arts (MMA) fighter before she started her acting career. Some of you may remember her as “Crush” in the TV show, American Gladiators. During the interview, she revealed that she performed her own stunts in the movie. Though she looks really tough onscreen and gets mostly action roles, she wish to try acting in more dramatic roles.
Luke Evansplays the lead bad guy role, Owen Shaw in Fast & Furious 6. He is alpha-male handsome and usually plays celestial figures like Apollo in Clash of the Titans and Zeus in Immortals. It is interesting to see him go bad this time round and Evans himself said he enjoyed playing Owen Shaw very much.
Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez did a group interview together. The two of them joked around a lot and were pretty casual during the interview.
Other than answering press queries related to the movie, they had fun fending questions on car prices in Singapore too:
The cast were extremely well-received by their fans in the Philippines, with thousands of them showing up at the red carpet event at SM Mall of Asia to show their support.
Fast & Furious 6 is now showing in Singapore cinemas. Go catch it if you are in for some fast-paced adrenaline rush:
If you are looking for somewhere for a staycation in the later part of this year, why not consider the grand-daddy of Singapore luxury hotels, Raffles Hotel?
Raffles Hotel was gazetted by the Singapore government as a national monument in 1987
Rachel, Asher and I stayed for 3D2N over a weekend in May. It was like walking into colonial Singapore. The hotel is rich in history and every nook and cranny is filled with nostalgia. Many important people have stayed here over the years – from Queen Elizabeth II to Michael Jackson.
From now till September 2013, Raffles Hotel Singapore will be having a special suite package, available from S$550++ per suite per night for any day in the week. From September onwards, it will only be available over the weekend. The suite package is specially tailored for locals and includes a host of relaxing and tempting benefits:
Children below the age of 12 stay (using existing bedding) and dine for free with their parents at hotel-operated restaurants (adults must dine at the restaurant)
Welcome Singapore Slings and fruit upon arrival, while children will enjoy fruit smoothies and cookies
Complimentary breakfast at Tiffin Room on the first morning
Complimentary Buffet Dinner at Bar & Billard Room or Tiffin Room (once during the stay)
Complimentary in-suite internet access
24-hour Butler Service
Complimentary S$500 Raffles Hotel Arcade Shopping Discount Vouchers
Complimentary late check-out until 6pm
Complimentary parking
This special rate is extended to residents in Singapore, including Singapore Citizens, PRs and work pass holders. The Suite Package will be valid only during the weekend from 1 Septemember 2013 onwards.
It is a pretty attractive deal. Every Singaporean should stay at least one night at Raffles Hotel to find out why this historical icon encapsulates the epitome of hospitality. Do consider it after checking out my photos and review.
In this two-part staycation series, I will share my views on the accommodation, facilities and architecture of Raffles Hotel Singapore in this first part and dedicate the second part to food – a topic which never fails to excite Singaporeans.
Upon arriving at the hotel, checking in was a breeze with the friendly hotel staff. The hotel lobby is not sprawling, but it exudes a grandeur old world charm. The tall Sikh doorman completes the look.
Rachel and Asher with the iconic Raffles Hotel doorman
Check-in counter in the lobby
A large antique standing clock
The hotel lobby
From the ground floor looking up
Staircases leading up to the rooms
Old switches that are still working
Rachel and I had fun inspecting all the furniture and fixtures in our room, marveling at the many remnants from colonial time like the switches and the faucets:
Separate dining and lounge area from the bedroom
Plate of welcome fruits
A mandarin duck decorative piece in the room. Asher wanted to play with it…
The hotel folks prepared a Raffles doorman as a welcome gift for Asher
Rachel and Asher as we checked into our suite
View of the room from the other direction
Asher sharing his apple with the doorman
Rachel by the dressing table
Asher inspecting all the large wardrobes in our suite
The television is hidden in the middle wardrobe
Bathroom wash area and mirrors
Nice old faucets
Asher getting very excited on seeing the large bathtub
Love this vintage faucet
Even the bathroom scale is antique
We did a quick tour on our own around the hotel and for a while, we felt like English aristocrats, reliving colonial Singapore. Many famous writers like Somerset Maugham like to stay at Raffles Hotel while writing their books. We can understand why. The hotel is located in the city centre of modern Singapore, but yet seems to be in a different time zone of its own.
Fancy a little shopping?
Locked gate for hotel residents only to access the second floor and above
Staircase leading up to our room on the second floor
Lounge area for guests to do some reading
Rachel enjoying reading the newspaper in the quaint surrounding.
Internet and computer access
There is always the lift if you do not want to walk up and down the stairs
Rachel slowly strolling down the wall of fame in Raffles Hotel
Our current prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong and his wife, Ho Ching
Blast from the past
Layout of the Raffles Hotel Singapore at the very beginning
An old poster
Here are some shots I took on a tour around the hotel with the hotel’s historian:
Interior of Raffles Grill restaurant
The chandeliers caught my eyes
The wine cellar
Raffles grill is named after this silver grill, dug up after the Japanese occupation
Every corner in this hotel is beautiful
Bar near the lobby
Vintage stained glasses
Area to sit around and drink tea
Bar & Billard Room. We are standing around the antique billard table.
Antique billard table and set-up
Old billard score table
Dining area in the converted Bar & Billard Room
An outdoor fountain
Jubilee Theatre
It is dark in the theatre.
An interesting wall mural. I am not too sure durians grow this way…
Another wall mural – there are many of these
Entering the ballroom where many wedding ceremonies are held
Inside the ballroom
A bar on the ground floor
A bust of Sir Stamford Raffles
Here is another venue in the hotel for weddings and other events
I like walking down these rows after rows of white columns
At the third floor of the hotel
View from third floor down
Lounge area on the third floor, just outside the presidential suites
An old piano
A closer look at the piano
I could get used to this
We had the privilege to visit the Sir Stamford Raffles Suites, one of the two Presidential Suites in the hotel. Each of these two suites comprise a parlour, dining room, two bedrooms, pantry and private balcony. The cost is from S$10,000 a night:
The walkway leading to the presidential suites on the third floor
Ready to step into the suite?
The sofa area
One happy little boy spotted
I like this lounge chair
Camel motif
Me in the Sir Stamford Raffles Presidential Suite
Everything in the room seems to be antique furniture
One of the toilets
Dining area
Dining table
It is so huge there is a corridor
Bedroom 1
Vintage wardrobe, bookshelf and such
View of the first bedroom from another angle
Posing by the study table
The room is really huge
Attached bathroom in bedroom 1
Bedroom 2
Me laying back to relax
Wash basins in the bathroom
Functioning vintage switches
Kitchen area
Giant fridge tucked in a corner as it’s modern appearance do not gel so well with the overall interior design
Rachel also tried out a Swedish massage at its Raffles Spa on the last day. The spa has customised its version of the relaxing massage by offering three combinations of aromatherapy oils to go with it. There’s a lavender one, which is supposed to be relaxing, a bergamot one, which is invigorating, and a cypress one, which is detoxifying. She went with the last one and fell asleep during the massage.
The bathroom in Raffles Spa
Spa products
The masseur
The spa and massage room
The spa is luxurious without being overtly opulent and there is a row of deck chairs on the verandah facing the Swissotel Stamford Hotel. Just the spot to curl up with a magazine on a sleepy, rainy day.
Place to sit and laze after the spa
I brought Asher to the open-air rooftop swimming pool for a swim:
Raffles Hotel rooftop swimming pool
Asher and I
There was a full moon that night
Initially, we thought we will probably wander off the hotel to do some shopping nearby. In the end, we spent most of our time exploring the hotel itself!
I am ending this post with a video from the Ninja Girls, a group of Japanese bloggers who also stayed at Raffles Hotel during the same period when I was staying there with my family:
There are a few hotels in the world whose names have become virtually synonymous with the cities in which they are located – and none more so than Raffles in Singapore.
Named after Sir Stamford Raffles, founder of Singapore, Raffles Hotel opened in 1887 and soon became the haunt of intrepid travellers from around the world. Regular guests included Noel Coward, Joseph Conrad and Somerset Maugham, who describe the hotel as embodying “all the fables of the exotic East.” Through their stories, The Long Bar, the Palm Court and the Bar & Billiard Room with its tiger, became familiar to people who had never even been to Singapore.
While preserving its atmospheric teak verandahs, gleaming white colonial facade and magnificent Gieves & Hawkes-clad doormen, Raffles is very much part of the modern, vibrant city of Singapore. It is now the proud flagship of the nine strong Raffles Hotel & Resorts.
Singaporean Silat athlete, Muhammad Shakir Bin Juandawas nominated by the Singapore Silat Federation for the Sportsman of the Year award this year. In December 2012, he was crowned world champion at the World Pencak Silat Championships in Chiang Rai, Thailand, after he came from behind to beat Vietnamese favourite Le Si Kien in the Class-I (85-90kg) category. He also took home the title of Best Athlete of the entire tournament.
The SSA Selection Committee felt that none of the four male athletes nominated had made a significant enough achievement in 2012. None even made it as finalists, not to mention an award recipient. Table-tennis paddler, Feng Tianweiwon Sportswoman of the Year.
“The male athletes have done well, but (their results are) not in the same league as the rest,” said Chairwoman of this year’s SSA, Jessie Phua.
I do not know much about silat, but to be crowned world champion, Shakir must have competed and beat many other athletes from around the world. That should account for something.
If he is the best in the world for Silat already, what else must Shakir do to be crowned Singapore Sportsman of the Year?
Well, Shakir obviously have not tried hard enough. Here are a few other opponents he can consider fighting and winning to put him on the same standard as Feng Tianwei:
Now, you do not need to leave the comfort of your home every evening to purchase a physical copy for your daily dose of local tabloid. All the news will be loaded directly into the app, regardless where you are in the world as long as you have internet connection.
Dig Israel with Bar Ilan University and Israel Ministry of Tourism
Family Fun at Hong Kong Disneyland
Sydney with Scoot and Destination New South Wales
Sydney with HTC EVO 3D and Destination New South Wales
Shanghai Expo with Coca-Cola
Shantou with Jetstar
Hong Kong Summer Spectacular
Royal Caribbean's Legend of the Seas
Manila with Resorts World Manila
Bintan with Bintan Holiday.com
Blogfest Asia @ Penang, Malaysia
Flying to Helsinki with Finnair
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