View allAll Photos Tagged scratchy
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
As part of Memespelunk Revival Studio (April 10-May 10), I've brought Scratchy Night back to life in Second Life. Scratchy Night portrays a nocturnal world alight with star-shaped scratches, all akilter. An installation inspired by Vincent Van Gogh, Elros Tuominen and my 9 y.o. son. One eared Van Gogh for his Starry Night (always worth a look.) The jolly basque SL sculptor Elros for his impressive "inside road to ovetum" ( a tip of the hat.) And my struggling artist kid for his invention of scratch through black and color crayon drawings (clever lad.) Also as always sounds so turn up your volume. Music was partially sampled from the band Animal Collective.
To view this large immersive space: fly up into the sphere and move around within. Be sure to have your volume turned on to enjoy the ambient sound. Music resampled from the music of Animal Collective.
Location in SL: slurl.com/secondlife/VWDEV ITEC ISLE/59/110/35/
Memespelunk Revival is hosted by Kennesaw State University, Georgia and supported by admin and friend Gwenette Writer.
taking a cap-nap with the Epic rocket project, now with motor mounts on each fin, all part of this weekend’s build.
Scratchy started the day today with a nose dive into my coffee.
And yes, Vanita, you knew before we did that we just had to keep a couple of these feral kittens.
Happy Mother's Day from all the kittens.
(and we have come to learn that Father's Day is a bit more multiplexed here)
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
They fight, they bite
They fight and bite and fight
Fight, fight, fight
Bite, bite bite
The Itchy and Scratchy Show.
This textures is free to use in your personal or commercial work, but you may not claim/imply it to be your own. Please credit me for the original creation.
If you use this texture, I'd love to see what you create, so please post your images (small to medium size) in the comments of the textures. Also a link back the texture or my photo stream would be appreciated.
Have fun!
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
photos are merciless... i actually never realized how many scratches there are on my watch the i wear for nearly 15 years now...
sadly the macro is rather blurry, and the hdr exposure blending didn't make that any better. I should have used a better light source when taking that picture - but that i must still get. maybe i try it again in summer, when the sun shines...
ITCHY SCRATCHY
An exhibition initiated by Jason Evans
Preview Friday 2 October 6.30 - 9.30pm
Exhibition continues 3 October – 8 November 2009
Permanent Gallery, 20 Bedford Place, Brighton
Open: Thurs/Fri/Sun 1pm - 6pm, Sat 11am - 6pm
"I think of it as the picture/s that you print up, just to a small working size, to get a look at. The ones that interest and trouble you because there is something that you don't fully understand about them, as if you unconsciously did something. These pictures seem to signpost a new direction in a photographer's practice, they are transitional pieces, and precursors to a new phase or project. I think all the best photographers have the guts to move beyond the pictures they already know they can make, and spend time with the itchy scratchy pictures to work out what comes next."
Charlotte Cotton
Itchy Scratchy is an exhibition of photographs. The title is taken from this quote by Charlotte Cotton, where she describes the pictures which break photographers out of familiar ways of working. The exhibition affirms the role that happy accidents and epiphanies play in creative activity.
Itchy Scratchy was initiated by photographer/writer Jason Evans. All exhibitors have been invited to submit a digital file of an itchy scratchy image in a uniform size, to be reproduced on matt paper using an inkjet printer. The exhibition features a broad range of photographers from the emerging to those of international repute.
Visitors to the exhibition are able to purchase a raffle ticket. At the end of the show a draw will determine who has won which unique print. Proceeds from ticket sales will support the realisation of future exhibitions at Permanent Gallery.
Itchy Scratchy photographs will be viewable at www.permanentgallery.com soon. Raffle tickets will be available to purchase from the Gallery (during opening times, Thurs/Fri/Sun 1pm -6pm + Sat 11am - 6pm), and from the gallery website, as of Friday 2nd October. Raffle tickets are £50.
List of contributors :
Nik Adam, Marta Bakst, Jason Bascombe, Kevin Beck, Nicola Belson, David Blackmore, Peter Bobby, Michael Bodiam, Mark Bolland, Matt Burgess, Millie Burton, Polly Braden, Thom Bridge, Thomas Brown, Tommi Cahill, Helen Cammock, Sam Collins, Ben Crawford, Jason Evans, Niccolo Fano, Annabelle Fenning, Andrew Ferguson, Victoria Fornieles, Anna Fox, Carl Gent, Ruth George, Phillipe Gerlach, Simon Gilbert & Nik Adam, Nigel Green, Amy Gwatkin, Fiona Harvey, Peter Haynes, David Hendra, Laura Hensser, Todd Hido, Kelly Hill, Jan von Holleben, Mandy Lee Jandrell, Greg Jones, Maria Kapajeva, Shiho Kito, Paul Knight, Ioannis Koussertari, Matthieu Lavanchy, Patrick Lears, Patrick Lee, Wiebke Leister, Chris Linaker, Gordon MacDonald, John MacLean, Craig Mammano, Mike Massaro, Trent McMinn, Sherman McMinn, Shannon Michael Cane, Alexander Milnes, Tim Mitchell, David Moore, Ashima Narain, Luke Norman, Magali Nougarede, Tod Papageorge, Sam Pearce, Sarah Pickering, Oliver Pin-Fat, Oliver Poddar, Augusta Quirk, Milo Reid, Alex Rich, John Rose-Adams, David Rule, Viviane Sassen, Richard Sawdon Smith, Michael Schmelling, Aaron Schuman, Andy Sewell, Alexandria Da Silva, John Spinks, Sandra Stein, Christopher Stevens, Melanie Stidolph, Clare Strand, Kamei Takashi, Andreas Tauber, Kirsti Taylor Bye, George Thomas, Tviga, Nick Waplington, Harry Watts, Ruth Wiggins
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Permanent
Gallery & Bookshop
20 Bedford Place
Brighton BN1 2PT
UK
+44 1273 710389
info@permanentgallery.com
Open:
Thurs/Fri/Sun 1pm - 6pm
Sat 11am - 6pm
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
First run with the Ikoflex I and I totally botched the film loading. First time with a tlr was humbling. I didn't pay too much mind on the dirt and dust or correctly cropping since I streaked the entire roll anyway. Oh well, better luck next time!
Shot on Portra 160. Scanned via epson 2450 and retouched a bit on the colors and contrast.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
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Is artificial synthetic grass hotter than my natural lawn? Yes, all artificial synthetic grass is warmer than natural grass in the sun, it just doesn’t have the natural cooling capacity of natural grass. It will not get as hot as beach sand, but it will be warmer than natural grass, which contains water. There’s always a trade-off for the benefits such as no mowing, no watering, no weeding, no chemical applications, easier dog clean up, no mud, etc. The only real trade-off is that the surface of synthetic grass will be hotter than natural grass. But, we have never had a complaint that it was so hot that it burned a person or pet. The darker green colored fiber absorbs more sun than our lighter shades of green. On really hot days, take these precautions: We recommend having at least one portion of your lawn area shaded for instant relief. If the temperature gets hot, it’s always nice to have a little relief area until it cools down again. Also, you can spray the artificial synthetic grass with water right before you play or walk on your synthetic grass on a really hot day. Additionally, you can always wear some type of footwear. Another thing that can be done to lower heat on artificial synthetic grass is adding a light color of approved silica sand or other infill that is light in color. Many people find that the extra heat doesn’t bother them as long as they keep moving. But, even if these precautions are not exercised, hot weather has not kept people or pets off of synthetic grass.
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What type of maintenance should I expect with Artificial Synthetic Grass by Lawn Pros? An occasional brooming to stand the grass fibers up is recommended but not necessary. Debris like twigs and leaves can be easily removed with a leaf blower or rake.
How is Synthetic Grass by Lawn Pros Installed?Existing sod must first be removed. Next, a base is created using a special blend of crushed rock (2″ to 4″ depth), then smoothed and compacted. The artificial grass is then rolled onto the surface of the base and seamed together if necessary (turf widths are 15′.) Then the infill material is is spread over the top of the grass using a fertilizer spreader and brushed to the bottom of the artificial grass. The grass product type and the type of use determines the type and amount of infill. The infill can be sand, rubber crumb, or our eco-friendly (or a combination of the above.) Installation for synthetic putting greens is similar but there are additional layers of base materials that need to be thoroughly compacted.
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My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.
My throat is scratchy again; and I still have a cough. It's time to see the doctor.
I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday evening, around 11pm. I stayed up until 2am. I feel ok today; I'll go shopping later, mark some papers, and run; and then I'll head to church and afterwards, some CSP peeps and I will consume some vegetarian foodstuffs.
I enjoyed Singapore. It was nice to explore their culture as, again, seeing how other Asian people live helps me to properly frame my own experience as a foreigner living amongst Hong Kong people. I have begun to discard my animus towards the Hong Kong culture, to be replaced with a sense of amusement, and pity at how we, the people in Hong Kong, live.
The following is information that was recorded in my journal during my journey:
Some observations made during my first night in Singapore:
- the airport, opened in 1991, has a very 1980's, Miami-Vice, vibe
- Singapore is wired; free, sometimes wireless Internet is available everywhere, even in McDonald's!
- Singapore has much in common with the well-developed parts of Panama City: the weather is hot and humid; there are grassy sidewalks, and palm and banyan trees everywhere; there are many residential and commercial low-rises that actually shut off their lights at night
- I saw a homeless guy laying out on a sidewalk
- the older Chinese lady, who works at the gas station convenient store that I visited, spoke very comprehensible English; something must be working in Singapore's education system!
5/5/06 - I just showered and I'm going to sleep soon. It's been a very long day; I'm tired; and I reinjured my right foot while walking to the hotel this evening. I woke up this morning and watched the NETS game before Garlanda and I went downstairs for a nice, filling, buffet breakfast. We ate well and were happy, even though it was raining outside. After breakfast, we walked to the SMRT station and bought our E-Z cards and then we went to Sentosa Island, via cable car. Sentosa island is a well-landscaped, well-planned island that serves as a beautiful, tourist-destination day-trap, and the southernmost point of continental Asia! We checked out the southern tip of the island, and then we headed back into the city as it began raining. Back in the city, we checked out Little India. This place was part Hong Kong, and part colonial Indochina. Much of Little India is housed in this huge building complex that resembles what the HK government has dreamt up to house HK's wet markets and chicken markets. The other half of Little India is a sprawl of European-colonial architecture. It was enjoyable to tour through the area as there was much color, and aroma. We ate lunch at the Banana-Leaf cafe where we ordered much, delicious Indian food that was swiftly eaten on a Banana Leaf. It was quite the culinary experience. After lunch, we went to Chinatown to visit the oldest, and most amazing Hindu temple in Singapore. The temple is full of strange, mind-blowing images of various deities. I enjoy visiting temples of eastern religions and this was no exception. I get a big buzz from viewing icons that are beyond my frame of reference. Chinatown is a pleasant area. The main street, Pagoda street, is a long street (alley, perhaps?) lined with bric-a-brac hawkers and trinket shops. Like Little India, there is some beautiful, colorful architecture. We then visited St. Andrew's church, which is the oldest church in Singapore. Next, we visited the Raffles Hotel, home of the Singapore Sling. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to view the lobby as there is a strict dress code for men - no shorts - while women are free to come and go, naked, if they want, as they please. To top off our tour of the city hall area, we saw the world's largest, and underwhelming fountain. For our nightcap, we made the long journey over to the Singapore zoo, where we went on their "night safari" and had the wonderful opportunity to view creatures of the night! Part of the tour was conducted on a tram and the other part was on foot. The highlight of the trip was walking in a mangrove environment with huge bats hanging overhead. These bats were big, and we had to duck, and run, to avoid disturbing them; and again, they were huge, and tired; and we were frightened as we were in such close contact to them and had to walk around and underneath them! After viewing the creatures of the night show, which was lit-up with idiotic flash photography, we made the long trek back to Chinatown, where we then began, what seemed to be, and even longer walking trek back to the hotel. We took a different route as we couldn't figure out how to return to the hotel from the Outram SMRT station. Garlanda, the navigational wizard, was able to successfully guide us to the hotel, from the Chinatown SMRT station.
Here are some more observations:
- Singapore people let passengers alight from trains first, before barging into the train; the trains are quieter as there is less noise-spam from the SMRT, and people don't use their mobile phones as frequently, and extensively as their HK counterpart; the seats are also wider, and there is more room in the car as it seems like few people use the train
- Singapore girls are absolutely gorgeous because they aren't afraid to show some skin; Hong Kong girls should take a page out of the Singapore book!
- students, like those in Korea, can wear sneakers
- everyone speaks English; something is definitely going right for their education system
- people are much more relaxed; their is rarely any running up and down escalators
6/5/06 - I slept for about 10 hours last night, and it was good. However, we missed breakfast so we went to Clarke Quay where we ate lunch at the Brewerkz. I had a satisfying "New York" pizza, along with a pint of their Cherry microbrew - it wasn't too sweet. I don't recommend drinking a cold beer, on an empty stomach, in the hot sun, after doing some strenuous walking: it's a recipe for drunkeness and dehydration! Well, a fruit fly drowned in my beer and that was the end of that. I also read the I-S magazine during lunch and it certainly seems to lack the content of the plumper, HK magazine. Garlanda and I split up afterwards, and it is obvious that we have been on increasingly divergent paths; however, it was good to know that we at least started our journey, and ended it, on the same page. I went back to Chinatown and bought a nice, $11SGD "light" shirt; oh, and then I got lost trying to find my way back to the hotel! Eventually, after wandering around and fretting for awhile, I walked to the Outram station, inquired about the "Outram Prison" exit, and then navigated my way back to the hotel from there.
I recommend Singapore and the Singapore Airlines-sponsored, Singapore Stopover tourist package. It's a convenient, inexpensive way to view a most wonderful city. In case you missed it, here are the pictures.