MacRichie Reservoir

A trip out this afternoon to MacRichie Reservoir. It was all a little late on in the day so we didn't stay too long. But what we saw we liked. The reservoir is surrounded on three sides by rain forest in the central catchment area of Singapore (ie where all the water collects). We took ourselves round part of the reservoir, past the fitness circuit, through a tiny bit of the rain forest and onto the boardwalk that you can see in the video. Mist was rising off the waters suggesting that it's probably pretty cold in there. Made for some lovely evocative shots though. Plenty of people out on the water canoeing. Looked a lovely place for some water sports. Spotted a water monitor lizard swimming to the opposite side of the water as soon as we got there. Must've heard D coming, he's not the most quiet at the moment! The kids seemed to enjoy it, even though we managed to leave one of D's shoes at home! Talk about planning. He didn't seem to mind running around bare-foot. What was very noticeable was the abundance of keep fit nuts running around. I haven't seen so many in one place since we got here. It must make for a great varied run and the scenery is always changing which stops you getting bored. Still won't catch me running though (well, you probably could frankly, but you know what I mean!). A lot of them were sporting what looked like Singapore marathon vests. That happens on 5 December. I'm quite interested to take a look as I should imagine it's quite a spectacle but I know nothing about it.
Finally bought a carpet (a rug as we would call it in the UK). Boy does the place seek more homely already and a bit softer when the kids fall over). A bookcase is being delivered on Wednesday so we can finally see what we brought with us. Now I've just got to remember how to read again.

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Happy Hari Raya Haji

Happy Hari Raya. A public holiday for everyone. Except T who gets to go into work and watch kids rehearse for their upcoming production of Twelfth Night!

Have a look below for more about this Muslim "Festival of Sacrifice". 

YourSingapore.com - Hari Raya Haji

Expat Adventures in Singapore

A very nice looking site that I've some across via Twitter

Expat Adventures in Singapore

Thunderbolts and lightning.....

very, very frightening meeeee (to the tune of Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen). Well, not me, but it scares the kids and we've had a real doozy this afternoon. Some quality forked lightening and thunder to make your ears bleed or wake up the kids. Both of which take some doing. Started about midday and hasn't finished rumbling away to itself at time of posting some two hours later. I don't tend to blog much about the weather because it's pretty standard fair. Sunny with thunderstorms.... every day. Before I came out here and I had a weather widget on my phone for Singapore, I thought it just wasn't updating properly. 31C, Sunny with expected thunderstorms.... every day. But, now I'm here, that's exactly what happens. Granted you get the odd day that is a roaster with no cloud or rain, but they are few and far between. Mostly it's quite predictable. Currently I've got the boy asleep on the sofa as he needed a cuddle to protect from the thunder. It was really crashing in! Goodness knows how Z has slept through it! And here it comes again. I thought it had subsided but it was just gathering itself for another burst. Great to listen to!

Pain killer

Finally my tooth is starting to feel more like it's old self. It's taken all week, stuffing myself full of a mixture of Panadol Extra, Ibuprofen (or some drug with 'fen' at the end and bright pink, supplied by Fiona. Thank you. It would seem impossible to gain anything stronger than Panadol over here without a trip to the doctors. Even my dentist only gave me Nurofen, stating 'this will sort out the pain'. Well, no it won't, and didn't) and purple antibiotics. My tooth may have appreciated this (somewhat belatedly) but my stomach certainly hasn't. Grumbling and moping about everytime I present it with food. I almost was unable to eat.... All my dinner.
I'm sitting on the number 14 bus (in a lot of traffic), trying to get to Dhoby Ghaut to meet a friend. I think I'm going to be late. I shouldn't be surprised at the traffic as, of course, there are roadworks involved. Judging by the aggressive tactics, Captain bus driver is employing, I'm not the only one whose late! It's the first time I've taken this bus and frankly I have no idea where I am. Still all part of the adventure. I'll know where I am when I get there. Assuming, of course, that I get my nose out of my mobile and stop blogging. Look up. No still don't recognise it. Handily I've just had a text from Claire who I'm meeting. Sure is also stuck in traffic. Probably just behind me. But she has no aircon! This probably means she's paying less for her journey as the bus tariffs seem to not only depend on the length of journey but also the luxuriousness of your ride (which is all relative by the way). Look up. Am I on the right bus here? Ah, here's my stop. Quick!

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Reality

A little dose of, 'yes, we really are living here', yesterday. After manfully suffering toothache over the long weekend I was finally able to pay my first visit to the dentist. I dull pain on Friday had by Sunday, turned into  excruciating agony. Chewing on the softest of noodles was a real effort and on Monday I took one chomp too many and nearly hit the ceiling! This was after I had booked my emergency appointment. Not too bright sometimes. On arrival after a little consultation and an x-ray (hyperlinked because we all know what it is, but do we really?), it was discovered that my crowned tooth had not one but two infected roots. So I was popped next door to see the root canal specialist (yes, that kind of dentists practice). "Ooh, both roots, that pretty unusual", gee thanks, that makes me feel better. "Go an book yourself in with the PA so we can drill them out and clean them up". Bleugh!
And five minutes later I was dealing with not only the pain in my mouth but the projected pain in my wallet when I discovered what this torture was likely to cost. I may well have to sell another part of my anatomy to save the part that needs the work!
Oh well, needs must. I'm back there next Tuesday for some drillin' and scrapin' and until then I'm on the drugs and painkillers. Yum....

What a week!

Well, my grand plans to come home and blog about the holiday in Bintan were slightly scuppered by people asking me to do things this week. This culminated in me being very busy. Well, really, how rude!
However, I shall start with the lovely few days which we spent in/on Pulau Bintan. What a place, aside from gushing about the fireflies, the place itself was lovely. Two separate villas split by a swimming pool down the middle. Jacuzzi baths and a hot tub. It just about did the trick.

Sufficed to say, the kids loved the swimming pool and must've spent 75% of their waking hours in there or one of the resort pools. This of course meant that the adults did too which was not exactly a hardship. Especially when there was beer and more importantly VODKA on offer. Yes, first time we leave the island and duty free hones in to view. S$20 for a litre of Red Smirnoff. Well, what's not to like? Considering the same bottle in Singapore would set you back around $60-$70. Which is why we hadn't bought any spirits since we've been here. Anyway, I digress. Kids in the pool, us supping a beverage of our choice and the world was good. The view from the pool was somewhat spectacular as those of you who have ventured over to my Flickr feed will know. Most of the entertainment seemed to centre around wildlife one way and another especially monkeys. From our balcony I spotted my first water monitor lizard (about 4-5 feet long, is that big?). He spent every evening, patrolling his patch of beach, munching on the thousands of tiny crabs hiding from the low tide vulnerability. Swimming effortlessly through the rock pools to his next destination. Fascinating to watch and certainly Lord of the Manor. Monkeys. Well, this was really the family's first close encounter of monkey kind since we've been here. We sat outside at the restaurant for breakfast every morning. D had taken a liking to the buffet style arrangement which meant he pretty much got to eat whatever he wanted. This also meant, as it transpired, that a hungry naughty monkey also got to eat pretty much whatever he wanted. The culprit was spotted in the trees but we didn't pay too much attention to it. But, before we knew it, he had swooped down and pinched D's chocolate doughnut (I told you he was getting what he wanted!) almost out of his fingers. And then, after a pause to see what else was on offer, his apple too. And then legged it back from whence he came. D took a moment and promptly burst into tears, not from being scared but from seeing his beloved doughnut heading treeward. That was easily solved with doughnut reinforcements. Then the monkey police turned up with their slings and we moved to a table slightly further away from the trees.

The Offender

Later that day after T had gone home while the rest of us went for a walk on the beach, another monkey came flying through the open area of our villa. A minute later a knock on the door revealed two of the monkey police politely enquiring whether a monkey had passed through could they come in. After a quick check over the balcony into the trees below a couple of speculative shots from their slings their retired. Just another day on the resort for them. The same monkey returned to harass T and I while we ate later that afternoon.  guess that's what happens when you plonk humans in their habitat. They make the best of what they can. Then of course there were the fireflies, but you can read that slightly gushy episode here!

Anyway, we returned over a week ago and yet I'm only just getting pixel to paper. I returned to find myself faced with, what for me, was a busy week. On Tuesday I met with representative's of Contact Singapore website. They were introduced to me by Prakash the Director of Yolk, a company involved in what I could best describe as a PR site for the social and digital age. Anyway, for reasons best known to them they were slightly taken by my blogging (yes, this one) and invited me to lunch. Well, never knowingly having turned down a free lunch, I agreed. A very interesting little meeting, all three of them being Singaporean, just discussing the differences I've found between Singapore and the UK (where do you start?), how easy it was to set up here, the food, the people, how I use Facebook, LinkedIn etc. Discovering how differently social media is used in the UK as compared to Singapore. As to what they want from me in the future, I guess only they know. It was an interesting meeting nonetheless and nice to meet new, interesting people. 

Speaking of new and interesting people, the next day I was involved with photographing a charity event. The charity in question was Breast Cancer Foundation. Those of you who know me will know I lost my sister-in-law to the disease just over a year ago. So an apposite charity to be supporting. And as this was the Breast Cancer Foundation Golf Day, you can see how I was attracted to volunteer! So it was that I found myself at 10am on Wednesday morning with four other photographers hanging around in the lobby of a golf club. Two other volunteers and two professionals, one of whom owns the eponymous photographic company that was kind enough to invite me, Zurina Bryant. A beautiful, sunny day awaited us that even the locals thought was a scorcher (although experience has already taught me that they're not too keen on the hot weather! Go figure). However, score one for perfect photographic conditions. There were even funky clouds to go with the sunshine. As I said, perfect. I arrived with some trepidation as my little camera and I aren't exactly professional material but my fears were quickly allayed by the warm reception and soon I was snapping away. It soon became apparent that this event was a big deal. Especially when I discovered that the Guest of Honour was the wife of the Prime Minister (although I stand to be corrected as I'm still not quite sure because I know. But she was very eminent).

Indeed, it turned out to be the charity's premier fundraising event of the year. She arrived with little fuss and was greeted by the pom-pom girls made up of survivors and giving it plenty, a very friendly bunch. Soon enough, with all 144 golf players resplendent in their Pink Ribbon polos, the PM's wife (let's stick with that, it sounds good) tee'd off and got the event under way. Two unlucky soles had the unenviable task of photographing all the foursomes before they each tee'd off. I on the other hand, along with one of the other volunteers, got to ride shotgun with one of the charity's bods and photograph the days events around the course. And what a course is was. Tanah Merah Country Club, set in the east of the Island close to Changi airport, as some of the photos will reveal. Perfectly maintained fairways and greens (although some were artificial I noticed), with constant watering and mowing. Must've cost them a fortune to run. Fortune or not, the philanthropic country club had given the green fees a miss to support the event (one which cost the participants $1000 each to enter). And a lovely day it turned out to be. I was gently chided/openly laughed at for the amount of factor I was applying, but man did I need it. There were some very tired faces coming off that course and most of them were a darn site more used to five hours in the Sing sun than me. Having said that I discovered that my Indian counterpart who was also shooting round the course was used to a max of 20C in his home town (somewhere near the Himalaya). Funny how you assume just because they're from what one deems a hot country that they must be used to it. I think he suffered more than I did. So then on to the evening event which involved some very tired looking business persons (yes, they even let women onto the course. These are enlightened times!), spending the first hour of the evening with their respective mobile devices glued their ears/fingers trying to catch up with the day they had missed at work. Not easy to shoot when they're supposed to be enjoying themselves. However, a few beers and some food and singing later and they started to relax somewhat which made it a whole lot easier. Most were more than happy to pose for shots. Some I couldn't keep out of shot, you know the type. By the time I left they had managed to raise around $350,000 on the day. Not bad going and I'm sure there was more to come as the karaoke came to life with people bidding silly money to hear people sing who quite obviously shouldn't have been allowed near a mic. A good time was had by all I'm sure.

God bless you Pink Ladies!