Cages

Cages is a remarkable film. And Singapore has a lot to be proud of this film.

Shot solely in Singapore, Cages presents our beautiful island in a different light. Think bunk boats, Nonya outfits, kok kok bowls (porcelain bowls with rooster motifs), and colourful mosaic tiles. Even being a born and bred Singaporean, I have never seen my city island viewed in that light before.

As for castings, Cages is acted by late Makoto Iwamatsu, Zelda Rubinstein, Asrani, Bobby Tonelli, and our very own Tan Kheng Hua and Dickson Tan.

Iwamatsu made such a convincing role out of Tan’s father that it was pretty teary at some point. Whilst Tan, immersed herself in the role so much, I could sense her protectiveness as a mother and defensiveness as a daughter. Above all, I thought Dickson deserved praise for his role in the movie. Cages shines brightly as its star studded cast.

Vibrant staging and good casting aside, the movie follows a dramatic plot, embedded with a  lot of hidden meaning that viewers need to decipher before fully understanding the story line - like why was Iwamatsu avoiding Dickson at one point and embracing him at another. And that was what I loved about the movie. It wasn’t a in-your-face story.

With exception of the first 5 minutes of the show - which I thought was irrelevant - I thought that this show is fantastic. I would show this film to my kids when they are a bit older, to allow them to appreciate the artsy side of it.

Visit Cages official site here: http://www.cagesmovie.com/

Nature undisturbed

Nature, where men do not roam, is the most beautiful.

I never knew fishing spots existed in Singapore. Look, I even found a snail in the clear waters.

Uniqlo is coming to town!

Move aside cult jeans, people, cheer! Uniqlo is coming to Singapore! Aren’t we a lucky bunch?

Pride for its affordable quality staple tees, jeans, and inner wear, that comes in an array of candy colour, Uniqlo is the brand to shop for your daily wear.

Originating from Japan, Uniqlo lives up to its motto for having quality clothes that is made to last. I am a true believer of buying quality clothes, (I hate to buy clothes, cheap or not, that I have to chuck into the dustbin after one wash due to various reasons) and Uniqlo delivers just that. They don’t skimp on the materials that they use for their clothes.

Despite the economic downturn, Uniqlo reaped almost 9 billion dollars in revenue last year, a testimony to their popularity. I must say, their ability to power up their sales, must be greatly related to their perfect visual display. A visually neat and tidy shop, scores a big fat A on my score sheet.

I recall fondly that during my last day in New York, and being the shoppaholic that I am, I made a mad dash across Soho. I just had to see and feel Soho myself. On that fateful day, I walked past this ultra neat Gap shop lookalike. The tees were neatly stacked, the colours were all carefully arranged in a soothing manner. Gee, the fuzz-free look had such a magnetic lure. Well, in under 20 minutes, I score myself a pair of skinny jeans with colourful seams for US$29.90. It is difficult to find a pair of skinny jeans that suit my petite frame without compromising on a little booty space, and I found it at Uniqlo. The shop attendant is happy and so am I.

An added service that I really like, is the we’ll-alter-your-jeans’-length-in-under-20-min-for-free. It’s not even those off-with-the-pretty-frays-at-the-bottom quick alteration, but those that requires the tailor to reattach the original bottoms. Unfortunately, I was running late and had to catch a flight home, and had to miss out on altering my jeans.

Nonetheless, I’m waiting for Uniqlo’s grand opening. I’m already oogling at those bratop camisoles and tanks. Slurp.

Shop at Uniqlo:

2nd Floor (#02-28 to 30), Tampines 1,
10 Tampines Central 1,
Singapore 529536

*Photos taken from Uniqlo UK.

A day at the zoo!

Pretty butterflies at the zoo.

The giraffe and the shortie. Or so says my 3 friends.

Quench the body

It is such a treat to sip a cup of warm ginger tea whilst looking at a lush forest and hearing the pitter-pattar of the rundrops. Nature is really beautiful.

The scene took place at Spa Esprit located at House @ Dempsey. An old barrack brilliantly refurbished into a spa, dine and party all in one. It’s the new Holland V except that it has a true blue not-in-singapore feel to it.

I tagged along my sister for a spa treatment. For the month of October’08, for treatments $180 and above you would get a 10% off, bring another friend and both of you will get 25% off. I did their Body Thirst Quencher today. Unfortunately, I don’t think it was really worth it. The Turkish Granny scrubbed me cleaner. I prefer their Slowgo massage though. Good news, there is a November promo for the Slowgo massage. Ahhhh….

I love oysters

I love oysters. I love them in the form of 蚝煎 (fried oysters egg) and baked with cheese. But I ultimately love them in the raw form. Just squeeze a little bit of lemon, scoop it out with a spoon. Slurp it down. In an instance, you are on a joy ride through the ocean.

It is difficult to find raw oysters in Singapore that has a fresh taste to it. Most are mired with a slight tinge of the muddy sea base. Though, if you need to satisfy your oyster cravings, The Line buffet at Shangri-La Singapore serves up decent raw oysters. So does the Ellenborough Market at Merchant Court Singapore.

But the freshest tasting raw oysters I have tasted so far hails from a petite seafood restaurant tucked in the quiet residence in Bukit Timah. They have oysters special every Tuesday with oysters going at $1 each. Also, they do serve some delicious fish & chips. Introducing, Greenwood Fish Market & Bistro!

Greenwood Fish Market & Bistro 34 Greenwood Avenue
Singapore 289236
Tel: 6467.4950

Southern Ridges

Alright, I realise the pictures do not do justice to the lovely walk at Southern Ridges.

Nonetheless, it is really a breezy walk.

Start at either Harbourfront station and walk towards the Hort Park; or start at West Coast Park (WCP) and walk towards the Hort Park; or the one that I prefer is start at Hort Park and thereafter walk towards Harbourfront reasons being it is easier to descend 134 steps from Mount Faber than to ascend the wooden steps. Also, the Hort Park - Harbourfront stretch is more scenic than the WCP - Hort Park stretch.

My favourite spot is the Henderson Bridge for the interesting wooden DNA like birdge structure. It is also the spot that is the coolest since there is no obstruction.

Singapore Biennale Part 1

As promised, here are my pictures from the Singapore Biennale South Beach complex. You need to pay $10 for 2 of the Singapore Biennale venues, but it is worth the money. Just a short selection of some of the more outstanding installations that caught my eye.

First up, my favourite installation of them all. The Hair Salon by Leandro Erlich. This installation is totally AWESOME! 2 adjacent rooms are altered to mirror each other. I’m stuck in the glass image. It’s totally cool because everything is in reverse (magazines, dye packaging and clock included). Just standing inside the room made me feel like I was trapped in a doll house.

Next up, a free standing wall with the words “One Hundred Years of Solitude” which is derived from a book written by Gabriel Garcia. Short and simple.

Thereafter, one work that wowed me was this work by Felice Varini. This art work spread across an entire hall’s ceiling. It’s just amazing. From one angle, the image looks 2 D. From another angle, the image appears 3 D. I loved that the art was painted in bold orange.

Now this work was simply funny. I liked that the artists played around with the idea of “boxes” and filling them with personal items like dolls, tv, bunnies, books, radio. There was no real “boxes” though, the artist just made it such that visually the items fit nicely in a box format. Apparently, this is how some garung guni (2nd hand item collector) kept their items at home.

The upcoming installation is made from elastic, steel and fabric. Stretched across an entire room, the dancer is “pulled” to its limits with its hands on one wall and the legs on the opposite wall. Kids might just want to look at the front view of the Dancer though, for the back view is an exposed bum. Even so, I thought that the piece was created with beauty.

Now onto one installation that is filled with happiness and colour. Starburst! Sounds like the fruit gummies that I love. Upon seeing the installation, I just couldn’t resist doing the SMU (SMU started marketing itself to be different from other Singapore Universities with ads staring students & professors alike jumping). If you are thinking why is the floor filled with black namecards? That is because this is a continual installation of another piece which I forgot the name but it’s along the line that says I Hate Me or something. The name cards are really slippery.

The next installation shown here is called September Sweetness. Modelled after a Burmese pagoda, this solid structure is made from sugar. It is suppose to detoriate as the art festival progresses. According to Straits Times, this structure is a tribute to those who lost their lives in Myanmar last september. I thought that this art work was cool, but I was a bit creeped out by the bees that were flying and the ants that were stuck in the sugar delight.

The other art work that you see here, is called Fei Zao or soap. I love it because it makes the whole place smell nice.

There are other art works that are worth the time. Private moon, which is a visual poem about a man and a moon. Swing, which is a isolated swing made from neon light that speaks about the fragility of time. Beauty and the Beast, is a remarkable photography collection that applauds the chewing gum. And The Tuning Fork of the MInd, which is an interactive art display that humours your brains or no brains.

Let’s swim with the fish!

Headed to Underwater World today with my sister, niece and her bunch of awesome little buddies - Jayden, Lucas and Coby. What a fanfare. 4 prams, 4 parents, and 4 super excited infants.

It was a fishy affair.

The adults had the great opportunity to feed the stingray at the touch pool. Contrary to their hostile appearance, the stingray is rather gentle in nature. I placed my hand in to feed one of the hungry babies, and I could feel its blunt teeth as it gobbled up the piece of squid from my hand.

Thereafter, we took a spin around the travelator and oogled at all the fish in the huge aquarium. There were big ones, little ones, spiky ones, pretty ones.

We even caught sight of a fellow UW diver in the tank~! Such a sport he was to pause to take a quick snap with le le and I.

It was really such a fun day.

Dinosaurs still roam…

Move over Singapore Sling. A must try is Milo Dinosaur - a chocolate tasting energy drink filled to the brim with milo powder.

One cup is like eating one full meal. Just look at the milo filled ice-cube!

Best matched with our local roti-prata for a sumptuous supper. Yum!!!