Things come in 3s

A month or so ago, while eating at our local hawker stall one evening, the waiter Tan warned us that the next 2 months were the ones where there is a lot of sickness in Singapore.  He suggested we drink lots of water. I think he is right, both of us seem to have been fighting off colds or a virus ever since we returned from the last holiday, so we are now heeding his advice. It is not helping my latest problem though, I have a back tooth giving me trouble and the local dentist tells me he thinks it needs root canal work. Since it is so far back he wont touch it and suggested I see and Endodentist at the National Dental Centre. I suggested he just extract it but he says it is really solid and wont try that either. So I have made an appointment at the Centre but have to wait until Oct 23. In the meantime I have found oil of cloves and keeping it on hand. Things come in threes they say. Late last week I rolled my ankle on the way home and, having no bandages at home, had to send Eric off to the shops at 11pm. He came home with the only thing he could find at that hour which is some fancy bio-ray guard which supposedly emits low level radiation similar to the sun and I guess something like the old ray lamps we used to use on injuries. Whatever, I left it on all that night and the next two days and have no bruising or swelling so have to say, it works. 
I didn't walk with the walkers on Monday though as it was back to the summit with all those steps, so rode the bike in the gym for an hour instead. Can there be anything more mind numbing? Well, lap swimming when you come to think of it. The Trekkers took a new path around and up Bukit Timah which I am sure they will be only too happy to show me next time I join them. Apparently I am now known as the piker since I have missed two walks in succession. 
On Monday night we went for dinner at the Beruit Grill in Arab St. Happened to be talking to Peter on the phone as we were heading out so he came and joined us. To get to Arab St we go to Bugis MRT and walk right by the Golden Landmark which is where Eric stayed the time he came to Singapore when he was doing Cross Cultural Studies as part of his Masters. He has fond memories of that visit and we have stayed there ourselves on other visits as it is really well located, hence the name I guess. The other building that always strikes us as being a real landmark in this area is the Park View Square. We always thought it was another hotel but it turns out it is an office building and also hosts the embassies of UAE, Austria and Mongolia. Many of you would be familiar with it too as it is built in the classic Art Deco style and looks like it is straight out of Gotham City and a Batman movie. 

Peter was astonished that we had never been inside so on our way home we called in to see the statues and sculptures in the open plaza featuring many famous leaders, philosophers and musicians. It turns out there is a fancy piano bar in the lobby open all hours so we paid a visit and ordered a bottle of wine. That's when the most astonishing thing happened. This girl, dressed in a glittering fairy costume clipped her carabiner onto a rope suspended from somewhere above and suddenly sailed up the wall which is in fact a 3 storey wine chiller. Before too long she descended with our selection and we got to share our temperature-perfect drink. Must add that it was a Chandon 2008 red from the Yarra Valley. Nice drop! 

On Tuesday we revisited Sungai Buloh Wetlands to see the migratory birds that start arriving here from September, escaping  the chilly winter in their breeding grounds in Russia, Mongolia, Northern China, Japan, Korea and Europe. Some remain here until about March while others fly on to Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. Unfortunately we arrived at the same time as a thunderstorm so our sightings were interrupted by the need to find shelter but we still saw plenty, including our first sightings of the common kingfisher and milky stork, although the second is not migratory and thought to have escaped from Jurong Bird Park. As we were leaving we found 3 magnificent Oriental Pied Hornbills in the carpark, what a wonderful way to end the visit. At such close proximity we could study them easily and noticed how unreal their eyes appear. It also got us wondering just what the purpose of the casque is, why hasn't it disappeared through evolution if it serves no apparent function? According to the San Diego Zoo website the casque on the upper jaw is believed to act as a vibrating chamber to make the hornbill's voice louder. The calls made by the bird range from the deep booming sounds they make as they begin foraging to brays, toots, bellows, and cackles. The bill and casque of juvenile birds are underdeveloped, and females often have much smaller casques than males. This may be because males also use their casques to attract mates and display their health and strength to other males. The males of some species even compete by knocking their casques together in mid-flight.  Sound like familiar behavior?

 Sunning himself before the storms hit

 Waiting for the storm to pass

 Milky Stork escapees

 At this close range you realise how unreal their eyes seem.

To finish off the weekend we met up with friends at the Crazy Elephant Blues Club at Clarke Quay. What a contrast this place is, with its raw wooden rafters and raucous music,  compared to the Lobby Bar of the night before. Loved the live music from a very accomplished band who played covers from so many artists, I even knew most of them thanks to years of Eric's music influence.