What to do now?

Wow, the Great race is over! What are we going to do on our days off now? At work on Wednesday we received lots of positive feedback and requests for copies of the different legs so people could finish what they had started. We are also collecting all the photos and will make them available to everyone through dropbox. A nice surprise was receiving a free dinner for the 4 on the organizing committee, compliments of the Company, so we will take up that offer when we have recovered. This week the first round of the Annual Tipping Competition was distributed, so the social events continue to roll on. Laurie and Sue spent the afternoon at the Zoo and stayed on for the Night Safari.

The girls from Kovan came over Thursday morning and I got the trusty Singer Sewing Machine out to alter a few items. It's something we've talked about doing for ages. I also lent some of my cold weather gear to Kathy who is going to be in Melbourne in June. she gave me a beautiful daylilly for my trouble and over the week it has bllomed and the perfume is wonderful. Eric escaped to Nex, with Laurie and Sue, to be out of the way and when we went off to work they went to Jurong Bird Park. 

Laurie and Sue spent Friday at Sentosa after I dropped them at Chinatown to explore the shopping options. The Great Singapore Sale is on again, the 20th Anniversary of this event which lasts all of June and July and almost all the stores participate. I returned to Peninsular Hotel, where it all started for us here. I found the store where I'd bought the guitar with Adrian and got some new strings for mine and a tuner for Peter. 

On Saturday they took the tour bus around town then continued shopping while we were at work.  I received a lovely phone call from Dilip in Sri Lanka to tell me that the Crisps had managed to find him in Galle and he had taken them home to his house. He showed them the new glazed windows he has installed. Jim and Joan helped to load the early childhood computer programs I sent over with them and everyone was very happy, especially 3 yr old Pahan. Unfortunately Nirlanka has been unwell, it sounds like diabetes, which is a set back they don't need. 

After work on Sunday Yve arrived from Darwin. It's all a bit crowded in the apartment but we manage. She is on her way to Paris and then on to Montpellier in the south to spend 2 weeks at an intensive French class staying with her hostess Collette. How French is that? John, and others who form a cycling group, then join her back in Paris when the NT school term is finsihed and they ride to Amsterdam.  

Monday, with Yve, the walking group tackled Bukit Timah. This was my first time for the year having been careful with my knee. Peter lead a walk that was a gentle introduction to the climb and it suited me and probably the majority of the others too. The highlight for me was getting up close to a pair of Slow Loris which are a rare sighting these days in Singapore. Their population is small and confined to this area and the central catchment. Being nocturnal and arboreal makes finding them usually pretty difficult. In all there were 11 of us including Chunjiao who none of us have seen since the trek in Nepal. June has been working Mondays but was free this week. For her, it wasn't challenging enough so she walked most of the way home as well! She is trying to be ready for a challenging hike in China in 2 weeks time. We had Chuck along for his first walk and Steve O'Sullivan on his way home to Aust from Chiang Mai in northern Thailand.

 Almost at the top

 Made it

 Overlooking the quarry

 A rare Slow Loris

 Chicken Rice for 11

We got talking to Chuck about bike riding, he's thinking of getting a bike. We've never really contemplated buying bikes but we have enjoyed the couple of rides we have done. On the train home we saw a passenger with a foldable bike  using the escalators and it looked quite manageable. As we walked through the HDB across the road we bumped into Bernard from the florist who invited us for coffee. Turns out he was also meeting up with his cycling friends and so as the conversation developed we became more and more interested. At home Eric went online and guess what? Groupon had a special today for foldable bikes at 40% off and we ordered them. They will be delivered in 6-8wks. Yve wasn't any help convincing us we were being rash! Since then Eric has already been online checking out all the possible bike rides you can do using the park connectors network rather than the roads. it will give us the opportunity to see more of the island than on foot. Being foldable we will be able to take them on the MRT. 

In the afternoon we all went back to Gardens by the Bay where the 10,000 tulips have been replaced by a Flight of Fancy theme.  In the evening we watched the sound and light show in the evening on the waterfront at Marina Bay Sands. In comparison the to the water fountain display at Burj Khalifa in Dubai, it didn't stack up but it was a lovely evening.

 On Tuesday Eric spent the day with Laurie and Sue, their last. Their travels took them from Chinatown to Clarke Quay, they have certainly packed a lot in over the last few days. Meanwhile, Yve and I went hunting in Kampong Glam for a copy of a dress I have. We didn't find one but the trip wasn't wasted. We visited the Masjid Sultan Mosque then back at City Hall I took her for a wander through Chijmes before lunch at Raffles bakery. After a swim in the afternoon we all went to dinner at Joe's Bar and Cafe before Laurie and Sue departed. Later we met Peter at the local wine bar where, of course, we drank in moderation. 

 Masjid Sultan Mosque

 Raffles Bakery

 Nectars and Vine Bar