Camera? Check. Binos? Check.

This time next week we will be in Johannesburg, more commonly known as Joburg. We have begun packing already as we will be leaving for the airport directly from work on Sunday. We fly out at 9:30 pm and arrive, after a stopover in Dubai, at 10:30 Monday morning (local time is 6 hours earlier than here). Excitement is rising. We have found out the best birding guide to purchase on arrival and been in touch with our friend Sue from the NT who we are meeting in Zinkwazi. We are expecting pretty cool weather between 10 and 20 deg. but it could be as high as 30 in Zinkwazi which enjoys humid and warm weather throughout the year. We are hopeful of a swim in the warm currents of the Indian Ocean there in what was traditionally known as the Dolphin Coast, a playground of warm waters where schools of bottlenose dolphins are regularly seen riding the waves.

Had a terrific time catching up with the family last week on skype. It is often difficult to be online at synchronous times but it just all worked last week and also got a long email from my brother Col. We are expecting some Aussie friends to visit next term including Judie who trekked with us in 2012 and Sandy, with more friends Di and Randall, visiting in late August so plenty to look forward to when we get back. 

This week Renee left on her first recruiting trip to Australia and Peter has been teaching her classes at Kovan. Before she left we were both handed offers of an ongoing contract. We are given a week to make up our minds before the offer is rescinded but we have arranged to have a chat with her when she returns so have a few more days. We are intending to stay, but just want to discuss the inclusions. Will keep you posted. 

On Sunday night a good number of MAE socialites met at Shish Mahal in Little India for end of term dinner and drinks. This restaurant rates high on our top 10 list for location and fabulous north Indian food. It is situated in Albert Court, very close to the MRT but in the charming courtyard of the Village Hotel where you are removed from the bustling city. Most of the talk revolved around who is staying or leaving at the end of the year and where we are going to be in a week's time. 

We had been invited to see Chun Jiao's daughter perform in her Junior College orchestra on the same night. It would have been a great opportunity if it hadn't clashed as she has been playing a number of different Chinese instruments for a number of years and is very good. She lead the percussion section at this final performance. Next year she will begin university.

Monday saw us walking through Bishan Park, always lovely but very hot that morning. We came across this man playing his Chinese flute made from a gourd. He was practicing in the park which was very pleasant for a short time, I can well understand why he wasn't doing it in his HDB apartment! it was much cooler once we reached Lower Peirce Reservoir in the shade and with a breeze across the water. 

In the afternoon we took Richard from my Kovan branch to Chomp Chomp for a huge seafood dinner. He was amazed at the range of bugs, crayfish, stingray etc available. Walking on to Plonk for a nightcap we discovered another continental bakery, they seem to be popping up all over the place. This one also sells french specialties like pasta sauces, pâtés and cheeses. Hmm, very nice lunch on Tuesday. 
  
On Tuesday we walked through Bidadari again but it is sad to see all the survey pegs in place, obviously the development will begin soon, a number of trees are already marked for removal. I took binoculars as we got away early but we didn't really see any unusual birdlife. We did see both squirrel varieties. The brown plantain squirrel has a red belly and a black stripe on each side. It moves around in the understory eating fruit and seeds, flowers or leafy shoots and makes a single chip-chip call (which we often mistake for a bird's) each accompanied by a vigorous wag of the tail.

The Variable Squirrel or Finlayson's is not native to Singapore but in recent years is becoming a quite regular sighting in the wild too. Possibly escapees or released by irresponsible pet owners, they may look cute but they threaten local biodiversity and cause habitat destruction as they are known to strip bark from trees. Both are excellent gliders. 

On the way home we stopped off at an Indian place and had roti with marsala tea for breakfast. 

In the afternoon, with Heather and Michael, we visited the National Museum to see the Genesis Exhibition by Sebastiao Salgado.  He calls it a photographic homage to our planet in its natural state, finding pockets of it where the environment, animals and people have so far escaped the imprint of modern society. His project raises money and awareness dedicated to showing the beauty of our planet, reversing the damage done, and preserving it for the future. We saw images from the artic to the antarctic including stone-age people from West Papua, nomadic African tribes and others of the Amazon. It was a huge collection, all black and whites and I couldn't pick a favourite but these would have to be considered amongst them. You can see more at Google images where I found these. I hope not to see the last one in living detail next week, or that if we do, the guide has his foot flat to the floor.

Another exhibition also showing at the museum was entitled 'We: Defining Stories'. In collaboration with The Straits Times newspaper, the photographs depict the news and events that have grabbed Singaporeans’ attention from the 50s to today. With Singapore marking 50 years of independence next year, the showcase is well timed. We found it very interesting although by the time we had finished both, we were in overload. We finished the afternoon with a dinner provided by MAE as a thank you for organising the Great Race. Then Peter phoned and invited us all back to his place for a night cap.