A Testing Week

By Wednesday I was fully recovered and ready for work but Eric was going downhill quickly. He had to have the day at home while I went to his branch to attend a joint staff meeting to discuss strategies for Oral English. Lots of people brought ideas to the table and a document will be collated from across all the branches which should be useful. Perhaps the best thing though was the amazing spread Heather put on for afternoon tea including homemade chocolate coconut slice and Anzac biscuits. This is a huge step up from our usual fare. Back at our own branch we began testing week, a once-a-term chore that I now find easy to administer so long as you keep on top of the marking and recording. Eric made it back to work on Thursday but it took him a few more days to feel truly energetic again. 
On Friday I joined Heather and Michael on a walk at the Chinese Gardens. While they did a circuit of the grounds I walked up and down the pagoda 6 times. This means six flights of stairs at 30 steps a flight. I was still feeling OK when they returned but 6 was enough. I was starting to go wobbly at the knees. That evening at work I was fine but the next day my shins screamed at every step I took. It wasn't any better on Sunday, in truth even worse. I must learn to stretch! Michael left for a couple of weeks in Aust while we were at work.

After work Peter joined us for dinner at our hawkers across the road and we had the opportunity to see our local friends pay respects to their ancestors at the opening of the Hungry Ghosts Festival. At this time the Taoist Chinese in Singapore observe a large-scale tradition of paying respects to the dead. They believe that during this month, the “Gates of Hell” are opened and souls of the dead are freed and allowed to roam the earth. Believers congregated to burn incense sticks and offer prayers at the offerings tables which were laden with food such as Mandarin oranges, roasted suckling pig and duck, bowls of rice and other food alongside a local Chinese cake made especially for the occasion. A number of our local friends from the HDB, including the Gary the florist and Li Erp, the Kopitiam manageress attended while we ate our dinner. Incinerators lined the footpaths and were ablaze for many hours into the night. In the coming weeks we need to be mindful not to step on pop-up offering spots all along the footpaths, mention any words associated with death or touch the children on the head, which could let the spirit in. 

On Sunday evening we met at New Everest Restaurant in Little India for a meal organised by Peter. We don't usually do this on a Sunday as the place is always throbbing with thousands of males who have enjoyed their one day a week off work. It was even busier than usual on this occasion because it coincided with Hari Raya Aidilfitri, the celebration following a month of fasting, known as Ramadan. Hari Raya is Malay for "grand day of rejoicing". In Singapore, it is the most prominent of all Muslim festivals. The following day is a public holiday where families dress in colour-coordinated outfits and spend time with their families. Our meal was fabulous as always.

On Monday our usual walking group met at Nex, McDonalds and then Eric lead a walk through Serangoon Gardens to the Japanese Cemetery and on to Kovan for lunch. It was hot walking the streets but we enjoyed seeing all the beautifully dressed Muslim families moving between their family visits. 

I spent most of the afternoon investigating travel insurance companies as we have just discovered our existing cover only applies if our travel originates and terminates in Australia. Oops! A small oversight. We now have appropriate cover so can go ahead and plan the next trip in Sept which we think will be a return to Cambodia. Some ruins, some birdwatching and some days lazing on the beach.
In the evening we went to see the movie, 'The Jersey Boys'. Viewing it from the comfort of my Gold Class recliner while sharing a glass of red wine and cheese platter with friends was a fun experience. The film itself wasn't deep or terribly gripping, sort of like the songs themselves. Still, toe-tapping good and I'm still singing them today. I probably spoilt it by seeing the live show which was fabulous, a number of that cast were leads in the movie. 
This morning before work I went for a brisk walk to Kovan because we needed bread and the bakery there is fabulous. Unfortunately I got myself caught in a typical downpour for the tropics - heavy but quickly over and then just steamy. By the end I had no idea if I was wet from sweat or rain but it didn't matter either way. I kept the bread dry!

Another Birthday

On Friday we went for a walk through Eco Green at Tampines. The Baya Weaver birds were busy building their intricate nests and we had the best opportunity yet to see them in action. The Baya Weaver is commonly seen in grassland habitat with the funnel-shaped nest dangling from a tree. Those that have a long tunnel at the entrance to the nest are complete nests, whereas those without are built by males and rejected by females, hence not completed.

 Male by his latest attempt, just beginning stages

 Incomplete, rejected nests

 tree with mixture of nests, some successfully finished

After a delightful walk through the park we continued on to Ikea looking for a frame for the prints I bought in Malacca last weekend. We ended up also buying Eric a comfortable office chair too, so Happy Birthday Eric. It has wheels but is not a wheelchair!

Yes, Eric enjoyed another birthday on Sunday, thanks to all who sent best wishes and cheeky poems. After work a good number of friends met up at Plonk for dinner then Bev stayed over as she was off to Phuket early the next morning. It was also Kathy's birthday, she works at my branch, so it was a joint event with lots of shared friends. 

 At work they gave him a cake

 At Plonk with some friends

Unfortunately, just after we got home, I came down with a bout of Gastro and have only surfaced today, Tuesday. Thanks Judie for leaving such a good book behind, I've now read my way through most of 'In the shadow of the Banyan' by Vaddey Ratner. While I am off the couch and feeling washed out but OK today, Eric has now gone downhill. Lots of our students and other staff have had this lately so I guess it must be a very infectious strain and only a matter of time before it was our turn. 

Despite the late night on Sunday, the stalwarts made it up to the summit on Monday morning while I stayed home and felt sorry for myself. Peter was there too, he took the picture. He gave Eric a pair of Sakura 30X60 Zoom Mini Day/Night Binoculars, and another pair for me, sick of us never having our larger sets with us when we walk. Now we have no excuse! 

We had made plans to visit the ArtScience Museum at Marina Bay to see the Annie Leibovitz exhibition this afternoon before Eric hosted the Social Club meeting at Satays By the Bay, in the Gardens By the Bay. They have both been postponed until we are feeling better. 

Malacca revisited

Peter joined us for dinner at our place after work on Friday and unexpectedly announced that I am currently the teacher with the most students enrolled in my classes at any MAE branch. While you have to take it all with a grain of salt understanding that parents enrol and withdraw their students from an individual's class for lots of different reasons beyond your control, he was chuffed that having crunched the numbers the person with the most was an older, experienced teacher. He is not at all happy with the current trend to employ younger, less qualified (or experienced) teachers as an improved image. Really it is a matter of cutting costs but couched under this reimaging excuse. So, celebrations all round! Mind you the next morning I noticed I had an new entry in my book for a withdrawal and where I usually take little notice I had a moment of anxiety so maybe it's not worth being at the top.

Saturday night we met Judie and a number of others at New Everest Kitchen as a final farewell. She has just spent a few nights at other teachers' homes. In the meantime I have spoken to Renee about the possibility of MAE promoting her Book Buddies project and she seemed positive and will now approach Mr Cheng on our behalf. If he gives permission we will advertise it in the newsletters, asking parents to donate pre-loved English picture books to the branches and I will coordinate their collection and the forwarding to Cambodia.

On Sunday night We got home as quickly as possible because Luke had just flown in for a stop over on his way home from Macau. He had been there on a fully sponsored trip from the Flight Centre Group as a reward for being one of the top recruits for the year. Well done Luke! We are very proud of him for taking the leap and stretching himself beyond the comfort zone. It has all worked out very well and he is now an assistant manager at the branch as well. If anyone needs some help organising a trip go ahead and contact him as he now has even higher targets to reach.It was a very short time together as we were already committed to the weekend in Malacca with MAE and couldn't change it, but we managed to talk all about their recent trip to NZ where the highlight was boarding in Queenstown, and the possibilities of a shared family Christmas somewhere in Asia this year.

We left early by bus from Kovan while he slumbered on, on Monday morning. It was 4 hr trip and I tried to sleep most of the way. Malacca is lovely though, as soon as you arrive and wend your way into the old quarter you are just taken up by the charm of the terracotta rooves and gorgeous tiles of the Malacca Straits architecture. We stayed at the Hotel Puri on Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock. 

It is is a boutique hotel in the heart of the old city of Malacca, just a 10 minute drive from the bus station (Sentral) where we arrived. The street is one of the oldest in Malacca, first called Heeren Street by the Dutch, and still known as Holland Street to the Chinese. It was also nicknamed Millionaires' Row as most of the Chinese millionaires of the pioneering period lived on this street. After Malaysia's independence, the street was renamed Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock. This is the residential heart of Old Malacca just west of the Malacca River, with its narrow winding streets, beautifully decorated houses, tiny shops, temples and mosques. Since 2008 when UNESCO listed it a world heritage site, the whole area is undergoing a renaissance with new shops, restaurants and hotels catering to tourists mushrooming everywhere. Our hotel is a carefully restored Peranakan house which once belonged to the descendants of an eminent philanthropist and rubber plantation owner, Tan Kim Seng (who later moved to Singapore and became even wealthier). The building is 100 metres long! Its other distinct characteristics are its beautiful and intricately decorated façade and the courtyards and light wells. We even have swiftlets nesting in the building. The edible-nest swiftlet is a small bird of the swift family which is found in South-east Asia. Its nest is made of solidified saliva and is used to make bird's nest soup.

 Breakfast area

The hotel is surrounded by antique and bric-a-brac shops and only one block from the famous Geographer's Cafe on Jonker Street where we had lunch.

 Heeren Hotel

 Geographer's Cafe

In the afternoon we took a tour of the Baba and Nyonya Peranakan Museum housed in another heritage town house to be immersed once again in the Peranakan culture we enjoyed in Butterworth. The word Peranakan was originally used along the length of the Malacca Straits for the descendants of immigrant Chinese who have lost their own language and integrated into the local Malay custom.. This unique ethnic group can be traced back to the 15th century when China traded far and wide including the rich and strategic port of Malacca. Many Chinese emigrated, working as miners or cooks and these early settlers married the local brides and gave rise to the first generation Peranakan, the male being known as 'Baba' and the female as 'Nyonya'. The descendants of these mixed marriages later married within their own community and Malay became the language of their offspring. However, the babas and nyonyas continued to practise the customs and traditions of their Chinese forefathers, while at the same time absorbed and assimilated some local way of life especially in the customs of dress and of the nyonyas in food preparation.Today we would call it 'fusion' cooking blending Chinese ingredients and wok cooking techniques with spices used by the Malaysian community. 

In the late afternoon we climbed up Bukit St Paul for some exercise and to enjoy the view from within the old Portuguese Fort. A'Formosa was built in 1511, the settlement used to sprawl across the whole hillside but now only a lone gate (Porta de Santiago) remains after being taken over by the Dutch and then the British who mostly destroyed it before handing it back to the Dutch who then chose to concede it. One of the oldest surviving European architectural remains in Asia.  

 Beginning the climb past Stradthuys

 looking towards the modern end

 In the ruins of St Pauls

 Porta de Santiago

We walked on through the modern shopping mall area near where we stayed last time then made our way back to the hotel to meet up with everyone else. We had a drink at The Geographer Cafe before moving on to Bistro Year 1673 for a Nyonya banquet which was spicy and aromatic.

 The trishaws have to be seen to be believed

In the morning we enjoyed breakfast in the lovely garden cafe of the Puri then took a walk along the river boardwalk which is being rejuvenated by the efforts of UNESCO and the local govt. Where once it was a main trade area of Melaka during its golden era it now tends to be lined with cafes and homes, many decorated in colourful murals. The paint is free through the council and the artists volunteer their skills. 

That brought us back to the historical precinct with its signature brick red buildings and the most ornate trishaws you have ever seen.

Our check out time was midday so we returned to the Puri in time for showers then wandered the nearby streets looking in the antique and curio shops, though many of them we found sell the Asian factory produced junk you can find in any market. We were both impressed by a watercolour artist who had some of his works on display at the museum yesterday. They remind us of the works of Tan Goon Chee from Penang. 

I had a massage at 2pm and then 9 of us assembled in the foyer for a taxi to take us to the bus terminal. Our bus was due to depart at 4:30 but we were expected there at 4pm. Our taxi-van was very late arriving and then once we were underway Robert realised he had left his passport in the room safe so we had to backtrack. Since the streets are narrow and many only one-way this took longer than any of us were comfortable with. To cut a long story short we made it with 2 minutes to spare. Phew! How to ring Renee and tell her 9 staff will not be turning up to work on Wednesday?

Home again and ready to tackle 2nd semester

We were welcomed home to our street where the Dengue Fever alert has dropped from high alert red (120 cases) to green zone. That was pleasing to see. Didn't really feel ready to return to work the next day, still hopeful it wasn't all over, but rounding the corner of Heartland Mall and being assaulted by the smell of ripe durian just beside the lifts gave me a reality shot and in no time at all everything was back to routine. The first few days flew by as we stored all those photographs, had haircuts and sorted the new credit card, not to mention a bit of housework in preparation for our latest visitor. Judie MacMillan, ex-MAE and more importantly one of the special group who trekked to Gudel in Dec 2012, joined us at Sque Bar in Clarke Quay for Welcome Back drinks on Sunday night. 

On Monday morning we struggled out of bed after a very late night catching up. Judie lives at Ocean Grove and teaches at Wallington Primary. Between her stints at MAE she has also taught in Cambodia and runs a small charitable outfit called Book Buddies which arranges to send over second-hand children's picture books to children in need. Lots to talk about as you can imagine. The walkers all met up at Beauty World for an assault on Bukit Timah only to find the rain bucketing down. Phew! After a coffee it was still raining so we took the bus to Botanic Gardens and walked around there for an hour or so, where the sun was now shining. 

 There are always some surprises when we walk

 More for some than others

We finished up down Orchard Rd and on to Newton's Circus for lunch. By the time we got home we definitely felt like a nap however I was booked in for a second acupuncture session at the local Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic across the road. I've been having some trouble with my shoulder and neck for a few weeks and since I haven't done anything about it over the holidays it is now worse. I have confidence that after the two sessions though it is on the mend. In the evening we met with quite a few others at Lau Pa Sat which has just re-opened after being closed for many months for renovations. It is a famous food court in the central business district, and I was pleased to see they have retained all the original structure and ironwork while sprucing it up with better toilets and a fresh coat of paint. We particularly love the satay stalls positioned just outside so the smoke from the char cooking doesn't upset all the other diners, but on this occasion I had Thunder Tea Rice again, my current local favourite.

 Channeling Hawaii?

Getting back into the swing of walking daily we spent Tuesday morning at Bidadari where unfortunately at the far end we could see the beginnings of it being transformed into a construction site. Even if they don't engulf it all, the reduction in area and tree cover will impact on the birdlife. 
In the evening we all went to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow which was a hoot. 

For some time Eric has been excited about a Tasmanian Whiskey Distillery which won the top award for 2014 and had discovered the one outlet in Singapore where it is available. It just happened to be across the road from the theatre where we enjoyed the comedy show, so we are now the proud part-owners in a bottle of Sullivans Cove. This is a single malt whiskey but not out of same oak cask that the winning drop was dispensed from. 
We had a well earned sleep in on Wednesday morning before heading back to work, where did that weekend go? We are now looking forward to Luke returning just for one night at the end of this week before he continues on to Macau and we are off to Malacca for a few days. While he is here we might discuss the next holiday destination.........