Still Munday

We spent the morning at home on Thursday. Eric's Kindle had arrived the day before so he was happy to play with it, downloading lots of books from a file we already had (compliments of Ben Munday). Meanwhile, Jenni ironed his clothes, Glenn cleaned the bathroom  and I entertained our visitors with Roberta as she vacuumed. Time for a swim and then to eat again! Since we had a mtg to attend at Bishan Branch, we all went to the food court in Junction 8 there first. Later Jenni and Glenn visited the Botanic Gardens while we went off to the mtg and then our classes. Peter joined us for dinner at our local afterwards. It is often intriguing to sit and look through someone else's photos of a visit to a location you are very familiar with. They see things through a different lens, particularly Jenni who has an artistic eye, and this was very obvious with some of her pictures from the Botanic Gardens. Now we have to revisit them too. 

On Friday morning we went to the Annie Leibovitz Women:New Portraits exhibition at the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station. This building used to be the main passenger station for trains travelling between Singapore and Malaysia. Opened in 1932, the last train departure from Tanjong Pagar Station took place 30 June 2011, marking an end to the station’s 79 years of service. As part of the separation agreement that Singapore signed with Malaysia in 1965, the Malaysian company that ran the service was allowed to retain control of the railway land, meaning that Tanjong Pagar Railway Station became part of Malaysian sovereign territory. As a result, an unusual situation arose whereby travelers had to clear Malaysian customs when boarding the train and then Singapore customs at the Woodlands checkpoint. We have walked the entire line, in 2 different segments on 2 different days, but until this week have been denied access to the station, gazetted as a national monument, as it was off limits to the public. 

The entrance of the three-storey building makes a strong statement featuring four towering statues named Agriculture, Commerce, Transport and Industry, representing sectors of Malaya’s colonial economy. The main hall features six murals that also depict economic activities that were historically prominent in Malaya such as tin mining, shipping and rubber tapping. While the murals appear to be constructed of tiles made of ceramic, the tiles were actually created from coloured rubber by the Singapore Rubber Works using a patented process. At one time, the upper floors of the station also housed a 34-room hotel that was operated by Lim Jit Chin and his family for more than 60 years. At the height of its popularity, when the hotel was still frequented by dignitaries such as members of Malaysian royalty, its services were considered equal to those of Raffles Hotel. The Lims also managed a pub and restaurant located within the hotel known as the Prairie Express Pub. In 1992, Lim received a letter from the Guinness Book of Records acknowledging him as the second-longest-serving hotel manager in the world. The Malaysian government closed the hotel in the following year. The images were dwarfed by the magnitude of the open space but her eye through the lens captures so much more than just the 2d image.

After the exhibition I took them to see some street art murals that were in the neighbourhood and we had a late lunch together. It was then time for Eric and I to head home and get ready for work so we left them to walk over to Outram while we caught the train. 

They spent Saturday at home then in the evening we met up and had a simple hawker meal at Kovan. Jenni has been struggling to shake off a bug in her gut so she stayed home again on Sunday to rest while Glenn walked another leg of our Great Race. He enjoys seeing the Singapore that is not on the tourist routes. Despite our careful planning he found some pieces of public art we had included were now missing from the locations we had indicated so we need to go back and update the questions again. Does it never end? Why would they move them before the annual event, surely our race is on the municipal councils calendar!  After work we met at Kovan and enjoyed pizza and wine at Joe's. Peter came home with us and we all contributed to the reworking of the lyrics of Mr Bojangles as Jo was about to celebrate another birthday. We called it Jo Jo Bangles. 

Our walk on Monday was from Paya Lebar to Katong through the Joo Chiat district. It is an area we were keen to take Jenni and Glenn to anyway, since it has so many beautiful buildings and Peranakan shops that we knew they would appreciate. We began with a circuit of the Geylang Serai Market. Take a look at those bananas! Plantains actually.

The area is well known for its unique pre-war architecture – colourful two-storey shophouses and terrace houses with ornate facades, intricate motifs and ceramic tiles. The walk was an absolute doddle, too much standing around waiting for everyone to regroup for my knee, so by the end of it I was aching and couldn't wait to get on the bus home. While the others went for a swim, I went to the doctor to get some advice and show him all the pills I have stockpiled to decide which was best to take. 

Chiang Pow Joss-Paper Trading in particular was good to find open. The workshop has been closed other times we have walked here, but this time the sidewalks were full of funerary products, all made of paper and stripped bamboo. We were able to poke our heads in and see the bicycles, planes and houses under construction.

In the evening Eric and Glenn joined Jo and many others at Blu Jazz in Bugis to celebrate her birthday but Jenni and I stayed home on the couch and had poached egg on toast. No need to feel sorry for us though. We watch a little tv and found plenty to talk about over a shared bottle of wine. Of course they ended up at the wine fairy's 3 storey cellar.

After a slow start to Tuesday we went to the ArtScience Museum at Marina Bay Sands to see the Van Cleef and Arpels Exhibition which explores the relationship between the science of gems and the art of fine jewellery. We arrived just in time to see the mesmerising tornado fountain in operation.

There were more than 450 pieces of jewellery on display, along with more than 250 gems and minerals from the French Natural History Museum. The company was founded in 1906 and has some signature designs like the Alhambra motif (similar to a four leafed clover), the Zip necklace (which actually zips) and the Mystery Set (where no claws hold the gems in place). The pieces have adorned the necklines of Elizabeth Taylor, Princess Grace, Princess Faiza of Egypt, the wives of Indian Maharajas and the Duchess of Windsor to name a few. 

We had a drink on the promenade enjoying the different plays of light on all the structures around us and the breeze off the water before taking a train to Ang Mo Kio and then taxi to the Zoo for the night safari. We had bought online tickets for the 7:30pm entry but hadn't accounted for the crowds. There were so many others doing the same thing, many with crotchety children getting all hot and bothered in the mob. In typical Singaporean style though, everything kept shuffling forward and it wasn't too long before we found ourselves on the tram. 

They certainly manage to get you up close to the nocturnal animals. Midway through we got off and walked through enclosures with fruit bats and lapwings. We were able to observe lions and leopards from safe vantage points. It was well worth the effort to get all the way out there but we were tired by the end of it and took a taxi home. Jenni and Glenn were amazed at how cheap taxis are here. Guess we wont be calling on them too often in Darwin.

Jenni went to the doctor on Wednesday morning while I swam and the boys went shopping. At last she can feel a bit more secure, not worrying about where the next toilet is. The smell of rendang cooking in the kitchen wafted through the house (and probably a number of other apartments) while Jenni taught me a game called Australian Rummy and we compared different rules for mahjong games. I learnt the 13 tile Cantonese game but her father taught the family the Navy rules.  Many theories have been presented regarding the origin of the game. Personally, I like the one that credits Confucius, the great Chinese philosopher, with development of the game about 500 BC. The appearance of the game in various Chinese provinces coincides with Confucius' travels at the time he was teaching his new doctrines. The three "Cardinal" tiles also coincide with the three Cardinal virtues taught by Confucius. Chung (middle) the Red, Fa (prosperity) the Green, Po (white) the white, Benevolence, Sincerity, and Filial Piety. Confucius was said to be fond of birds, which would explain the name Mah Jong (Hemp Bird). Most likely though, it originated from a combination of card games. 

Time to go to work! Really? The weekend has gone so fast. While we flogged ourselves at the whiteboards and desktops Jenni and Glenn ambled off to the URA Centre and some of the back streets of Chinatown. Then Glenn took Jenni to see the wine fairy at Park View Square. Couldn't have her miss that spectacle. They didn't beat us home by long and then we all sat down to a scrumptious rendang dinner. 

The boys went shopping again in the morning of the last day for our visitors, Glenn was after some new shoes. Not so surprising, Eric came home with some new shorts too. Jenni must be an excellent teacher, as I beat her in a game of Australian Rummy. Then we all took the train in to City Hall and found ourselves in the Long Bar at Raffles. 

We had a quick bite to eat together in the MarketPlace under Raffles City  and then the workers left the holiday makers to find their own way home. This time they made it back in plenty of time to pack before joining us and Peter for a last meal together at our hawkers across the road. We called a taxi and all too soon they were gone. There are not too many couples we can share such small quarters with for more than a few days without some friction surfacing, but the Mundays fall into that special category with us. Aren't we lucky.