Singaporeans "Gone Wild"

Ok - I was out cruising the web and saw this post on Yahoo Singapore and had a huge chuckle!

I wanted to share it, because you can see the language barrier - I can't understand 90% of what is said - but you know that the peeps are angry!!!

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/what-is-buzzing/ah-lian-vs-auntie-clash-mrt-quarrel-093745529.html


Enjoy - and definitely watch the You Tube Video!

It's Durian Season

Now that I have become fully educated on Durian's including what they look like, their smell (icky) and appearance, it appears that it is "High Season" for the fruit.

Interestingly, they were selling Durian's on Orchard Rd and the smell permeated the air for quite a distance.  It even got into the Ion Shopping mall (wow - that was pungent!!!).  I was curious where the offending fruits were residing, so I followed my nose earlier this week, and discovered the fruits in the basement level of the Isetan at Scott Rd and Orchard Rd.  I could not believe the smell and sight!

But it gets better!
On Saturday, I popped up and went for a bike ride.  I was on my return back to the apartment, when I rode up next to a truck at a stop light that was filled with Durian's.  Yep - the water I had been drinking during my ride was trying to make a hasty exit!  It really was like I had stuck my head into a nasty sewer pipe.  I tried to take a few shallow breaths, somehow maintained composure and was able to get away from the rancid smell.

Oh yes - and I continue to make wrong turns while riding my bike. 
*Sigh*.... maybe someday I will learn the streets of Singapore and not have to stop and pull out my iphone with the location services enabled.  ; )

Singapore Fashion

So.....the following article showed up on Yahoo Singapore a week or so ago and I cracked up when reading it:
http://sg.entertainment.yahoo.com/blogs/singapore-showbiz/singapore-fashion-really-bad-154901931.html

So, in order to fully appreciate why this had me in stitches, let me elaborate.  Please note that what I am about to write is based purely on observation.  I really need to start taking pictures of some of these things.

The fashion here is "interesting".  While office workers dress much more nicely than our counterparts in the USA, the weekends and evenings are sure to be filled with some troubling finds.

Some of my favorites to date include:

• The lady with a t-shirt that looked like it was supposed to be from a casino but it said:       "High Probability of Scoring"....umm, nice message, eh?  Daddy would be proud!
• The 50+ lady who could no longer be described as thin, with a tight t-shirt that read:   "Horny Princess"..holy cow Grandma - I am really hoping that you cannot read English and thought the words and picture looked "cute"!
• The 30ish guy with an Angry Birds t-shirt that read "Let's be Love Birds" and it had the 2 big red angry birds ooogling each other
• The twenty something guy with the tshirt that read:  "It's grand to be in love" and the design was like a bad tattoo from a dingy tattoo parlor
• The elderly man with soccer shorts, black compression socks up to his knees, brown leather sandals and a dress shirt.  I can't to see what Jereme decides to wear when he is in his 70's.....
•  Collars Up!  Yep, the 80's are back!  Remember those izod shirts that we all wore with our collars up....well, any polo type shirt has to have it's collar up for the gents here.  I think we looked silly in the 80's....why do we continue to relive our fashion mistakes!?
• Skirts/dresses that are so tight they don't "stay put" ... walking looks like a tug of war between their handbags, hands and legs...how do they sit down??  Do they sit down?? 
• Flip flops - why do people wear flip flops everywhere????  My feet hurt looking at them!
• EXTREMELY high heels/stilettos -  this is kind of an art at times.  Sometimes watching the ladies get on the escalator, making a few tenuous steps is kind of funny.  Heck - it makes ME nervous, and I don't go near the things!

 Maybe I will start to take pictures of some of the great sites when I am wandering about... 

An Authentic Singaporean Experience

***Updated on June 17th***   Hopefully the photos are displaying accurately, now!

So, last week, Jereme was back in Singapore.  YAY!  On Tuesday night we went to Eng Seng Restaurant at 247/249 Joo Chiat (at the intersection of Still Rd) with See Toh and his girlfriend Charlotte. This was an authentic experience, and if you look at the reviews, it often gets dinged for being a bit inflexible and for a lack of ambience.  We found it hilarious...kind of like being in a Seinfield episode with the "Soup Nazi"!!  The irony was that we could not understand a word being spoken  - but the gist was that you only got to order what was available for that day.  In the end, we had an order of fried rice (really good), some prawns (yummy) a veggie that was green and leafy...no idea what the English translation is; some venison and then 3 Pepper Crabs.  The crabs were very good as were all of the side dishes.   http://www.hungrygowhere.com/singapore/eng_seng_restaurant/

After our excellent dinner, Charlotte and See Toh decided we needed to experience the Durian at a fruit stand called Durian Lingers.  Durian's are a fruit unique to SE Asia and I had heard all about them.  They are know as the king of fruit and are so smelly that they are not allowed on the trains, buses, malls.  The Durian has an aroma that is similar to a sewer.

The flesh looks a lot like raw chicken but has a creamy texture.  I found the experience to be revolting - but I am not alone in that perception!  Check out wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Durian

Jereme actually thinks with a few more attempts that he might enjoy the fruit. 

Whole Durian's with one split open.  This stuff is for real!

See - looks like raw chicken - but smells far worse!!!

Charlotte also got some Purple Mangosteen's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purple_mangosteen)

The Mangosteen's are known as the Queen of Fruit and are sweet and yummy - similar in flavor to a Lychee.

I can say that I am glad I tried the Durian, and can definitely cross that off my Bucket List!

Where am I supposed to walk?

So...I have been in Singapore for almost 3 months and I am still baffled as to what side of the sidewalk/hall/etc. I am supposed to walk on.  Since the cars are right hand drive and everything is backwards to me, it only stands to reason that I should walk on the left - not on the right side.
Just as the left side of the escalators is for standing and the right for walking up.

However, come stroll anywhere and it will appear that you are always going against the tide.  This occurs so frequently that I have decided to just walk down the middle of whatever aisle, hallway, sidewalk I am currently traversing.  Seems to work for the most part!

Message in a Cookie

So..for those of you who know about my untimely, emergency trip back the US, this fortune made me scratch my head.  It was on my return to Singapore, during the grueling 2nd flight of my journey from Newark to Hong Kong that I sprung open my fortune (or as I like to call them, "mis-fortune") cookie.
Personally, I am not a fan of eating the cookies - but the messages often make me chuckle.

Here is the message from inside that cookie:  (I just rediscovered it in my wallet tonight)

RIP, mom...this one's for you.  December 27, 1944 - May 9, 2012

I love the smell of Napalm (Garlic) in the morning!

Yep - if you have seen "Apocalypse Now",  then you will chuckle at the title of this entry.

Here is my assessment of my morning commute:

• I think most folks are half asleep.
• The wild majority of those who are awake spend their time on their phones, iPads, tablets.
• And the train smells like garlic.  STINKY garlic!
• In the evening - not so much....but wow - some mornings are a bit rough!

I do NOT love the smell of garlic in the morning!  ; )