Friday the family took a 25-minute bus ride to my dad's maternal grandmother's flat (apartment).
The background story. Twelve years ago my dad had come to Singapore with his mom. At that time, a fortune-teller had informed my great-grandmother that she would not live past 86 years. So she had gathered her family together, believing she would die on the day her grandson came back (making the family complete). That day, my dad was able to share the gospel with her (in his native tongue, although he had nearly forgotten how to speak it) - and she accepted Christ as her Savior. However, afterward, certain members of her family pressured her into returning to worship idols and ancestors. The altar in the back of the room served as proof of this fact.
She is now 98 years old. It was definitely a blessing to visit her - although none of us could speak Hokkien (the dialect she spoke) - and be able to pray for her. My dad was able to speak to her again about the gospel, which we are grateful for - and her assistant prepared us some curry and beehoon noodles, which was a great meal!
Update on our food experience! Below is a to-do list of ten foods (according to THIS LINK) that we MUST eat before the end of four weeks. Bold means we've eaten it.
1. Chili crab
2. Hainanese chicken rice
3. Satay
4. Laksa
5. Bak kut teh
6. Roti Prata (and teh tarik)
7. Rojak
8. Fish Head Curry
9. Char Kway Teow
10. Fried Carrot Cake
My personal favorite so far is the roti prata. So good. Amazing. If any of you are near a Penang, Go And Eat It. It is absolutely tremendous. Especially when dipped in curry.
Picture post coming at some point.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
photodump!
by
Dan
after days of toil, travel, and technological turmoil, we
finally have some pictures available for your viewing pleasure.
finally have some pictures available for your viewing pleasure.
click here to view The Funs, a completely
non-chronologically-sound collection
of super-professional photography.
which will, incidentally, also continue to grow over the days.
for those of our highly valued readers
who are more "seriously" inclined: despair not!
we have a much more structured photo gallery underway.
thank you for your continued patience.
enjoy, and thanks for reading!
non-chronologically-sound collection
of super-professional photography.
which will, incidentally, also continue to grow over the days.
for those of our highly valued readers
who are more "seriously" inclined: despair not!
we have a much more structured photo gallery underway.
thank you for your continued patience.
enjoy, and thanks for reading!
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
zoological gardens
by
Unknown
It's almost been a whole week since we landed here in Singapore. Time seems to fly faster here compared to the US. The "busy-ness" of the people here doesn't help. Despite the rush of this small city, however, there's still a lot of peace that can be found. In fact, Singapore has many places where tired tourists and natives alike can find peace and quiet. It all depends on what is considered by the people here as "quiet". Singapore's a nice place.
Our party got peace yesterday at the Singapore Zoo. The Zoo hosts some unusual animals for the weather and area. White Siberian Tigers, for example, along with Inuka the polar bear, over 20 penguins, African lions, giraffes, zebras, rhinos, and many other odd creatures for this place...but that's what a zoo is (can't complain!).
Along with our aunt and two of her children, Tatiana (age 10) and Tesla (5), we trekked our way to the zoo. An hour and a half later, (full of MRT rides and a bus) we finally stepped into animal territory. Tesla, upon entering, demanded that he needed a $20 wagon to sit in the whole entire time. He got a stroller instead. That dealt with, we hurried on-- only to run into my nightmare: monkeys. They were hanging high in the trees above the fake gavials (some type of alligator creature) located right after the entrance (see map). I fled.
The rest of the zoo wasn't that bad. Tatiana was chosen to be part of some pet show, we saw tons of beautiful flora (but we focused more on the animals), and watched otters and penguins swim and dance.
Along with our aunt and two of her children, Tatiana (age 10) and Tesla (5), we trekked our way to the zoo. An hour and a half later, (full of MRT rides and a bus) we finally stepped into animal territory. Tesla, upon entering, demanded that he needed a $20 wagon to sit in the whole entire time. He got a stroller instead. That dealt with, we hurried on-- only to run into my nightmare: monkeys. They were hanging high in the trees above the fake gavials (some type of alligator creature) located right after the entrance (see map). I fled.
The rest of the zoo wasn't that bad. Tatiana was chosen to be part of some pet show, we saw tons of beautiful flora (but we focused more on the animals), and watched otters and penguins swim and dance.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
oh the places you'll go...
by
Dan
...by day four in Singapore - there have been MANY! We've slept incredibly well because our days have been packed. It's mind-blowing how much we've done and it's only DAY FOUR.
Here is a rundown of some major sites and unique places we've visited since our arrival. (Be warned: very long post ahead!) Without further ado:
1. Hawker Centers.
every day
As previously mentioned, these food courts dot the landscape, primarily in the more residential areas (such as Bedok, where we are currently staying). In fact, the closest hawker center is right around the corner, in the middle of our flat complex - perfect for quick meals and desserts. You can grab anything from blackcurrant soda to mango milkshakes, mei-fun noodles to roti prata... all extremely low-priced and absolutely delicious.
2. MRT stations.
every day
Besides our weary legs, MRTs are the mode of transportation here in Singapore. Comparable to subway stations, except clean. Future posts when we're less busy and/or tired may explain the process of ticket-tapping and refund deposits - brilliant system, wonderfully convenient, too complex for this post, wish they had these in the USA.
+ read on!3. Technology City, Bugis*, Singapore.
day 2, june 20
(*Not sure of the correct terminology for these regions. I'm quoting the names of our MRT stops. Suffice it to say they are kind of like small counties.) I don't recall if it was called Technology City, but a walk inside this six-story building certainly merits such a title. Our good friend from Pittsburgh many years ago and Vice-Dean of NUS, Ho Yew Kee -- that's Yew Kee, first name, and Ho, last name, for all you Americans -- helped us navigate this nerd paradise. Aside from being able to check another sight off our seeing list, Nathan capitalized on this trip to buy a replacement set of headphones. (In case we forgot to mention: he fried those, too.) We were assailed by floor after floor of computer parts, video games, and cutting-edge technology. It was pretty awesome.
4. National University of Singapore (& alumni swimming pool)
day 2, june 20
After Tech City and lunch in an underground hawker center, Vice-Dean Ho's wife ('Auntie' Huey Huey) drove the nine of us in a little seven-seater to NUS, where they work. Their house is an annex of his office on campus, and is a mansion compared to apartment complexes like ours - one small perk of vice-deanship here! We took a bus across campus to the pool, where we spent the rest of the afternoon/evening. The "stranger danger" incident occurred in this facility. Dinner was a magnificent affair back at the Ho's, where we checked homemade Chili Crab off our must-eat-foods list.
5. Orchard Road
day 3, june 21
My Mom's dad, Mom's really good childhood friend - and high-ranking police officer - Lee Chee Chiew (no relation), and Chee Chiew's wife met us off the MRT on Singapore's downtown shopping street, the famous Orchard Road. Lined with gorgeous palms and the occasional sculpture, there was little time to admire the scenery as we were swept up in the human stream of the trendy and the tourists. We passed Gucci's and Dior's and tons of hip local shops as we headed for our next stop: the PARAGON.
5. The PARAGON
day 3, june 21
This was a mall, one of the countless shopping venues we would later set foot in. We were searching for lunch in the PARAGON, striving to attain the near-impossible balance of Chinese and inexpensive. This because the wealthier, more tourist-centric environment of the PARAGON assumed a more "exotic" taste of its customers, interspersing Thai, Japanese, Italian ["Spagheddie's," anyone?], and tons and tons and TONS of "Western" restaurants between designer stores like Calvin Klein and Bvlgari. We finally found one.
6. "My Mum's Cuisine" (no, seriously, that was the name of the place)
day 3, june 21
The food in this more traditional restaurant was quite excellent (albeit somewhat pricey), and helped us knock Hainanese Chicken Rice and Roti Prata off our must-eat list. We got seriously full. We took tons of brilliant photos here, too. Afterward, we explored the PARAGON some more whilst waiting for...come to think of it, I don't recall why we were waiting, but we spent a good hour or so chilling in various department stores or eating Italian ice cream, otherwise known as GELATO. (Gelato is good.) Then my mom and Wai Ping (Chee Chiew's wife) decided we had eaten too much and so subjected us to...
7. Walking
day 3-4
"Let's go see the Merlion," said Mom. Little did we know that this would take what felt like forever in badly-padded sandals and flip-flops. We also threaded mysteriously through at least three different malls - shortcuts, perhaps? Still, we couldn't complain. We needed the exercise. And Singapore is a walking sort of place, anyhow - it was good to get the sore feet feeling early. As well as the "force your pained stomach to ignore the heavenly smells in the mall" feeling. Along the way, we stopped by my mom's old church, where her dad used to pastor when she was a little girl. Many old friends commented on how much we had grown, and she had to count us kids out every single time (as in "number 1, 2, 3, and 4, oh, and this is our friend from America").
8. The Merlion
day 3, june 21
It's like Singapore's Statue of Liberty, except it's a fountain and it's not as large, and instead of a green woman with a spiky crown, you have a white stone lion-head on a curled fish-body (hence Merlion). There is a really cool story behind it that I am not familiar with. It stood majestically on the waterfront, spewing glorious streams of water from its mouth...a photo may do it more justice*. Quoth Davina: "That was worth the walk."
After this, we walked through another shopping mall and hit the MRT (we did not question the fact that the subway was practically in the mall) and came home and SLEPT very well.
9. New Creation Church, Suntec City Mall
day 4, june 22
Which brings us to today. Yes, laundromats and subways are not the only somewhat surprising finds in Singapore malls. Add this to the 16,000+ members that attend this charismatic megachurch's 4 services, and you get an idea of the overwhelmingness. We hit the 2:30 service - arrived early and STILL only managed to grab corner cushions. By which I mean, we literally sat on cushions, on the floor, in the corner of the packed auditorium. We still had a nice view, though. There were overflow rooms upstairs, too, that watched video feeds of the service. Pastor Joseph Prince preached a message on faith and anointing with oil, and at the close of the service, about eight people responded to the altar call. Quite an experience!
10. Lau Pa Sat, Downtown Singapore
day 4, june 22
We totally neglected lunch, a fact our stomachs reminded us of following the church service. Fortunately, we were held over by the most amazing snack ever created.
Mom and Dad decided to hit Lau Pa Sat - which ended up being sort of like a mega-hawker center, with its elegant old-timey architecture and numerous "streets" within its expanse. It was also the only one in the nation, apparently, that serves satay (another must-eat we can call must-eaten) - skewered meat barbecued in the open over crackling fire-grills under Coca-cola umbrellas, served hot off the iron with peanut sauce. It was beyond delicious, and I am getting hungry again just thinking about it. Afterwards, Nathan and Andrew played pick up sticks with the skewers.
That about wraps up in a nutshell the major stuff we've done so far. 11 PM here and I am wiped. Everyone else has abandoned me for their beds and I am inclined to return to mine... God bless and stay cool, folks (the rain over here has been helping us with this)!
cheers,
- Dan
*Photos are proving to be a challenge! If you recall Andrew's earlier post, one of my memory cards took a trip to the Great Photo Kiosk in the Sky, along with a boatload of photos from day one; day two pictures are currently on Nathan's laptop. The rest are sort of hovering at the moment between computers and cards. Please bear with our lack of imagery - we will try to get a more photographic post up, probably tomorrow, as we hear we might have some downtime!
Here is a rundown of some major sites and unique places we've visited since our arrival. (Be warned: very long post ahead!) Without further ado:
1. Hawker Centers.
every day
As previously mentioned, these food courts dot the landscape, primarily in the more residential areas (such as Bedok, where we are currently staying). In fact, the closest hawker center is right around the corner, in the middle of our flat complex - perfect for quick meals and desserts. You can grab anything from blackcurrant soda to mango milkshakes, mei-fun noodles to roti prata... all extremely low-priced and absolutely delicious.
2. MRT stations.
every day
Besides our weary legs, MRTs are the mode of transportation here in Singapore. Comparable to subway stations, except clean. Future posts when we're less busy and/or tired may explain the process of ticket-tapping and refund deposits - brilliant system, wonderfully convenient, too complex for this post, wish they had these in the USA.
+ read on!3. Technology City, Bugis*, Singapore.
day 2, june 20
(*Not sure of the correct terminology for these regions. I'm quoting the names of our MRT stops. Suffice it to say they are kind of like small counties.) I don't recall if it was called Technology City, but a walk inside this six-story building certainly merits such a title. Our good friend from Pittsburgh many years ago and Vice-Dean of NUS, Ho Yew Kee -- that's Yew Kee, first name, and Ho, last name, for all you Americans -- helped us navigate this nerd paradise. Aside from being able to check another sight off our seeing list, Nathan capitalized on this trip to buy a replacement set of headphones. (In case we forgot to mention: he fried those, too.) We were assailed by floor after floor of computer parts, video games, and cutting-edge technology. It was pretty awesome.
4. National University of Singapore (& alumni swimming pool)
day 2, june 20
After Tech City and lunch in an underground hawker center, Vice-Dean Ho's wife ('Auntie' Huey Huey) drove the nine of us in a little seven-seater to NUS, where they work. Their house is an annex of his office on campus, and is a mansion compared to apartment complexes like ours - one small perk of vice-deanship here! We took a bus across campus to the pool, where we spent the rest of the afternoon/evening. The "stranger danger" incident occurred in this facility. Dinner was a magnificent affair back at the Ho's, where we checked homemade Chili Crab off our must-eat-foods list.
5. Orchard Road
day 3, june 21
My Mom's dad, Mom's really good childhood friend - and high-ranking police officer - Lee Chee Chiew (no relation), and Chee Chiew's wife met us off the MRT on Singapore's downtown shopping street, the famous Orchard Road. Lined with gorgeous palms and the occasional sculpture, there was little time to admire the scenery as we were swept up in the human stream of the trendy and the tourists. We passed Gucci's and Dior's and tons of hip local shops as we headed for our next stop: the PARAGON.
5. The PARAGON
day 3, june 21
This was a mall, one of the countless shopping venues we would later set foot in. We were searching for lunch in the PARAGON, striving to attain the near-impossible balance of Chinese and inexpensive. This because the wealthier, more tourist-centric environment of the PARAGON assumed a more "exotic" taste of its customers, interspersing Thai, Japanese, Italian ["Spagheddie's," anyone?], and tons and tons and TONS of "Western" restaurants between designer stores like Calvin Klein and Bvlgari. We finally found one.
6. "My Mum's Cuisine" (no, seriously, that was the name of the place)
day 3, june 21
The food in this more traditional restaurant was quite excellent (albeit somewhat pricey), and helped us knock Hainanese Chicken Rice and Roti Prata off our must-eat list. We got seriously full. We took tons of brilliant photos here, too. Afterward, we explored the PARAGON some more whilst waiting for...come to think of it, I don't recall why we were waiting, but we spent a good hour or so chilling in various department stores or eating Italian ice cream, otherwise known as GELATO. (Gelato is good.) Then my mom and Wai Ping (Chee Chiew's wife) decided we had eaten too much and so subjected us to...
7. Walking
day 3-4
"Let's go see the Merlion," said Mom. Little did we know that this would take what felt like forever in badly-padded sandals and flip-flops. We also threaded mysteriously through at least three different malls - shortcuts, perhaps? Still, we couldn't complain. We needed the exercise. And Singapore is a walking sort of place, anyhow - it was good to get the sore feet feeling early. As well as the "force your pained stomach to ignore the heavenly smells in the mall" feeling. Along the way, we stopped by my mom's old church, where her dad used to pastor when she was a little girl. Many old friends commented on how much we had grown, and she had to count us kids out every single time (as in "number 1, 2, 3, and 4, oh, and this is our friend from America").
8. The Merlion
day 3, june 21
It's like Singapore's Statue of Liberty, except it's a fountain and it's not as large, and instead of a green woman with a spiky crown, you have a white stone lion-head on a curled fish-body (hence Merlion). There is a really cool story behind it that I am not familiar with. It stood majestically on the waterfront, spewing glorious streams of water from its mouth...a photo may do it more justice*. Quoth Davina: "That was worth the walk."
After this, we walked through another shopping mall and hit the MRT (we did not question the fact that the subway was practically in the mall) and came home and SLEPT very well.
9. New Creation Church, Suntec City Mall
day 4, june 22
Which brings us to today. Yes, laundromats and subways are not the only somewhat surprising finds in Singapore malls. Add this to the 16,000+ members that attend this charismatic megachurch's 4 services, and you get an idea of the overwhelmingness. We hit the 2:30 service - arrived early and STILL only managed to grab corner cushions. By which I mean, we literally sat on cushions, on the floor, in the corner of the packed auditorium. We still had a nice view, though. There were overflow rooms upstairs, too, that watched video feeds of the service. Pastor Joseph Prince preached a message on faith and anointing with oil, and at the close of the service, about eight people responded to the altar call. Quite an experience!
10. Lau Pa Sat, Downtown Singapore
day 4, june 22
We totally neglected lunch, a fact our stomachs reminded us of following the church service. Fortunately, we were held over by the most amazing snack ever created.
Mom and Dad decided to hit Lau Pa Sat - which ended up being sort of like a mega-hawker center, with its elegant old-timey architecture and numerous "streets" within its expanse. It was also the only one in the nation, apparently, that serves satay (another must-eat we can call must-eaten) - skewered meat barbecued in the open over crackling fire-grills under Coca-cola umbrellas, served hot off the iron with peanut sauce. It was beyond delicious, and I am getting hungry again just thinking about it. Afterwards, Nathan and Andrew played pick up sticks with the skewers.
That about wraps up in a nutshell the major stuff we've done so far. 11 PM here and I am wiped. Everyone else has abandoned me for their beds and I am inclined to return to mine... God bless and stay cool, folks (the rain over here has been helping us with this)!
cheers,
- Dan
*Photos are proving to be a challenge! If you recall Andrew's earlier post, one of my memory cards took a trip to the Great Photo Kiosk in the Sky, along with a boatload of photos from day one; day two pictures are currently on Nathan's laptop. The rest are sort of hovering at the moment between computers and cards. Please bear with our lack of imagery - we will try to get a more photographic post up, probably tomorrow, as we hear we might have some downtime!
VISITING PHYSICIANS
by
Nathan
Yesterday morning, Nathan [woke] to Andrew's leg kicking his arm as he [leapt] out of his bed. "[Save] me!" he [squealed], as he [pointed] to a shadow on the wall. Being only slightly in possession of his mental and physical faculties (having merely awoken [seconds] beforehand), Nathan nodded and [rolled] over to sleep some more. Having been [persuaded] of the immediate urgency of the situation, however, Nathan [got] out of bed and [looked] at the wall.
Minutes passed. Then the two heroes heard a scurrying noise - and Andrew [saw] a large shadow [scrambling] towards him. He snapped. "It's a [monster]!" and [ran] over to the desk to find a container to trap it in. [Nathan] grabbed the blanket and [judo-chopped] the bug, stunning the beast. They lifted the blanket to behold what you beheld in the above image. As they watched, he began to flee. They hit him again. Then Andrew so bravely captured him in the goggles case that was nearby. It was now a "bug trap", so to speak.
We hurriedly exited the building to try (as in have him stand trial) and execute the ferocious [creature]. Sentencing him to death, the shoe of [doom] was brought and the sentence was executed ([no] pun intended).
We later learned that a family tradition apparently consists of healing fevers and death with burnt cockroach soup. It works - the one who partook of the soup still [lives] to tell the tale. They actually call the roaches "visiting physicians", since those are the active (so to speak) ingredients, if you know what I mean.
Everyone are doing well lah!
A few notes: due to our technological condition (as explained by Andrew in his last post), updates are slightly less frequent than originally intended - for this we apologize. The amazing things we have done in these past few days (yes, we have done a TON in three days already, it feels like forever) will have their post in due time! Also, to lessen a bit of confusion, the time zone and dates on this blog will now reflect Singapore Standard Time, or GMT +8:00 (sorry Alex and Alexis!)
Thanks for your continued patience and prayers!
Cockroach (Uglius maximus disgustingus)
 |
|---|
Our first priority was to take pictures for you all, our [dear] readers/subscribers. We only selected one for your viewing [pleasure]. We hope you [enjoy] it. |
Minutes passed. Then the two heroes heard a scurrying noise - and Andrew [saw] a large shadow [scrambling] towards him. He snapped. "It's a [monster]!" and [ran] over to the desk to find a container to trap it in. [Nathan] grabbed the blanket and [judo-chopped] the bug, stunning the beast. They lifted the blanket to behold what you beheld in the above image. As they watched, he began to flee. They hit him again. Then Andrew so bravely captured him in the goggles case that was nearby. It was now a "bug trap", so to speak.
We hurriedly exited the building to try (as in have him stand trial) and execute the ferocious [creature]. Sentencing him to death, the shoe of [doom] was brought and the sentence was executed ([no] pun intended).
We later learned that a family tradition apparently consists of healing fevers and death with burnt cockroach soup. It works - the one who partook of the soup still [lives] to tell the tale. They actually call the roaches "visiting physicians", since those are the active (so to speak) ingredients, if you know what I mean.
Everyone are doing well lah!
A few notes: due to our technological condition (as explained by Andrew in his last post), updates are slightly less frequent than originally intended - for this we apologize. The amazing things we have done in these past few days (yes, we have done a TON in three days already, it feels like forever) will have their post in due time! Also, to lessen a bit of confusion, the time zone and dates on this blog will now reflect Singapore Standard Time, or GMT +8:00 (sorry Alex and Alexis!)
Thanks for your continued patience and prayers!
meanwhile...
by
Alexis
The front door must have something against me. I thought for sure I had locked myself out of the house on Tuesday night. But I’m discovering that it takes a certain amount of pressure on the latch, and the perfect amount of force to open. I’m starting to get the hang of it, but occasionally, I misjudge and either repeatedly attempt to open the door or go flying headlong into the hallway. Thankfully, the door is still in one piece, and I am as well. :)
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