Flickr recently launched a new stats feature (Flickr Stats) which summarises the total number of views received over the last day/week/forever and includes a time trend. It is quite addictive for view junkies like myself. I get to see the total number of views, and how these views came about (eg through flickr, some search engine, or whatever). Sadly, I note that there have been a total of two (2) views which have come through this blog page. I guess that is a reflection of how often this blog is read, sigh.
Sometimes it yields surprises too. The accompanying photo, "installation art", was taken some time back and had been getting zero views per day for the longest time. Then just a few days ago, it hit 256 views over 2 days! I was mystified. Apparently the views came through the Yahoo! Singapore home page but by the time I found out and got around to check, the page had presumably been updated as I could not find my photo there.
I suppose such links are the reason why a prevous photo on Ayam Penyet (if you want to see this photo, go to my Flickr page :-) and look under the "Food" set) also had a sudden jump in views. It is still my second most viewed photo on Flickr, after my photo of Sleeping Smee.
But both photos have mostly reverted to their previous low activity status. Such is the fleeting nature of internet fame!
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Self-Published!
Ok, I admit it. I have jumped on the self-publishing bandwagon. It started off innocuously enough, with photobooks based on my travels to the US and Mexico. This was done using QOOP, an on-line publishing dot.com which is linked to Flickr. QOOP also provides for blog publishing - only not from Blogger. I was disappointed...
Then I discovered Blurb. Blurb is another on-line publisher and it allows printing from Blogger! All I had to do was download the software, and "slurp" my blog into the book. So I tried it out. In practice, it was more difficult than I anticipated. The software is reasonably easy to use but this version is in the beta stage and so it crashes frequently - extremely irritating ! Nonetheless one persevered...
The blog book took some time to do. I added photos, formatted pages, inserted an extra entry (which I never got around to doing the last time). Changed the font size, page by page (now you know why it is not the most user-friendly piece of software).
So I decided to switch course and did a short little book of cat poems and photos. This had the added advantage of letting me try out the Blurb service without incurring the higher costs of my blog book. My cat book is primarily a photo book with little poems (called "catteral") thrown in because I wanted to talk about the cats. Sent it off and about a month later - voila! It appeared on my doorstep, thus:
Need I say I am enraptured by my own creative product? Blurb promises "bookshop standard" printing, and I agree that it delivers. Forgotten were all the irritations, the times when the font size would not change, the times when the desired page format was not available...
I printed two copies of the book, one for myself and one for an appreciative reader. Well, my mother is not really an appreciative reader (she does not think much of the poems) but she rather likes the photos of our little darlings and she took it immediately. The total cost of printing and publishing: about US$40 or about US$20 per book. Pretty expensive, but this is (as my mother likes to say) a very limited edition!
I have since finished my blog book (whilst waiting for "Catteral" to arrive) and sent it off for printing; on the computer now is my travel journal for Siem Reap. With 2 books under my belt, I am now becoming more adventurous in terms of layout and colour schemes. And definitely there will be one other interested reader for this book!
Then I discovered Blurb. Blurb is another on-line publisher and it allows printing from Blogger! All I had to do was download the software, and "slurp" my blog into the book. So I tried it out. In practice, it was more difficult than I anticipated. The software is reasonably easy to use but this version is in the beta stage and so it crashes frequently - extremely irritating ! Nonetheless one persevered...
The blog book took some time to do. I added photos, formatted pages, inserted an extra entry (which I never got around to doing the last time). Changed the font size, page by page (now you know why it is not the most user-friendly piece of software).
So I decided to switch course and did a short little book of cat poems and photos. This had the added advantage of letting me try out the Blurb service without incurring the higher costs of my blog book. My cat book is primarily a photo book with little poems (called "catteral") thrown in because I wanted to talk about the cats. Sent it off and about a month later - voila! It appeared on my doorstep, thus:
Need I say I am enraptured by my own creative product? Blurb promises "bookshop standard" printing, and I agree that it delivers. Forgotten were all the irritations, the times when the font size would not change, the times when the desired page format was not available...
I printed two copies of the book, one for myself and one for an appreciative reader. Well, my mother is not really an appreciative reader (she does not think much of the poems) but she rather likes the photos of our little darlings and she took it immediately. The total cost of printing and publishing: about US$40 or about US$20 per book. Pretty expensive, but this is (as my mother likes to say) a very limited edition!
I have since finished my blog book (whilst waiting for "Catteral" to arrive) and sent it off for printing; on the computer now is my travel journal for Siem Reap. With 2 books under my belt, I am now becoming more adventurous in terms of layout and colour schemes. And definitely there will be one other interested reader for this book!
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Orlando joins the family
We have a fourth cat in the house!
Just before I went to Siem Reap, my mother found a little orange kitten in the driveway. Rather, she heard it squealing as it got caught between the gate post and the electronically opened gate. She ran out, picked it up, washed it, fed it and then we put it up for adoption.
My friend expressed interest. My mother was quite happy when her landlord said no. Another friend was interested - but her mother gave it the thumbs down. Then my sister's friend expressed interest, and with no obstacles in the way, my mother started coming up up with flimsy excuses.
So we decided to keep him. Here he is, small, orange and extremely curious about black objects with protruding parts being stuck in his face. He is an audacious, confident little kitten! He gets on well with Winky and Dinky, jumping on them, wrestling with them, edging them out of the way when it's time to eat. And they tolerate him doing all these things! Amazing. My sweet tempered boys indeed.
Sunday, December 02, 2007
Day 4: Farewell to Angkor
Our short visit to Siem Reap was indeed a memorable one. I managed to reduce the level of my ignorance about the history of the Indo-China region. It is also sobering to think that of the great Khmer empire, little remains today except these ancient monuments, which had been lost in the jungle not so long ago.
It is difficult to judge from Siem Reap the overall progress of modern Cambodia. After all, Siem Reap is very much the showpiece for tourists coming to Cambodia. The Khmer Rouge also continue to cast a shadow of Cambodia's history. Just before our visit, the announcement was made that the Khmer Rouge former head of state Khieu Samphan had been arrested for his part in the genocide of so many Cambodians.
But for a country which had been ripped apart by war, and which was known primarily for its killing fields, the towers of Angkor Wat enable Cambodia to present a new face to the world. This is a country making a new beginning.
It is difficult to judge from Siem Reap the overall progress of modern Cambodia. After all, Siem Reap is very much the showpiece for tourists coming to Cambodia. The Khmer Rouge also continue to cast a shadow of Cambodia's history. Just before our visit, the announcement was made that the Khmer Rouge former head of state Khieu Samphan had been arrested for his part in the genocide of so many Cambodians.
But for a country which had been ripped apart by war, and which was known primarily for its killing fields, the towers of Angkor Wat enable Cambodia to present a new face to the world. This is a country making a new beginning.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Day 3: On the Lake
Today we stopped looking at temples and went out to Tonle Sap lake instead. Tonle Sap lake is the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia. Its size varies considerably, from about 2,500 sq km at the smallest to 12,000 sq km at its largest. Why the huge difference? The Siem Reap tourist guide says that in the dry season, the lake drains into the Tonle Sap river which then runs into the Mekong. But in the wet season, the Mekong becomes so large that it overflows, and fills Tonle Sap instead. So in the dry season, farmers get to cover the Tonle Sap valley with rice fields. In the wet season, they retreat to their tall houses and go fishing instead.
Our visit to Tonle Sap was really to look at the floating village at Chong Khneas. Our guide told us that the families on the lake included both ethnic Cambodians, as well as Vietnamese. These fishermen/farmers do not exactly lead the normal life of most Cambodians (most do not, after all, live in boats), but it is definitely more typical of Cambodia than the tourist-oriented world of Siem Reap. Although, there is a tourist stop in the village which allows the visitor to look at the sea life which used to populate the lake - various species of fish, eels, and crocodiles. Whilst there are still fish in the lake, many species have been fished out and there are only a few specimens left. As for the crocs, only the ones in the pen for visitor viewing are around. I don't think they are exactly missed.
There are various facilities on the lake-
not just homes. I saw a school, a children's playing area and a Catholic church. And lake village life is active. Boats selling provisions or vegetables ply their way from boathouse to boathouse. We saw the fishermen clearing their nets of fish, to be sold in the market later in the day. Children swim in the water (nearest the tourist stop) or paddle around in gigantic basins.
It is a tough life, and a simple one.
Ironically, directly after this visit to Tonle
Sap lake, we had a very nice Khmer lunch at a top restaurant (Chao Praya) in Siem Reap. One thing about visiting a rice-producing country - the rice here has always been very good! Large, fragrant grains. So good you can eat it on its own or with only a little bit of curry gravy. Fortunately for us, we had far more things to eat it with. But for the villagers living on the lakeside, this would probably not be anywhere near their normal fare.
Our visit to Tonle Sap was really to look at the floating village at Chong Khneas. Our guide told us that the families on the lake included both ethnic Cambodians, as well as Vietnamese. These fishermen/farmers do not exactly lead the normal life of most Cambodians (most do not, after all, live in boats), but it is definitely more typical of Cambodia than the tourist-oriented world of Siem Reap. Although, there is a tourist stop in the village which allows the visitor to look at the sea life which used to populate the lake - various species of fish, eels, and crocodiles. Whilst there are still fish in the lake, many species have been fished out and there are only a few specimens left. As for the crocs, only the ones in the pen for visitor viewing are around. I don't think they are exactly missed.There are various facilities on the lake-
not just homes. I saw a school, a children's playing area and a Catholic church. And lake village life is active. Boats selling provisions or vegetables ply their way from boathouse to boathouse. We saw the fishermen clearing their nets of fish, to be sold in the market later in the day. Children swim in the water (nearest the tourist stop) or paddle around in gigantic basins.It is a tough life, and a simple one.
Ironically, directly after this visit to Tonle
Sap lake, we had a very nice Khmer lunch at a top restaurant (Chao Praya) in Siem Reap. One thing about visiting a rice-producing country - the rice here has always been very good! Large, fragrant grains. So good you can eat it on its own or with only a little bit of curry gravy. Fortunately for us, we had far more things to eat it with. But for the villagers living on the lakeside, this would probably not be anywhere near their normal fare.
Day 2: The Face of Buddha
Our second day in Siem Reap was all temple-viewing. We started off at 8.30am and met our tour guide, Dara. Somehow the majority of tour guides here in Siem Reap are men.
Our first stop of the day was at the South Gate of Angkor Thom, the city of the great King Jayavarman VII, the temple builder extraordinaire. Anything with a tower with four Buddha faces on it - likely it was built by good old J the VII. But the gate itself was very impressive. It is reached by a causeway over a moat with a row of demons lining the right of the bridge, and a row of gods lining the left, all holding the naga serpent. According to the guidebook, it is actually a representation of the churning of the sea of milk, from the Hindu mythologies. Some of the statues lost their heads over the years and through the war but most have been replaced. It is quite easy to tell the difference. But apparently the thieves will steal the new heads too.
We went next to explore the series of monuments by the Bayon temple. First, the Baphoun temple-mountain, which would have required us to climb up a lot of steps to the top of the base for the temple itself. The temple was being restored, with each of the stones removed, numbered and set aside for subsequent replacement. (That's the auld anastylosis technique). Its amazing to think that in the past it was human hands and backs which had to place each block in place whilst now the work is being done by cranes.
Our first stop of the day was at the South Gate of Angkor Thom, the city of the great King Jayavarman VII, the temple builder extraordinaire. Anything with a tower with four Buddha faces on it - likely it was built by good old J the VII. But the gate itself was very impressive. It is reached by a causeway over a moat with a row of demons lining the right of the bridge, and a row of gods lining the left, all holding the naga serpent. According to the guidebook, it is actually a representation of the churning of the sea of milk, from the Hindu mythologies. Some of the statues lost their heads over the years and through the war but most have been replaced. It is quite easy to tell the difference. But apparently the thieves will steal the new heads too. 
Passing through the gate, we went to the Bayon temple. Frankly, if we are talking about the Hindu conception of the universe, with the holy Mount Meru surrounded by the mountain ranges, then Bayon is probably the most mountainous of them all (including Angkor Wat which is more restrained and refined). It is a truly imposing monument. Tower upon tower, each building up to the topmost tower at the peak. And all the towers have the four faces of the Buddha on them - so we are surrounded by these serene faces with smiles so inscrutable that they could have taught the Mona Lisa a thing or two. But the temple itself was full of visitors from all over the world, all making this the first stop of their temple-hopping day. Each group had their own guide, speaking to them in English, Chinese, Japanese and French. It was interesting to see that the French-speaking guides tended to be the older Cambodians. We had to take our turn to go and look at the bas-reliefs, and to move along the galleries, and to go up to the top of the temple where we have to take turns to take photographs at the most scenic spots.
We went next to explore the series of monuments by the Bayon temple. First, the Baphoun temple-mountain, which would have required us to climb up a lot of steps to the top of the base for the temple itself. The temple was being restored, with each of the stones removed, numbered and set aside for subsequent replacement. (That's the auld anastylosis technique). Its amazing to think that in the past it was human hands and backs which had to place each block in place whilst now the work is being done by cranes.The Terrace of Elephants, the Terrace of the Leper King and the old Royal Palace (plus their bathing pools) followed. Then we went back to town for lunch. It was at a Chinese restaurant! Alas, the typical Singapore tourist's penchant for Chinese food caught up with us. It was a fairly tasty meal nonetheless.
We went next to Ta Prom. This was truly exciting, 
because it gave a good sense of how nature slowly took over the old temples over the years. Ta Prom was built by King J VII and thus has many architectural similarities to Banteay Kdei and the Bayon. But huge strangler figs and silk-cotton trees (as shown in the photo) have slowly been growing around and on top of the buildings. The massive roots of these gigantic trees had pierced through the roofs and walls of the ancient temples such that they had become part of the fabric of the building. Tree and building now require each other to exist - when one falls, so could the other. Apparently this was the temple where a famous scene from "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" was filmed. So we went to the spot and yes, there were people queuing up there to get their photo taken as well (I did!).
because it gave a good sense of how nature slowly took over the old temples over the years. Ta Prom was built by King J VII and thus has many architectural similarities to Banteay Kdei and the Bayon. But huge strangler figs and silk-cotton trees (as shown in the photo) have slowly been growing around and on top of the buildings. The massive roots of these gigantic trees had pierced through the roofs and walls of the ancient temples such that they had become part of the fabric of the building. Tree and building now require each other to exist - when one falls, so could the other. Apparently this was the temple where a famous scene from "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" was filmed. So we went to the spot and yes, there were people queuing up there to get their photo taken as well (I did!). Finally, we went to Angkor Wat. Now some people think of just the five towers when they go to Angkor Wat and that picture postcard view of the towers reflected in the lake. In reality, Angkor Wat is a much larger complex. To get to the innermost shrine (the 5 towers), we crossed the causeway over the moat, through a first set of city walls, down another road and past two pools (these were people to bathe in and wash away their 
sins before going further into the temple). Then we came to the main temple itself. Now as mentioned before, think of this as a wedding cake of about three tiers. As you move further up and further in (through the galleries of bas-reliefs, past more pools, past galleries of Buddha statues, past libraries) the closer you get closer to the holiest of holies, the innermost tall towers of Angkor Wat. This innermost shrine is again like a temple-mountain in itself - the pilgrim must climb these very steep and narrow stairs to reach his final destination - the shrine at the top of the stairs.
sins before going further into the temple). Then we came to the main temple itself. Now as mentioned before, think of this as a wedding cake of about three tiers. As you move further up and further in (through the galleries of bas-reliefs, past more pools, past galleries of Buddha statues, past libraries) the closer you get closer to the holiest of holies, the innermost tall towers of Angkor Wat. This innermost shrine is again like a temple-mountain in itself - the pilgrim must climb these very steep and narrow stairs to reach his final destination - the shrine at the top of the stairs. Yesterday's pilgrim, today's tourist. We were (more than anything) relieved to find that the topmost shrine was temporarily closed for maintenance and to build a new staircase (with a less steep incline) over one set of the old staircases to the shrine.
After leaving Angkor Wat, we were pretty exhausted. But there was still one more temple mountain to see, this one perched on a true mountain (or rather, a hill). We clambered slowly and painfully up the hill. There is an elephant ride available for the less active but at US$15 per pax, it was just a bit too expensive. Finally we reached the temple on the top only to realise that we needed to climb up yet another set of steps to reach the shrine on top of the temple base. Let me just say we finally managed it. But unfortunately, the cool of the evening meant that there were slight mists in the air. The view of Angkor Wat was not clear, and there was to be no glorious sunset that evening. So we clambered down again.
We ended off the day with a foot massage - wonderful - and dinner. Totally exhausted, we got back and had an early night.
Here's the Flickr link again for those who want to look at photos.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
An interlude: in memorium
During our plane journey to Siem Reap, the Cambodian gentleman sitting next to us asked if we would be also going to Phnom Penh, for the water festival there. We said we were not and thought no more about it. During our second day in Cambodia, we visited the Bayon Temple where there is a massive frieze depicting great battle between the Khmers and the foreign invaders, the Chams. The Khmers won this battle on the Tonle Sap lake. Since then, they have been commemorating the event during this water festival, including a race on the Tonle Sap River near Phnom Penh, with a minor celebration in Siem Reap itself.
Little did I know, when I was composing yesterday's posting on Day 1 of our visit, that the Singapore Dragon Race team, competing in the water festival races, had met with a tragic accident earlier in the day. This accident took place after the race as the team was returning to shore. An unexpected current caused their boat to capsize, and 5 of the 22 member team drowned in the Tonle Sap River. So this post is in their memory - a virtual minute of silence, if you will. May they rest in peace.
Little did I know, when I was composing yesterday's posting on Day 1 of our visit, that the Singapore Dragon Race team, competing in the water festival races, had met with a tragic accident earlier in the day. This accident took place after the race as the team was returning to shore. An unexpected current caused their boat to capsize, and 5 of the 22 member team drowned in the Tonle Sap River. So this post is in their memory - a virtual minute of silence, if you will. May they rest in peace.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Day 1: Apsaras in Stone and in Flesh
We arrived in Siem Reap airport at around 9.50am, Cambodia time. The airport is not large, but it is immaculate and well laid-out. We were to learn that in Siem Reap, everything is tourist-oriented. The immigration process was very smooth (especially since we did not have to queue for the visa) and high-tech with the little digital camera on hand to take our photos. Our driver was waiting just outside to whisk us away to our hotel. The hotel itself was most pleasant - we could have wished for a room with a better view, but the room itself was fine.
After lunch (a really enjoyable dish of amok fish, which is rather similar to otak), we proceeded to our first round of temples. I had been told by someone that Banteay Srei was worth visiting, so we decided to go there first especially since we knew it was a little out of the way. We got our tourist passes first and again, this process was smooth and efficient. No one gets their passes in the middle of the
afternoon and so there was no queue. The little camera was again in evidence, this time to take our photo for our pass. Apparently, the ticketing system has been tendered out to one of the nearby hotels to manage. Payment was in US Dollars. We were to learn also that this is the standard currency in use in the area, at least by tourists. Which made prices of everything pretty expensive. We are talking US$1 for a single postcard in the hotel! (You can get 10 for US$1 from the little children selling postcards outside the temples). We drove on to Banteay Srei - everything is well sign-posted and there are many other tourists on the roads, including a few cyclists. We passed them quickly in our Toyota. I wondered whether Cambodia is a recipient of second-hand cars from Singapore. Whilst Cambodians drive on the right side of the road, the driver's seat seems to be on the right just as often as it is on the left.
Banteay Srei (the Citadel of Women) is a
small, exquisite little temple - one of my favourite temples for this entire visit. Built of red sandstone, the shrine was covered with fine, highly detailed carvings telling stories of the Gods. It is one of the older temples, built around 968-1000. It was apparently not built by the king of the day, but by his high priest instead. With the shrines and carvings at eye level (without the need to climb!), it is easy to take photos of the shrine. Here, I first started really making use of the ND filter on my camera. That's why I managed to get these lovely blue skies. Here too, we learnt some essential phrases - "Gopura", or entrance pavillion; "Library" which really refers to a little shrine; lintels and pediments - often beautifully carved especially here at Banteay Srei.
Our next temple, Pre Rup, was an example
of a temple-mountain. In other words, the temple itself was built on the top of an artificial mountain, rather like a tiered wedding cake with steep steps up each side. The true believer would undergo this arduous journey in order to worship the gods. We were not (alas) true believers. We decided that such climbs would take place the next day when we got to Angkor Wat and Phnom Bhakeang. The temple itself was not fully restored, with plants growing out from between the bricks of the building. Nonetheless, it was still most impressive.
Our third temple for the day was Banteay Kdei. It is a very different temple from the other two we saw. It is not a temple-mountain so there is nothing
to climb (hooray) but it is also large in scale with large sandstone blocks. It seems to be in worse condition than the other two, with props supporting stones here and there, and the blocks of the main towers tied together. Needless to say, this added to the interest and excitement of walking through the temple... Here we saw for the first time the towers, with the face of Buddha on all sides, and halls with Apsara dancers on each of the columns. Now Apsaras (celestial dancers) are from Hinduism and Buddha (obviously) from Buddhism. So the mingling of the two denotes the practical nature of the builder, King Jayavarman VII, who was a Buddhist but who nonetheless incorporated Hindu symbols into his buildings so that his people (still largely Hindu) would feel some connection to the buildings.
We went by also Prasat Kravan. It would have been good to go in but we were concerned that we needed a little rest before our evening appointment (we were also a little tired by this time considering our early start to the day) so we just stopped outside and took a look. Prasat Kravan was restored through the process of anastylosis, which means that the restorers numbered all the stones, took down everything, and built it up again with reinforcement done for the weaker areas and replacement stones where stones were missing (done in a different colour, or marked in some way so people would know the difference).
After lunch (a really enjoyable dish of amok fish, which is rather similar to otak), we proceeded to our first round of temples. I had been told by someone that Banteay Srei was worth visiting, so we decided to go there first especially since we knew it was a little out of the way. We got our tourist passes first and again, this process was smooth and efficient. No one gets their passes in the middle of the
afternoon and so there was no queue. The little camera was again in evidence, this time to take our photo for our pass. Apparently, the ticketing system has been tendered out to one of the nearby hotels to manage. Payment was in US Dollars. We were to learn also that this is the standard currency in use in the area, at least by tourists. Which made prices of everything pretty expensive. We are talking US$1 for a single postcard in the hotel! (You can get 10 for US$1 from the little children selling postcards outside the temples). We drove on to Banteay Srei - everything is well sign-posted and there are many other tourists on the roads, including a few cyclists. We passed them quickly in our Toyota. I wondered whether Cambodia is a recipient of second-hand cars from Singapore. Whilst Cambodians drive on the right side of the road, the driver's seat seems to be on the right just as often as it is on the left.Banteay Srei (the Citadel of Women) is a
small, exquisite little temple - one of my favourite temples for this entire visit. Built of red sandstone, the shrine was covered with fine, highly detailed carvings telling stories of the Gods. It is one of the older temples, built around 968-1000. It was apparently not built by the king of the day, but by his high priest instead. With the shrines and carvings at eye level (without the need to climb!), it is easy to take photos of the shrine. Here, I first started really making use of the ND filter on my camera. That's why I managed to get these lovely blue skies. Here too, we learnt some essential phrases - "Gopura", or entrance pavillion; "Library" which really refers to a little shrine; lintels and pediments - often beautifully carved especially here at Banteay Srei.Our next temple, Pre Rup, was an example
of a temple-mountain. In other words, the temple itself was built on the top of an artificial mountain, rather like a tiered wedding cake with steep steps up each side. The true believer would undergo this arduous journey in order to worship the gods. We were not (alas) true believers. We decided that such climbs would take place the next day when we got to Angkor Wat and Phnom Bhakeang. The temple itself was not fully restored, with plants growing out from between the bricks of the building. Nonetheless, it was still most impressive.Our third temple for the day was Banteay Kdei. It is a very different temple from the other two we saw. It is not a temple-mountain so there is nothing
to climb (hooray) but it is also large in scale with large sandstone blocks. It seems to be in worse condition than the other two, with props supporting stones here and there, and the blocks of the main towers tied together. Needless to say, this added to the interest and excitement of walking through the temple... Here we saw for the first time the towers, with the face of Buddha on all sides, and halls with Apsara dancers on each of the columns. Now Apsaras (celestial dancers) are from Hinduism and Buddha (obviously) from Buddhism. So the mingling of the two denotes the practical nature of the builder, King Jayavarman VII, who was a Buddhist but who nonetheless incorporated Hindu symbols into his buildings so that his people (still largely Hindu) would feel some connection to the buildings.We went by also Prasat Kravan. It would have been good to go in but we were concerned that we needed a little rest before our evening appointment (we were also a little tired by this time considering our early start to the day) so we just stopped outside and took a look. Prasat Kravan was restored through the process of anastylosis, which means that the restorers numbered all the stones, took down everything, and built it up again with reinforcement done for the weaker areas and replacement stones where stones were missing (done in a different colour, or marked in some way so people would know the difference).
We ended the day with a cultural performance- Apsara dances, and folk dances. After seeing the Apsara dancers carved in stone all day, I was eagerly anticipating what they would look like in the flesh. I had also been reading a book, "Dancing in Cambodia, At Large in Burma" by Amitav Ghosh, prior to coming to Cambodia. He had written of a visit that the Cambodian King Sisowath had made to Paris in 1906. He had brought with him the famed Royal Dancers, who performed to great acclaim. Rodin made several sketches of the dancers and (so enraptured was he) apparently followed them to Marseille from where they were to take ship back to Cambodia. I can only say, these graceful dancers were indeed like the Apsaras in stone - with the curved hands and feet.
And that was the end of Day 1 in Siem Reap! More photos can be seen on my Flickr page but I'm uploading them in batches so more will appear over time.
My Visit to Angkor
I have just returned from a short (essentially 3 day) trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia, to view the ancient temples of the Khmer Empire and the fabled towers of Angkor Wat. In recalling this visit, three main images spring to mind:
- the spanking new airport building
- the Apsara dancer
- the face of Buddha
These images tell a lot of the story of the Khmer monuments at Angkor. The story of how these buildings came about, the different religious beliefs of the Kings who built them, the times they lived through. Also, the story of how these historical monuments were re-discovered and restored for the world to become major tourist attraction for Cambodia, and the impact of the tourist industry on Siem Reap. But all this is against the backdrop of the history of modern Cambodia, in particular, of the human tragedies which took place during the Pol Pot regime.
The story I want to tell is just of my own short visit here. Over the past few days, we have visited towering temples and smaller shrines. We have sailed on the Tonle Sap lake, driven around the Cambodian countryside and bargained in its old market. I knew that there was more to see in Siem Reap than just Angkor Wat. But it was a real revelation to find out just how many temples there actually were! It was also amazing to find out that they had been preserved for so long (for some, more than 1000 years) and in such (relatively speaking) good condition. To start off, here is the list of temples seen/visited (in order of visit) (and remember this is just a subset of all the temples there are):
Day 1
Banteay Srei (built around 967 - 1000)
Pre Rup (944-968)
Banteay Kdei
Prasat Kravan
Day 2
Angkor Thom (1181-1243 - same time as Bayon)
Angkor Thom (1181-1243 - same time as Bayon)
Bayon (1181-1243)
Bapuon (1050-1080)
The Royal Palace (968-1010)
Elephant Terrace (1181-1243 - same time as Bayon)
Terrace of the Leper King (1243-onwards)
Khleangs (968-1010)
Ta Prohm (1181-1243 - same time as Bayon)
Angkor Wat (1080-1175)
Phnom Bhakeng (889-923)
I should explain that we were on a guided tour from the second day, so we spent the first afternoon in Angkor seeing the less "popular" temples. It was a good way to see how temple architecture changed over time. The older temples we saw (Phnom Bhakeng, Banteay Srei, up to Angkor Wat) were influenced by Hindu beliefs. They displayed Hindu gods and goddesses, and told the stories of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Then, in the days of King Jayavarman VII, Mahayana Buddhism became the official religion of the kingdom. Whilst the structure of the temples (tiered towers upon towers) remained the same, the images on the temple walls changed and reflected instead the face of Buddha. After his reign, the country turned Hindu again and much of the Buddhist imagery was destroyed. Today, the country is again Buddhist (Theravada Buddhism) and Buddhist statues have re-emerged in the temples and are venerated by the locals to this day.
The Khmer empire which built these great monuments of stone has long since passed away. The reasons appear to be a little obscure. But these magnificent structures certainly testify to their advanced engineering knowledge, which they amply combined with artistry and imagination.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
The wounded warrior
For some time, Winky had been going round with a stinky paw. At first, we noticed only that he was carrying around a rather unpleasant odour. Then I noticed that there was something smelly on his claw. It was hard to spot, because it was noticeable only when his claw was extended. I concluded some faeces which had got in there (on his nightly rambles) and managed to remove some of it. But the odour didn't go away and the claw continued to smell and look bad.
After some time it became obvious that the smell wouldn't go away on its own. Winky's claw stopped retracting and it was dark in colour. We took him to the vet who advised that it was infected (as we thought) and she would have to clip off his claw. Poor 
Winky! That was only the beginning of his woes. For he had to wear a bandage, marked "Keep Dry", which made his paw heavy and clumsy. He also had an Elizabethan collar on when he got back. Cost me $6.89 and he hated it. He was tense, restless, trying to get the collar off the second we let him out of his carrier. Eventually we stopped trying to put it on him again.
Winky! That was only the beginning of his woes. For he had to wear a bandage, marked "Keep Dry", which made his paw heavy and clumsy. He also had an Elizabethan collar on when he got back. Cost me $6.89 and he hated it. He was tense, restless, trying to get the collar off the second we let him out of his carrier. Eventually we stopped trying to put it on him again. Worst of all, was the medication he had to take. Anti-inflammatory tablet, once a day. Antibiotics, twice a day. And the antibiotic tablet had to be the huge 62mg tablet. We have been trying every which way to get it in him. Easiest is to pound it up, add milk and honey, and syringe it into him. Painful - and I have the scratches to prove it. Light scratches, fortunately - the vet clipped all his claws in the process of removing the infected one.
Yesterday (5 days after his little surgery) 
we took him to the vet to remove his bandage and clean up the wound. It was looking quite good! But the vet's assistant replaced the bandage. This evening, we saw a suspicious white sausage on the floor. The clever chap had managed to remove it. I tried, quite successfully if I may say so myself, to replace it. And it even lasted the night! But this morning I spotted it on the floor again. You've got to know when to give up and this is it.
we took him to the vet to remove his bandage and clean up the wound. It was looking quite good! But the vet's assistant replaced the bandage. This evening, we saw a suspicious white sausage on the floor. The clever chap had managed to remove it. I tried, quite successfully if I may say so myself, to replace it. And it even lasted the night! But this morning I spotted it on the floor again. You've got to know when to give up and this is it.Saturday, November 03, 2007
The Sleeping Smee
I said some time back that I would have to think of a new milestone for my photos on Flickr. Now, at last, I can confidently say that I actually have reached one.
As I've mentioned before, my photos are not exactly the hottest on Flickr. In my mind they are of course simply wonderful, but I don't promote them that much so they don't get that many views or comments.
The photo which, however, seems to have gained somewhat more interest is that of little Smee. As of today, "The Sleeping Smee" has garnered some 42 comments and 26 faves, plus 396 views. He has won the Silly Sleepers photo competition on "LOL Cats" and been selected as the subject for another competition, "What have you done to your cat?" In this competition, participants photoshop the cat so that he is put in all sorts of strange little positions. Smee became in turn an action figure in its box, a cat baby in a cradle and a meditating kitten, amongst other things. He has indeed set a high benchmark for all my other photos to reach.
For those who are interested, I've added the links to the transformed Smee photos. Some of the Flickr-ites don't allow downloading, so it's just the links. Here he is.... in all his guises ... the Sleeping Smee!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dogcatcare/1430007866/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dogcatcare/1427997615/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/gx9/1419987011/
http://www.flickr.com//photos/4kleuren/1428444774/
http://www.flickr.com//photos/4kleuren/1427255202/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46744538@N00/1362146337/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/doeth/1372473108/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/elwynsattic/1425681155/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepix/1426669830/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepix/1426667492/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepix/1426665882/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/piepix/1425784239/
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Quote of the Day
I like my little motivational "quotes of the day". But here is one which I'd like to keep for more than a day:
"Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other. "
John F. Kennedy
"Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other. "
John F. Kennedy
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Malay Street Penang
Where my grandmother's family used to live. Photo sent off whilst sitting at the coffee shop across the road.
p.s. For more on my Penang trip, please read my Katong blog (link on the left).
Monday, October 01, 2007
Hey, this is fun
Can't resist uploading another video. Watch how Smee tackles the terrapin. This is fun.
Now my blog has video, too
Hey! Check out cat video of Smee and Tiger Lily with big brother Dinky wandering around.
What fun to have video on my blog. For more kitten videos, go to my Multiply site (see link).
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Mid-Autumn lanterns
The mid-Autumn festival was a time when I wandered around my grandparents' place, lantern in hand. The coloured cellophane paper may have been a fire hazard but I was a very careful little child and the worst that ever happened was that the candle blew out. But they were beautiful, these lanterns, with jewel-like shades of ruby, emerald, and sapphire glowing in the dark. My mother was probably not too happy with their collecting dust after that and of course they never remained intact till the next festival so she had to buy another, but of course these things never bothered me.
The traditional lanterns I used to carry are probably still sold somewhere. But I fear they have been mostly supplanted with these modern lanterns. I took this photo in a shop in Geylang. Probably sturdier and will be able to last longer, also no fire hazard because there is no candle (replaced by a small light bulb). But a little bit of the mystique and magic of the moon festival is gone as a result.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Mushrooms
Mushrooms come up quickly in the night. Spotted them outside the house on Sunday, on the way to mass. Certainly were not there the day before.
This photo was taken on my mobile phone and sent directly to this blog. But as it is not so easy to edit the post on the phone, I have had to add these additional lines on the computer.
Monday, September 17, 2007
My New Phone
Just got my replacement phone. Cost all of $0 and a 2 year contract.
It has mobile blogging! So this photo was taken on the phone and then sent off straight to the blog :-)
Post-Kitten-Script
My mother watched a TV programme some time ago about feral cats in Rome. The programme showed how a mother cat lost her kittens and spent a few days looking for them. But after a week, when she came across the kittens again, she did not recognise them any more.
The mother of our kittens (a.k.a MC) was certainly a good mother cat. First, she unerringly knew where a safe haven for her kittens would be. Then, she looked after them even through the bars of the cage we put them in. She made sure that the other strays in our garden did not go near. Whenever we tricked her into entering the cage, she patiently nursed and cleaned them. And when the kittens spent more time in the house, she became more persistent in trying to get inside. But now they are gone, she has (I think) more or less forgotten about them.
Which is, of course, more than we have. Sigh. I do miss the sound of little cat feet. But it is good to feel that they are well loved and taken care of where they are.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
The Potato Basket is empty
Smee left our happy little cat family and went home with his new family yesterday. Now, the house feels so empty without any little kittens scurrying around.
Smee's adopters actually met him about 4-5 weeks ago, the same period that Jack Sparrow's adopter came by. But at that time, the kittens were still too young to leave their mother. Then the adopters were going for a dance competition in New York. So they could only pick up Smee after they got back from the event, on 11 Sep. But they came to visit him twice in the interim ... talk about devoted. Oh well, at least I can be confident that my baby kitten is in good hands.
Since Saturday (when his mama went for her op) Smee and his sister, Tiger Lily, had been roaming the house (mama needed their cage). They found a comfortable basket to sleep in - it didn't seem to matter that it was full of potatoes at the time. They also spent the time getting to know our fat boys, Winky and Dinky, much better. Winky and Dinky are probably their uncles, or cousins or whatever. Smee is Dinky's Mini Me, or more accurately, his Mini Smee. They have got the same tabby patches and their faces are exactly alike. Watching the big boys and little kits interact provided endless entertainment. The big boys try to bully the little ones and the little ones fight back or sometimes, run off and hide under the sofa where the big ones can't get them. Then they mistake the big boys for mama cat and try to suckle :-) Today, my big boys appreciate the added attention they've been getting. But I suspect they miss their little siblings, as I do.
Donut know what the fuss is about
Ok, that's a terrible pun, but honestly, I'm not sure that I would queue for hours for this!
I must admit I am no donut fan. And the idea of queueing for more than 15 minutes for an optional carb is not really appealing to me. But today, I happened to be in Suntec City and realised that the second, short (5 pax) queue was for people who wanted "up to 2 donuts". So I decided to give it a try and after waiting about 5 minutes, purchased the Mint Dark Chocolate and the Apple Cinnamon donuts. The chocolate was still very liquid, so the donut had been freshly made (good) but it rubbed off on the sides of the paper bag I was slinging it around in.
The latest food craze (post-bubble tea, post-rotiboys) in Singapore is donuts. The shop that started it all, Donut Factory opened its first branch in Raffles City some time back. I didn't know it existed until I went there for dinner one evening and upon going home (around 9+pm) I was rather surprised to see a queue in front of one small little donut shop. A few days after I heard about this apparently superduper donut shop which had such phenomenal queues everyday, even worse than Lim Chee Guan bak kwa (where the queues are largely confined to the CNY period). It has since opened two more branches in Suntec and Novena Square.
I must admit I am no donut fan. And the idea of queueing for more than 15 minutes for an optional carb is not really appealing to me. But today, I happened to be in Suntec City and realised that the second, short (5 pax) queue was for people who wanted "up to 2 donuts". So I decided to give it a try and after waiting about 5 minutes, purchased the Mint Dark Chocolate and the Apple Cinnamon donuts. The chocolate was still very liquid, so the donut had been freshly made (good) but it rubbed off on the sides of the paper bag I was slinging it around in. So I got home and we had the donuts for dessert after dinner. The dough was nice - soft, very light and fluffy. So it is really very easy to eat. The toppings were a little on the sweet side (specifically the apple cinnamon) but likely, not as sweet as the jammy ones.
On the whole, these are nice tasty donuts but I would not queue for hours for them. Value my time too much. But definitely, if the queue for "up to 2 donuts" is short, I will quite happily get in line. After all I would like to try the coffee and roasted almond donut too.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Cat Burglar
As per normal, it has been a cat-filled weekend. On Saturday, we took M.C. for her sterilisation operation. It was a just-in-the-nick-of-time appointment, as we caught her copulating with Paddy last Saturday (in between going for M's church wedding in the morning and the dinner in the evening).
Then, yesterday evening, we said goodbye to Tiger Lily. After a number of missed connections, she was adopted by two housemates (females) and has gone to stay with them in their apartment. One of them comes from a cat-owning household and misses having one around. I hope she does ok and is not too lonely away from her brother and two "uncles".
Finally, this morning, we were awakened by the sound of the burglar alarm going off. Or at least, I was awakened by it, ran down the stairs and turned off the alarm. Which, I was told, is not the right thing to do as what if there had been a burglar? Anyway, there were some tense moments as we regrouped in my parents' bedroom, just below mine. We checked the time - it was 5.30am. Outside, the newspaper chap was delivering TODAY. Our neighbour was wandering around her front garden. Armed with a small little clothes hanging aide, my father went down the stairs. I followed him with the alarm trigger in my hand. (Ok next time I will bring down a golf club or two.) We had only walked a few steps down the stairs when we saw the miscreant who had triggered the alarm. His little white face peered up at us as he lay on the carpet, somewhat startled by all the fuss. Somehow, Dinky had sneaked into the house whilst my father was doing some midnight chore at the back of the house (don't ask, don't ask).
Thus we started the day.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Davy's Adopted!
Well, another kitten has been adopted. The day after we said good-bye to Jack Sparrow, a new potential adopter came to see Davy. Her old cat, a 10 year old Persian died recently and so they are looking for another kitten to replace him. She just fell in love with him and picked him up the next day. So now we are left with just Tiger Lily and Smee.
In a sense it is a good thing because the cage is getting a little small for 4 growing kittens. Now there is more space for Tiger Lily and Smee. And it is a lot easier to put things in the cage and take them out without having to prevent four little kittens from rushing out. We can also allow them to run around the living room in the evenings - a lot easier to keep one's eyes on two rather than four. But I do miss my dear Davy. He was such a sweet natured kitten.
The challenge now is to get Tiger Lily adopted. She was actually reserved early on but her adopter has now broken her toe and can't take in a kitten at the moment. Smee has been adopted, just that his adopters can't pick him up until after their overseas trip. They are however positively smitten with him. They have visited him to see how he is doing and take photos of him each time. Love cat lovers!
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Then there were three...
Well, Jack Sparrow has been adopted and left with his adopter today. That's why he gets a big huge collage of his best shots. Why does this sound like some version of a Next Top Kitten Model reality show? Except the one who gets adopted first, wins?
It is not an easy process, putting up kittens for adoption. First, finding the appropriate channels and advertising, then getting in touch with and assessing the potential adopters who approached me, then wondering when and whether they are going to revert - can't really say that the kitten is adopted until it is!
Jack Sparrow's adopter has another cat, Chocolate, who is about 8 years old. He lives in a house with a big garden for kittens to run around in. Jackie looked comfortable and at ease in his big hands. So I feel comfortable too. Only thing is, he came just as we finished bathing all the kittens. One after another, Tiger Lily, Davy and finally Smee did their big business in a corner of the kitchen/in their yellow market basket. Jack did not. So I just hope he did not do it on the way home...
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Little Pieces of Heart (2)
Sigh, the little kittens are indeed stealing little pieces of my heart away. They are now about six weeks old and their baby blue eyes are now turning colour and will probably end up a light, clear green like their mother's. I suspect that one of the last few unsterilised males, Paddy, is their father as he too has a bit of a patch over one eye. Indeed, Paddy is a most appropriate pirate king. He saunters around the front yard as though he owns it and mews commandingly for attention and food.The adoption process has
gone fairly well with two kittens positively spoken for, another almost confirmed and someone coming to view the last. They should be picking up the kittens weekend after next - i.e. when we estimate the little pirates to be 8 weeks old.They have grown considerably - so we have started letting them run in the kitchen every night. They were a bit nervous at first, and still take time to warm up but after that it is go go GO! Full of energy, they play their own version of 'kitten tag' where everyone is the catcher at the same time. They skitter and scamper all over the kitchen floor, weaving their way through chair legs and human legs alike. They hide behind the rubbish bin, and pounce on whichever little kitten next comes by. They can keep going for ages - should have called them the "Energiser Kittens" rather than the pirates. The photos here are of them in a less frentic mood, taken after they were fed and sleeping off their meal during the warmth of the afternoon. To see little pirates in action, check out the videos on my Multiply site (see sidebar for the link).
I must admit, I will miss them when they are gone. But they are still tonnes of work. One of them left a series of little deposits in the corner of the kitchen just now and we had to clean up after. Sigh.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Kittens: Update
Well, the little kittens are growing up adorable. Their enclosure sort of crumbled after the rain, and then their mother started carrying them out of the re-constructed enclosure. So we bought a cage, which they have been very happy in. It has some ledges in it so they have been happily climbing up the walls of the cage. Mama cat, after some apprehension at the start, has also consented to be pushed into the cage to look after the kittens.
Thus far, there have been expressions of interest but no firm takers yet. So do take a look at these cute little faces: don't they melt your heart? We have given them tentative names. Top left, we have Jack Sparrow. He is energetic and playful, and often wrestles with his brother, Davy Jones (at bottom left).
Tiger Lily (top right) is the only female. We originally named her Blackbeard, but then we found out it was a she. She is pretty energetic and a good climber. Smee (bottom left) is adorable, and my personal favourite. Isn't he sweet, stretching out his little paws in this picture?
So what is there to wait for? Adopt them! Email me at feline.fans@yahoo.com.sg if interested. More photos available on my Flickr site (click the flickr zeitgeist to see more).
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Schmap!
Haha! I mentioned a few days ago that my photo on the Washington DC National Shrine had been shortlisted for inclusion in an on-line travel website. Well, today I got an email saying that it had been selected. And, there are little Schmapplets which can be put on my webpage to a) show off my photo and b) help direct more traffic to the Schmap site. So I tried to get a Schmapplet. I followed all directions but for some reason I can't insert the little widget on my site. So I can only insert the link to the Schmap Washington DC guide (churches and temples section).
Saturday, July 21, 2007
ANNOUNCEMENT : KITTENS FOR ADOPTION!
Now, this is a serious announcement and appeal: Adopt a Kitten!
My father, as mentioned in many earlier posts, has been regularly feeding the stray cats in the vicinity and they tend to follow him home. Now one of them was a Pregnant Female. One day some three weeks ago she showed up Not Pregnant and we continued to feed her as normal. Then on Wednesday morning, my mother watered the plants and then noticed the emergence of a wet, furry ball from beneath the foliage.
The Mother Cat (MC for short) had brought her kittens one by one. There were 5 altogether, 4 strong healthy ones and 1 underdeveloped little runt. There they were, under the plant pots, when suddenly this torrent of water had descended upon their unsuspecting little heads. My mother dried them down (enduring a scratch from a protective MC in the process) and placed them in a box. We have since made a little enclosure in the corner of the driveway where the MC placed them.
Now, we can't keep them. There are 7 cats regularly in and out of the driveway (Paddy, Martia, Mickey, Mollie, Sootie, Brucie the Bruiser and the Mother Cat herself). The little runt died on Thursday but we really can't have another 4 cats in our garden.
They are a little young to leave their mother as they are still nursing. But in a few weeks, they will have outgrown their enclosure and will start wandering around the driveway. They could even start going onto the heavily used road outside my house. So, dear reader, please look hard at these absolutely adorable little kittens and see if you can find it in your heart to take them into your home. Drop me an email at feline.fans@yahoo.com.sg if interested and I'll respond to you.
More photos of little kittens here.
My father, as mentioned in many earlier posts, has been regularly feeding the stray cats in the vicinity and they tend to follow him home. Now one of them was a Pregnant Female. One day some three weeks ago she showed up Not Pregnant and we continued to feed her as normal. Then on Wednesday morning, my mother watered the plants and then noticed the emergence of a wet, furry ball from beneath the foliage.
The Mother Cat (MC for short) had brought her kittens one by one. There were 5 altogether, 4 strong healthy ones and 1 underdeveloped little runt. There they were, under the plant pots, when suddenly this torrent of water had descended upon their unsuspecting little heads. My mother dried them down (enduring a scratch from a protective MC in the process) and placed them in a box. We have since made a little enclosure in the corner of the driveway where the MC placed them.
Now, we can't keep them. There are 7 cats regularly in and out of the driveway (Paddy, Martia, Mickey, Mollie, Sootie, Brucie the Bruiser and the Mother Cat herself). The little runt died on Thursday but we really can't have another 4 cats in our garden.
They are a little young to leave their mother as they are still nursing. But in a few weeks, they will have outgrown their enclosure and will start wandering around the driveway. They could even start going onto the heavily used road outside my house. So, dear reader, please look hard at these absolutely adorable little kittens and see if you can find it in your heart to take them into your home. Drop me an email at feline.fans@yahoo.com.sg if interested and I'll respond to you.
More photos of little kittens here.
More Flickr self-publicity
I received a Flickr mail the other day which began as follows:
"Hi Taking5,
I am writing to let you know that one of your photos has been short-listed for inclusion in the third edition of our Schmap Washington DC Guide, to be published later this month..."
I took a look at the Schmap Guides website and it is quite a handy on-line guide, with options to print out pages etc. Since they paid me the compliment of shortlisting my photo, here is their website for reference: www.schmap.com.
The photo itself- well, it was of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington DC which I wrote about in a much earlier post. Am quite gratified but a little regretful that I didn't make a try harder to get a better shot.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Little Pieces of Heart
I went to see Dim Sum Dollies: The History of Singapore on Friday night. It was fun! Enjoyable! Definitely worth braving the traffic and human jams getting into Esplanade on a Friday night.
This was the first Dim Sum Dollies production that I have seen. Somehow, whilst it always looked pretty amusing and entertaining, never really felt the urge to go. But I thought it would be interesting to watch their take on the history of Singapore.
The show started promisingly. Sang Nila Utama (played by Hossan Leong, the "chopsticks" which go with the dim sum), nagged into activity by his mother into founding an island city, takes off in his boat with his girlfriend and finds the island of Temasek. Not impressed, he is about to take off when the estate agent comes and does a fast sell on him. He spots an animal, and fortunately for us his girlfriend doesn't like baboons. The next skits take us through the early history of Singapore - the prevalence of pirates in the area, the arrival of the British, the early sarong party girls, vice in old Singapore (gambling, women, and opium dens), Hossan Leong again as an Indian dhobi man with his cow. I truly enjoyed the touching tribute to the samsui women.
Somehow, I didn't like the second half very much. There were some funny moments such as the fan club for wonderful - LEE. But I really didn't appreciate the unnecessary scene of Irish nuns caning the wayward convent schoolgirl (although Hossan Leong was absolutely adorable as the schoolgirl in question) called Maria (although I am sure no one really remembers, I think this would have been around the time of the Maria Hertogh riots!). The ending scene was charming. Hossan Leong, as Miss Singapore kicked out of the Miss Malaysia pageant was hilarious.
The Dim Sum Dollies cleverly blend current issues (eg Ministerial pay hikes, en bloc fever etc) in the skit. Problem is, that sort of dates the play and in a few years, some of the items may not be current. So the play would always need updating. Fine when the Dollies are doing their regular reviews, but for history of Singapore, bit more difficult. But they sing well, look good and the whole show hangs together pretty well.
Favourite dollie - has to be Selena Tan. She really hams up the characters she plays, eg Sang Nila's mother with gusto, pirate captain. She milks her plump figure for laughs (eg, what dim sum does she make you think of? - well she thinks she's bigger than that!). But my favourite actor in the play is Hossan Leong, who steals the show every scene he is in.
This was the first Dim Sum Dollies production that I have seen. Somehow, whilst it always looked pretty amusing and entertaining, never really felt the urge to go. But I thought it would be interesting to watch their take on the history of Singapore.
The show started promisingly. Sang Nila Utama (played by Hossan Leong, the "chopsticks" which go with the dim sum), nagged into activity by his mother into founding an island city, takes off in his boat with his girlfriend and finds the island of Temasek. Not impressed, he is about to take off when the estate agent comes and does a fast sell on him. He spots an animal, and fortunately for us his girlfriend doesn't like baboons. The next skits take us through the early history of Singapore - the prevalence of pirates in the area, the arrival of the British, the early sarong party girls, vice in old Singapore (gambling, women, and opium dens), Hossan Leong again as an Indian dhobi man with his cow. I truly enjoyed the touching tribute to the samsui women.
Somehow, I didn't like the second half very much. There were some funny moments such as the fan club for wonderful - LEE. But I really didn't appreciate the unnecessary scene of Irish nuns caning the wayward convent schoolgirl (although Hossan Leong was absolutely adorable as the schoolgirl in question) called Maria (although I am sure no one really remembers, I think this would have been around the time of the Maria Hertogh riots!). The ending scene was charming. Hossan Leong, as Miss Singapore kicked out of the Miss Malaysia pageant was hilarious.
The Dim Sum Dollies cleverly blend current issues (eg Ministerial pay hikes, en bloc fever etc) in the skit. Problem is, that sort of dates the play and in a few years, some of the items may not be current. So the play would always need updating. Fine when the Dollies are doing their regular reviews, but for history of Singapore, bit more difficult. But they sing well, look good and the whole show hangs together pretty well.
Favourite dollie - has to be Selena Tan. She really hams up the characters she plays, eg Sang Nila's mother with gusto, pirate captain. She milks her plump figure for laughs (eg, what dim sum does she make you think of? - well she thinks she's bigger than that!). But my favourite actor in the play is Hossan Leong, who steals the show every scene he is in.
Friday, July 06, 2007
Graduation
Well, today I took part in a most archaic ceremony. With a lot of people for whom it means the start of their life as working adults. For me, I must admit it was somewhat old hat. I can only say that it was shorter than the last ceremony of this kind I attended.
Four of my overseas classmates came back for the ceremony - from Indonesia, Philippines, China and Laos. There were another four of us from Singapore attending. We all dressed up in our medieval outfits with the little mortarboard hats and long flowing sleeves (this is apparently the hallmark of the NUS Masters' robes). Then we paraded down to the University Cultural Centre where we stood as a group of men (yes, they were all men) in a different set of medieval robes plus bonnets mounted the stage and sat there for the next hour.
We listened to the commencement address being given by the guest speaker. Then, one by one, we went up on stage to receive an empty tube and walked off to receive a piece of paper with our name on it. Then after the 8 of us had finished, we watched whilst all the Science Faculty graduates mounted the stage. They were a rather more lively bunch than ourselves, with some cheering for graduates whose names were being called out.My classmate gave the Valedictorian speech next. I quote part of it here, obviously my favourite part where she reminds that we must be:
"the salt that seasons, the salt that preserves, the salt that renders the ocean a dynamic and exciting livable habitat for new ideas, best practices, and true friendships."
Obviously, she's from the Philippines and thus a good Catholic girl. The ceremony ended fairly punctually and we went off for our reception and photo-taking.
So, I suppose, closes the chapter on a memorable and most enjoyable year.
P.S. I started this post the night of the graduation ceremony, but am finishing it on a subsequent day. Later that night, I was to get an SMS from the valedictorian classmate. She was staying with a friend in Hillview Park, a 2-block development. The SMS was to say that the other block was on fire! Fortunately she had packed to go down to KL and so she just lugged her suitcase down to watch the flames much to the amazement of other residents who were wondering how she got the bag packed so quickly.
What a phone contact list can tell you
I lost my mobile phone yesterday. Suffice to say that it was a painful experience and am not in the mood for talking about it.
So instead of my K750i, my happy camera phone friend, I am carrying my old Nokia which may have been all the rage once upon a time but is now sadly antiquated compared to all the new generation phones on the market. And of course, it has no camera!
This phone is actually a spare phone which my family members borrow from time to time. One person who borrowed it for a few months is an aunt of mine who lives in Canada and comes back for a month or two every year. She buys a hi-card, inserts it in the phone and that's it! So her phone no.s are now stored in the phone memory.
I am in the process of re-creating my contact book on this new SIM card. So I opened up the contacts list expecting to see at least a few of my old entries. The list has been completely transformed. After the names of her sisters (my other aunts), the list of contacts contains the following:
Big Sweep
Big Sweep
4D (Sat)
4D (Sun)
4D (Wed)
Horseracing
Sports
TOTO
My Star Sign
I was curious about the last as it was not clear how it added value to the overall contact list. So I called the number indicated - it's one of those *Send numbers which you call to get information, etc. My Star Sign follows the Chinese zodiac. It offers 3 options to those who are willing to pay $0.32 for the privilege:
1. My Lucky Pix
2. My Love Match
3. My daily horoscope.
The mystery at once became clear.
Sigh. Am just wondering what the person in whose hands my phone has fallen is making out of my contact list.
So instead of my K750i, my happy camera phone friend, I am carrying my old Nokia which may have been all the rage once upon a time but is now sadly antiquated compared to all the new generation phones on the market. And of course, it has no camera!
This phone is actually a spare phone which my family members borrow from time to time. One person who borrowed it for a few months is an aunt of mine who lives in Canada and comes back for a month or two every year. She buys a hi-card, inserts it in the phone and that's it! So her phone no.s are now stored in the phone memory.
I am in the process of re-creating my contact book on this new SIM card. So I opened up the contacts list expecting to see at least a few of my old entries. The list has been completely transformed. After the names of her sisters (my other aunts), the list of contacts contains the following:
Big Sweep
Big Sweep
4D (Sat)
4D (Sun)
4D (Wed)
Horseracing
Sports
TOTO
My Star Sign
I was curious about the last as it was not clear how it added value to the overall contact list. So I called the number indicated - it's one of those *Send numbers which you call to get information, etc. My Star Sign follows the Chinese zodiac. It offers 3 options to those who are willing to pay $0.32 for the privilege:
1. My Lucky Pix
2. My Love Match
3. My daily horoscope.
The mystery at once became clear.
Sigh. Am just wondering what the person in whose hands my phone has fallen is making out of my contact list.
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Flats and Cats
I've been accompanying my sister and her fiance view flats over the past few weekends. It is quite an interesting exercise, looking at how people do up and maintain the flats. At one end, there are the house-proud where everything is so immaculately kept and at the other end, the karang-gunis where the paper is peeling off the walls and where junk is piling up on every available surface. Then there are simple, spartan homes and then there are those which are done up resort style even in a humble 3-room HDB flat. But flat prices are going up by the week. Valuations have risen over the past 2 months and yet people are still asking for up to 20% more than valuation. It is a bit worrying, knowing you are chasing a rising market. But there is no point paying more than one feels comfortable with - unless we find the perfect flat, we'll just keep our bids appropriately low.
One unexpected benefit from flat viewing is that
we are meeting all sorts of lovely cats! This white cat with black and orange markings was in the Old Airport temporary hawker centre, where we went after a viewing. The other customers were watching with some amusement as my sister and I took his photo. One hawker came up to us smiling and asked us to help take the cat's photo so she could replace her hubby with the cat on her phone wallpaper. My sister took the photo but we couldn't figure out the wallpaper bit as the phone language was Mandarin - so much for all those years of learning Chinese.
We also met a group of four cats at the foot of one block, aptly below a sign saying "Pets' Funland". Now one suspects that was the name of the childcare centre just behind the sign. But the cats seem to have adopted the place as their own, in any case. All the cats had been neutered - the sign of the clipped ear. Alas, no photo as I had not had the opportunity to down load the picture from my camera phone before it got lost.
Nearer home, there have been more kitten sightings. Sigh. Definitely, we need to capture the new Mother Cat (or MC for short) which has been wandering around the place and discovered the happy cat haven a.k.a our front driveway. She's just delivered a litter! Well, time to make the arrangements for her sterilisation - a little on the late side but better late than never.
One unexpected benefit from flat viewing is that
we are meeting all sorts of lovely cats! This white cat with black and orange markings was in the Old Airport temporary hawker centre, where we went after a viewing. The other customers were watching with some amusement as my sister and I took his photo. One hawker came up to us smiling and asked us to help take the cat's photo so she could replace her hubby with the cat on her phone wallpaper. My sister took the photo but we couldn't figure out the wallpaper bit as the phone language was Mandarin - so much for all those years of learning Chinese.We also met a group of four cats at the foot of one block, aptly below a sign saying "Pets' Funland". Now one suspects that was the name of the childcare centre just behind the sign. But the cats seem to have adopted the place as their own, in any case. All the cats had been neutered - the sign of the clipped ear. Alas, no photo as I had not had the opportunity to down load the picture from my camera phone before it got lost.
Nearer home, there have been more kitten sightings. Sigh. Definitely, we need to capture the new Mother Cat (or MC for short) which has been wandering around the place and discovered the happy cat haven a.k.a our front driveway. She's just delivered a litter! Well, time to make the arrangements for her sterilisation - a little on the late side but better late than never.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
3rd century view: time to stop peacocking
Just hit third century view photo with the albino peacock shot featured in an earlier post.
I suppose I'm now at this point where I have a certain critical mass of photos approaching the 100 mark so there should be a few more century views on the horizon. The novelty/excitement of hitting 3 digits has certainly worn off considerably.
Must think of a new milestone now, which is realistic and achievable but at the same time has some oomph factor. Hitting a thousand views for a single photo would be a bit much.
I suppose I'm now at this point where I have a certain critical mass of photos approaching the 100 mark so there should be a few more century views on the horizon. The novelty/excitement of hitting 3 digits has certainly worn off considerably.
Must think of a new milestone now, which is realistic and achievable but at the same time has some oomph factor. Hitting a thousand views for a single photo would be a bit much.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
My 2nd Century View photo - Siew Mai's furry belly!
Amazing - within 24 hours of putting up this photo, it hit 125 views. Certainly this is the first time it has ever happened to any of my Flickr photos. I admit it is a really cute photo - that tummy really says "RUB ME" but I didn't expect it to get so popular so fast. The spillover effects are limited as the photos just before and after haven't had a significant increase in views. And I must also admit to some slight disappointment that my two most viewed cat photos are not of my own little sweeties....
Anyway, Siew Mai is one of my colleagues' four cats. We met when I went over to my colleague's place for her housewarming party. Unfortunately, the other three cats were scared of all the nasty visitors and were hiding away. Siew Mai and my colleague's dog, Har Kau, are named after dim sum dishes (dim sum are small little Cantonese snack like dishes which are consumed normally for breakfast or lunch or maybe even brunch. A Siew Mai is a little meat dumpling.) Siew Mai, as can be seen, is a very friendly cat, allowing near strangers to rub her belly. I love the way her little paw waves in the air in this photo and although you can't quite see it she does have a happy look on her face. See more Siew Mai photos here.
The cat I really wanted to see is this heroine who survived a fall down thirteen floors. I had read previously online that cats can survive a fall from incredible heights. They can twist their flexible little bodies in the air such that they are able to make use of the air resistance to slow down the rate of descent but need time to do so. Hence, if the height is less than seven floors they don't have time to adjust. My colleague's tabby managed to wriggle through the protective netting at one window and fell. After a 4-hour search, my colleague found her cat on the ground, alive, but with broken limbs. The cat is still going strong today. Sadly, when I visited, she was hiding behind the washing machine the whole time. So no cat to be seen, and no photo.
Nonetheless, all hail to that marvellous animal, the cat!
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Doorkeeper
I went for a little concert last night, by singer-songwriter Dawn Fung. The venue: Pitchblack, a small cafe cum art gallery cum screening room in Haji Lane (parallel to Arab Street). Haji Lane is one of those one-horse lane type roads which must have survived from the early days when this area was first built up. Old shophouses line each side of the road. These days, new boutiques, restaurants bars, and funky cafes like Pitchblack are moving in.
Dawn Fung sings folk music, or rather folk music with a Christian orientation, and that's the kind of music she also writes. She plays the guitarlele which I suppose is some cross between a guitar and a ukelele but in reality looks like a mini guitar. She was accompanied by another guitarist and a violinist.
I enjoyed the performance. Dawn has a sweet clear voice which suited the intimate setting of the small upper room. The songs were pleasant too, with interesting harmonies and rhythms but could do with a little more variation in composition as there was a certain sameness throughout the performance. Dawn takes the Bible as a source of inspiration. Eg one song was based on Isaiah and another the famous verse in Ecclesiastes which has already inspired a number one hit song many many years ago. I must confess also that I was a little surprised that she sang so many hymns, as the poster advertising the performance didn't really mention it - the plug was that the Doorkeeper was a "brief visit to into the world of bedtime stories". All in all, a good performance but the songs need to be a little more memorable. When I left, the song running through my head was "To every thing (turn, turn, turn), there is a season (turn, turn, turn)..."
Dawn Fung sings folk music, or rather folk music with a Christian orientation, and that's the kind of music she also writes. She plays the guitarlele which I suppose is some cross between a guitar and a ukelele but in reality looks like a mini guitar. She was accompanied by another guitarist and a violinist.
I enjoyed the performance. Dawn has a sweet clear voice which suited the intimate setting of the small upper room. The songs were pleasant too, with interesting harmonies and rhythms but could do with a little more variation in composition as there was a certain sameness throughout the performance. Dawn takes the Bible as a source of inspiration. Eg one song was based on Isaiah and another the famous verse in Ecclesiastes which has already inspired a number one hit song many many years ago. I must confess also that I was a little surprised that she sang so many hymns, as the poster advertising the performance didn't really mention it - the plug was that the Doorkeeper was a "brief visit to into the world of bedtime stories". All in all, a good performance but the songs need to be a little more memorable. When I left, the song running through my head was "To every thing (turn, turn, turn), there is a season (turn, turn, turn)..."p.s. Dawn also sang that old favourite, "Blessed Assurance". Now that takes me back to my convent school days :-)
Friday, June 08, 2007
My first century view photo!
I've been on Flickr for a little more than 9 months and today, I finally had a photo which reached 100 views! This photo was taken with a camera phone. I did do a little touch up but it started off a nice sharp good quality shot.
I took the photo last December at East Coast Park, when we were doing twice weekly morning walks. We spotted various strays a.k.a community cats about the place, as recorded here. This particular chap we found one morning up a tree. He was too shy to come down from his tree to eat the cat food we brought for him. There was another cat wandering around so I don't think he managed to get anything even after we left.
It has been a while since we went walking at the East Coast Park. Hopefully our feline friends have been faring ok in our absence.
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Optical Identity: T'ang Quartet and Theatre Cryptic
I just came back from a Singapore Arts Festival performance by the T'ang Quartet called "Optical Identity". This was a contemporary classical music performance. I'm not really a big fan - in fact I've only attended one other contemporary classical performance (see review here). What is supposed to make this concert different is T'ang's tie up with Theatre Cryptic: this is supposed to be "visual music"; a more multi-media type experience with lights, staging and other effects thrown in. Promising?
Well, I was rather worried that it would be frightfully pretentious. And, when the curtain rose to display the performers sitting with their backs to the audience, I feared (to be honest) the worst. I could not see what they were wearing clearly, but it appeared to be white pyjamas. Later on in the performance they started walking around and we could see that they were wearing what looked like jackets with the sleeves cut out, or rather white sleeveless vests in addition to their white trousers. No shirts. But at that moment, what we saw were four dark thrones arranged in a semi-circle with their backs to the audience. The backs of each throne were shaped such that they looked rather like rocks. There was also a shape cut out of the back so we could get sight of the performers. The effect was of musicians sitting in a cavern whilst we the observers watched them play.
They played their first piece, White Man Sleeps by Kevin Volans, in this position. I enjoyed the piece - in fact it was my favourite of the evening. The first dance started off with a rather rhythmic sound, continued in the second dance with the cello setting the pace for the movement. The lighting effects were not particularly interesting in this session. This changed somewhat during the third dance, where a green shaft of light hit the back of one of the thrones. Instead of a cavern, the musicians sat in a forest glade and the pizzicato of the strings brought to mind falling drops of water. I had to admit that the multi-media elements certainly added to the musical experience.
Well, I was rather worried that it would be frightfully pretentious. And, when the curtain rose to display the performers sitting with their backs to the audience, I feared (to be honest) the worst. I could not see what they were wearing clearly, but it appeared to be white pyjamas. Later on in the performance they started walking around and we could see that they were wearing what looked like jackets with the sleeves cut out, or rather white sleeveless vests in addition to their white trousers. No shirts. But at that moment, what we saw were four dark thrones arranged in a semi-circle with their backs to the audience. The backs of each throne were shaped such that they looked rather like rocks. There was also a shape cut out of the back so we could get sight of the performers. The effect was of musicians sitting in a cavern whilst we the observers watched them play.
They played their first piece, White Man Sleeps by Kevin Volans, in this position. I enjoyed the piece - in fact it was my favourite of the evening. The first dance started off with a rather rhythmic sound, continued in the second dance with the cello setting the pace for the movement. The lighting effects were not particularly interesting in this session. This changed somewhat during the third dance, where a green shaft of light hit the back of one of the thrones. Instead of a cavern, the musicians sat in a forest glade and the pizzicato of the strings brought to mind falling drops of water. I had to admit that the multi-media elements certainly added to the musical experience.
But the second piece was somewhat less impressive. I much preferred the third piece, whereby the musicians on the stage were joined by their images projected on a huge screen behind them. It was quite interesting to see huge images of the bow moving across the violin strings behind the performers. It got even more interesting when the image expanded to show the musician as well... and revealed that the vest was off! Camera started showing (at all angles) the movement of the brawny arms and muscular backs as the violinist played. But this was a major distraction. I put it to you : four musicians on stage, clad in white vests and trousers, vs images of bare breasted musicians at work in the background - where do you think everyone's eyes will be? And as for the music... frankly that just didn't register.
Far less distracting was the next segment, when this man in black starts walking around the stage with a video camera capturing the musicians as they performed and projecting this on the screen "live". I actually quite enjoyed this, as the musicians entered into a sort of musical face-off, two against two. Unfortunately the music was somewhat discordant so I was reminded of two sets of cats snarling and hissing at each other. (No doubt, due to the many such episodes taking place in my house every day).
In brief: a very different classical performance, which I would certainly say is more memorable than most. But I am a little afraid that the effects outshone the music at times, rather than enhanced it.
The complete programme for Optical Identity:
- String Quartet No. 1: White Man Sleeps, by Kevin Volans
- Phonotype I (Parts I-IV), by Rolf Wallin
- Mugam Sayagi, by Franghiz Ali-Zadeh
- Phonotype I (Part V), by Rolf Wallin
- Manual Override, by Joby Talbot
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Proud as an Albino Peacock
Today, I received the following message in my Flickr mail:
Dear Sir/Madam
My name is Olivia and I am writing on behalf of Atlantic Books. We are in the process of putting together a hardback book entitled "Cooler Faster More Expensive, The Return of the Sloane Ranger", which Atlantic Books will be publishing in October of this year. You may remember "The Official Sloane Ranger Handbook", which sold over one million copies in the 1980s and was written by Peter York and Anne Barr, well "The Return of the Sloane Ranger" is also by Peter York, and is co-written by Olivia Stewart-Liberty. It is a witty and cutting-edge guide to Britain’s largest, most powerful, most invisible tribe: the new upper classes.
In "Cooler, Faster, More Expensive", Peter York ('The Nancy Mitford of our time') and Olivia Stewart Liberty give the
essential account of the current Sloane renaissance and reveal emerging breeds of a subtle and powerful social network. From Chav Sloanes and Party Sloanes to Eco Sloanes and Turbo Sloanes, English society will never look quite the same again.
The book is made up of text, illustrations, tables and photographs which reflect this powerful social group. We are currently collecting images and wondered if you might supply us with some, free of charge, for inclusion in this trend-setting book and you would of course be credited and sent a copy of the book, should we use your picture of an albino peacock, numbered 302764907. Permission for usage would include the right to use the image in the promotion of the book (e.g. if a newspaper decides to review the book and asks to run your image in conjunction with the review then your image would be reproduced in that newspaper in conjunction with the review).
We greatly appreciate any help you could give us.
Best wishes
Olivia
Olivia Hunt
Editorial Assistant
Atlantic Books
To which I replied, in essence, "but of course". Being a rather cautious person, I did wonder what the catch is. And why this particular photo has been selected. Surely it is not the most perfect peacock photo on Flickr. But then I googled the Sloane Rangers handbook and find out that yes, it is indeed being updated - as this report from the Daily Mail indicates. So yes, let's go for it, no such thing as bad publicity and why do I care if mine is not the best albino peacock photo ever, its the one selected!
Am flattered, excited and (let me admit it) more than a little chuffed. Am I on my way to a new, second career?
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Writer's Block
I admit I have not been posting too much on this blog in recent days. But my writer's block refers not to the lack of posts. Rather, it refers to my sheer inability to get out the first paragraph of the chapter I'm writing for a book. So picture me, sitting here, next to my window with its pleasant view of a green quadrangle surrounded by white colonial buildings. A tall, lofty old tree casts its cool shadow over one corner of the quadrangle. Its branches sway in the breeze. Every now and then a bird calls. It is very pleasant, yes, but unfortunately it does not provide sufficient inspiration for me to break the block.
So, I thought I would turn to this blog because the only way to cure writer's block is to write.... anything! Is it working? Perhaps if I continue a little more...
I met a former colleague yesterday and she disclosed that she too has started a blog! Of course, she is still filled with the enthusiasm of a new blogger and is posting regularly (unlike yours truly). But it was pleasant to swap anecdotes of our blogging experience and stories of other people we know who blog. I think we were both startled to find out about the other's guilty little secret... but why should it be a guilty secret? Alas, in our case it is probably because of the prevailing work culture in our organisation. Time should be spent working and not reflecting, on "productive pursuits" instead of sitting, watching the world go by and writing about it.
Sigh. With that, it is probably about time to return to my chapter. Am not sure whether the block will re-emerge once again, but one must make the attempt....
So, I thought I would turn to this blog because the only way to cure writer's block is to write.... anything! Is it working? Perhaps if I continue a little more...
I met a former colleague yesterday and she disclosed that she too has started a blog! Of course, she is still filled with the enthusiasm of a new blogger and is posting regularly (unlike yours truly). But it was pleasant to swap anecdotes of our blogging experience and stories of other people we know who blog. I think we were both startled to find out about the other's guilty little secret... but why should it be a guilty secret? Alas, in our case it is probably because of the prevailing work culture in our organisation. Time should be spent working and not reflecting, on "productive pursuits" instead of sitting, watching the world go by and writing about it.
Sigh. With that, it is probably about time to return to my chapter. Am not sure whether the block will re-emerge once again, but one must make the attempt....
Monday, May 21, 2007
Shakespeare in Fort Canning Park
Went to see "A Midsummer Night's Dream" by Singapore Repertory Theatre yesterday in Fort Canning Park. The acting was pretty good. And, given the outdoor setting in the park, it should have been a magical performance. Somehow, that didn't quite happen. Perhaps it was because there were lighting towers in the middle of the park area, blocking the view of the set.
In fact, the set started off with a small stage at the bottom of the field and extends into a grid shaped walkway in the middle of the field and for those who are not fortunate enough to get into the middle of the grid, the view of the stage at the bottom of the field and parts of the grid are obscured by the lighting towers. I thought if we arrived at about 6.30pm it should be ok, of course both of us were late and it was already pretty crowded when we got in at 6.50pm. So we sat at the top left of the field (facing the stage). From there, it was not so easy to work out what was going on at the bottom of the field or on the right side of the field.
Costumes were also pretty odd. I never really got the concept. I don't like fairies with white long blouses ending with mini skirts and knee-length tights underneath. Lysander walked around in what looked like a whirling dervish costume. What gives? By contrast, Hermia wore knee-length shorts (like a little Swiss girl?) for her jaunt through the park. The best part of her costume was her backpack with the teddy bear tied at the back.
But as I said earlier, the acting was good. Oberon and Titania, the two sets of lovers were well played; Bottom was absolutely brilliantly funny and utterly believable as a man who didn't know he had an ass' head (but still walked like an ass!). The enactment of the story of Pyramus and Thisbe also took on an exotic, Asian theme, with Thisbe dressed in a cheongsam and the lion looking as though he had just finished work at an event down at the nearest community centre.
All in all, an enjoyable evening even though I am not quite sure about the rapturous reviews given for the performance.
In fact, the set started off with a small stage at the bottom of the field and extends into a grid shaped walkway in the middle of the field and for those who are not fortunate enough to get into the middle of the grid, the view of the stage at the bottom of the field and parts of the grid are obscured by the lighting towers. I thought if we arrived at about 6.30pm it should be ok, of course both of us were late and it was already pretty crowded when we got in at 6.50pm. So we sat at the top left of the field (facing the stage). From there, it was not so easy to work out what was going on at the bottom of the field or on the right side of the field.
Costumes were also pretty odd. I never really got the concept. I don't like fairies with white long blouses ending with mini skirts and knee-length tights underneath. Lysander walked around in what looked like a whirling dervish costume. What gives? By contrast, Hermia wore knee-length shorts (like a little Swiss girl?) for her jaunt through the park. The best part of her costume was her backpack with the teddy bear tied at the back.
But as I said earlier, the acting was good. Oberon and Titania, the two sets of lovers were well played; Bottom was absolutely brilliantly funny and utterly believable as a man who didn't know he had an ass' head (but still walked like an ass!). The enactment of the story of Pyramus and Thisbe also took on an exotic, Asian theme, with Thisbe dressed in a cheongsam and the lion looking as though he had just finished work at an event down at the nearest community centre.
All in all, an enjoyable evening even though I am not quite sure about the rapturous reviews given for the performance.
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