Parting Shot

The view from my office taken with my new N73 ME

Today was the last day in the city. We are saying goodbye to the comfortable city surroundings and moving into the heartlands, or 'kampung' as my manager calls it. I've only spend one month there, so it's not hard for me to move; but to the rest of them who have experienced wheelock and then raffles place, I bet they will soon be longing for the food variety at Golden Shoe, or the after-lunch drinks at Coffee & Toast, or even the Beetroot juices from Sun & Moon.

Enter the Phantom

No prizes for guessing where this post will lead to. Well if you are one of those who are gripped by the Phantom fever, you would understand.

Like a gangly teenager going to his first rock concert, hmm… add some lines on the face and some flab around the waist, I hopped over to the esplanade on Saturday to come face to face with the iconic face of broadway musicals. The phantom certainly didn’t disappoint. He was the stand-out all-action performer; whether he is showcasing his powerful vocals, showing off his street magic, screaming in rage, writhing in despair, or clambering around the well constructed sets on stage. And he got to be in the coolest scene from the show too, the one where he rode in on the gondola through the thin layer of staged smoke, while surrounded by giant candelabras and glowing light from below. All this while being serenaded (live!) by songs that you just know so well.

Well, this is one classic performance that may not come our way again.

Talking about musicals, I just learnt that Les Miserables has been brought back from the grave, and is performing in both Broadway and West End. That’s definitely one musical that I yearn to watch. Let's see whether Mr.Mackintosh is be willing to bring it on one last tour.

Singapore Holiday

The family was down two weekends ago for a short visit. Here are some of the pics of us galavanting around this 'unique' island in the south.

The good thing about S'pore is that all the tourist spots are just a drive away. So we got to visit Sentosa (and tried the luge), Vivocity (and got wet thanks to Josh), and the Zoo (and saw Wong Li Lin playing with kid). We also found time to have a get together with our cousins from around S'pore and JB.

You can read more at Louisa's blog.

Shanghai in Springtime

My first impressions? Amazing, just like what the book said. Big sprawling city with infrastructure that surpasses many developing nations. Ahh… did I just see a bullet train zip past..

Yes, my maiden trip to the Capitalist pride of Communist China; here’s the low down.

The city was indeed welcoming. No problems getting in. Pudong Airport was about an hour away from my hotel. The weather outside was a little chilly, but nothing a jacket and pull-over can’t remedy. Since we arrived on a Sunday afternoon, we wasted no time in dumping our bags and going out for some sightseeing.

The roads and transport system in Shanghai was all swell. Though it can get kind of dangerous crossing roads, even when the green man flashes at the pedestrian corssing, or squeezy in the subway during peak hours. I had the opportunity to try the train one evening. What can I say. Singaporeans do not enter when the train gets crowded, but the Shanghainese, they will push and push till everyone’s supported on all sides by at least four other bodies. You don’t even need to hold on to the pole, and if you wish to get out, start pushing out one station early.

If you’re shopping in Shanghai, you cannot miss the Counterfeit markets. No Xiangyang Market, no worries, these entrepreneurs just band together and emerge somewhere else. In Pudong alone, we visited two big complexes that specialize in such goods. Even the rich Americans staying in luxury suites joke about their fake Rolex. Pirated DVDs are abundant. Just in front of my hotel, we had shops and roadside vendors selling them between 5 to 12 Yuan a piece. I managed to get a piece of the action, earning myself a well bargained Laptop Bag, Wallets, a Chinese Silk Top and a “Little Miss Sunshine” DVD.

Before you think I was only there for leisure, let me set it straight, I had to actually travel around 40 mins daily to our Shanghai Office for work and training. The training was given by a group of Americans and no surprise that they presented the material in their American English. What surprised me was that the majority of the participants were local Chinese. Each with a different level of English Language mastery but each bold enough to throw questions at the speakers. Now I understand why the Chinese strongly believe they can rightly be the regional headquarters for all international businesses and industries. And Singapore should rightly fear them.

I also had the chance to visit Suzhou Industrial Park, a massive project where large factory blocks sit on even larger parcels of land, some with front and backyards large enough to accommodate football fields. I guess everybody there must be saving space for some future expansion plan, either that or land must have been quite cheap there.

Anyway, in my short time there, I managed to squeeze in some time to meet Julian who is working with Marriott, Puxi. Had dinner with him on the 38^th floor of his hotel (the hotel starts on floor 38). Coincidently I found out that his older brother was working in the same office as me, and by chance was sitting next to me in our temporary office. Just that he happened to be away on business in the first week I was there. Small world indeed. And also found out on Monday that Steven was in Shanghai for business. Too bad didn’t have time to meet up.

All in all, the trip was an eye opener. Imagine the city when 2010 approaches. I’m sure it will be more than ready to welcome the world then for the World Expo.

In the city of 16 Million Chinese

It's day four here in Shanghai, training ended early today so we are just sitting here reading our mails. Outside our building here in 'Wai Gao Qiao', the drizzle has not stop since morning, so it's pretty cold and breezy to be out. The temp here has been around 5 to 8 degC.

Sightseeing has mainly been limited to Shopping and Eating areas so far. We have been to Yu Garden (Yu Yuan),Yatai Market, and Nanjing Road. Let's see whether I can make a trip to the Bund in the next two days.

For tomorrow, I will be making a trip up to Suzhou which is about 1 1/2 hours from Shanghai to visit to our plant there.

Ok, that's the brief update for now. Will update more next when I go back.

Middle Kingdom beckons

I'll be off to Shanghai in a couple more hours. It's an early flight out of Singapore.This trip will officially be my first trip to the Middle Kingdom. One of the hazards of my new job.

The week has passed pretty quickly. Work has been good so far. No assignments yet, just lots of reading and catching up, including a full day orientation at the main plant. Lunchtime has been the highlights of each day. Eating at affordable eateries around Raffles Place and Orchard has been quite an exploration.

Preparing for the trip has also kept me occupied. From application of Visa to finding the best places to exchange Reminbi and especially the search for decent Winter Clothing, which has taken me to Robinsons, John Little, OG, Jurong East (WinterTime) and IMM (Cold Wear).

Along the week, I managed to squeeze in some time to watch the highly anticipated '300' on Thursday. The movie certainly didn't dissapoint.

Ok, it's late. Better catch some sleep before the early wake up tomorrow.

Mountain Tortoise, City Fish

It’s just the third day into my new job but I’m still slowly absorbing the changes.

Call me ‘Sua Ku’ (or backward) but this is the first time I’m actually working in the city, right smack in the business district. I’ve seen the Raffles Place folks before, the way they swarm into the MRT station or pour out into the open places above the station, but it’s different to be among their number. It’s like swimming in a school of Atlantic Herring.

The workplace is different too. The view from the 17^th floor beats the scenery in Jurong Industrial Estate anytime. And I know why people are willing to work longer hours in the city. it’s partly because they know that they’re surrounded by a thriving and happening night scene with pretty lighted buildings and ornate lamp posts lining the pathways, not dreary warehouses and empty streets.

Food is in abundance too. I think the city office people are way too spoilt. Food is available in every shape and form. Prices cater to the misers as well as the big spenders. And they have big tall skyscrapers to shade them from the sun.

Well, I better enjoy it while I can because in three weeks my office is shifting to the heartlands. My colleagues are already dreading the move. I guess I will miss the air up there too.

Housewarming

We finally had a housewarming on Sunday, inviting friends over for a simple lunch buffet. The turn out was overwhelming, not that we mind. For the little effort we spent in sprucing up the house and arranging for catering, we were blessed with the company of friends, over a few hours, on a warm (then rainy) Sunday afternoon.

We didn’t expect so many housewarming gifts too. Now we have a pair of oven toasters, a pair of electrical steamboat sets, many useful shopping vouchers, and a small wine & liquor collection.

*******

House Blessing

“May the roof above us never fall in.
And may the friends gathered below it never fall out”

Josh takes on the Big Red Party

Hey, Josh here. I’m writing on behalf of my Uncle Ben who is down with post-CNY blues (or is it an overdose of prawn rolls?).

Anyway this was only my second Chinese New Year celebrations. I think it is still an excuse to dress me up in bright coloured suits and to get visiting aunties to pinch my cheeks red. I still don’t understand why people keep passing me these red packets. And the exploding ‘faiya-wuks’ really scares the ‘poo’ out of me.

So this year, we came over to Kong Kong’s house on the evening of the first day. It was a whirlwind of activities after that. There were visits to relatives where che ches and ko kos fussed around me, and big adult uncles and aunties who took turns carrying me around.

Me and a few of my cousins

At Kong Kong’s place I have my basket of toys that keeps me entertained. There’s this set of construction toys that I love, especially the ‘buh-dozah’. And there’s the TV that plays my favourites shows. I have graduated from Elmo and his Sasame Street gang to ‘Bah-ney’ and Thomas the train. I just need to shout out the name of the shows and somebody will pop the VCD into the player. I don’t even have to figure out the remote control. How cool is that!

Check out my Truck, Digger, and Forklift!

The food is different too during this time. I watch the rest eat this black duck stew almost daily, and there was at times the leftover Satay and the ‘Sio Geng’ rolls. As for me, I enjoy tasting cookies (I usually take a nibble and leave the rest to mummy) and drinking off the yellow packet drinks (sometimes from visitors). And I found a new love in ‘Bak Kua’ that they often kept hidden from me.

I think I will grow to love the Chinese New Year celebrations even more as I grow older. Though I don’t understand why adults claim that it is not so fun for them anymore. Anyway, the celebrations wouldn’t be the same without my family around me. There’s ‘Ah Yi’ Louisa to carry me when I needed a lift, and there’s Uncle Ben to play hide and seek with me. Ah Ma and Kong Kong are the best folks to hang around with, whether to take me for a walk or to read me my favourite books. And there’s Aunty Vicky who introduced her puppy ‘Le Le’ to me, though I had preferred to keep the pup at arms length. And of course there’s my Daddy and Mummy who does all my background work, such as making my porridge, changing my diapers and rocking me to sleep.

Me and my favourite people

It’s great to be a kid during Gong Xi Fa Cai time !

Me and Uncle Ben