Artwork from Sydney Australia, the Rocks 2001

                                         Our seashell framed artwork from Sydney, 2001

      This beautiful piece of artwork, showcasing the seashells taken off some beaches in Australia was bought at the Farmer's market at the Rocks, Sydney, I believe in 2001.
I was there with my wife and 2 sons on a family holiday and we were enthralled by this piece which occupies the pride of place at our living room.

      The artist who was a Singaporean but now an Australian, is a very well travelled and weathly person, from what we could gather talking with him. He had met many Singaporean top ministers and officials by virtue of his family. 

      The piece depicts all the different seashells and pasted on a sandy background. It provides the viewer a very calming experience. 

Geccopaige (egg shell) artwork from Ho Chih Minh City, Vietnam

                                                           Fisherman Night Fishing

        I bought this painting after a trip to Ho Chih Minh city in Vietnam in 2008. It is made from crushed eggshells and then glued onto the paint board after which the painting is done, and a final lacquer finish is layered over it.

       I actually bought 3 such paintings and gave 2 away to my good friends in Hungary and Slovenia when I visited them that year.

                                          Outside the famous Rex Hotel, HCM City


      The factory is located outside the city, and the workers are all victims of the horrendous Agent Orange (chemical warfare) bombing of the Vietnam war, there are people with some degree of blindness, limb deformation and the factory is one way to get them out of poverty providing art pieces, and generating some earned income.

      This art piece has pride of place in my home, I forgot how much I paid for it, but the satisfaction gained from looking at the painstaking effort to create such a piece is priceless.

Some Fruits is now part of my Breakfast Everyday

                                              Fruit Basket of 27th September 2015 

        Every Sunday, without fail, my wife and I make a beeline, together with our maid, to the Tiong Bahru open air market to purchase fresh fish, pork, chicken, vegetables and fruits. the whole exercise in the morning takes 1 to 1 and half hours depending on the busyness of the fish vendors who are doing a roaring trade every weekend.

        My task, has been to purchase fruits, and my normal stall is the corner large stall run by a family of 5, grandma, parents and 2 grown children. The young lady is studying at the NUS while the young man is serving his National Service. During weekends, they help out with the family business.

      This past Sunday I bought from them, Duku (some sweet brown fruit), plums from Korea, 2 avacados, mandarin oranges, Peckham pears, normal orange skinned pears, bananas, and small 'kum' or kumquats, which are very sweet and provide lots of Vit C nutrition.

     I have made a habit to eat fruits for breakfast as a) it helps in my digestion, and b) it is easy to digest first thing in the morning c) It gives me plenty of good bowel movement.

    I have made a concious decision to stay away from fried foods as much as I can, and taking steamed, grilled, porridges, soups as more of my main effort to remain healthy in this very unhealthy atmosphere with the haze hitting 240 yesterday.

    Take plenty of water, eat lots of fruits with meals and get enough sleep. That is my antidote to a healthy life. Oh, and minimise stress down to a manageable level. 

      

My Peanuts Cartoon Character !

                                                     Marco from Peanuts Comic Strip ;

      There is this Uber Cool software trending on Facebook whereby you can cartoonise yourself using the characters from Peanuts (Joe Schultz creator). Such a cool app, I must add. Try it out.
You choose your eyes, nose,eyebrows, mouth, hair, jacket, watch apparel, skin tone, pants and shoes.

                                                     This is supposed to be Me !!!

Travelling Days

At the Botanical Gardens Giessen, 2008 

Representing a top German brand Weiss from 1994 till 2012, I have had ample opportunity to travel to Europe, in particular Germany, many times. I have lost count, but easily 20 times or roughly once per year to Germany. The factory is located at the outskirts of the town of Giessen, and it is roughly a 45 minute ride from the Frankfurt Flughafen (airport).

The town is typical of many small towns in Germany, and lately I have noticed a very International flair to the population, with many Asians residing there, what with the Giessen University being a major draw, and the recent influx of migrants from Middle East and Africa making their presence felt. 

Atop the Tower overlooking Giessen town, Germany 2008

The people of this town have known international visitors for the longest time, I believe Weiss is one of the largest employers of the town and we have had international visitors since the early 90s. While I miss the international friends from the Worldwide Sales trainings of the past, I still am in touch with a good many on Facebook and social media, so interconnected is this world.

We now represent a HK and S Korean brand, so I have had much less opportunities to travel on business since 2011 to Europe. Hope this will change soon, as my company is now on the cusp of representing a Spanish brand from Barcelona. I cant wait to rekindle all my friendships with friends from UK, Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary, Slovenia and Czech Republic.  

At Chiang Mai Night Bazaar 2009 

    This year 2015 is a banner year heralding a new beginning for my business, with the worldwide economy in the downtrend, we are taking conservative steps to make sure we remain relevant and most importantly profitable for the years ahead. 

    Else, its time for a new change in direction. 

Cheers to new friends and treasure the long time friends

                                                 With Fang Kim Soon  and Hans Brys

       In my life, I am fortunate to acquaint myself with many people thanks to my business, hobbies, family, old school friends and travels. So here are 2 of my friends. This was taken on Sept 17th at Il Fiore, at Straits Trading Building Battery Road.

       I have known Hans for almost 2 years, I got to know him through Fang Kim Soon, an ex-banker from Societe Generale based in Hong Kong for the last 20 years. Hans is now in the food business, and very keen to get his pasta business off to a good start. It is called Pasta 101 and located at the basement of Chevron House, and his shop will start operations in October 2015. 

Hans booth was originally at the East Coast Park near C2 carpark 

  he has since relocated it to Chevron House in Oct 2015

      Using a specially prepared pasta sauce from Belgium, his pasta can be made in 1 minute and you can add your condiments and fillings such as cheese, chicken, ham.  My sons who have tried the take -out find it tasty, and at $7.50 per packet, it is good fast food at a decent price, with a great sauce to boot.

      Hans is originally from Belgium, and has extensive contacts in the Food and Beverage industry as well as in the music (CDs) business more than 20 years ago. He is married to a Singaporean and has lived here almost 20 years.  He is a doer, and is willing to try out new ventures aggressively.

     Wish you the Best of Business Luck, Hans !!! 

      Fang Kim Soon I have known since University days, 3rd year to be exact ; that is 30 years ago ! We were students from the then Nanyang Technological Institute, now University and had a ball of a time, living the undergraduate life playing football, triathalons, University debates, waterpolo and studies at the campus off Jalan Bahar.

      Kim Soon went off to Hong Kong to work, first as a dealer, then a broker, then went into general management for investment banks such as Soc Gen and UBS. He came back to Singapore in 2013, and is now a partner for his own head-hunting firm. 

        

                                      In Hong Kong 2008, had a lovely lunch at Lei 
                                      Chiu Chow Restaurant in Hutchinson House


     We have kept in touch over the years, and I treasure the fun times we had as well as the opportunities to do small business ventures together such as my health supplements, whereby I got to know Hans. 

    To my good friends and acquaintences, making money is not the be all and end all of life. 
  
     As Winston Churchill once famously said : "success is the ability to move from one failed venture to another with enthusiasm ". We seldom are successful in everything we do, so on balance, let us live life and manage what it throws to us good and bad. For then we will have truly experienced a full life. 
                 

Good Steak Restaurants in Singapore

Wooloomooloo at Raffles City Level 3 

                                           The Sirloin Steak is tender, juicy and very flavourful

My family are a bunch of meat-eaters. I qualify that. My 2 sons and I are maet eaters. My wife enjoys a good steak once in a while, but both the elder son Noel and younger son Andrew love a well cooked steak every few months. My wife is the authority on food and taste, so we normally follow her food recommendations.  

So here is in my humble biased opinion the top 5 steak restaurants in Singapore :

1. Bisteca - 25 Mohammad Sultan Road Shophouse ;

    Italian run, the steaks are very flavourful and cured letting the blood to flow after cutting for a duration of 2 days. Our favourites are the striploin and ribeye, medium well. Price is very expensive, so for a family of 4 ; be prepared to pay in the region of $100 per person.

2. Bar Rogue - Amara Hotel ;

     French Chef  Christohpe Istel has struck a winner here. ; the steaks offered are 
American Wagyu beef and the Grilled Lamb served on a platter are nothing short of melt in your mouth, and try their starters grilled free range chicken or burata cheese.
Service on the whole was excellent ; we have been there 3 times already, and each time the service was attentive, recommendations by the maitre 'd was excellent.   

     Price Range : $ 70 -  $100 per pax. 

3. Wooloomooloo - Raffles City ; 3rd Floor  (see photo above)

    Australian themed, but HK managed, it has a subsidiary (lower cost) restaurant called the Chop House at Vivocity. The Striploin, Ribyeye and the Woloomooloo steak are recommended. Entres, try the crab cakes, and if really hungry there is the T - bone steak for 2 but easily 4 people could have trouble finishing it ! We have been here 4 times, and the steaks are big on size, taste, tender and mostly juicy. The head maitre 'd is from Australia and he lends a very classy air to the restaurant. 

    For desert, the brownie is their signature sous dish. 

    Price is easily $ 80 to  $150 depending on what you order. 

4. Lawry's Prime Rib - Mandarin Opera 

    I had a set lunch with my son Andrew, the steaks are cut off the wagon and super 
    succulent and flavourful. Not grilled too dry and huge cuts. The oysters Kilpatrick are also     a 'must try'.  

    Price Range : $ 60 to 80 per person 

5. Raffles Long Bar Steak Restaurant 

                                                        Awaiting their dinner

                                       Ribeye US and Ribeye Australian Medium Well

Sirloin Steak Medium Well

      This is located on 2nd Floor of the iconic Raffles Hotel. Prices are steep at about $100 to 120 person and the steaks are grilled slightly on the dry side, so I rank these at No. 5. On the whole the 4 restaurants above are really top class, and Raffles comes in at No. 5 by virtue of it not being a specialist Steak House. 

      Try these 5 restaurants and I would be happy to know if you have your other personal choices. 

     

Seize the Day ; 10K today at deserted East Coast Park with clear blue skies

                                                           Last Year's Marathon 2014


          Today was a beautiful haze free day. I decided to go for a 10K run, after 2 over weeks of being cooped up indoors due to the murky unbreathable haze emnating from our neighbour Indonesia's slash and burn concessions which have made the skies above Singapore, Malaysia and much of Sumatra and Kalimantan look like the London 'fog' but not in any way romantic or caused by water condensation.

          Indeed the haze is disrupting many Singaporeans' lives outdoors not to mention the extreme discomfort to the old, elderly and people with respiratory problems like asthma and lung infections.
Enough with the grumbling, so today I made a beeline to East Coast Park seafood centre and reached there by 11am. The skies were sunny and clear, the park was devoid of many people, who decided to take more rest at home rather than risk a sudden haze attack whereby the PSI Pollutant Standards Index rises intermittently from the healthy to very unhealthy range in just 3 hours.

         Starting off at the (closed) Ski 360 centre, I headed past the East Coast Hawker Centre, Skate Park, Bedok Jetty, Sunset bar and towards the Outward Bound Centre and Go Kart Center in the distance. A cool breeze from the South East was uplifting and I maintained a steady 6 mins 20 secs pace per km. All the way past the Sailing Center, and to the Tanah Merah SAFRA Bungalows where I stopped for about 45 seconds catching the scenery and the fellow brave walkers,runners, cyclists and campers.

     For the Record Saturday Sept 26th 2015 ; East Coast Park Seafood Restaurants - 
                                             Tanah Merah NSRCC Bungalow Chalets Return

               Start Time : 11:03 am ; Finish 12. 07 pm. 45 secs rest ; Total Run Time : 63 
                       minutes 27 secs. Pace : 6 mins 20 secs per km. Distance : 10 KM. 

        Heading back was more of the same, nice breeze uplifted me, and I had this cool song by Little River Band which was playing in my head, the chorus was especially meaningful : "I know that this sounds selfish, but let me breathe the air !!! "

       When even the air that we breathe is not often of good quality, I am thankful to never take life for granted, even the simple things like clean water, fresh air and a safe and sound environment. All these can lost in a short span of time. It is timely that in the near future, with the world economy teetering and China's growth crawling, we have to take stock, hold on the the little that we have, reduce debt and press on with our plans in a conservative way regardless of whatever comes.

      Good times will come again, I am sure of it. In the meantime, I have just seized the day and enjoyed a good 10 K run under clear blue skies. What a privilege !!  

Haze ; A real nightmare

       The recent 1 and a half months has been a tragedy of sorts for many people living in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. The region has been blanketed in smoke caused by irresponsible burning of forests (slash and burn) from concsession owners in Sumatra and Java.

      The Transboundary Action Plan on Haze had been setup in ASEAN since 2003, also the Transboundary Haze Protection Act has been set up in 2014. Today, 2015, there is little intergovernmental cooperation between ASEAN member states, although Indonesia has been active in trying to bring the perpetrators who persist in the illegal burning to justice, through massive fines, or complete boycott of the products from these concessions, which normally produce paper products.

   The problem is compounded by the El Nino phenomenon, which the world has been experiencing hotter summers and dryer weather hence causing massive forest fires ranging from California to Indonesia. Many of these concession owners also state that the fires are not started by them but by small farmers and then the spread of the wildfire gets out of control. The small farmers in turn point their fingers at the large concessions. While it is true the fires, once started, even by a dry spell, can cause havoc in a matter of minutes, this event, man made or natural has been occuring time and again over and over for the last 18 years !!!

       This problem is almost 2 decades  old. Since 1997, the Haze has been making a comeback every few years that people are resigned to living in this murky mess year after year. Health problems due to smoke inhalation will cause short and long term problems such as running noses, teary eyes,  lung infection, and possibly cancer caused by carcinogens in the air.

       Surely, the Indonesian Government can take proactive measures, such as early cloud seeding, or look into other ways to control this man made catastrophe ?  It is coming to 20 years and we are no better than when the first haze started in 1997 ?

       Appropriate preemptive Action from the authorities must be done and be seen to be done. ASEAN will be reduced to a toothless tiger if it can't even solve this year after year.

Still Active in Karate - Sept 20th 2015

                                                                      Sept 20th 2015

         At the ripe young age of 52, I am still maintaining a fitness regimen which is getting tougher with each passing year. To be honest, I do not feel young, the young people whom I meet at the Tanglin CCs, though they try their hardest to get through the class with me, I believe their recovery rate is much faster than mine.

       By the end of this year, I hope to achieve the 2nd Dan of Shitoryu karate, under Sensei Chia Kwek Fah. Sensei Chia holds the accomplished 'Hanshi' title from the ISKU and was conferred recently the 8th Dan for his contribution to the martial art in Singapore and internationally.  

       I have been practising the martial art for 13 years in adult life (since 2002) and perhaps 7 years in my boyhood days (1960s till '76), so its a grand total of almost 20 years. In the 60s and 70s, it was held at the YMCA in Palmer Road and training was really tough on the body. 

      Seize the Day. Grasp every minute of it with vigour, for we will one day be no more.