The Thinking Man's cartoon - Argyle Sweater

          This cartoon is normally a single strip featuring just 1 picture so the cartoonist Scott Hillburn has to 'catch' the reader's funny bone (or humerus) and make him see the pun or hilarity in his prose.

          Not easy and not all the time funny. This I found hit the spot just right. 

Lao Ban Bean Curd versus Tiong Bahru Teck Seng Bean Curd

                                              Maxwell Road Lao Ban Soya Bean Curd 


                                     

Tiong Bahru Bean Curd 

        Singapore is a foodie's haven and today's post is comparing 2 best bead curd dishes I have eaten. The top one is called Lao Ban Soya Bean Curd, the original hawker stall was at Old Airport Road hawker center and the queues there were easily about 45 minutes to 1 hour long.

       I bought 2 bowls yesterday 10th Oct of these from Maxwell Road's branch, and tried them, the curd is smooth once the top layer is broken into, there is a sweetness to the bean curd and the flabour is apparent. The price per bowl if I recall is $1.50. Not cheap by any means. 

      The second photo above is from Tiong Bahru's Tiong Seng Bean Curd, the stall is somewhere to the right of the hawker center on 2nd level. We have been eating this for the longest time every sunday after the wife does the marketing and it is cheap and good. The bean curd is dished out from the plastic bins and lathered with syrup. Price for a large bowl is $0.90 and a small bowl costs $0.80. The bean curd is very smooth in texture however, the flavour is milder compared to Lao Ban's bean curd. We had 2 bowls of this today 11th October for breakfast.  

Verdict : Lao Ban is better for taste, but more pricy at $1.50 per bowl. Tiong Bahru Teck Seng is better for texture and cheaper at $0.90 per large bowl.   

Pasta which is Tasty and Fast to cook ; Pasta 101 at Chevron House Basement Food Court

                                         Eating Pasta on a Swing outside Raffles Place on a bright sunny 
                                                                October afternoon
                                                         Taken on 9th Oct 2015

       Today, my friend Hans Brys opened his shop called Pasta 101 at the basement food court of Chevron House at Raffles Place. He has a range of fast to cook pastas ranging from Penne, Linguini and Spaghettini. Price for starters are $  6.50 per box and add $1.00 for extra sauce with chicken, ham, cheese and tomato. Drinks are priced at $1.00 to 2.00 for a bottle or can, very reasonable. The shop is located next to the Indian fast food and Mexican fast food and has attracted already some curious first time customers. 

       I bought a box and it was delivered to me in less than 1 minute. The key to his food tasting so good is in the sauces which are imported from Belgium. I devoured the entire box within a short time, and I delighted to say that in my biased opinion, the pasta is going to be a winner.

                                            Basement of Chevron House, Pasta 101 

      
                                                           Hans, way to go !! 

Ann Siang Hill and its Treasures

                                                Taken from the top of Ann Siang Hill 
                                                                10th Oct 2015 

       After such a hefty breakfast of chicken rice at Maxwell Road Hawker Center, what better way to burn off the excess calories than to take a stroll up the Ann Siang Hill ? I decided to do just that and round out that the Hill was named after a famous Businessman philantropist, Chia Ann Siang. He was one of the most successful Hokkien traders of the early 20th century and bought the entire hill from the then Governor of Singapore.

       The roads surrounding Ann Siang hIll are peppered with small shophouse style establishments featuring many Food and Beverage outlets with fanciful names such as L Angelus (French fine food), Los Primos (Spanish tapas and drinks) and Gugini (Italian trappatoria) all lined side by side.

3 Fine Restaurants Side by Side.  

Gugini Trattoria and Pizzeria 

L Angelus - Fine French Dining 

                          Los Primos Restaurant and Tapas Bar ; try the Iberico Ham with Sangria

                                     At the Top of Ann Siang Hill 10th Oct 2015 

      Where else in the world would you find culinary establishments from easily 10 countries from UK, Germany, Continental Europe, Middle Eastern and Asia all within a 5 minute walk from each other ? None other than Club Street and Ann Siang Hill !! 

     

Maxwell Road's Hawker Centre Tian Tian Chicken Rice

                       S$ 3. 50 for a small plate ; $ 5.00 for Medium and S$ 7.00 for Large

        The Maxwell Road Hawker Centre is a magnet for tourists from all over the world ; In it there are world famous hawkers such as Tian Tian Chicken Rice which has been featured in Anthony Bourdain's "No Reservations" as well as Gordon Ramsey's famous Hawker Center Cook - Off (taking a leaf from the famous Dance - Off in Hip Hop).

         Somewhere in the center of the Hawker Center, the Tian Tian stall always attracts queues from lots of tourists and some locals daily. They are open from 10.00 am till the chicken runs out ; the famous boiled Hainanese Chicken rice is the "piece de la resistance"
so to speak.

         Living in Singapore surely has its upsides, one of which is that it is a food lover's paradise. Here you can buy a meal for only $3.00 which is described by many food afficiandos as "world class". 

        Coming back to the plate of chicken rice, I feel the rice was especially fragrant, the grains were separate and nice texture, but the chicken in my opinion was a let down.  The boiled chicken (without the chicken sauce) just "so - so" ; there was no fragrance or much taste, though it was tender and succulent. I would give it at best a 6.5 upon 10. The chicken was drowned in the gravy which was thick and most people would find it appealing, but true chicken rice does not come with the sauce. 

        The real test is in the chicken. I personally prefer the Boon Tong Kee chicken at United Square or even the Big Bird at Balmoral Plaza for their  flavourful chicken but at Big Bird's, their rice is rather clumpy and not as good as Tien Tien's. 

       I ordered a separate plate of stir fried bean sprouts with some challots ; that was OK,
for S$ 2.00

      Verdict : Tien Tien well, if you want to try authentic Hainanese Chicken Rice, it is good for first time starters.   

The Case for Karate

Just a gimmick ; breaking bricks 

      Karate is a self defence martial art, originating from Okinawa island in the late 1800s, it has been around for about 150 years and there are 4 main schools, Shotokan, GoJyun, Shitoryu and Wadoryu. The discipline which I have been practising for the last 12 - 13 years and the also for 7 years in chilhhood is the Shitoryu, namely from the master Kenwa Mabuni.

       Our chief instructor is Sensei Chia Kwek Fah, an 8th dan Hanshi who has over 50 years of karate training.He is in his late 60s is as fit as a fiddle and as flexible as a gymnast. He is the technical consultant, founder and sensei of our Ken Shin Kai club since 1997 based in Tanglin CC and with a subsidiary dojo at the National University of S'pore Alumni Club at Kent Ridge Guild House.  

Idoshigyi or movement 

         Karate is more than a martial art, to differentiate it from the new more 'sexy' sports like kickboxing and Mixed Martial Arts which is nothing more than trained street fighting, karate is a way of life, and the actual translation means 'empty hand fighting'. 

          The development of karate has seen much evolution of the martial art but the true essence of the art is about discipline, form, function and self defence. No karateka goes out to make trouble, and we have very strict codes of conduct from the 'rei' bowing to seniors and the 'moksuk' or meditation which also delves into the spirit of the karateka.

        The training 'gi' or uniform harks back to the old days of feudal Japan where each school trained the students to fight to the death, hence the wearing of while 'funeral clothes' in the event of death - with honour of course.   

                                            Teaching the dojo at Tanglin CC Sept 2015 

        I am taking the 2nd dan exam in a couple of months time, so I hope to understand more about this centuries old art and the philosophy and way of life which is still being practised by millions around the world today, 

My Saints 'Boys' from Class of '78 (Sec 4)

      From Left to Right round the table : Specs Pang Seng Meng, White shirt : Albert Heng, Apparoo Surendran, Me, Michael Tan Joo Liang (specs), Chew Ping Nan (white shirt and organiser), Dr. Jeffrey Kuan, Andrew Lee, Kenneth Fong, Chandrakanth Mahawar, S. Thulasidas, unknown, Paul James Ezekiel.  

      As I hit my '50s ; there is a more urgent need to reconnect with the friends of my youth, which are the 'boys' from St Andrew's Primary and Secondary. So every year (or 2), my friend Ping Nan, faithfully rounds up the Usual Gang of Suspects (who are the 'boys' of the class of '78 Sec 4 Saint Andrews) and we make every effort to go Back to School and reacquaint ourselves with teachers of old, the classrooms and of course our long lost 'band of brothers' whom we played marbles with at the school yard, swung by the Banyan tree beside the school, played truant with the then discipline master Mr. Victor Wee, played mid afternoon soccer in the school field and coming in to class stinking to high heaven.

     These are what our collective memories were made of. We cannot go back but we can always reconnect and have a laugh about the 'good old times'. While some people think aging and growing old is scary, it is a rite of passage of life, so we need to accept life, as well as death and the ups and downs which we are given in heaps and doses.

      Are there 'winners' in life ? Or are there 'losers' ?  I am still pondering that question today. But in the meantime I cherish every meeting with my old 'bros' of yesteryear.