St Paul et Vence Video of time we were there.

 

A Visit to St Paul et Vence - unforgettable visit in 2017

 

Cote D'Azur Map with Vence to the NW of Nice 

This is another lovely memory of our 13 day trip to the Cote Azur, Nice, Antibes, Cannes, St Paul de Vence and then on to Italy, Florence and finally Turin before heading back to Nice and onward to Singapore. We left Singapore on 2nd December and returned on 13th December. 

We visited St Paul de Vence on the 3rd day of our trip where we had based ourselves in Nice. The main city of the Cote d'Azur. Taking a tip from the tour guide on the 2nd day, we took the bus from the main city square for approximately EUR 2 and after 30 minutes reached the small village perched on the hilltop. 

Bus with departure times from Nice and to /from St Paul 

It was practically empty the day we visited it, and headed to the Touriste Bureau for directions. Below is the clock tower and the narrow alleyways show how life was like living in close quarters (some 2 meters at best) to the opposite house. December is low season and with few tourists, we had the town most to ourselves. 

Bell Tower of Church at Town Centre 

Beautiful late autumn leaves 

The town is small, perhaps with 100 inhabitants, and many are arts and craft people, I recall buying 2 fabulously good pieces of 3D art from a German couple called Filo and Tess. Their shop is called Atelier Filo Tess. 

Atelier Filo-Tess

8 Monte de la Castro

06570 

St Paul de Vence.

Here below is one of the 2 pieces of 3 D artwork which i bought from them. They are very warm and hospitable people from my short interaction time with them. 

At the top of the village stands the church and now converted to a museum. Inside are displays of some Freemason artist and it was an oasis of calm.  The hand and the dove symbolises peace and love, and unlike many of the churches and cathedrals we visited in the past years, was absent of anything symbolising the Roman Catholic faith so prevalent of Europe in the last 600 years. 

Artwork inside the church at St Paul de Vence.

We also ventured inside the castle of St Paul de Vence to see the history of this small village. Apparently it was fortified to protect against any attacks by the neighbouring county ruled by the Grimaldis, if my history serves me correctly.

St Paul de Vence exactly on the Map 

View of St Paul de Vence Fortifications 

I hope to visit this lovely place at least once more. As it held lots of happy memories for me and my wife, when we visited.

Know the Spread of money when changing money for your trip.

 I am no currency trader. I am just a regular traveller who flies to numerous Asian countries for work in the past and less so nowadays. Let me give you a tip on how to save money when you travel.

If you need to change money, do go to the money changers outside of town area. They have lower operating expenses, and hence can offer you better 'rates'. When I say 'rates', I mean when you change your Singapore dollars to a foreign currency, the 'spread' or the different exchange rates the money changer gives you is smaller than if you were to change at the airport. That is the most expensive and worst place to change money, aside from the banks.

Case in point, let me show you my recent trip to China. I changed money at the last minute at the Prosegur Exchange at the T1 Departure Lounge at Changi on the very day I was to depart to Guangzhou for a business trip. Yes, the airport does offer convenience, because, if you are a busy (or disorganised) person like me (sometimes), you will say, "heck this, its only a few hundred .bucks, how much can I lose anyway ?"

  

            I bought RMB 3100 and paid S$ 593.60 on 4th March '25 

So on the day of my trip, I changed or bought  S$ 593.60 into RMB 3100 for my spending in Guangzhou and Dongguan

The exchange rate, which I paid was S$ 1 = 5.22 

(the interbank rates are closer to S$ 1 = RMB 5.4), so the changer pays a low rate for my Singapore dollar. 

I returned some 5 days later  to Singapore, amazingly I kept my RMB 3100 intact, having spent 0 on the trip (I was taken good care by my Chinese hosts). The next day, I went to the money changer and sold my RMB 3100, this time the money changer sells  me Singapore dollar. I received a sum of S$ 564.20  or S$ 1 = RMB 5.48 or he sells me a high rate for the Singapore dollar.

I sold RMB 3100 on 10 th March back for S$ 564.20 

Hence he makes on the spread, or the difference between S$ 593.60 and S$ 564.20. This translates to close to S$ 30 or S$ 29.60. Thats roughly S$ 5 for every S$ changed to RMB. 

In essence he makes $29.60 divided by $593.60 or almost 5% from changing money for me.

Almost everyone who travels overseas knows it ; so the 'best way' to lose as least as possible is to buy and sell from a money changer who will normally have a smaller 'spread' compared to the airports.

There might be smaller spreads in foreign airports or foreign countries money changers because, their overheads are far lower.

Occasionally from time to time, I will post further money saving tips, my readers and followers. 

Carpe Diem. 

   

Groundbreaking News. Peridontal Disease could be the cause of Alzheimer's Disease

There has been recent groundbreaking news that there is a causal link between Peridontal Disease and Alzheimer's Disease. Alzheimer's patients have peridontal disease but peridontal disease doesn't necessarily lead to Alzheimer's Disease. The message to all my readers and friends, brush when you wake up, brush after meals, floss 2 times a day. There is no time to waste. You can potentially add 10 good quality of life years to your health !

As a person who has initial stages of peridontal disease, I am very cognizant of the fact that I must regularly see my dentist to manage the condition, and this additional risk is another reason for me to see him at least 4 times a year. Below is an extract from the National Institute of Health's website : 

Periodontal disease (PD) is an inflammatory oral disease that affects the supporting structures of the teeth (periodontium), including gingiva, periodontal ligament, cementum, and alveolar bone [1]. The disease results from complex interactions between the dental biofilm and host defense mechanisms. Bacteria and their components like lipopolysaccharides present in the biofilm induce an intensified host inflammatory response. This cascade of inflammatory response damages periodontal structures and leads ultimately to bone loss [1]. Being responsible for disability, speech impairment, low self-esteem, and reduced quality of life, PD has become a major public health concern that burdens the global healthcare system [2].

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder with a prevalence increasing exponentially with age [3,4]. It is characterized by an irreversible degeneration of neurons and neural connections beginning in the hippocampus and extending to the rest of the brain. People affected by Alzheimer's gradually lose cognitive abilities and autonomy. These symptoms consequently lead to advanced dementia and eventually to death. The cognitive decline that leads to AD has been related to two cardinal neuropathological features, beta-amyloid plaques (Aβ) and neurofibrillary tangles [5,6]. The amyloid plaques consist of deteriorating neuronal processes or neuritis, surrounding deposits of a central core protein called amyloid beta (or beta-amyloid). This protein is derived from a larger molecule called amyloid precursor protein, which is a normal component of nerve cells. The neurofibrillary tangle consists of abnormal accumulations of phosphorylated protein, called tau located within nerve cells. This protein is normally present in neurons. Abnormal chemical changes cause tau molecules to form tangles inside neurons.

There is a growing body of evidence in the literature suggesting a potential association between PDs and systemic diseases, particularly atherosclerotic vascular disease, pulmonary disease, diabetes, pregnancy-related complications, osteoporosis, and kidney disease as well as AD [2]. The periodontal medicine concept has been proposed to study the interrelationship between oral and systemic health. The presence of periodontal pathogens and their metabolic by-products may contribute to the body’s overall inflammatory burden, thus promoting the development of systemic conditions [2,7,8]. It has been suggested that periodontal pathogens could promote initiation or exacerbation of systemic diseases either by entering the bloodstream (bacteremia) or by stimulating an immuno-inflammatory response through the systemic release of toxins and local inflammatory mediators such as cytokines, prostaglandins, and serum antibodies into the bloodstream [2,7,8].

Most studies have indicated that Alzheimer's patients suffer from impaired oral health, a high incidence of PD, and an affected quality of life. These oral manifestations have been justified by the cognitive and motor deficits related to AD, compromising dental care and the maintenance of proper dental hygiene [9-18].

Authors have also suggested that PD may be a risk factor for AD. Hypotheses are mainly based on the involvement of periodontal pathogens and their virulence factors in the pathogenesis and progression of Alzheimer's, either by direct invasion of brain tissue or by indirect action of the bacterial load and pro-inflammatory mediators in systemic circulation [19-22]. Thus, following the elevation of the systemic inflammatory response, periodontal infection would contribute to cerebral and vascular pathologies by altering brain function and, as a result, worsen the neurodegenerative process characterizing AD [19-29].

The purpose of our systematic review was to evaluate how is PD related to the onset and progression of AD and to determine whether patients with PD would be at greater risk of developing AD compared to periodontally healthy subjects.

Farewell Gene Hackman - my favourite character actor in the 70s and 80s.

 

     Gene Hackman died on 27th Feb 2025, aged 93 together with his wife and dog                                                                              

During my formative years in the late 70s till the early 90s, I loved to watch American movies as the country then was the global leader in soft power. Nowadays, US has denigraded its aura to something akin to a 3rd world country, with so much negative news and has seen a massive drop in the standard of living for millions of ordinary Americans. The ills of the so called richest country on earth are plenty that something like the top 5% live in absolute luxury and the bottom 50% live paycheck to paycheck, and up to 15% are homeless. 

Drug use is endemic in practically all major cities, gang warfare is rampant, and the average life expectancy of American male is 7 years shorter than the average Singaporean male.

Back to the 70s, 80s and early 90s, Hollywood churned out many blockbuster movies of the 2nd World War, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Wild West to the millions of impressionable Asians who were just coming out poverty and were fed the staple of US action, love and disaster movies.

I recall Gene Hackman, as first portrayed as General Sosarowlski, the Polish General in the epic movie "A Bridge Too Far". His acting was superb and he led the doomed Polish Brigade at Arnhem which was decimated by the Germans upon landing. There were like 20 top name stars in that era who acted in that movie such as Lawrence Olivier, Sean Connery, Elliot Gould, Robert Redford, James Caan, Liv Ullman, Dirk Brogade and Ryan O'Neal to name just a few.  I have easily watched this movie a dozen times, and still find it so entertaining till this day. 

The other standout movie of his, Mississippi Burning, was with  his portrayal of the FBI agent Mr. Rupert Anderson (he was the partner of Mr. Ward played by Willem Defoe). The movie, one of my all time favourites, was about when the FBI investigated the killing of 3 civil rights movement activists in Jessup County Mississippi at the height of the MLK movement for more c9ivil rights for black people especially in the deep South, in the 60s.

Finally, he played the villain to great effect, when he played the Sheriff of a small town, in Clint Eastwood's hit cowboy movie "Unforgiven" about a former hired killer, who came back to seek revenge for the killing of his wife and family by the deputies of that small town. He earned his second Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for that movie. 

He rose to fame I believe in the movie "French Connection" which I have yet to watch.Another one thing I need to see or do for my bucket list.

Mr. Hackman, a salute to you sir, you formed many good impressions of the US everyman in my formative years. Thank you for that. 

   

QRA International Test Lab 1 Video

 

QRA International has 2 Labs in Singapore providing Accelerated Aging Services and Shelf Life Services for Biomedical and Biotechnology companies in Asia and Internationally. Since 2015 we have been providing good quality aging and shelf life testing services complete with reports to the satisfaction of many clients.

For more details, please visit 

www.qra.com.sg

and a friendly technical sales staff will attend to all your enquiries.

 

 

Day 5 Chinese New Year Venue by Sebastien - Desserts

 

Tiramisu 

This is the second post of two for the Venue by Sebastien, a truly exception 'canteen' situated at Downtown Gallery OUE Building Shenton Way. My son chose the Tiramisu, which didn't disappoint, the texture was something else and the cheese was just nice. 

Pistachio Financier 

The Pistachio Financier was the highlight and a very nice way to end the meal. The texture was firm and yet springy, while the cream and the pistachios were just amazing.

If you want to try great French or International fusion foods in downtown Shenton Way, this is the place.

Please remember to book in advance online to avoid disappointment. 

Venue by Sebastien.

01-02 Downtown Gallery,

6A Shenton Way

Singapore 068815.