Chapter 13
Birds,  Bars, Bistros  and Betting........

Off to the bird park we went, taking public transport over one hour west to visit Jurong Bird Park. Sitting at the front of the upstairs section of the double decker bus was rather enjoyable though! (Birdseye view?)
This park is 50 acres in size, and as you would expect beautiful lush gardens are a feature as well as the exhibits. The hop on-hop off tram does a lap, which helps with want you want to see. The park opened in 1971, with contributions from 12 countries, 7 zoos and 49 private donors. There are now over 9000 birds. The flamingos were our favourite! Great legs!

It has been a bonus that Philip's membership of the Melbourne Cricket Club entitles him to reciprocal rights with the Singapore Cricket Club.  We went for a drink in the Stumps bar, then had dinner on the verandah of the Oval bistro  while watching  the final throws of a match. A couple of dropped catches had Philip on the edge of his seat, wishing he could don the whites and join in!  It was a mild still evening and very relaxing watching the sun go down and the covers come out. The club, the second oldest in Singapore,  was established in 1852 with 28 members, and sits at the centre of the city's colonial heart, with the open playing space called the Padang. It truly is a piece of history frozen in time.  Old world English charm, timber panelled walls, leather chairs and "The Times" newspaper! Whilst being a Singapore club with traditional local foods, there are menu items like cottage pie, fish and chips, and roast on a Sunday.

SCC Bar

View back to SCC from middle of Padang

After misplacing "Uncle Foongs" business card (the masseur we met many months ago at a hawker market), it appeared from the bottom of my handbag.  I think it was hiding below the kitchen sink I had in there!  It was most timely as Philip needed a chill out and break from what has now developed into a merging of week days and weekends with work issues. We both had an hour massage, and floated home. 

The Pan Pacific hotel here has had a major revamp, with one of their restaurants, "Edge", getting quite amazing revues, so we had to try it.  It is described as a theatrical and interactive dining space that offers a culinary tour of the Pacific rim. There are seven open kitchens cooking Chinese, Malay,  Indian, Singaporean, Japanese, Thai, and Australian/American. You get to chat to the chefs as they cook what you have selected.  
Then there's the dessert section. Thought of you Sal!
I only had room for a tiny spoonful of Creme Brûlée but, hey, Philip did it proud, nearly diving into the chocolate fountain, with his marshmallow on a stick. (Vicar of Dibley came to mind!)
We had a table near the window, so saw the lights go out for Earth Hour (23/03).  Strange to see the Singapore Flyer moving slowly without its multi-coloured pods lit.

Just prior to submersion

With everything close at hand, it is easy to choose what type of cuisine you feel like for a meal and head in that direction.  So we did a return visit to Arab St for a weekend lunch. Found a great place called Bergs, tucked down Haji Lane, offering a selection of really different gourmet burgers. A tiny place with about a dozen seats, and just slightly bigger than a hole in the wall!  I selected a vegetarian one called "Good Falla" , which consisted of falafel, avocado, lemon mayo and lettuce.  Philip chose a boys burger with meat and cheese.  We thought about having the specialty of the house called Budgie Smuggler only momentarily! They assured us it was chicken, but didn't risk it!

And the new restaurants keep appearing! We partake of one, and three more are added onto our list! "Stop Googling Annie",  I hear you all say!
"Keep eating"...... we say to each other! 
Lots of local tailors close by if we need  to let out seams and add buttons, which is a good back up plan.

We had an "Ooh La La" evening at a French bistro called O Batignolles in Club Street, Chinatown. Marble topped tables, rattan chairs and large black and white french pics on the wall added to the gallic charm.  We sat outside at this casual but sophisticated corner bistro with our french fare, soaking up the quaint location. It felt distinctively Parisian.   We sampled a charcuterie and cheese  platter and Quiche Lorraine with our Sancerre red from Burgundy! Antoine the waiter was very cute, and very French! (from Aix-en-Provence)  A short stroll afterwards revealed many more places to visit! Running out of time now!!

Two more bars with a view that we visited were ME@OUE. This was on the 19th floor of the OUE building in the heart of the business district. This looked at Marina Bay and the hotel and shopping centre. The second bar was called Orgo. This bar was atop the Esplanade Theatre and looked, again, over Marina bay towards the business district. Different perspectives, and both wonderful views. 

Drinks at ME@OUE

Our wedding anniversary at the end of March (31/03/13)  had to be a memorable day, so a day at the races sounded like a good idea! The Singapore Turf Club, founded in 1842, is the only horse racing club in Singapore and is extremely easy to get to,  with the train dropping you at the front gate.  An entry fee of $6 each sounded like good value, as too the $5 lunch.  We had a few bets and I have to say we were not too serious about choosing the horses, looking at the names, and not their racing pedigree.  A few we chose were Speedy Phil, Dontwastemytime, Thrust, Conquest and Nomoneyatall  which gave us three places at the end of the day. A great day with very helpful staff to guide us novices.

Some of the punters were ecstatic....

 
We celebrated our wedding anniversary at a restaurant called Wooloomooloo, (hard to say that 3 times fast) which was not far from our apartment.  You may think that this restaurant hails from Sydney but it is actually from Hong Kong. Views are Beautiful with a capital "B", as well as elegant and classy.  Aussie sirloin, Aussie Barramundi and a raspberry soufflé rounded off a lovely day.  The NZ Pinot helped too.

We really are feeling Singaporean now, as eating is a national hobby here........fine by us, happy to join in !  

Lots of love,

Annie
XX

Chapter 12
Eating, drinking and the odd tourist attraction....

We have covered a lot here in Singapore, and the list for weekend activities is shorter now. It still involves the odd tourist attraction but climbing to the top of the list now is finding new eateries and bars, and Singapore has endless options! 
One find was a bar on the 55th floor of the Ion building (an amazing shopping centre on Orchard Rd), attached to the restaurant called Salt.  This is owned and operated by Luke Mangan, an Australian from Sydney.  Fantastic 360 deg views of Singapore. Philip again played James Bond with his choice of Martini, while I had a Kir Royale. We then went to a German restaurant called Brotzeit for a schnitzel and potato salad. 

Gluttons Bay (great name isnt it) is yet another hawker place that we visited. Have lost count now how many we have actually been to!  Much smaller, so less to choose from, but delicious all the same.  Lemon chicken, Prawn omelette, satays and of course, Tiger beer! Shared tables had us sitting with an older man from Switzerland whose partner was a local, and way younger. We tried to figure out their association - but he was peeling off $50 notes to her (for food!), and seemed to smile constantly.  Jury is still out on the actual relationship!

I read a review of a new restaurant that I thought worth trying, so Philip and I went on a date. It was called Fordham and Grand, and was situated in Chinatown. The location, although Asian oriented, did not hint at what was behind the very plain facade (big black door, silver plaque and no windows) of a "shophouse" tucked down a side street. Upon entering,  your senses are tantalised by a dimly lit classy interior full of vases of roses, mirrors, and mellow music. The french food was exceptional!  And the bottle of French Pinot the same.  Knowledgable staff a welcome addition.

The Old Ford Factory at Bukit Batok was so interesting and well worth the long journey by bus. The factory (designed by a French architect) is the site of the historic surrender of the British to the Japanese in 1942 at the end of the Battle of Singapore in WW2. The factory was Ford's first motor car assembly plant in SE Asia, however it was soon used to assemble fighter planes by the RAF during this time. It was then taken over by the Japanese as their headquarters. With the fall of Singapore many Australian, British and colonials became POW's.

The factory resumed production of cars in 1947 until it closed in the 1980's.
"History must take a lesson from these times", was a quote carved in a rock as you leave.
It is now shadowed by high rise apartments.
Very compelling stories and photos.

We ventured down the hill from our apt last weekend, about a ten minute walk, and visited the Singapore Art Museum. We only did a quick lap, as it was 'modern art' and not really our cup of tea. We both said it reminded us of the Tate Modern in London, which was a short tour as well. Bit too left of centre for us!
Examples included......a leather armchair shot with arrows? A two metre pile of old hammers welded together? A suspended sword swinging like a pendulum? An aboriginal montage?

Here's where all leftovers from garage sales end up

On a lighter note, we went on a theatrical journey when we attended a performance of Le Noir, a circus spectacular, (an off shoot of Cirque de Soleil). The performance was a breathtaking display of balance, contortion, stamina and aerial artistry. The MC spoke pseudo-French, and was "Chaplin" like in his delivery. 

There was a great deal of audience participation, which was hilarious, as in this part of the world, it does not come naturally to be funny!  It was an intimate arena with the audience enveloping the stage. Our second row seats were right in the action! 

 

We enjoyed a charcuterie platter and a glass of Pinot prior to the show.

Laura arrived in Darwin after driving for six and a half days. The last leg, Alice Springs to Darwin was 1300km of which Laura drove 900km! Overnight stops on the way from Melbourne included Port Campbell, Mount Gambier, Adelaide, Coober Pedy and Alice. 
She has had an amazing experience, and the photos are equally amazing!
Well done, we are so proud of you!  She has already made a new friend in Darwin (see Pic)...

We're assured its not Prince Charming.  Laura is now 3356kms  and Sasha  6078kms  from us in Singapore. 
Another piece of family news is that Sasha is starting up her own styling business........it is called "Styled by Sasha", and she has a website to follow for those interested.  Will let you know the developments.

That's all for now.

Love Annie.  XX

Also, I saw this quote, and it touched me.........

"We make a living by what we get.
We make a life by what we give".     (do you know who said this?)