Back in Singapore

Im sitting here at good ol' Book Cafe seeking solace from the humidity in air-conditioning and free wi-fi. Yes, Singapore is hot...very hot. It's particularly uncomfortable after a rain-shower on a hot day, as the increased humidity causes the air to become thick and muggy. As great as it is being back at my old place, the lack or air conditioning does get me a bit cranky from time to time. Nonetheless, my grandmother and Rei have been spoiling me silly - I'm getting Babi Asam, Hainanese Pork Chops and other Peranakan food cooked to order on the dining table, and my laundry miraculously gets done every day! Amazing!! I've even managed to persuade my grandmother to make some Pulut Kaya on Friday - Heh!

But its been great being back. This house is the only family home that I have known in recent times. I don't know why I never stayed back here whenever I returned to Singapore. I now have the entire 2nd floor to myself, since no one lives up here anymore - kind of like a temporary bachelor pad, except that the place is pretty spartan. Its wicked to see the bookshelves with all my late grandad's physics and chemistry books. Its also cool to see my old room again, even though its now completely empty and refurbished. I remember chilling out in the garden in the evenings, watching the rain come down, or popping to the nearby Caltex petrol station to buy milk. Nice! I've missed this house - I definitely need to come back here to stay more often...





Jetlag surprisingly hasnt been too much of an issue on this trip. I think the fact that I was out till 3am on my first night back probably helped adjust my body clock. It was Lizzie's 31st (I mean 25th) birthday - so how not to stay out??!! Besides, it was completely worth flying back and staying up just to see how funny she gets when she gets wasted! I almost completely forgot! Highlight of the night was definitely the ride home, where she complained to Alex that I was "a bad friend who was keeping her from her slumberrrrrrrrr". Heh! And then there was something about monkeys who stick thumbs up their bums? Or something like that? Heh!

Here is the birthday girl in the middle -



And what she looked like the next morning - Im sure there was a Confucian saying, which went along the lines of "Dont get hammered the night before you are due to take a boat ride!"





Bintan was brilliant! The beach was really nice, although not fantastic. I got lots of sleep in, both in the room and at the beach itself, which was swell. Endless drinks and snacks at the beach bar. I even managed to get a beach run in at 6am where I had the entire beach to myself with the sunrise as a backdrop. To be frank, there isnt very much to do at Bintan, so we kept on having to find ways to entertain ourselves. We ended up trying to do our best Bollywood dance routines around the coconut trees - I think the other guests were very amused....





We rounded up the weekend and celebrated Singapore's National Day by doing dinner at Banyan Tree on Sunday - it was actually really very good. There was even a Ricemaster who was a sort of sommelier for rice, if that makes any sense? Cynical me had to bite back a bit of a laugh when he told me that the Nasi Kunyit went really well with the Ginger and Tumeric Chicken. Sigh.. But nonetheless, the food was great and the resort itself was even nicer. Definitely a place to come back to in the future, I think...



I now only have 3 full days before I head back to London, so its going to be a case of maxing out all the breakfast, lunch, tea, dinner and drinks slots that I have before then. So many people to catch up with and so little time. To round this post off, I thought I would end with an awwww moment - a Lizzie and Alex (who are getting married in December) starfish shot, which turned out incredibly well I thought!

Slumdog Millionaire & Baptisms

Just watched Slumdog Millionaire. I must admit that I was slightly afraid of coming away disappointed after all the hype. But the film was absolutely brilliant!

I loved that the writers had added suitable amounts of brutality, which was paced evenly throughout the movie. I loved the intelligent way that they told Jamal's story of life in the slums. I loved the bright colours that were used to mute some of the more heavy sequences (like the different coloured saris that were on display as the Muslim Indians were slaughtered). I loved the serendipitous love story that was the main centrepiece of the movie.

But most of all, I loved that the writers made the lives of the 2 brothers diverge as the story progresses - with Jamal retaining his innocence and belief in love despite his ordeals; while Salim loses his innocence pretty early in the story to look after himself and his brother. There is an underlying love story here between the 2 brothers. While Salim's character appears to betray Jamal and Latika midway through the movie, the conclusion seems to show that Salim had, in fact, done everything to salvage his his younger brother's innocence. After all, his final sacrifice is what allows for the happy ending.

Completely worthy of its 8 Oscar awards! Plus Freida Pinto (who plays adult Latika) is absolutely stunning, to say the least.

Ive had a crap time over the past few months. This was a fantastic pick-me-up - am feeling more perky now... =)

Oh yea, Im now officially a godfather! Who would have thought, eh? There was a slightly uncomfortable moment at the altar (in front of the 30 or so guests in attendance) when the priest asked "Are all godparents Catholic?" - to which I replied "Umm, no?". 2nd question was "But you are Christian, right?" My brain went into overdrive trying to think of what I should say.

Thought processes went something along the lines of "I can't say no for the second time, because that would a) get me kicked out of the church; and b) embarrass Rach and Stephen for choosing a religous pleb as a godfather". I figured that since I do believe in the presence of God anyway that I should just say "Yes". It wasnt an outright lie - perhaps I just havent found my calling yet? Of course, Leonie (Sarah's godmum) didnt have that problem because she actually is Catholic - i.e. the bona fide godparent as opposed to me being the fake one... =)

In any case, the most important thing is that the kids and parents appeared to have fun. Check out the photos below:








I have now attested before God that I will support Sarah's faith throughout her life. I better dig out my bible - been meaning to do so for a while now, anyway... =)