A Birthday High

Those of you that know Christopher also know that he loves iconic buildings.  In every city we visit this is usually the goal.  He was at the top of the WTC and The Empire State Building in NYC in April 2001, the Fernsehturm in Berlin, The Petronas Towers in KL, and on and on.  So when it came time to celebrate his Golden Birthday (25) in Singapore, what better way than to spend the night at The Marina Bay Sands.

At about $600 USD per night one night was enough.  And what a great time we had.  After checking in (we got pulled out of the long line and taken to the VIP desk—lord knows why) we headed down to MBS where we celebrated with lunch at the DC Super Hero’s Café at MBS.  Christopher is a fan of both Marvel and DC, so he likes having lunch here now and then.

After lunch we headed to our room and quickly changed into our swimsuits, covered up with the requisite white robe that was just long enough for me, grabbed our coveted room keys, and headed to the main attraction—the infinity pool on the roof, 57 stories above the ground.

 

You can only access the pools if you are a hotel guest—what an experience.  Julie landed 3 lounges on a shallow shelf in the “adults only” pool.  Standing in the pool, leaning on the outside edge, and just looking out at Singapore was pretty special and worth every penny. 

After spending the afternoon in the pool, we headed back there the next morning well before checkout thinking we would be the only ones.  Everyone else in MBS seemed to have the same idea.  The good thing was after stretching out time to the max, we were able to hop in a taxi and be home in 20 minutes.

Don’t you love giving a birthday present that everyone can enjoy?

A Shellfish World

When a co-worker asked me if I wanted to go “prawning” I almost immediately thought of the Peter Jackson science fiction film District 9 (and I am most definitely NOT a Sci-Fi person).  It turns out there is the local sport/pastime of fishing for prawns at local facilities.  So of course I said “yes” because when else would I have chance to go prawning?

So Christopher and I met up with him and his two sons on the other side of the country (in Singapore that means about a 30 minute drive) at Hai Bin Punggol.  It is not quite what I expected (I actually don’t know what I expected). 

The place was a collection of large ponds under a large roof.  Families were sitting  on white resin chairs, holding poles, chatting, and relaxing.  Every minute or so someone would flick their wrist as they hooked a prawn and up would come a surprisingly large prawn hooked at the end of a 2m line.

So we went up and paid our $20 SGD each and that got us a pole setup, a net basket to keep the prawns we caught, and an hour at the pond.  And since we were the only westerners there, they set us up with the “prawn master” to teach us the secrets of prawning.

Turns out a lot is dependent on the set up of your prawning rig.  First he had a special weight that allowed him to set the length from float to the hook so the hook was just off the bottom.  Then you tossed out the line and watched for the float to go underwater.  While we did this the Prawn Master kept grabbing our poles and telling us “CONTROL, CONTROL”.  We never did understand exactly what that meant we needed to do, but we heard it a lot. 

(As an aside, prawning is a form of recreational fishing and recreational fishing is all about holding a pole in one hand and holding a beer in the other.  Turns out this is a truism in Singapore as well.)

Finally you would see your float go underwater, count “1…..2…..3…..4…..5” and then flick your wrist.  The trick, as we learned, is just to flick your wrist and not your whole arm (that would result in prawn flying thought the air, bouncing off the ceiling, or wrapping around a pillar).  And hopefully land your catch.

Once landed you pull off his claw arm so he doesn’t pinch you, pull the hook out of his mouth, and place him (or her—we didn’t know the difference) in the net basket.  You rebaited your hook and tossed the line again.  A shout of “Control , Control” usually came about a minute later.

We must have done well because when they checked our basket at the end of the hour they went behind a wall and came out with more bagged prawns to add to our catch – I am sure it must have been as an award for our prawning prowess.  Our per person catch totals were 5,5,3,1, and 1 with the two dads bringing up the rear.

There were grills there to prepare them, but since we were already grilling meats that night we decided to have a Singapore Surf and Turf. 

Will I do it again?  Probably not.  Am I glad that I did it?  Absolutely.  Travel isn’t just about seeing the sights; it’s about experiencing the unfamiliar.  And that’s what we did and it is something I think we will remember and laugh about in future years. 

Eat It

The food in Asia is so good it's easy to forget great or just good places, so we are keeping a list of restaurants as we go and explore.

Latteria Mozzarella Bar (SG 4 August 2018)
40 Duxton Hill, 089618

• What a fun and wonderful restaurant.  Sit outside to get the full effect of the carless street
• The cheese appetizers are spectacular.  What's better than fresh cheese prepared just so.  Great to share
• Entrees are pretty impressive too.  The fresh gnocchi with porcini and truffle cream stood out, but all were good.

Violet Oon Satay Bar & Grill

3B River Valley Rd, #01-18, Clarke Quay, 179021

• Peranakan food stands out in Singapore because it is something you don't find everywhere.
• My favorite was the marinated pork satay. but all was good.
• There are 2 other locations, next time we will go to the one at the National Gallery and then head up to Smoke and Mirrors for the view and an after dinner drink.

Bakalaki Greek Taverna (SG -- Visited  24 July 2018)
3 Seng Poh Rd Singapore 168891

• Traditional Greek food and a delightful veranda to dine outside on.
• The wine list is all Greek, so asking for recommendations isn't a bad idea
• We had a group of 8 or so and shared platters

The Dempsey Cookhouse & Bar (SG -- Visited 21 July, 2018)
17D Dempsey Road, 249676

• Dempsey Hill is out of the typical tourist area, but close to "expat central" of Tanglin and Orchard.  It is a collection of restaurants, bars, and furniture/antique stores.
• This is one of my favorite restaurants in Singapore with it's modern bistro with a touch of Asia  fare in an old military barracks.
• The sea bass in coconut sauce, foie gras, and warm shrimp and avocado are some standouts.
• Full bar with a wonderful twist on a Lemon Drop called a Yuzo Drop.

Propaganda Cafe (VN -- Visited 12 July 2018)

21 Hàn Thuyên, Bến Nghé, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

• We found this place on our first trip to HCMC and went back again with a large group
• A multi-level restaurant with typical "porapaganda" posters and murals.  We pretty much bought out their cloth napkin counter
• Really good food and no worries about hygene.

Hoa Tuc Saigon (VN -- Visited 11 July 2018)

20 Trengganu St, #02-01 Chinatown, Singapore 058479

• This restaurant is in Disctrict 1, in an old opium refinery.  It is a bit hidden through an archway from the street, but there are other eateries.
• We say inside upstairs and really enjoyed this modern Vietnamese fare
• Lots of plate sharing

Yum Cha Chinatown (SG -- Visited 2 July 2018)

74 Hai Bà Trưng, Bến Nghé, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

• This hidden dim sum restaurant is a fun place to take friends
• Good food
• Hidden entrance through the back of a stall, then upstairs to a large dinning room

Rosso di Sera (TH -- Visited 17 June 2018)
63 Sukhumvit Sol 15, Wattana Bangkok

We had Thai food for a coupe of days straight and wanted to get Christopher something he liked, not just ate

• Good pizza from a woodfired oven made by a pizzaman from Naploi
• Bolognese was pretty good.
• Highlight was the complimentary house made creamy lomoncello

Pizza Face (SG -- Visited 9 June 2018 (and many times before)302 Beach Road #01-03, 199600

• This is THE BEST pizza in Singapore
• I started coming to this place in March 2017 because it was a quick walk from my serviced apartment.  But even now being a 30 minute walk and bus ride, we come back every month or so.
• Pizza is all about the crust and place does not disappoint.  A little char and just the right amount of salt in the dough.  And the toppings match the crust in taste.
• Service is wonderful and they now have Peroni on draft

Rangoon Tea House (Myanmar -- Visited 7 June 2018)

Ground Floor, 77-79 Pansodan Rd (Lower Middle Block), Yangon, Myanmar (Burma)

• This place was recommended by a coworker who lives in Yangon. It is very much a "hipster" place that caters to expats and tourists.  That said, the service, food and drink were wonderful.

• Burmese food with touches of fusion.  We had the curry chicken, mutton byrani, and grilled pork chops.  Small plates meant for sharing.
• It was Negroni week and proceeds went to Autism Speaks--nice touch.
• 88,000 Khyat for 3 of us with drinks.

Nara Thai Cuisine (SG -- visited 3 June 2018)
2 Orchard Turn, #B3-21,ION Orchard, 238801

• We had tried a coupe of Thai restaurants, but only through home delivery.  This place is close by (near our MRT station) and we finally have it a try
• Their beer was surpsingly expensive ($12.90 SGD for a Tiger) and they charge $0.50 for each glass of water, but tout that refills are free
• That said, the fried shrimp cakes were quite good and reasonable.  We also got chicken pad see ew that was quite good.  Everything was served with that touch of elegance that can be characteristic of Thai food.
• Other than the beer, everything was fairly priced--we will be back.

Werner's Oven (SG -- visited 2 June 2018)
49 Joo Chiat Pl, Singapore 427773

• Julie and Christopher stumbled on this German restaurant/bakery in Joo Chiat a few months ago.  At that time they just shared a pretzel, but when we went in early June it was for the full meal. 
• Highlights were a $15SGD 0.5l Hoffbrau hefewiezen on tap, a board of 4 house made sausages that couldn't be beat, and the owner Nancy who made us feel at home.
• This may become a regular place for us.

We Found Elvis

Today was our last full day in Bangkok.  This city is so big, so full of stuff to see, and so crowded and electric that we decided to get a private tour guide to show us some of the sights.  That way we could go efficiently, learn about what we were seeing, and just take full advantage of what Bangkok had to offer us.

And that led us to Anan, our very experienced 67-year-old guide.  Anan grew up in an agricultural village way outside of Bangkok.  He told us he didn’t even wear pants until he was 8 years old, unless it was for the very occasional trip to Bangkok.  As a child he loved music and shared with us how he learned to speak English by singing western songs, The Beatles and Elvis were among his favorites.  Periodically during the day we spent with him, he would break into a couple of bars of music.  His knowledge of English was quite good, his knowledge of Thai history was even better.

Our first visit of the day was the Grand Palace.  We were not alone here as approximately 20,000 people per day visit it.  The palace was built in 1782 and its construction took only 2 years. 

Having Anan along to explain what we were seeing made quite a difference in our experience.  Things like pointing out how the stone pavers between the temples were rough stone versus the smooth, polished stone of the temples.  This was because life can be tough and there will be rough and trying times, but heaven will be smooth -- love stuff like that.  He also pointed out how the tamarind trees were trimmed to the same shape as the temples.

There were three large pagodas here with different architectural styles: Sri Lankan, Thai, and Hindu.  Unlike the gold covered pagodas in Myanmar, these were covered with ceramic mosaics. There was also a large model of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.  When Cambodia was part of Siam, there was a plan to move the entire temple to Thailand.  More rational heads prevailed and a large model was built instead.

We continued walking around to Wat Phra Kaew, the temple that house the Emerald Buddha.  The Emerald Buddha is a bit of a misnomer.  It is actually made of jade, not emerald, but this 26” high, 600 year old Buddha is an important religious icon and considered a protector of Thailand.  Placed very high within the temple (where no photography is permitted) there is a chance to get a quick photo from the outside through a small opening.

Anan taught us about the design of the gable ends of buildings in Thailand.  At the top is Garuda, a mythical bird-like creature in the Hindu and Buddhist religions.  The eaves reach down from the peak like legs and they “stand’ on snakes which symbolize enemies.  In other words, the building shows good over evil.  There were also statues that reminded Julie of the flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz.

After seeing and learning so much, Anan led us through multiple forms of transportation.  We walked out of the Grand Palace, took a tuk tuk to a pier, caught a ferry to cross the Chao Phraya River to Wat Arun (which Christopher wanted to see since he had seen it built out of Legos at Legoland Malaysia), to catch a cab to a little lunch place along a canal to eat before our afternoon on a long tail. 

Baan Silapin  in an artist colony that had been there for about 200 years.  We walked along a wooden sidewalk past shops and studios.  At one point Anan stopped and bought some multi colored “puffs”.  We weren’t sure what they were and I thought that they might be some sort of shrimp chip.  Turns out you tossed them into the canal and 100’s of large catfish would swarm and devour them.  After that we ate lunch at a little waterfront restaurant (the pandang curry was excellent).

We walked back the way we came to meet our long tail boat.  As we passed a monk in his golden robes, Anan made sure to tell me “don’t touch the monk”, which I successfully avoided doing.  A few minutes later imagine my surprise when I felt someone grab my shoulder only to realize it was the monk touching me.  After a moment’s panic, I composed myself and looked him in the eye.  He smiled at me and asked me in perfect English “Where are you from?”.  I told him “we live in Singapore, but are from San Francisco”.  I swear his eyes twinkled as he said “Such a beautiful city”.  As Julie says, it was a moment.

Our boat came and we hopped on board.  Our long tail, like every other one, had garlands of flowers draped on the bowsprit as offerings.  We tore up the canals, heading by waterfront homes and shops.  Some homes were fancy while others were shanties.  People, if their hands were free, waived as we passed.  We saw more than half a dozen very large (1.5 meters?) monitor lizards swimming through the water.  Anan told us how they help keep the canals clean by eating the decaying carcasses of dead animals.  The circle of life in action.

We ended up at Khlong Lat Mayom Floating Market .  This is a small market with only a few boats, but was a lot of fun.  There were westerners there, but we were definitely in the minority as families were buying, eating, and just hanging.  My second favorite thing there was a little girl singing with her brother playing the ranat ek (a Thai wooded xylophone).

What was my favorite thing?  Well, remember how Anan liked to sing?  We got to see it in action.  We were just chilling with him enjoying a beer and a guy on a small stage was playing guitar.  He had an open microphone and some folks went up for a little karaoke (and most weren’t any good).  We encouraged Anan to go up, he did, and man did he deliver the goods .  It was a great way to end a memorable day and trip to Bangkok.