Items of interest (or maybe not) about Singapore, part 1

Items of interest (or maybe not) about Singapore. Some are fact-based (and lifted unabashedly from online sources); some are observations by us writers:

It is a city, an island and a nation.

When we were first here in the mid 70s, it was referred to as “The Garden City,” and “Asia For Beginners,” because it was so easy to adapt.

This clip talks mostly about Singapore’s beautiful Botanical Gardens, but also includes a very short history of the country. Notice the Caterpillar at 3:05! http://www.nparks.gov.sg/cms/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=78&Itemid=66

Singapore is located 85 miles, 1 degree, north of the equator. That means it is hot! And humid.

How hot is it?

- Temps don’t vary much throughout the year. The average high is about 89 degrees, and it may drop way down to 78 at night. Humidity averages 89 all year. Often it rises to 100% when it rains.

- It is so hot that even the locals affix cute little fans onto their babies’ strollers:



- It’s so hot that when I put toothpaste on my brush before I took my shower, it sank into the bristles by the time I finished my shower (we keep the window open).

- It's so hot that I have learned where I can take a welcome detour through air conditioned buildings instead of walking outside.

- It's so hot that bacon grease doesn't solidify when left on the kitchen counter.

- It's so hot that my shorts were really gross with a salt line near the waistband when we finished playing 18 holes of golf. Sweat was not because of exertion; we rode in a cart.

It rains a lot, often with very dramatic thunderstorms. I’ve heard it said that per square mile, S’pore has more lightening striking the ground than anywhere else on earth. Rainfall is heaviest in December, about 11 inches, and the driest months are June and July with about 6.3 inches per month. Total annual rainfall is over 92 inches. Often times it is spotty. The heaviest rain to date at our apartment didn't fall at all where Paul works. From our apartment I took this picture of our shuttle bus going up the hill. Water was pouring down the street:

The official languages are English, Malay, Mandarin and Tamil. Most people speak English.
The population is made up of 74% Chinese, 13% Malay, 9% Indian, 3% others.
Religions: 42% Buddhist, 15% Muslim, 15% Christian, 9% Taoist, 4% Hindu, 15% others.

For a nation that claims only 15% of the population as Christian, Singapore goes out for Christmas in a BIG way. It must have to do with the almight (Singapore) dollar:





In 2007 it was rated the 2nd most densely populated country in the world, 18,652 people per square mile. Compare that to 87.4 people/sq mile in the US in 2010.

As of 2011, the resident population of Singapore is 5.18 million people, of whom 3.25 million (63%) are Singaporean citizens, while the rest (37%) are permanent residents or foreign workers.

Due to scarcity of land, four out of five Singaporeans live in subsidized, high-rise, public housing apartments known as HDB (Housing and Development Board) flats. The HDB is generally credited with clearing up the squatters and slums of the 1960s and resettling residents into low-cost state-built housing.

When we lived here in 1975-78 and 1997-99, there were virtually no people in wheelchairs in public. Now many of the busses are handicap accessible, corners of sidewalks have been sloped to accommodate wheelchairs (and strollers too!)

Most Chinese men have few whiskers on their jaw line. So to make up for that, the old men, at least, let hairs grow out of facial moles to astronomic lengths. Sorry, no pic.

Since Singapore lacks natural freshwater rivers and lakes, the primary source of domestic water is rainfall. Demand for fresh water is approximately twice that supplied by rainfall, so Singapore imports much of its fresh water from Malaysia and Indonesia. To lessen its reliance on imports, Singapore has built reservoirs to collect rainwater and recycled water facilities. In addition, Singapore has built a desalination plant on the western coast and is building another.

In our earlier years here we were impressed by the cleanliness of the city. Notices were posted that fines would be given for littering. Unfortunately today there is a lot of litter.

Gum is still not sold in S’pore (it is ok to bring it into the country), and caning is still a method of corporal punishment.

Singapore - November 7, 2011 Edition

Wednesday, October 26, was Deepavali (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deepavali). This day, during which Indians spend time with family, is also called the Festival of Lights. Singapore has designated this a holiday to honor its Indian population. Wednesday afternoon Joan and I went to the part of town called Little India where we had dinner at a restaurant called the Jungle Tandoori and then looked at the lights.



We stayed in The Regent hotel until the 1st of November when we moved into a serviced apartment (furnished with 6 days of maid service + continental breakfast Monday thru Saturday) called Le Grove. More on that later. We had noticed there was a buffet in the lobby of the hotel on Saturdays and Sundays, and decided to give it a try. It is called High Tea and was a tremendous selection of foods of all types. There was Wagyu beef (like Kobe beef), salmon, caviar, satay (sort of a minced chicken, beef, or mutton bar-b-qued on a stick), sushi, other Chinese foods, and a tremendous selection of desserts. Here are a few pics of those dishes and a satisfied couple of eaters!

Might as well start with the best part, the desserts:


These guys are making the crepes.

Here is Joan's plate. I would never eat that much!

Getting some Wagyu beef and slamon.


Fully full.

On November 1st, we moved into Le Grove, a serviced apartment on Orange Grove Road. We are about 10 minutes walk from the famous shopping street, Orchard Road. This find was the culmination of a couple weeks of searching, by Joan, for a comfortable residence located within easy walking distance of "the action." Le Grove has a pool (which we probably seldom use), bar-b-ques (which we haven't used yet, but will), work-out room (which we have and will continue to use), continental breakfast Monday to Saturday, cable TV (with limited and mostly UK programs of interest), and more-or-less high speed internet. One additional benny is a shuttle bus which runs a circuit from Le Grove to the business district and back. It takes about 45 minutes to make the run and the best part is it stops right near the grocery store. We can ride to the store, shop, and catch the bus home. We do not live that far from this, or a couple of other popular groceries, but walking 15 - 20 minutes with bags of groceries up some slight hills in 90 degree, 90% humidity is not the method of choice.

Here are a few pics of the apartment.

Each room has a separate thermostat. The rent pays for the elecricity each month up to Singapore $200 (US$160); thereafter, we pay. Since we don't know how far $200 will go, we shut off the air con in rooms we don't use and when we leave the apartment.

The kitchen is sparsely furnished. I'm guessing it is set up for bachelors who eat out every night. If I make bacon and pancakes on the weekend, I fry the bacon in a saucepan and the bacon in the one and only fry pan. The "washer cum dryer" as it is refered to is a single machine. To do both processes it takes about 2 1/2 hours. So to do a load of light, then a load of dark, it pretty much takes an afternoon. To shorten the time a bit, I hang up damp laundry. Even with the air con on, clothes take overnight or longer to dry.

So humidity is with us inside and out. In Minnesota I put together our medications in a 1-week plastic box so that we could dispense one day at a time. I quickly discovered that humidity and some pills don't mix:



We tried storing the plastic box in the frig, but found that when taken out, the pills quickly had condensation on them, and thus began to deteriorate. My next plan is to assemble just 3 days of meds, put the box in a ziplock bag, remove as much air as possible and store it at room temp.

Singapore -- Third Time's A Charm -- October 18, 2011 to ?, 2012

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Yes, we have moved to Singapore once again. It is our third time, the first time from 1975-78, and the second from 1997-99. We expect to be here until March, 2012.

It's like coming home. There have been many changes since we left in 1999. To date we have seen them only in emails (we arrived only a few days ago), but intend to remedy that soon.

In about mid-September Paul was approached by Caterpillar Logistics to help with the implementation of a warehousing project in Australia. We were excited about the prospect and said, "Tell us more!" There were then a few weeks of waiting as things fell into place, or out of place as it turned out. The Australia opportunity was put on hold. But there were other things happening in Singapore, and we were asked if that place might be of interest. While Oz would have been the preferred location, the opportunity to return to Singapore was not something we could turn down. Within about three weeks of everything falling into place, Paul was re-hired, oriented, and we closed up the house and were on a plane for Singapore.

We left Minneapolis at 2:45 PM on October 16th and arrived here at 1 AM on the 18th. This was after 13 hours from Minneapolis to Tokyo, an hour and a half layover there and about 7 more hours to Singapore; somewhere en route we lost October 17 after crossing the international date line flying west. It was daylight the entire way to Tokyo. We flew over Alaska -- the last time we will see snow for awhile:



We got to the hotel about 2 AM, to bed at 3, had breakfast at 9:30, and at 11 Paul headed to the job. He had to interview a prospective candidate for one of the warehouses at 2:30 that afternoon. From that time onward, Paul has left for work about 7:15 AM and returned to the hotel about 6 PM. Needless to say, he is back into it!

Last weekend we went down to Clarke Quay for a looksee. Singapore has changed its skyline dramatically from the time were here in 1975, and even significantly since our last stay in the late '90s.



Here is a picture of Joan with one of the newest buildings in the background. This ship-looking hotel/casino/entertainment center (the Marina Bay Sands http://www.singaporecasinohotel.com/marina-bay-sands-hotel) has been on the internet featuring the rooftop swimming pool which looks like it disappears over the edge. We have not been closer than this so far, and have heard one has to pay S$20 (US$16) to go to the top.

Following are a couple of pictures of the streets around Clarke Quay.


Here is a picture of Joan at a restaurant on the Singapore river.



For those of you who have never been here, it is always hot and humid. Singapore is 1 degree north of the equator. Daytime highs are in the high 80s, evenings in the low 80s, and humidity levels are around 80%. Fortunately, this is the time of year when it's a bit (very little bit) cooler and ranier. Thunderstorms are very dramatic.

This picture, which shows the condensation on the window, was taken from inside our hotel one morning. The humidity levels are generally higher in the mornings, ie, higher than 80%.

Roy Hobbs Baseball November 13, 2010

The Pheasants Roy Hobbs World Series championship quest ended at about 5 PM on the 13th, with a heartbreaking 13-12 loss to the Georgia Classics.

Lee Goldammer's outstanding performance on the mound was wasted when the Classics put up an 8-run inning after the Pheasants had taken an 8 - 0 lead; and were preening in the dugout after scoring 4 runs with two outs to reach that total of 8 runs. Overcoming some great plays in both the infield and outfield, legitimate and seeing-eye hits coupled with errors (mostly due to the walking-wounded lineup I mentioned in yesterday's blog) allowed Georgia to tie the game. In the next inning we went ahead 10 - 8; they came back to 10 - 9, and then scored 4 runs in a big 8th inning to go up 13 - 10. We did not score in the 8th, but got two in the bottom of the 9th and had the bases loaded with 2 outs when our last hitter popped up to the 3rd baseman.

Will there be a next year?

We now head back home with stops in Ellenton and Palm Harbor, FL and Morton, IL to visit family and friends.

Roy Hobbs Baseball November 11, 12, 2010

The Pheasants were involved in two more 10-run games the past two days. We beat the Midwest Saints (from Minnesota) 10 - 0 Thursday night, and lost 10 - 0 in 7 innings this morning to the San Diego Western Silver Foxes. The result of today's loss pushed us into the bottom bracket of 8 teams for the playoffs. There were 4 x 4-1 teams and they will make up the top (Championship?) bracket. We will play the New England Red Sox tomorrow at 10 AM. If (WHEN!!) we win, we will play again at 1:45 PM; opponent to be one of the winners of the other playoff games. Lose either game and we are on our way home. Win both and we will be in the championship game on Sunday.

In yesterday's game, Gary Croon threw the first 7 innings and Charlie Feiner finished up. The Pheasants scored a few runs in almost every inning, but did not get the 10th run until the top of the 9th, requiring a full, 9-inning game this time. I entered the game in left field in the 8th inning. Before that, I did some "courtesy running", but in the early innings had the misfortune of getting hit by a batted ball between 1st and 2nd...which is, of course, a no no resulting in an out. For some reason, I was not asked to run again! I also had one at bat and beat out a hit off the pitcher's leg. Unfortunately, this was in the top of the 9th with us ahead big and the ump wanted to go home. Meaning....I was called out at 1st!

Before the game, the umpire called both teams to the lines and said a few words in honor of Veteran's Day.

Today, Charlie pitched the entire 7-inning game. The Foxes got 5 runs in the top of the 1st and didn't look back. They scored one in both the 2nd and 3rd, and got 2 more in the 5th I think. They scored their 10th and last in the bottom of the 6th. We, on the other hand, hit into double plays in both the 1st and 2nd innings, and could not string any hits together the entire game. I played left field and, for one batter, 1st base and got two at bats. First time up I hit a rocket back at the pitcher who gloved it before I was out of the batter's box. Second time up, I rolled one between 1st and 2nd for a hit.

We are becoming a team of walking wounded. Feiner pulled a hammy in the first game of the tournament; Gary Croon pulled something in one of the earlier games chasing a pop-up and aggrivated it in today's game; Ty Wacker is cramped up; Mike Held twisted his "good" knee; and today Ray Johnson and Shaggy both pulled hamstrings. Hopefully we will have enough bodies to conclude the 3 next games.

In the picture above, the boys are checking out Wayne's injury.


After the game, the Smiths, Wackers, Goldammers, Biches and Beatties went to the end of Captiva Island for the sunset followed by dinner at Timbers on Sanabel.

Roy Hobbs Tournament November 10, 2010

Today, the Pheasants defeated the Rhode Island Silver Fox 19 - 7 in 7 innings. (This was our 3rd consecutive 7-inning game!) The game was played at City of Palms field, the spring training stadium of the Boston Red Sox.

The Pheasants started 8 Hall of Fame ballplayers; 7 from South Dakota and 1 from Minnesota.

Lee Goldammer was on the mound.




Bob Beattie (middle with one of our other catchers, Kenny Foster (left) and Howie Bich) was behind the plate.




Gary Croon played 1st (Howie Bich behind him in right.)



Tyrone Wacker (from Minnesota) was at 2nd



Red Loecker was at shortstop.



Charlie Feiner (on left with manager Bob Kopel) was at 3rd.



Tom Gordon started in left, but yours truly replaced him in the second inning for medical reasons.



Howie Bich was in right.



Adrian Mohr, Ty Wacker, Jack Sayles, Wayne Shjegstad and yours truly watch the action from the top step of our dugout.

As the game wore on, substitutions were made.

Mike Held went to second base.




Dave Wheeler pitched the 7th inning.



Jack Sayles went to 3rd


Ray Johnson went to right


Nick Lumby played center the entire game.



Ginnie Beatty is our diligent scorekeeper.



Howie Bich, Paul, Bob Beatty and Lee Goldammer after the game.


We play the Midwest Saints tomorrow at 5:30 PM. The game was supposed to be played at 10 AM but for some reason was switched. Personally, I don't like playing under the lights very much. Hard for this old man to see the balls in the lights. This will be our last game of pool play. We will find out later tomorrow night where we are seeded and whom and when we play on Friday.

Roy Hobbs Baseball, November 9, 2010

Well, we are now 1 -1. We lost to the Spirit today 10 - 0. I believe we had only 6 hits. As opposed to yesterday, when the opponents hit everything on the ground right to us, today those hit balls found the holes and gaps. On the other hand, we did not hit anything well, and as the numbers say, didn't hit much. I relieved in the 6th inning and gave up the "winning" run (10 run rule) in the 7th. If there is anything good in this, the shorter games are easier on all our old bones! This will help us stay fresh for the games later in the week.






Tomorrow we play in the spring training stadium of the Boston Red Sox, City of Palms Stadium. (It is a beautiful ballpark, but the Sox have convinced (coerced?) Ft Myers to build them a new complex on the east side of I75 near the airport.) The plan is to start the 7 (amateur) Baseball Hall of Fame players we have on our team. Six are from South Dakota and one is from Minnesota. Maybe this will give us the spark needed to get back on the winning path.

Roy Hobbs Baseball - 2010

Monday, November 8, 2010

The South Dakota Pheasants started their quest for the 2010 Roy Hobbs Wooden Bat World Series Over-65 (age group) title today, with a 12 - 1, 7 inning victory over the New England Red Sox at the Boston Red Sox Player Development Complex here in Ft Myers, FL.

Yours truly started the game in left field and had the only outfield putout of the day on a fly ball in the 4th inning. I was not in the original batting order, but did use my blazing speed as a "courtesy runner" for some of our mobility-challenged players. (Scored 2 runs!) I did enter the game as a "shared batter" in the bottom of the 6th and coaxed a bases-loaded walk to force in a run!

We will play 3 more pool games to determine our playoff future. Tomorrow we play the Chicago Spirit, the twice-defending (and maybe 5 of 6) champions in our age group. If we keep winning we will pay into the weekend. If we don't continue winning, we might be on our way home on Saturday!