How to Be On Time

Finally my final post for Singapore and it is three weeks overdue.  I still haven't finished my Indie quiz which I started writing in Singapore.

Sunday was my big day for getting out and about for the flea markets.  Shops seemed to open in the afternoon, so I drew myself a map and wrote a list of all the places I should go and when to be time efficient.   But hahahaha.  It didn't turn out at all as I had planned.

On my mother's advice, I left the Thieves' Market on Sungei Road a miss.  She thinks she remembers her father buying a second-hand hammer there.  I was planning to go to the Clarke Quay flea market but then I didn't because something like I was getting conflicting information from different websites about whether it still exists or not and on the actual Clarke Quay website it says there was a night market everyday that weekend for Christmas products or whatever.  So I was doubtful that the morning market would be open.  

So I set off in my new favourite usual way - taking the bus to Commonwealth, then the MRT.  I got off at Bugis and was walking down the road and came across my aunt and uncle.  Which almost didn't occur because I almost didn't take that exit from the station onto that road.  Then we went to KFC at Bugis where my cousins were.  We were planning that I should walk in on my own and sit near them, but it didn't work out because they saw me at the door with their parents.  Anyway, that was cool.  But I don't usually talk about personal things like family on my blog, but rather personal things like myself.  So back to the story.  After that, I set off back down the road to find this Kampong Glam flea market which was supposed to be every third Sunday of the month.  And that was the date.  But what the hell.  I got there and the "kampong" was like, deserted.  Groan noise.  

I hurried back down the road to Bugis Junction because I was still trying to find a certain top for my mate.  I have not told you that story and shall not.  This is not just because it is not interesting, but my memory is just not good enough.  I found it there but you know, it's just not a top that can be hung, and they were hanging it and it was not good.  So I didn't buy it.  And then I was feeling really crap and worn out already.  My legs had had it from the past couple of weeks.  Then, stupidly, I went to the markets across the road to try to find the top.  But they didn't have it and stuff there was surprisingly expensive in some stalls.  I think buying clothing from Chinese brands is probs cheaper online.  Then I went up the escalator to the next floor, walked one aisle then was dying to get out of there.  So I did and went across the road to a hawker centre and bought a pineapple juice.  I wanted to get some congee but then I simply could not be bothered to buy any food and this hawker centre was super crowded.  Groan again.  I was getting cranky.  That always happens.  I get hungry, get cranky, then am too cranky to want to eat.  Whatever.  The other thing I hate is people who can't be bothered.  Which brings me to my other hatred, which is for people who whinge about themselves or about anything.  Which means that it is now time to say the sentence I was going to say before the one about whinging,  which is about how much I hate people who have negative qualities to them.

I then got on the MRT because I wanted to get somewhere.  At City Hall the doors opened as they should and then I was standing on the train and then I remembered the sunglasses shop on Coleman street, so I jumped off the train and walked up the escalator, but then remembered that sunglasses are not easy to carry and I was feeling too tired to be bothered to go all the way there.  So I went back down to the platform and waited for the next train. 

I think I got out at Raffles Place and the I just wouldn't trust myself on whether I walk left or right.   So I tried both a couple of times.  I was alternating between thinking "never trust your initial feelings" and "your initial feeling will be correct 95% of the time".   

I saw this outside Raffles Place Interchange and wanted to laugh because it made me think about that site with the sad things found on the street.  One cannot really see that it is absolutely bucketing rain in this picture.

I got to this place I was planning to get to, which was sort of very touristy and was meant to have a flea market but DIDN'T, believe it or not.   And it was an absolute ghost town and not all of the automatic doors were functioning and these people having coffee must have thought I was weird and I suppose they had reason to judge me.  Whatever.  Then I was running out of that place to Telok Ayer street, which was long and interesting but pretty much had nothing I wanted to look at apart from an antiques shop where I think I might have shook my wet umbrella over the shop guy.  And this shop was just the weirdest.  Shopfronts on these old buildings are wide, as shown in my previous photographs.  And there was no way to enter the shop.  Seriously.  There was a cabinet across the whole entrance.  And from what I could see, the whole shop was filled with stuff.  I couldn't see any walkway inside the shop either!

And then I got to another hawker centre.  I think it might have been Amoy Street.  I even went upstairs there.  But I then just couldn't be bothered to eat there.  So I went back down and was walking up the street parallel to Telok Ayer street.  And there wasn't much to see and everything was closed anyway.  Then I had to walk halfway down it again to get to this weird mountain path that was like a bit of fake forest to get to An Siang Hill.  I was walking around there and looking for some vintage store.  I couldn't find it then realised it might have been the basement one I went to the other day.  I wanted to go back to that store anyway because they had this beige denim jacket with embroidered flowers on it and I actually was going to buy it.  But the sign on the door said it was closed because they were relocating to Haji Lane.  Clearly,  I was not in a good mood.

Then I was trying to get back to South Bridge Road, but then came across China Square Central, which I had given up looking for.  Yay! They actually had their antiques market on!  But there wasn't anything to buy unless you like buying old things which aren't very nice.  But at least I felt not so sad.  Now, China Square Central is an actual air-conditioned plaza/mall and there was a permanent vintage fashion store and it was such a nice one.  I shall have to return.  I had never seen vintage in such good condition and these were good clothes, proper fifties and sixties outfits.  With hindsight, the prices were actually not too bad, though maybe I din't think so at the time.  Oh my god, I just remembered that I forgot to mention the bookshop at Bras Basah Complex which had all this communist China stuff and Mao stuff!

Then I returned to the egg tart place in Chinatown and then I actually surprisingly caught a bus home rather than try to explore some more.  I nearly bloody froze to death on that bus!  The aircon was intense brah!  Seriously.  I was afraid of pneumonia.  And it was raining outside (and not actually extremely hot) and I was kind of wet, so it felt a BIT WINTERY.  And believe it or not, this was the first day I returned home on time!

Public Transport Entrails: Part III

This is a tale of how even the best of plans never work out.  On Thursday, I left the house at about 1230 and had to rush a lot because I had a hair appointment at Raffles Place at three.  I even drew myself a map so that I could go to Ann Siang Hill before three. 

But alas, after waiting for a bus for ages, the bus did not seem to be taking me to the station at Commonwealth despite passing above-road MRT tracks.  I was stressing, because this put we well out of the time-frame I had thought.  When I thought I was near the Queensway shopping centre, I got off the bus saying "oh well, perhaps I can find a pair of spectacles here" and "there will be more buses coming here".  But it turned out I was quite a distance from the shopping centre.  So I hiked in the sun and was also hungry, but made it to a bus stop.  It was okay from there.  I got on a bus and got off at Outram Park Interchange for the MRT to Chinatown.  Then from there I managed to get to the egg tart shop Tong Heng with no problems, passed another fancy analogue camera shop and then went to the Maxwell Food Centre.  I was planning to get some kueh kueh there, because last time I was in Singapore, the ondeh ondeh and kueh kosui were so nice!  But when I got there, they were sold out!

Golden shortcake with a layer of lotus paste inside 

My mee pok

Went back to the kueh kueh place and they had these mochi-like balls but the skin was so soft and thin and delicate and the filling was the gula melaka coconut for kueh dadar.  I never understand the flour it's rolled in!  I get so excited because it looks like sugar, but then eugh, it's flour.

Then I went up Ann Siang Hill, which is very small.  All mostly clubs.  Went to the knick knack and patisserie shop.  Very very expensive.  Can buy the weirdest type of photo books.  Like blog instagram pictures on eight pieces of creamy paper and with a big number on it.

Next door downstairs was a vintage clothes shop!  And it was a good one.  Racks and racks of flannel shirts, denim shorts and other.  Prices I saw were under seventy dollars, though most items didn't have tags!

Not as interesting a photo compared to last trip's - I'm not in it. 

Then I stepped up out of the basement vintage shop to find a tropical storm.  So I took some photos as I walked back to Chinatown station.  By the time I got to the bottom of the hill, my shoes and socks were soaked through.  And I wore them for the rest of the day.  Hmmm.  Somehow they were dry in the morning which was surprising, seeing as nothing seems to dry in Singapore.

Somehow I managed to get to Raffles Place on time and didn't get lost.  Somehow I made a beeline for the right place.

Then after my haircut I was walking around this random mall in the Raffles area and there were all these silly dead ends.  I didn't buy anything.

Then I was running late to get home, but I still walked over to Lau Pa Sat in the rain where the food stalls looked unbelievably fake, then got sidetracked on the way back by stalls of clothes which weren't even nice, but I also look anyway.  And then I think I got home no problems after that, but of course was a bit late.

Public Transport Entrails: Part I

So, Tuesday.  I set off at eleven in the morning.  A friend in Canberra told me that at the shops in Tampines and Pasir Ris one can buy shoes for $2.  When I got to the bus stop, oh no, no bus going out there.  So I got on a bus anyway, and after some time, it stopped on Farrer Road where there was an MRT station and I got on the Circle Line, which was a stupid loop to take, then changed again at Paya Lebar Interchange, then the MRT turned into a train on an above-ground track.  Now, this was a very long journey, I was peeved off and freeing to death because of the air-conditioning.  And super thirsty, but too afraid to drink my water because there was a sign saying $500 fine for eating or drinking on trains or in stations.

View from bridge crossing from bus stop to Farrer Road MRT station

But anyway, I got to Tampines.  And there were three shopping malls next to each other.  Ayiah, all worse than Woden Plaza.  No bargains!  Unless you are searching for a padded jacket!

Jumped back on train to try my luck at next and final stop on the line, Pasir Ris.  No luck.  And no lunch because I was not in the mood for eating in the mall because that would be too trendy.  But I did eat an egg-tart.

Back on the train.  Because it was above ground, I've had two bird's eye views of the East Coast!

My plan was to spend the remainder of my day at Ann Siang Hill.  I would have to change at City Hall Interchange.  But when I got there, I thought "Why not go to the Peranakan Museum while I'm here?"  But I didn't see any locality maps and all I knew was that the museum was on Armenian Street.  Hmmm, good planning Billie.  But then I spotted Funan Centre DigitaLife Mall.  And got my keyboard cover there.  Here is a photo of the packet:

So now that I know I'm attractive, I might actually be super attractive, because I can only be more attractive than I know.

Then I saw a building which looked like a museum.  So I crossed a big road.  Turned out it was the museum for the history of the postal service in Singapore.  I didn't want to go there but thought I might be able to get a guide paper to another museum.  But then I saw another building which looked like a museum.  So I headed off down the road.  It wasn't a museum, I don't think, but there was a bus map outside with attractions on it.  I realised I had walked the wrong direction down the road, so I headed off back again.

I passed the Armenian Church, but didn't go inside and so I don't know what is the significance of it.

I turned onto a small street which happened to be Armenian Street, leading to the museum.  Actually, I had walked on this street last year!  I spent some time in this camera shop, where they didn't offer me a cup of tea, and a cup of tea was offered on this sheet I picked up from them.  Some cameras were only thirty-odd dollars, but then, of course, one must buy film and also pay to have the pictures developed!  The downside to analogue photography, which they kept promoting, it that one cannot easily upload pictures to their blog!  I got this piece of paper from them which has this written on it "Reminisce the days where film was the gold standard in photography and everyone had a Polaroid camera of two!"

I got to the museum at last, but then saw some hip people.  In fact, they were filming some bloke breakdancing in the alley.  Should have taken a photo!

There were some old fashioned shops, so I went in this bookshop which had all these intellectual books about Asia!  I bought a book called 'Narratives in Malaysian Art Volume 1: Imagining Identities', edited by Nur Hanim Khairauddin and Beverly Yong, with T.K. Sabapathy.  It "brings together a collection of essays which highlights the way in which art has provided artists with the means of imagining themselves, and imagining our nations...discuss art developments in relation to changing expressions and experiences in Malaysian social and cultural life from after the Second World War to contemporary time, while 140 illustrations create a parallel visual narrative."

I've decided it's time I got a bit more a) intellectual about things, and b) into art because it's Indie and cool and intellectual and I am possibly maybe going to be interested if I try.  Also, if I don't get into stuff, I'm going to get bored of myself on another level, like when I'm giving an oral presentation and I get bored of my own speech because I'm really not interested in hearing what I have to say.

At the Peranankan museum (yes, I eventually got there), I acquired a new passion.  It is for beaded things.   

Tablecloth made entirely from beads!

Those pouches look so much better than these trendy silicon ones I saw the other day which were ripping and were still in the shop.

As you can see from the caption, this is a striped kebaya with antelopes.  I really dig the antelopes on the stripes.  It's an eclectic mix of moods.  If I owned that top, I would wear it everyday!

There was a large section about the play Emily of Emerald Hill which they make out to be the Singapore's sole highlight of arts culture.  Visitors were invited to dress in the clothes above and film themselves speaking lines from the play.  Then, you can judge the best one.

This piece of artwork below is a bit blurry, so is the information tag.  Oh well.  I think it was about religion in Peranakan culture...anyway, it's a bit Christian and a bit psychedelic, so I think that's more than a bit Indie.

Too bad I got told off earlier about flash photography, which seems to be the default setting on my camera.  Otherwise, you would be able to see the Virgin Mary in the Victorian bell jars properly.  You know what I'm going to say...so RookieMag but not ironic!  Then again, is there anything very ironic about RookieMag?

I would have liked to have made this next picture the final and crowning picture for this post, but alas, I have more to say.

 Peranankans who converted to Christianity may have also converted the "traditional" cabinet or whatever it is called for worshipping ancestors and gods to one for worshipping Joseph, Mary and Jesus Christ.  Note: I did not make Christ the surname of that family.  I don't know why there's that guy in the red top on the side.  Maybe it was a reflection of another painting.  Or maybe it's an Asian Jesus who appeared in my camera.  Must be a message.

 I was looking forward to some Nonya food since I had not had lunch.  But there was only a tiny cafe without room to swing a cat, let alone carry my bag in.  Yeah, there wasn't much.  So I stayed hungry.

Then, I was rushing rushing rushing home.  I found a bus stop, decided which bus to take, then was sitting for a while but no bus was turning up.  Damn, I looked at the routes board again and the number for the bus I wanted was in grey rather than red, so I thought "maybe the bus doesn't come here", though actually it probably does go there.  So I rushed over to the MRT station, which was Bras Basah, got on a train.  Then I heard the announcement for the next station had a sudden feeling I'd gotten on the wrong direction of the line, so I got off at the next station and switched platform.  All good, right?

But the thing was, I didn't know where I should get off! I thought it would be best to try to get somewhere I knew.  But then it stopped at a place called Buona Vista Interchange and I thought I had seen it written on the bus sheet near my place.  So I hiked in the rain out of the station, across the road and down the road to a bus stop to find that none of the buses I wanted were going where I wanted to go.  So I hopped back on the MRT and got to Holland Village.  The MRT station had three exits for different bus stops.  Some how, I picked the correct one and hiked a bit up a hill in the rain to catch a bus and it was all good.  But I was a few minutes late for dinner.

The moral of the story is that if you run out of water and are thirsty, you will be a bad decision maker when in a rush and not be very orientated.

Also, at the end of that day, I was feeling no desire to go out ever again or explore ever again.  Also, I felt that it might be an idea to study a map before going out, but also that I should not need to do that since I had learned the whole of Singapore.

A Satisfying Sunday

Dude, I've been dying since my parents put dynamic lifter and blood 'n' bone in the garden. Sore, choking throat...

Anyway, last Sunday, I went to the fete day for the radio station ArtSound. There was a whole room full of LPs, CDs and cassettes. And by the time I'd finished packing up a box of stuff to buy, the whole box cost me just two dollars. This pristine condition Francoise Hardy record was my BARGAIN BUY!

The others I bought because they had what I thought were funny covers at the time (but not in retrospect). I haven't listened to any of them.

How does she get her hair so perfect?

No comment

I'm getting really into the curved square

I actually like this one. It's got the right amount of pretension. 

the back - Is his name actually "Bob Dyland"?

Classic font for records! Definitely the colours of tranquility...

Maybe if I listened to this music I would understand the relevance of the image on the front

Hit Hits - seriously?

Why do they look like they're dying? Maybe it's a Virgin Suicides thing I don't get...

There was a lot of Hawaiian music

The back of Guava Jam

I actually like this one. I suddenly got this flash of a rookiemag photoshoot because of the rock and the girl's angle

Look at how the man is looking at those flowers in his hand!

the back

lowercase font - never ceases to be Indie

The new Indie way to do your eyebrows. At first I thought the one on her left was her eyelashes, though.