Construction

I have just moved (temporarily) to a beautiful new apartment in a posh part of Singapore. Weekends are glorious. But weekdays: non-stop 1 million db construction. Throughout working hours, the flat reverberates loudly with the sound of heavy duty drilling, hammering, pile-driving from next door.. They're putting up more condos nearby (and a new MRT I think). I have noticed that almost anywhere you go in Singapore (HDB*, condo, whatever) there will be full-scale or imminent construction nearby**. I even visited the ultra-swanky, family-focused Bukit Timah area, to note that building was underway on almost every corner.

Sinagpore's property prices are sky-high - more than London, and (from what I am told) more than Tokyo. Both renting and buying (if you dare) are hefty undertakings here. There is a lot of cash to be made from property, and huge swathes of the city cater for the ultra-rich.

But what I don't understand is, if one happened to be ultra-rich, why would you buy one of these amazing condos, when there are several miserable years of Towers 2, 3 & 4 going up next door? It's not so delightful being woken by, then listening to this mega-racket all day long; and not everybody works. In fact, observing wealthier groups, the model across races is quite likely to be high ranking working husband / stay-at-home wife with kids. Family life is strongly encouraged over here. But how many wives and babies are going to enjoy this?? And if you are rich, you have choices.

Surely not ALL these apartments are purchased by corporations, or mainland Chinese looking for rent-out investments? Do locals not mind the noise? Are half these condos empty? Or is it simply a question of ubiquity - ie you cannot avoid it, so why bother?

Personally, if I had a few million dollars to blow on Singapore property the first thing I would consider is peace, and the proximity of zero construction! Having said this, the likelihood of actually being in that position is on the wafer-slim-side. ^^

Right, off to do some work wearing earplugs.

One of Singapore's latest swanky condo developments
can't remember its name!

*HDB = public housing. Contrast with condominiums = posh private apartment blocks.

** Both local and immigrant population growths have slowed here over the past three years, but this seems to make no difference!

More lanterns

OK the mid-autumn / lantern festival is over. But here are some more from Chinatown, just because they're pretty. (They look like they were decorated by schools) :)

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Discoveries of the Week: snails, handbags & Facebook

Some of you will be relieved to know that Facebook doesn't track our likes and dislikes (or anything else relevant) in order to target advertising at us. I know this because since I arrived in Singapore, I have been under bombardment from 'ultra girly' ads. And my likes consist mainly of movies and combat sports. In Europe I was merely sold credit cards and invitations to Farmville. In Singapore, it seems, there are different expectations of women, and it's pretty full-on.

The ad routine - despite my endless 'hide' tactics - goes something like this:

1. Handbags, handbags, handbags
2. Dresses from Korea
3. Designer shoes
4. Designer babies (conceiving, then dressing)
5. Handbags, handbags, handbags
6. Dream (designer) weddings (with designer groom)
7. Handbags, handbags, handbags
8. Weight loss (presumably to help procure points 4 and 6 whilst clad in designer gear?)
9. Embroidered eyebrows
10. Snail cream.

Points 1-8, pur-lease, I do have a brain. Points 9 and 10 however.. more interesting...

'Embroidered eyebrows' (sometimes even THREE D embroidered eyebrows) what these? I have never heard of this before and had visions of foreheads merrily festooned with 'Home Sweet Home' cross-stitching or cute protruding roses. (Well that's how I know embroidery anyway).

And what on earth is 'snail cream' (which I initially read as a the manicure essential 'nail cream') - cream made from real snails?

Yep, more Asian research for me!

Eyebrow embroidery has nothing to do with sewing. It is a lightweight tattoo process, to give people with fine eyebrows, erm, eyebrows. I am not sure if this would be a big seller in Europe (where we spend a lot of time thinning our eyebrows) but who knows.

Snail cream really is skin cream made from real snails, or their slime! Yum. Sometimes the snails are fed on ginseng to boost the properties. It is supposed to make you very, very beautiful. Apparently the creams have already been on sale in Europe for some years... though I suspect under a very different brand name!

The Peranakan Museum

This was my Monday tea-time excursion, and I wish I'd left a little sooner, to allow more time here. I really enjoyed this visit. The museum was curated in a really fun, colourful way, and, it turns out coincidentally, there was a whole exhibition featuring one of my family in there!

Peranakan is a Malay term and it refers to the cultures and people of mixed-race heritage derived from intermarriage of traders and local women. Here (Singapore, Melaka, Penang for example) this normally means Chinese traders and local Malay women. But I found out 'peranakan' includes other groups such as the Jawa Peranakan (South Indian Muslim merchants and local women) and Chitty Melaka Peranakan (South Indian Hindu traders and locals). This region had great importance during the days of the Silk Route, so many foreigners put down roots here. (Not much has changed!)

The museum focuses on the unique culture and customs of the Straits Peranakan Chinese. Their wedding ceremony, housing, eating, religion and crafts. The ceramics are beautiful (pink and orange are included as 'lucky colours' in Chinese Peranakan lore, and butterfly, peony and phoenix motifs are also special. So you can tell these colourful pots and dishes apart from 'regular Chinese' ones!) I especially enjoyed the telephones display: three retro phones are lined up and if you listen, you get a conversation from 1950s, 1970s etc, reflecting a typical episode for Chinese Peranakans from those eras.

Also throughout the museum are 'levers' which will prettily emboss any sheet of paper you have with Peranakan symbols - I wish I'd taken some notepaper with me!

Which brings me on to: Emily of Emerald Hill

The current exhibition. 'Emily' is a well known play by Stella Kon, which tells the lifestory of Peranakan Chinese woman during the 20th century. And one of the famous Emily actors featured in the exhibition is my stepmother Pearlly Chua (herself Peranakan Chinese). All very random, but there you are! I really liked the way the museum put together this exhibition too. It wove in fun contemporary illustrations etc alongside historical artifacts relating to the play and character. And I really enjoyed the 'stamping desk' (results above)!

Anyway, here's the typical Blogger-style badly laid-out pix which I can't caption, but click for slideshow! Check out the website below for more info.

 

 

 

Open most days, admission SG$6
39 Armenian Street, Singapore 179941
City Hall or Bras Basah MRT
http://www.peranakanmuseum.sg/home/home.asp

There's also a shop and cool little shoebox cafe on site, which I must investigate next time.

Nosh of the Day: Grace Dew Fruits Jelly

I got given these jellies as a birthday present and wasn't 100% sure what they would be like. I had vague visions of Rowntree's raw jelly*. In fact they were damn yummy! Authentic, 'healthy' fruit flavours and a very nice firm, jelly texture. Ended up savouring... yet scoffing the whole lot in one go.

The Rokumeikan store (in Ginza, I guess the Tokyo equivalent of Bond Street or Piccadilly) looks quite posh, and seems to specialise in Grace Dew. Bit of a treat :)

* Rowntree's is the UK's most famous supermarket jelly brand. I suspect kids are helping their mums make it now, just as I did when I was small. It is not full of natural flavourings, and you're supposed to melt, dilute and re-set the jelly, of course. But as a sickly treat you might eat a cube 'raw' from the packet. Quite a contrast from the above, to be honest!