旅行的意义 ～ 记济州行 (Notes from Jeju Island)

经过了些许岁月，我似乎忘了什么是旅游的意义，是重新寻找的时候了。。

旅行的意义#1。。 觉醒。曾经一上飞机，就把手表时间调到目的地，然后得意的，跟着新时间吃睡而行，以扰乱空姐为乐。如今，哎呀! 应该带较大的手表（眼花看不清），果然是因果报应。。s|

终于到达，似乎全世界都来过的济州。大家都说美丽，果然是真的。。

旅行的意义#2。。随缘。跟着团，走马看花万无一失，例行景照固美，却远不如跟着鼻子走，偶会迷路，患得患失，却尔外珍惜，尔外惊喜，遇到好心人尔外感激。。能感动是一种福，不管是对人或景。。生存也不过是如此。

在济州，总离海浪声不远。。不过因为是岛屿，天气预报也跟新加坡一样 "准" ;p

旅行的意义#3。。意外。非 accident 而是意料之外，总希望是好的，也有令人莞尔的。譬如，帅哥可遇不可求，昨天就在个偏僻的小村，却有情调的小小咖啡店，应该是老板吧，像极了年轻版的《那年冬天，起风了》男主角。。又如，同样的小村小码头，不通语言的我直走，突然有声音惊呼，哎呀！不小心碰到岩下，居然是一群男生在洗澡。。

旅行的意义#4。。游子心。平时忙生活，忙工作，忙看那爱不释手的 iphone/ipad，有谁记得远方的朋友需要联系，许久不见的亲人可曾问侯。曾及何时，连圣诞卡片都不再寄了。也唯有卸下脚步，暂成游子，才记得。简单的一封信，一张游片，从世界的另一端，长途跋涉的抵达，是多么珍贵的心意。。哎呀，讲那么多，才记得我的地址簿早已丢失，有谁还保留呢？

旅行的意义#5。。疯子。也只有异想天开的人，才会创意兼傻气，走出一个不为所然。飞机是地心吸引力的不可能，没有它，真得要 “走” 天涯。许多世界名胜亦如此，都是靠疯子创造出来的！所以看到这个在险处的 shack，我惊喜万分，感叹此君创意无限，设计妙意十足。此美景要好好享受，正需要遮掩，闭炎阳，椅子绑好，防大风吹走，不然掉下深崖一名呼呼，美景成永恒。。我很想坐上，却没有疯子的勇气，只好让背包尝尝，“舍命陪君子"，阿彌陀佛。

旅行的意义#6。。寻秋。这是 angmoh 不明白的独特新加坡人情结。即使这些天在济州岛，热到可以媲美新加坡，还是盼望着。爬也要爬到韩国最高峰～汉拿山～5603尺，累也累死了，高山处寻到这几片石上枫叶，总算没有白走这一着。哎，我也快成疯子了。。

旅行的意义#7。。悠闲。上班族的坏习惯，旅游也是忙忙碌碌的。来到济州岛，爬山涉水了几天，今天终于没有 itinerary，悠哉闲哉，就在西归浦随意走走。天气热，没关系，找个树荫坐坐，心血来潮就画画，舒服极了。大家都问，为什么我要来济州这么多天，这就是为什么。

旅行的意义#8。。花语。野花不能采，却绝对精彩。没有园丁细心的照顾，依然开得灿烂，引彩蝶纷纷来，这就是野花顽强的生命力。今天在美丽的田野步行，各花各瓜放光芒，牛马甚至蛇都出场了，不过还是独锺野花，且是这似乎在济州岛，四处都有的野花，谢谢你带给我的快乐 :) 

p.s. 朋友说这种花日本叫秋樱，她却叫它草原上的繁星。还是喜欢友人的称呼。

旅行的意义#9。。童真。不管景美不美，最要紧要好玩！都市毛病，我们都忘了，简单的乐趣是什么，太多琐事烦恼着，在意着，生气着，担忧着，牵挂着，后悔着。。我今天就因为天气不好，错过某景，耿耿于怀。看到这群孩子才了然，快乐原来这么简单，不如意事，最多比个中指就算了！哈哈。。小男孩其实是在比双指 ><

旅行的意义#10。。终点。对了，最后一天，很戏剧性，老天从昨夜就哭个不休。雨中行本应是苦的，却因为你的出现，变得温馨，有趣。不知从那儿串出来，一会在 seaweed 上打滚捉痒，一会把树枝当 bone 玩，看到鸟儿拔腿就追，又溜去探望马大哥。。百忙中不时回头望，我有否跟来。雨越来越大，马路变得狭窄，一人一狗穿梭在大雨大巴中前行，那些司机乘客，一定以为我们是疯子！小白，为你取的名字，感谢你今天在豪雨中，与我相随，为我这趟济州行，挂上一个美丽的句点。

～ 完 ～

Sketching at Fullerton

It was a fine (read: very hot) day when we set out on the Fullerton Sketching Tour organized by myartspace but this is Singapore. Guess the places..

We gathered late afternoon at

and had a quickie warm-up session on the surrounding bay views:

, a faraway view of our rat race $ite, and of course

, the $in place with the lotu$ which is also allegedly very ex..

Then we walked on to the former, ahem.. 'red lantern' pier

, but now a super atas (high class) place, oh how the fortunes have changed! I wonder what is the other lotus thingee they are building beside it but then Singapore is always a-changing. We have to be the most changeable city in the world, and if there is a prize for it, we will definitely proclaim to be No.1 no less, better than Inception dreams.

An about turn back along the bay to by the Waterboat House, we have an impressive view of

, with the affectionately known fruit building in the backdrop. Sorry, no spikes for the famous king of fruits as my pen ink ran out..

Crossing the road and wow we see this:
with the sun about to set. Perhaps you can see that I was much reminded of Edvard Munch's famous painting when I did this, with a bit of ackwardness using the new pen and a few “Excu-me” screeching into my ears from passers-by crossing the bridge. Now I know where Munch got his inspiration. Challenging but very inspired..


Oops time to go.. a quick hp pic for a painting in future, and then chasing after the group, I caught up at this magnificent object of grandeur, once a garment (government) building and general post office, and now, well, the name will give it away..

It is dusk by the time we strolled along the Singapore River past a crazy multitude of shutterbugs and reached this very character (er.. gabbage and large air-cons a-plenty) backstreet junction on the historical quay. I love it!

So here is my penultimate sketch of the day
while almost being run down by a ringing-madly FT (foreign talent or foreign worker, depending on who's saying it) cyclist!

Like I say, I love it! Cos it was the most genuine, original flavour, no artificial preservatives added, spot of the heritage walk, not exactly truly asia but definitely uniquely Singapore, haha.. Enjoyed myself and hope you do too :)

P.s. Names of places may be discerned from the gibberish URLs by clicking on the respective sketches, in case you don't recognize them from the 'abstract' works ;p

Royal Wedding and Princess Di

With the April 29 date looming, the world is starting to be fixated on all things royal again, or more specifically all things British royal. The empire sun may have set but the magnetic fascination remains whether amongst ex-colonies or otherwise.

And the biggest reason for this may well be Princess Diana and her iconic legacy. From fairytale romanticism to a very public sensational divorce, shy awkwardness to fashionista icon, heroine charitable work to controversial courting of the parapazzi, and finally a tragic untimely death at the age of 36 years. The world grew with her, sympathised with her, was enthralled by her, and ultimately grieved by her departure.

I recall the September of 1997 – the aftermath of her death on 31 August 1997 - when I went to London for my studies and Kensington Gardens was full of flowers for the departed people's princess. I recall in my year in London, collecting whatever memorabilia I could get my hands on for a friend who was a diehard Princess Di fan, within my poor student's budget - be it a photograph of Princess Di or a Hello! clip of Prince William who was her splitting image - anything to remember her by. It was as if a part of our public consciousness died along with her then and what was left was only regret, poignancy, even anger, and eventually acceptance and moving on.

And now, more than 13 years on, we have another royal wedding. So many years have gone by that Prince William has grown mature, regretfully I have to say, to look less like his mother. Over the years, I had read the news with passing interest of the 2 princes' growing up, their schooling, their teen years, their joining the national services, and even whatever little romantic interests the press can dig up, including this Kate Middleton girl, who until now I struggle to remember the name.

In a way, I was concerned but not overly interested because I felt that the press was largely responsible for the death of Princess Di and having public interest fuel another parapazzi circus to hound her sons was the last that she would have wished for.

But what did touch me from the news - that finally sunk in my consciouness about the impending wedding - was ironically, a gossipy report on the guests to the royal wedding.. It mentioned at the end, that the usually celebrity-adverse prince was trying everything he can to honour his late mother at the wedding. He has invited Elton John on account of his friendship with Princess Di, and he is placing his late mother's engagement ring on his fiancee's finger.

I am reminded again of the poignant image of the young Princes William and Harry at Princess Diana's funeral. Yes, the princes have grown. And the royal saga continues. Already the press is trying to compare the new bride with Princess Di and attempting to whip up the same fever and intrigue that glued the world to the late Princess of Wales.

I confess that I will probably watch the royal wedding with more than a passing interest. But I do secretly hope that the wedding will be just that. No unfolding saga to follow because that would be a tragedy. And most of all, despite the controversy surrounding the life and legacy of the late Princess Diana, she lived a life and with an impact on the world like no other - an irreplaceable icon I say. We should just continue to respect that.

Giant - An Epic Liz Taylor Classic Movie

Catching an old classic epic (read: very long) movie on Okto channel over 2 nights (boy, I love my hubstation's recording function), I had to twitter away to keep up, I mean down, with the pace, although this has to be considered a 'fast pace' movie in its time, squeezing 30 years in 3 plus hours! Tweets chronological from bottom up:

The End. Liz n hudson happily after. James still tragic. All 3 stars have left us today yet their legacy lives. Giant indeed!
Thursday, 7 April, 2011 11:08:54 PM via Mobile Web.

Doubly poignant that he died before filming ended and never did grow old.
Thursday, 7 April, 2011 10:38:06 PM via Mobile Web.

Oh why does james dean have to look old when he's getting a romantic interest at last..
Thursday, 7 April, 2011 10:23:35 PM via Mobile Web.

This is clearly Giant budget, airplane swooping over multitude of galloping horses in the plains.. no CGI..
Thursday, 7 April, 2011 10:20:01 PM via Mobile Web.

Story moves so fast and we are in 2nd gen now, alas tt means our 3 handsome leads start greying.. but they still cut svelt figures.
Thursday, 7 April, 2011 10:10:23 PM via Mobile Web.

I still don't know whence comes the title. Giant epic? Giant hudson? Giant budget? I guess all epics must have huge names, think Titanic..
Thursday, 7 April, 2011 10:00:56 PM via Mobile Web.

Continuing my liz taylor Giant saga tonight, haven't watch such a long movie since LOTR.
Thursday, 7 April, 2011 9:56:41 PM via Mobile Web.

Ooh.. Liz Taylor juz did a drama faint scene, arch back so gracefully even Natalie Portman can't match in Black Swan!
11:35 PM Apr 6th via Mobile Web.

And Rock Hudson was well.. like a rock. Good looking one ;-) Still on Giant, the liz taylor movie..
11:20 PM Apr 6th via Mobile Web.

Surely they don't have CGI in those days.. So much cattle dotting the landscape. Either that or this was a big budget movie!
11:07 PM Apr 6th via Mobile Web.

And oh you can't miss James Dean even in that vast land.
11:03 PM Apr 6th via Mobile Web.

'Giant' is very old country movie. The land looks so vast that my humble farmville plot can ever hope to achieve :-P
10:57 PM Apr 6th via Mobile Web.

yen is watchg a young Elizabeth Taylor in Giant. V pretty, her eyes staying distinctive all her life.
10:40 PM Apr 6th via Mobile Web.

拍。卖 Secrets For Sale

I have to confess that I am addicted to the show. Rarely has a local drama series been so good as to prompt me to wonder why local productions don't sell overseas (Little Nonya doesn't make the cut) when such an excellent one lies before my eyes. Hip, sassy, not a dull moment, with plenty of cool action sequences, entertaining dialogue, and suspenses a-plenty to keep the viewers hooked.

Not to mention a hilarious Christopher Lee whose entrance as a scoundrel of a down luck ex-famous photographer with a chasing string of loan sharks in tow, is surely an award-worthy performance for his naturalness and unafraidness to uglify himself. A perfect foil for Jessica Liu, whose protaganist character as a PI firm owner guilt antsy-ing over the traumatic abduction of her sister's family while on a Malaysia trip, would have been too tragic an angle and totally unfun if not for Christopher's character constantly getting on her nerves and asking for it.

Even the side characters are memorable, especially Lin Mei Jiao whose comic turn as a PI auntie employee is a scream to watch.

But what makes this show truly stand out are its good production values and portrayal of Singapore in a way that endears me to our familiar surroundings, be it the extended scene of Christopher searching anxiously in the Bras Basah vicinity for Jessica's niece, the pulsating chase scenes in the back alleys of our shophouses, or even the secretive stalking of clandestine going-ons at a Hotel 81 window..

Yes, it actually gave me the same feeling as the critically acclaimed local movie, Sandcastle, even though they can't be more different. Arthouse or mainstream entertainment, I say gritty shows like these will make much better ambassadors of Singapore culture than any fake STB clip will ever hope to achieve, oops..

Alas, only 3 more episodes to go for my nightly thriller fix. I can't wait to unravel - to the catchy tune of the adrenalin-pumping soundtrack - the mystery of the 2 underlying story arcs concerning the abduction and Christopher's framed scandal past, or maybe they are linked. Just a hunch, somehow.. maybe.. Thomas Ong, in a sinister turn here as Jessica's seemingly goody-two-shoes boyfriend, is the mastermind behind it all!

Too far-fetched? Well, the writers and production team have so far done an incredible job in making an exciting highly-charged escapade tale take place plausibly and believably in what-do-you-know, safe old staid Singapore! Who says Singapore is boring? We are cool, man..

singa-bitsy: for your eyes only

ST Dec 11, 2010: "It's all in your eyes.. Heading for a heart attack? Alzheimer's? Your eyes tell all, says Dr Wong Tien Yin.."

Soon there will be a queue of alleged patients, female or otherwise, waiting for the learned Dr Wong to look ever so deeply into their eyes..

P.s. caveat emptor beware, dark secrets may be revealed.

In loving memory..

You came to my life a year ago
a gift no less
flourishing like the gods owe you
bold, resplendent, full of life
gracing the occasion like no other

Then I brought you home
placed on a podium of honour no less
you started to wilt like the gods left you
rapid, shrivelling, life seeping
drama unfolding like no other

Panic! panic! a rescue op ensued
perhaps the sun is what you crave
off to the planter box you go
and survive you really did!
well.. at least 3 stalks out of 6

minute by minute, hour by hour
flowers gone, leaves remain
day by day, month by month
leaves still green, but no flowers

When the sun got too much
I brought you a small brolly
still a struggle against the burn
the sun a double-edged sword

minute by minute, hour by hour
sometimes glistening, other times dull
day by day, month by month
hope you gave me, but still no bouquet

Then the sun a-shifted
brolly no longer needed
oh spring is in the air!
will I see a second bloom?

Alas disaster struck!
pesky pest I could not rid
oh so sick and strickened
finally joining your shortlived brethen

An empty pot layeth
all that remains of what had been
oh what a pity what can I do
so with ladened heart I painted thee

stroke by stroke, brush by brush
the arcs, the shapes,
the colours, the life!
bloom by bloom, stalk by stalk
alive you became
a sight to behold

A joyful work I will make thee
hopeful another two to follow
an ode to your beauty
a tribute to your glory
at least on canvas you cannot fade

Oh may you rest in peace!
the one and only orchid I will ever own
living ones at least
cos painting hands I possess

but not green fingers.. amen

singa-bitsy: housewives vs salesmen

ST Nov 20, 2010: "THE Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) is starting a year-long public education campaign to teach unsuspecting housewives and the elderly how to handle unscrupulous door-to-door salesmen.."

Soon we will have suspicious housewives and elderly up in arms awaiting to ambush unsuspecting salesmen and toss them unscrupulously from door-to-door..

Urban Dream

Living in a city, it's almost 'fashionable' to moan about being trapped in a concrete jungle, walled in by cold indifferent tall buildings, how one feels terribly isolated despite the close proximity to others, how detached we become, institutionalized by the urban montrosity that we created for ourselves but cannot live without, you get the drift...

Now what if all these city trappings have feelings too? What if the buildings like us yearn to break free? From the boundaries of their fixed structures, with their parts and pipings, bricks and mortar, doors and windows, all breaking loose from the imprisoned grid of their cemented existence? Roaming free around the city like humans do, re-jig themselves however they wish like what kids do with lego bricks, and showing more jubilance and joy at the liberty of movement then their self-chained creators ever do?

That was the whimsical dream I had last night - clearly not armageddon but certainly surrealistic. I rarely remember dreams but this one was strangely vivid. And as dreams go, scenes interweave from one to the other without logic, without sense of time or place, but with plenty of strange revelations along the way that make perfect sense then but don't when I awake, and I remember feeling a sense of urgency tinged with marvel at this bizarre yet familiar world..

It started out with me tossing and turning trying to sleep on a tilted (don't ask me why) bed in a dungeon like place which suddenly became invaded with a lot of people. Then it dawned on me they were students with trombones and other musical instruments and I went ah.. it's the band practising for the NDP (aka Singapore's National Day Parade).

All I wanted to do was avoid the crowd, so next thing I was in the streets, at a circle junction. A pony, those pretty adorned ones from horse carriages, suddenly did a flip rollover in front of me, and before I knew it, a crane beside it did the same thing right on cue. And I do mean a bright yellow chunky construction crane rolling over with amazing dexterity and all.

That was when the city turned topsy-turvy. I was wandering along the corridor of a five foot way next and there were slabs of grotesque-looking panels hanging down much like someone hanging out the washings. Then I realized that the row of red peranakan shophouses was indeed hanging out its "innards" - I don't mean like the inside-out pompidou in paris, but like what we humans would do, taking our stuff out to hang and air once in a while.

It didn't startle me at all. I was fascinated and continued to wander down the street and a building went sauntering past me nonchalently like a cartoon figure would. No kidding, it was a bank building with the familiar lines across. It said UOB at the top.

So I had my moment of truth - that the city had come alive, not with human activity, but activity of everything else once fixed and controlled by humans, but now breaking free and behaving like how their human masters would, except with a lot more zest. The energy and movement was exhilarating.

Before I could go on exploring, I was suddenly in a shopping mall and it seemed that it was the second floor above my original dungeon abode and I was trying to get back to it. I wandered and wandered looking for a way down, but turn after turn, tunnel after tunnel, just led me to strange rooms, and it seemed further and futher away from my bed..

And then the alarm rang. I desperately wanted to go back to this fascinating city but could not. It was the end of my strange urban dream.

Life's Punctuation

It's a cliche to say life is full of ups and downs. I prefer to say life is, or rather needs, commas and full-stops, and the occasional exclamation mark! At least mine does.

Caught in the drone of daily work and routine, I tend to get on with the days on auto-mode.. Brr-ing!!! God! Monday blues.. Brr-ing!!! It's only Tue??! Brr-ing!! Why is'nt there a mid-week break? Brr-ing! Almost there.. Brr-ing! Tahan a few more hours.. Then zzz... tired out.. zzz... rested.. but tomorrow's Mon again :( GROAN.

Yes, life's one big GROAN. Especially when I'm not one of those blessed few - you know, the authors of feel-good books who simply lurve their work, or at least proclaim to be so passionate about slogging as to be unable to live (pant) without it ;p

I need punctuation in my life period. To break the routine, so to speak. So that I can feel alive again. And, as a bonus, have things to brag about to my friends when I see them ;p

In my school days, I used to like exams. Not because I'm nuts but because there is a finality to it. During the term, you go through the pain of attending classes, doing tutorials, and having occasional fun pauses when they're done. Finally, the panic, cramming and sleepless nights before the wham-bam of the papers hit! Then yes, it's OVER! Euphoria washes over. And I'd reward myself with a gift - something that I've always wanted - or go out with friends to celebrate. Even a hair-cut can be such an uplifting moment at a time like this! That is the beauty of it all. A brilliant full-stop, no exclamation mark, after a long long session with occasional commas.

I like to say I love studying - often to the incredulity of others. It was only recently that it dawned on me that what I really love about my studying days is for its clear-cut punctuation. There is a time for pain and tedium; a time for rejoicing and fun. Pure and simple. Nothing else gets in the equation, like $$$ for instance. Working life, however, sucks. You go through the tedium and you go through the tedium. Responsibility weighs a tonne when you are working for the dough. Politics are distasteful but unavoidable. There is no right or wrong answer. Instead everything becomes a muddy grey.

I used to think of working life as a general nuisance but a necessity to pay for my holidays. And that's where my punctuation needs come in. So I've learned to make my own punctuation. Even as I write this, I'm on a comma (somewhere in scotland ;p) Eventually I'd have my grand big FULL-STOP - not drop dead lah but my early retirement date!!!

3rd May 2009, Glasgow.