Calaidescope World

Singapore Swing

I was in Singapore for work last week. First of all, I got my flu shot from our company doctor in Makati on Monday, wasn't feeling all too well when my boss and I were in Cebu on Tuesday (also for work), and had a horrible case of dysmenorrhea and a bit of a fever when I arrived in Singapore on Wednesday. Needless to say, I didn't exactly enjoy Wednesday and Thursday all that much because I was either in pain or dizzy. My only real saving grace amidst the pain was Taylor Hicks winning American Idol and my wonderful companions from MSSC (and if any of you are reading this, many thanks to Roda, Lhen and Bettina for being such great company. Roda, you're such a mom!). I found the strength to walk around on Thursday. I was supposed to fly back to Manila on Saturday, but as I was feeling better and wanted to spend time with some old friends, I opted to stay until Sunday. Many thanks to my hosts, Jeric and Melisse (the same couple I stayed with in December), for taking care of me over the weekend.

Now, I've always had my reservations about Singapore. In his blog, Gabby observed that Singapore is just so GREEN, and it really is the first thing you notice coming out of the airport. It's a garden city. My favorite city is still Bangkok even if it's a concrete jungle, but I'm starting to appreciate how "convenient" Singapore is. Best public transport system, hands down. The food is good, too, although despite this being my third trip, I have yet to try Singapore's famous chili crabs. Shopping is still cheapest in Bangkok and Manila, but I was surprised to find some really good bargains during the Great Singapore Sale (now ongoing until the end of June), especially in Chinatown and the Bugis Street Market (although Chatuchak and Market Market are still the best, dahlings), as well as at Borders (they had better deals than Books Kinukoniya), The Body Shop, Bossini, Charles and Keith (better selection than their shop in the Alabang Town Centre), Daily Planet (a comic book themed clothing store in the Sun Tec City Mall), G2000, Geox (fantastic brand of Italian "breathable" shoes), Giordano, HMV, L'Occitane en Provence, M-Industries, Popcorn Movie Memorabilia in the Esplanade Mall, Top Shop, U2, and Zara. Not that I bought something at each of those places, but I wish I had enough money to do so!

So, here's a run-down of the highlights of my trip (not all of which are related to shopping, hahaha):

• The Intercontinental Hotel Singapore: I had 2 queen size beds in my cozy smoking room, 2 wonderfully soft goose down pillows on each bed, and an extra pillow in the closet. I slept with all 5 pillows. The bath amenities were provided by L'Occitane en Provence. Love it! The hotel is connected to the Bugis Junction so it's easy to get around by MRT. I can't wait to go back to that hotel!
• Finding CDs of the original US recording of Pizzicato Five's 1994 album Made in USA (I have a vinyl copy in Papa and Tita Vicky's house in Pittsburg) and Marty Casey and the Lovehammers. I also found the original UK release of Morningwood (unfortunately, it's got one of those anti-piracy thingies that are not compatible with whatever version of Microsoft Windows Media Player is installed in my office-isued laptop so I cna't even play it. Go figure). I was also very happy to find the collector's edition of The Dark Crystal on DVD - and on sale. Yes, I'm against piracy, I still buy original CDs and DVDs (leaving Gabby to call me insane for not investing in a 60G video iPod), and am suffering for my love of art.
• Toys 'r Us sale: I have yet to justify a SGD30 Boba Fett action figure ("...but Boba Fett is so hard to find!"), yet General Grevious came at less than half the price, so he was worth it. As were my Star Wars Tromp cards. Hehehe. On a similar note: a great many thanks to Roman for Asajj Ventress Unleashed (another one that's almost impossible to find). Roman, I love her! She's gorgeous! She is now proudly displayed amongst my toys in my room. Too bad I didn't get to see you and meet wifey and the twins. I owe you big time! Thanks again!
• The cute Spanish guy I followed from Chinatown to the Outram Park interchange to Raffles, and lost when he and his not-so-good-looking friend went up the escalator to the Raffles City Mall and I had to walk the other way to the Esplanade Mall. Oh. My. God.
• The current art and music exhibit in the underground walkway from the Citylink Mall to the Esplanade Mall. The artwork was obviously influenced by Dave McKean, but combined with the drum and bass, it was just so cool!
• Popcorn Movie Memorabilia Shop sale: pewter Lord of the Rings pendants at 10% off. Failing to find a Beren and Luthien set for Jay and Alia, I got them pendants of the seals of Strider and Arwen instead (yes, my sister chose a mortal life. Hahaha!). In lieu of anything specific to Faramir, I got Bianca a pendant in the form of a Gondorian sheild. To share with my sisters, I also got a pendant in the shape of an Elven sheild, as well as pendants of the seal of Galadriel and the Fellowship. I love that store!
• Jeric's cooking. Words don't do his cooking justice. Melisse, ang suwerte mo talaga!
• Watching The X-Men: The Last Stand with Jeric, Melisse, and their friends Yen, Glen and Samantha, and Candace and Rick: Yes, movies are expensive in Singapore (SGD9.40 vs. PHP110. Hello?), but X3 is a must a see! I realise this has nothing to do with Singapore. But if you're reading this and contemplating a trip to the cinema, go watch X3 and DO NOT LEAVE UNTIL *AFTER* THE END CREDITS! There's a very short but very important scene immediately after the credit roll that viewers absolutely cannot miss! However...I felt really sad after the movie. Not that there was anything wrong with it or because the story was so beautiful that I was moved to tears (I was more in shock watching certain scenes, actually). I remembered that I saw X2 with Bianca and Millette. The moment the X-Men flew away from the lake and the image of the phoenix appeared in the water, Millette excitedly shouted, "Oh my God, it's the Phoenix!". She went on to say how she would love to see X3 hoping that the Dark Phoenix would appear and what the plot line could be. Millette dear, wherever you are, the Dark Phoenix was in X3 and she was played well (if not given enough screen-time). You would have loved the movie. If only, like Jean Grey listening to Professor X, you had enough control to stay and see it. I really missed you while watching the whole story play out.
• Eating bak wah in chili pork flavor. It's like beef jerky. I can't find it anywhere else. It's great! Singapore's kaya toast is good, too. Too bad Roti Boy closed shop. I love Roti Boy!
• Eski Bar in Holland Village: This is the coolest bar I've ever been to. Literally. It's freezing in there! And in the Sub-Zero room, the bar is made of ice! If you get to hang out there, bring your own jacket or shawl (they lend you jackets there, but I wouldn't recommend using them. God knows where those have been) and try their Artic Ice signature cocktail. It tastes like that almond jelly desert at Gloria Maris. Really good!
• East Coast Park: it's a short walk from Jeric and Melisse live in Bayshore. It's beautiful public park with it's water ski lake for wakeboarding and such (just like Lago de Oro in Calatagan, Batangas). The park has cafes, restaurants, great walking/biking/rollerblading trail, a beach, a couple of soccer pitches,...Wow! If I ever have the good fortune of living in Singapore, I'd live in Bayshore just so I could be near East Coast Park. I don't care if it's "far" from "the city". It's so worth it lah!
• Watching Jeric and Joey shop for a watch. My cousin-in-law Mike is like that. Women love jewelry, men love watches. It was very amusing =) Parang silang babae pagdating sa relo. I don't now anything about watches. Ask Andaya. As long as they work and are water resistant, I'm fine!
• Royce Chocolate from Japan, available at the Sun Tec City Mall. Yes, I know, another thing not uniquely Singaporean, and I'm not an expert on chocolate, but MON DIEU! IT'S THE BEST LAH! Thanks to Joey and Jeric for taking me to that shop yesterday.
• Eating at The Asian Kitchen (there's one in the Citylink Mall and another in Sun Tec. I'm not sure where their other restaurants are). It's relatively cheap and really good.
• The Charles and Keith sale: If I am my truly my father's daughter when it comes to music and jackets, then I am truly my mother's daughter when it comes to shoes and bags. Especially bags.
• Travelling back to Manila with Joey. Having a friend with nothing but carry-on luggage is perfect for when your check-in baggage is overweight. Thanks, Joey!

Shopping or no shopping, I'm now looking forward to my next trip in November. Hopefully, my sisters will be able to join me because they've never been there and I know they'll enjoy it lah. I saw a lot in my last two trips (especially when I was there in December!). There is so much to Singapore that I want to explore like the Jurong Bird Park, Botanical Gardens, the shop houses,.... This is the cool thing about having a job that requires travel. Watson Wyatt did a lot for me in terms of opening my mind to other cultures and learning new things. Now, I thank Chevron for a new series of cultural and shopping experiences =)

posted by Calai @ 1:48 PM 3 comments

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posted by Calai @ 1:48 PM 1 comments

Da Vinci Debated

So I re-read Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code over the weekend in preparation for the film (I needed to "review"). Now, here's an email message that has been making the rounds -

WHAT ARE YOU DOING around the day the Da Vinci Code movie opens. A movie based on a book that wears its heresy and blasphemy as a badge of honor.

What can we as Christians do in response to the release of this movie? Here are the usual suspects:

A) We can ignore the movie. ........

The problem with this option: The box office is a ballot box. Theonly people whose votes are counted are those who buy tickets. Andthe ballot box closes on the Sunday of opening weekend. If you stay home, you have lost your chance to make your vote heard. You have thrown your vote away, and from Hollywood's point of view, you don'tcount. By staying home, you do nothing to shape the decision-making process regarding what movies will make it to the big screen.

B) We can protest. ........

The problem with this option: It doesn't work. Any publicity is good publicity. Protests not only fuel the box office, they make all Christians look like idiots. And again, protests and boycotts do nothing to help shape the decisions being made right now about what movies Hollywood will make in the next few years. (Or they convince Hollywood to make *more* movies that will provoke Christians to protest, which will drive the box office up.)

But .....
On May 19th, you should go to the movies. Just go to another movie. Save the date now. May 19th, or May 20th. No later than Sunday, May 21st -- that's the day the ballot box closes. You'll get a vote, the only vote Hollywood recognizes: The power of cold hard cash laid down on a box office window on opening weekend.

Use your vote. Don't throw it away. Vote for a movie other thanDVC. If enough people do it, the powers that be will notice. They won't have a choice.

The major studio movie scheduled for release against DVC is the DreamWorks animated feature Over the Hedge. The trailers look fun,and you can take your kids. And your friends. And their friends. In fact, let's all go see it.

Let's rock the box office in a way no one expects -- without protests, without boycotts, without arguments, without rancor. Let'sshow up at the box office ballot box and cast our votes. And buy some popcorn, too.

May 19th. Mark your calendars now: Over the Hedge's openingweekend. Buy a ticket.And spread the word. Forward this e-mail to all the Christians inyour address book. ( First, remove all headers please) Post it on your blogs. Talk about it to your churches.

And let's all go to the movies.


Now here's the reply of one of my friends to the above message -

Who is this MORON? The entire concept of a MOVIE is that is is fictional. The mere fact that you GO to a movie denotes your acknowledgement that you are viewing a FICTIONAL work. Not going only solidifies the claim that the film rocks the foundations of whatever Christian faith you uphold, therefore you do not want to see it. Hay naku...

Took the words right out of my mouth, dear.

But let me put it this way (beware, spoilers ahoy!) - I respect others' decision not to read the book or see the movie, but I only wish that more of them were better informed before they decided to denounce it (it's the uninformed "don't read/watch it!" part that irks me). Granted, it is truly shocking for those of weak or little Faith. But guidance and encouragement to keep the Faith is more important at this point than anything else. Tend to the flock, I say, don't fence in the sheep.

As my boss would say, "For heaven's sake...", it's a work of FICTION. And why stop the movie without pulling the book off the shelf? Book sales should have been stopped first. But, man, it's a really good book! It's up there with the Harry Potter series in terms of pacing and story twists. It's good fiction!

Also, the Priory of Scion is a hoax. The cryptex was a figment of Dan Brown's imagination. The Opus Dei was redeemed at the end of the book. In fact, the Opus Dei are not even speaking out against the book or the movie. They are using the book (and soon, the movie) to encourage discussions about their organisation and to bring others to learn more about the Way, thus "converting" more believers in St. Jose Maria Escriva's vision (very smart! Seriously, it's a good move!).

I'm not a member of the Opus Dei, but their approach to The Da Vinci Code is what all the other Christians should be doing. And really, does it matter how the historical Jesus lived? Will that seriously change how we profess our Faith? Isn't it more important for Christians to believe and follow (as best we can) Jesus' simple way of life and His 2 rules? If you don't know what those 2 simple rules are, well....


UPDATE 16 May 2006
Over the weekend, I read that the CBCP is taking this opportunity to discuss "issues" raised by The Da Vinci Code. Hallelujah! Guidelines will be issued to priests for discussion during sermons and prayer meetings. The next two Sundays will be very interesting.

Also, there was a very good editorial by Federico D. Pascual, Jr. in his column Postscript in today's issue of The Philippine Star.

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/NEWS200605162604.htm

Pascual so aptly wrote that many Catholics are a bit at a loss as to how to best defend the Church. As I once said to some friends (one of whom almost stopped being my friend. It's a long, funny story), the best defenders of the Faith are those who do not fear to tread the waters of the enemy and think like the enemy (thanks, Sun Tzu!). I got into a lot of trouble encouraging these same friends to read Conversations with God if only to understand where "the gentiles" were coming from. Information is a weapon we should not be afraid to wield. There are shows on the National Geographic Channel and the Discovery Channel that explain so much. There are books available everywhere that teach us how to fight the Good Fight. Why are so many Catholics not taking advantage of these?

However, as Neil Gaiman wrote in his journal yesterday, most of the Da Vince debates are ridiculous. Yes, silly me, indeed. I enjoy good fiction and joining debates. I hope the film lives up to the book. We all know where my family and I will be on the 19th. Sinners! Hahaha!

posted by Calai @ 12:08 PM 1 comments