I liiiive! Haha.

I finally bought myself a card reader. Durrr.

So, so, what do I end my half a year hiatus with? Something history related, of course.

Check this out: 



Taken a couple of weeks ago whilst walking to Arab St. 

Seriously... This is contrived history. Singapore no longer has trishaws as a mode of transport (although strangely, New York does). Only tourists go on them, and I think it's very, very contrived. And the trishaws nowadays are all rigged out in gaudy colours and loud, ah beng music blares from speakers attached to the trishaws. I doubt trishaws in those days were decked out that way!!!

Even if you are a tourist and you want to, say, experience how Singapore was like a hundred years or so ago, surely this is not the way to go about doing it. I don't like it and they should scrap it. 

Urgh!

No, this site has not been abandoned. But my computer is dead and my card-reader missing, darn it, sooo...

All entries will have to wait till those problems are rectified. Boo.

Pink cabs in London. :) If only I could find my Bangkok pictures I'd put up a pic of the pink cabs there as well. As it is, it's now become a purely London post.



So cute! So pretty! In my favourite colour! :P

Okie, so I promised nice pics of London. I'm not normally in the habit of putting up nice pics on this particular blog so here goes!

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Nice pic? Hahaha! Okie okie so that was ultra lame. But this isn't exactly a "nice" pic, it's just me indulging in camwhorage along the corridor just outside the entrance to the National Gallery. :P

Now THIS would be what you'd classify as a "nice pic".



Regent's Park. Bloody beautiful and simply fantastic. I was quite sad I didn't have another opportunity to go there again after the first time I went. Next trip, then. :)



The Globe. Pretty, huh? :)

Here's a pic I took that I thought looked pretty arty-farty and I was well pleased with myself haha (self-praise is no praise, I must remember that :P).



It's actually of my students' reflections. ^^ The ticket area of the Globe has these glass interiors with authors' names on them. I took a shot of Vikram Seth's - he's the author of one of my favourite books of all time, A Suitable Boy.

And this is DEFINITELY one of the best pics I took on the whole trip.



Drool, people! Haha. This particular Krispy Kreme is exclusive to Harrods and is called the Harrods Dreamcake. It's heavenly. The doughnut itself is slightly crispy on the outside, but simply melts in your mouth when you bite into it. In addition to being covered in chocolate on top, having shavings of white chocolate on top of the chocolate and the Harrods logo in white chocolate in the middle, it has this fantastic chocolate filling that's simply divine when you bite into the doughnut. It's 1 pound 35p (about SGD 4.50), but I gladly paid that amount everytime I passed by the Krispy Kreme counter. Mmm... Yums. *drooldrooldrool*



The National Gallery (Salaam-e-Ishq had a dance sequence filmed here as well haha). I really liked it; it had JMW Turner's "The Fighting Temeraire, tugged to her Last Berth to be broken up". I studied this painting in one of my USP modules, and I've had a fascination with it ever since. I was ecstatic to be able to see the real thing!



"The Fighting Temeraire". I snitched this shot off the net; we're not allowed to take pics inside the National Gallery itself.

More camwhorage:



Posing outside the National Gallery. In typical British eccentric weather style, the air was super chilly and the wind was blowing in all directions, but the sun was shining brightly as well. I remember the sun was in my eyes when this shot was taken.



The London Eye from afar. Okay, not so far la, I was walking over to it from Westminster tube station haha.



Will end this post with a pic of Trafalgar Square. It's so gorgeous. It's also just outside the National Gallery, actually.

Sigh, I miss London.

You know, I've always, for as long as I can remember, wanted a Lomo camera. You know those cameras that, due to the way they're produced, cause distortions in your photos that are desirable and make them look all arty-farty and pretty-pretty?

Well, on my London trip, I realised I didn't need a Lomo camera to achieve those effects. My bad photo-taking skills produce those effects all on their own.



Can you guess what this picture could possibly be of? No? It's actually the British Airways London Eye, photo taken at night.



Picture taken on the Golden Jubilee Bridge at night. So pretty, huh. London's sceneries are gorgeous.

I would dearly love to say I contrived these shots and planned them to turn out that way but alas! It's just my bad photography skills coming into play. :)

Title of this post inspired by The Thin White Duke (ie David Bowie). I love love love "Space Oddity".

Okay I digress. I went to London recently and as usual, certain things caught my eye more than others.



These signs are all over the roads. You know, in case you decide to look in the wrong direction or something and get knocked down by a car (choy!). It actually makes perfect sense to me tho - I have a habit of either texting (very bad) or reading (even worse) while walking someplace so visual reminders will be useful.



What was that Dickens quote again...? Ah! "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." Never said nuthin' bout financial times. :) Cute shop overhang, tho.



Heeheehee. This shop sign cracked me up when I saw it. A place where you can purchase items for both intellectual as well as physical stimulation... Ooh. Bargain! :P



Is it a bird...? Is it a plane...? No, it's just something hideous and bizarre hanging from the ceiling of the V&A.



Spotted on the River Thames while I was walking across the Millennium Bridge to the (hated) Tate Modern. My first thought was - "Do you now?! Please come over and eat some of the rubbish my students produce at times then!"

More odd London pics coming up in upcoming posts. Nice ones will be up too haha, my brain's not fixated on only the oddities you know. :)

Taken off an ad in Little India.



Oh dear. Isn't the word "lingam" commonly used to refer to, ahem, the male organ in various Indian languages?

But apparently, it's a lucky name that brings you power, so that explains it, I suppose. ^^

Picture taken on a night out with friends watching football at some place in the Esplanade.

This was on the menu.



Other than for religious reasons (it's an alcoholic drink), I personally wouldn't drink this. :P

I almost bought this one. Heh.



And I totally agree with this one.

More form over function. More art than food?







Whatever it is, they were yummy anyway. :P

Notice the background of this pic. Isn't a school field an odd place for a shopping cart to be? :)

Was at Boat Quay on Friday (after not being there for the longest time), just sitting around and taking a break from life. Used to go to Boat Quay a lot back in secondary school; it was where I went to sort out my thoughts/emotions after quarrels with my then bf.

I can see why I liked this place so much all those years ago. It's so peaceful. And calming.

This pic is here for no other reason than the fact that it was taken by my 4 year old nephew.



Picture taken in Johore state, Malaysia.

My nephew has a good eye for photography, even at such a young age, don't you think? =)

Picture taken of a display at the National Museum of Singapore the other day.

Looks like an installation art piece, doesn't it?



Until you realise it's in the gallery that's focussing on the Japanese invasion of Malaya/Singapore. Only then the significance of the display hits you.

Kinda sad, actually.

Spotted at Marina Square Sasa.



You mean there's defiant lipstick?

Well I went to donate blood the other day (I'm a regular blood donor). I know a lot of people think donating blood is a hassle and super-scary so I decided to show how simple and un-scary it is actually.

I went to the Bloodbank@HSA to donate. The address is 11 Outram Road, it's actually directly opposite Outram Park MRT Station. So it's very convenient.





First off they give you a form to fill up, asking you stuff like if you've travelled in the past 3 years, or if you'd had sex with more than 1 partner in 6 months. They also give you some brochures that tell you under what circumstances should you not donate blood. At this point (and at any point, actually), you're free to leave if you decide you can't donate, no questions asked.

After that, you get called up for a brief medical screening where they check your weight, blood pressure and stuff, and go through the form with you. Then you get passed over to a nurse who will do a pinprick test on your finger to test that you have enough iron in your blood before they'll let you donate.

With that cleared, you're good to go for the donation! Here's my completed form, clearing me as a donor.



Once in the donation room, you lie down in this big comfy chair, and a nurse will attend to you. You'll get injected (around the vein area) with some kind of local anaesthetic. After a while, the actual needle meant for drawing blood will be inserted and taped up to your elbow so that it doesn't move around.





I don't know what the white gauze covering the inner elbow is for. I think it's meant to cover up the needle so you don't get freaked out halfway. ^^

Oh, and they give you this squishy red thing for you to squeeze during the donation process. Otherwise the blood won't flow or you'll cramp up or something, I'm not entirely sure what the reason is. You get to keep it too, after the donation.



After enough blood has been taken, the machine will beep and they'll remove the needle. After which they'll bandage your elbow up with a gaudy coloured bandage to stop the blood flow (the nurse took one look at me and decided on pink).



That's it! Done! Easy-peasy, right? =) They even give you a coupon for free refreshments after the process.

So, now you know how easy and relatively pain-free it is, go forth and donate! =) There is always a need for blood due to all the emergencies and surgeries going on everyday.

To learn more, visit the HSA website or the Singapore Red Cross website. You don't have to go all the way to HSA to donate all the time, check out the Red Cross website and see if there's a mobile blood donation venue near you!

I wonder which child studying at the junior college I teach at came up with the Chinese New Year lantern I'm showcasing in my post today.

It looks normal from afar.



Go closer and you'll realise it's the product of a truly twisted mind.





Kinda makes you think there should be an "O$P$" spray-painted somewhere near it, don't you think? ^^

I got a good laugh out of this lantern, tho. Heh.

Chinatown just before the Chinese New Year. Bustling with activity and simply packed full with shoppers and tourists. And of course, pseudo-tourists like me.





It was already hard to manouevre through the crowds, and it wasn't even the "peak" hour yet. It was about 5pm, the crowds get much worse after dinnertime.

Saw a nice old uncle teaching some French kid to play the er-hu (at least that's what I think it is). He had a donation box near him, I donated a couple of dollars. I see him every year when I go to the bazaar.



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How often do you see this in Singapore? Pumpkin seeds (are they pumpkin seeds?) and various other nut-like things, just waiting to be measured out and bought! It's such a change from seeing them in pre-packed packaging, don't you think?



Pretty flowers, all in a row.



It's all food! Just hanging there! In such a small place!

And of course, what would Chinese New Year be without the queue for...





Ba-gua. ^^

*****

I'd left the Chinatown bazaar and was on my way to finding a bus stop to take me home, when I stumbled upon this:



You probably can't tell what it is, but it's actually the entrance to the up and coming, now-gaining-in-cache-and-popularity Ann Siang Hill. I've heard so much about it but never really could be bothered to go there. I walked around a bit, saw some of the shops, but it was already 7.15pm and I was getting hungry, so I left without having a real good look around. I'll save this for another day when I can actually go there and explore properly.

It was beginning to get dark when I finally left the area.



*****

Happy Chinese New Year, people! =)

Finally, a photoblog! Considering my habit of taking photos as and when I feel like it, I have always thought my pictures needed a home of their own, but just never got round to doing it. ^^ Well anyway, I finally decided to get moving on it and - ta-dah! Here it is. =)

I tend to take pics randomly, as and when something interests me. Do feel free to comment on the pics and/or suggest other places I can visit and have a look-see around if you think it'll be of interest to me. Or you can be a blog lurker too. =)

So enjoy!