Back To Regular Programming, Singapore

From wikipedia: Songs of the Sea
The Songs of the Sea show, started on 26 March 2007, replaced the 25-year-old Musical Fountain show. This showcase is a key $30 million investment by Sentosa to enhance its entertainment product offerings and to attract more tourists. It is the world’s only permanent show set in the sea - boasting spectacular pyrotechnics displays, a live cast and an open-air viewing gallery which can comfortably accommodate 2,500 visitors. The show runs twice a night at 7.40pm and 8.40pm and lasts 25 minutes. An entry fee of S$6 is required for each show.

The wiki entry is incomplete, because aside from pyrotechnics, the show also features brilliant lasers and water jets.

Flower By Any Name

IMG_0154, originally uploaded by airam94564.

(click image for full view)

I spotted this beautiful bush along Golden Gate Park and I have not remember seeing it before. Does anyone know what flower is this. I thought it is absolutely gorgeous bloom.

HUM, baby!

DSCF0273, originally uploaded by airam94564.

(click image to get full view)

This is as much as my zoom would permit. A hummingbird decides to stop from collecting nectar and enjoy the beautiful day. What blue blue skies sans any clouds.

Mt. Tam

DSCF0282, originally uploaded by airam94564.

(Please click on image to get full view)

Here's what the website has to say about the park: "The journey is as scenic as the destination at Point Pinole Regional Shoreline, a 2,315-acre parkland right next to densely populated Pinole, Richmond, and San Pablo. Trails lead through breezy meadows with wildflowers in season, through aromatic eucalyptus woods, or along bluffs and beaches on San Pablo Bay.

There are beautiful views of Mt. Tamalpais, the Marin shoreline, and San Pablo Bay with its sailboat and shipping traffic. "

Mt. Tam in the background and teasle in the foreground, I am a happy walker and photographer.

Dried Teasle

IMG_0023, originally uploaded by airam94564.

These are among my favorite subjects and the fact that they grow abundantly around here makes it the more pleasurable for me.

Photo taken earlier this spring on one of our weekend walks at Point Pinole Regional Park.

Happy Earth day

DSCF0272, originally uploaded by airam94564.

Closer

DSCF0233, originally uploaded by airam94564.

Here's a closer look at the grapevine and all the lovely mustard blooms.

Spring In the Wine Country

DSCF0234, originally uploaded by airam94564.

In early spring, yellow mustard take over the vineyards.

Count Me In

IMG_0112, originally uploaded by airam94564.

I have noticed that my fellow bloggers are honoring spring with spring flowers and spring shots and here I am still hung up on my Singapore series. So, in unity with the blogging community, I temporarily suspend the Singapore series to give way to my spring snapshots. If I wait too long, it may not be spring when I find the chance to finally post them.

Taken April 12, 2008, Queen Wilhelmina Garden, Golden Gate Park, one beautiful Saturday when the city and the rest of the bay area experienced a glorious weekend of temperatures reaching 85. Could not remember another day as glorious as this one.

Chinatown Sightings

Chinatown Food Street (Smith Street and Trengganu Street). Street food stalls serving Singaporean, Chinese, Malay, Indian dishes among other foods. Eat while soaking up local sights and sounds, and the smell of it all is unbelievable. This is our first stop in Singapore. We have to eat right? We just followed our noses. We had fried kway teow (flat rice noodles, fried with sweet soya sauce, sliced sausage, cockles and scrambled egg) and laksa (rice noodles in savoury coconut curry with prawn, cockles, and bean sprouts. Served with shredded chicken, hard-boiled egg, and tofu). There was another dish that we had I just cant remember the name. We chose those two noodle dishes because most of the travel pamphlets that we read recommended these dishes as "must haves" when in Singapore. Truly, they're a must have.

Dried meats galore. If you have a craving for dried chinese sausages (good for pancit) and what ever dried meats, this is one of the many stalls selling these goodies. The ones to the left of this guy are dried duck. We wanted to get one to bring home but we forgot it.

We were in Singapore a week before the Chinese New Year; so there's a lot of fruits for sale. 3 for S$10, is that a good deal?

Vibrant and alive, that's Chinatown. You could not find an elbow room with all these people. It was fun though, despite the heat.

Beautifully restored shops are a surprise sight that I never expected. Really beautiful.

Sri Mariamman Temple is Singapore's oldest Indian temple, built in 1827 and is dedictated to the Hindu mother goddess. The tower outside featuring statues of divine beings is a sight to behold. I came when the sun went down and I have not seen much of this, unfortunately.

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum

This glittering mega temple dedicated to Maiteraya Buddha boasts Asia's largest stupa, mad from 420 kg of pure gold decorated with 201 rubies and encircled by 35 statues of Buddha. The public can catch a glimpse of the breathtaking interior of the inner chamber every day at 4:30 am, 10:30 am, and 7:30 pm, when the brocade curtain is raised during ceremonies conducted by resident monks.

Located in Chinatown.

MERLION

Daytime shot of Merlion on Esplanade from the water.
Nighttime shot from land.
Merlion at Sentosa Island.

The Merlion is a statue with the head of a lion and body of a fish. It was designed for the Singapore Tourism Board by Fraser Brunner. The Merlion continues to be a trademark tourist icon.

FOUNTAIN OF WEALTH

IMG_0085, originally uploaded by airam94564.

Fountain Of Wealth at Suntec City is the world's largest fountain. It has a base area of 1683 sq metres and from this base area projects a huge 85-tonne (85,000kg) bronze frame resembling a tripod but with four legs. Water from the fountain shoots up to 30 metres high. Three times every day, you get a chance to go up real close to the fountain when it is turned off - from 9am - 11am, 2.30pm - 6pm and 7pm - 7.45pm - just so that visitors to it can partake in a ritual, which is the walk round the fountain. It is said that walking round the fountain and touching its water brings good luck to the person carrying out the ritual.

This is not the best angle to take this beautiful fountain. I don't know what I was thinking. It must be the suffocating heat and humidity (yeah, yeah, excuses, excuses!).

Under The Bridge

IMG_0067, originally uploaded by airam94564.

The view from under the same bridge I featured the previous post.

I recommend clicking on the image to get the full view.

Esplanade-Theatres on the Bay

IMG_0066, originally uploaded by airam94564.

At Raffles place, we spotted this durian-shaped structure/building.
For more info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esplanade_Theatre

Thank You, Ash!

Very happy and grateful to be receiving this award.

More River Sights

IMG_0051, originally uploaded by airam94564.

Further along the river , tall modern buildings add to the sights.

Singapore River

IMG_0082, originally uploaded by airam94564.

During the daytime, the banks of the river especially the many restaurants and bars lining the banks are empty, but once the sun sets, this is a happening place.

This shot is taken still during the layover. I returned some 12 days later to spend a few days in this beautiful food town.

JUMP!!!

IMG_0079, originally uploaded by airam94564.

This is a sculpture along the banks of Singapore River. I took this while enjoying the free river cruise which was included in the free city tour given by Changi Airport to passengers stranded in Changi for a number of hours.

When we went back to this site after our trip to Bangladesh, I forgot to look up the marker for this sculpture. I am sure that many of you out there have been to Singapore and maybe you can tell me the name of the sculpture and the sculptor.