Sa Pa

Over night sleeper train to Sa Pa.  Well, to Lao Cai an hours drive from Sa Pa.  Great view from hotel balcony.  Central heating in Vietnam?  Surely not....but yes.  Gets COLD.

An old French restort town.  Very interesting history.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sa_Pa

Has a formal European Garden.

And some spooky vistas,

and wild life.  This chap was scarely huge.

Hanoi Misc.

Hanoi is a modernising city.  Modernising very fast.  All Cities are beginning to look and feel the same to me.  But, hey, no McD or KFC......yet!!!   But here are a few identifiers.  The first is an opposite, an exception.....an empty road.  You could actually see the tarmac and only one pedal cycalist!!!!

And these, so called rocket house  Very distinctive.  Some only 10/12 feet wide but 4 storey.  And usually stand alone.  There are also tube houses,  not dissimilar to Singapore the Shop houses....thin and deep.

They are also found in the countryside where the same type of land titles apply, inspite of the availablity of  land.  Hope this contiues so that the productive fields are not concreted over.  Food post later.

This is Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum.  Does it look like a Lotus flower to you?  Completely ignoring the poor man's request not to do......they did.  This for a man who lived in a wooden house in the Pesidential Palace grounds!   Go figure.

Love this house.  Fancy living there.  Yes, please.

Hanoi Hilton and Somerset.

The Hanoi Hilton in a 1970 aerial surveillance photo, during the American/Vietnam war.  Click here for more details of the prison's history, none of it nice.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanoi_Hilton

Built by the French, used by the Japanese during thier occupations of the country,  some horrible things went on here.  Not nice.  So, I didn't feel comfortable taking pictures here, so I didn't.  Then I went outside and realised that the place  where we were staying was built on the grounds shown in the first picture above, -  the Somerest Grand Serviced Appartments.

This is the accomodation today.  What to think, what to say?

Hanoi bikes.

It is impossible to not be struck by the motor bikes in Hanoi. Thankfully 'struck' in the sence of shocked!!!

This series of snaps was taken on the drive to the airport.

The competition between us was to take the photo with the most riders. Here we have two heads protected and one mouth

No cheating with cut and paste allowed.

Then, I got it, four a seat a scooter!!!

Coffee in Hanoi.

Guess where we have just been on holiday? Hanoi plus Sapa and Halong Bay. The old quarter in Hanoi is divided into streets specialising in different wares. This one had some coffee shops. Gek got a very good deal on our Weasel Coffee.

Local Fruiter's.

Isn't this wonderful?   All the fruits in the world!!!!

Clowning in Singapore.

It was hot.    My only defence!!!!

Weasel Coffee

What has this little fellow to do with coffee?  Checkout this Wikipedia link to see.  And I still love it,  the coffee not the weasel!!!!

Film - Julie & Julia.

Funny, very funny. But it is two films. For more on Julia Child, Click. or Julie Powell, Click. So it has to be a split score. For Julie, 3/5 and for Julia, 4/5. What can I say, Meryl.......I am a fan!!!!

Anthony Poon

Poon, a Singaporean painter and sculpture. For more information on the man, click here.

SAM has an exhibition of his work, both abstract paintings and some of the models of his public space sculptures.

His works are very fresh and free.

His works can be found all over Singapore. I first noticed his sculpture at the top of Orchard Road. Note to self...get a photo!!!

Also liked his 3D canvases.

Mangroves

Photo credits to Gek.

4 hour boat trip around the mangroves on the north east of the island.  60% salt / 40% fresh water.  Home to crocodiles amongst others. 

Mandatory feeding of the fishes.  Tried to get them to jump for their lunch but no luck.

Ours was the last boat through before the rising tide makes the passage impossible.   Stories of boats getting stuck.....etc.

Brahminy Kite, the local indian name for which forms Langkawi's island  name.  To see several tens of these lovely birds swooping for chicken bits was a little disturbing....not right.

And a Crab Eating Macaque eating Warburton's finest was a little amiss too. Watch your waistline boy.  Good swimmer.

Spectacled Langur

One of our many neighbours. Very cute in more ways than one!!! And with an extremely long tail.

Other chaps' tails seemed to be fair game. Go pull it and then have a mock fight. Size and age no object. I watched these guys for ages. Falling out of a tree from a great height is not a problem. Bones of rubber.

Langkawi

Local budget airline, Firefly, now link Penang and Langkawi. Only 30 mins or so in a twin prop plane.

Spoilt our selves with resort accommodation.

with great front garden!!!

Morning visitors and,

evening sunsets a short drive away.

Film - Time Traveler's Wife.

Based on the 2003 novel by Audrey Niffenegger.  Lovely story, like randomly reading and interacting with pages of your our completed autobiography. Well shot too.  Has to be a 4 for me.

Ballet.

Three modern/contemporary ballets by the Singapore Dance Theatre. A couple of weeks ago we went to an introduction to the pieces given by the artistic director, Janek Schergen. His explanation and the accompanying demonstrations of the dances was really illuminating. So we went back for more!!!!!

Glow-Stop was our favorite dance work. 

Ion

Orchard Road has new shopping malls.........like it needs more!!!!  ION........"An ion is an atom or molecule where the total number of electrons is not equal to the total number of protons, giving it a net positive or negative electrical charge." Nice.....but what has that got to do with a Cathederal to the new religion.......consumerism?

Frankly I found it mind numbing, a net negative electrical charge for me then. Where are the shops, you might ask.  Lurking!!!

More void than substance.

There are tens of escalators.  This has to be the longest one in Singapore.  Takes you down 3 floors down to B4.

Book - The Great Wall

Well,  I am going to have to read all John Man's books.  They are all conjoined!!!  So far read Ghengis Khan, Kublai Khan and the Terracotta Army. So readable.  Have to be, to keep my attention!!!!  And as usually, John goes myth busting. When you look at  maps of Mongolia, walls are shown practically on the Russian border.  I had wondered how  this could be if the walls were meant to keep out the Mongol raiders and thier kin from China?  Attila The Hun next!!!!!

Lion Dance Competition.

Held annually at Ngee Ann City. 

Three troupes competed this night.  But first the resident Lions must be appeased!!!

Cute...... with menace!!!

Then the serious business begins.  Don't try this at home.........the last troupe had to abandon thier dance on their third fall.  The lads really hurt themselves.  Needed attention.

And really edge of your seat stuff, leaping around as one.  The audience were absolutely silent throughout each performance.

Of course there was the moment of clowning.  How do they do that????

There are two guys in there, really.  Loved it.  Going back on Saturday to watch the finals.  Still feeling for the lads who had to withdraw gutted.

Film - Coco avant Chanel

Lovely film. By the end , I didn't even notice the subtitles.  An extraordinary story of rags to riches. And to think an Englishman figured in her story..........!.  4 a must, nicely French.