Helix Bridge

The Helix Bridge which links the Marina Square/ Esplanade area to the Marina Bay Sands is one cool structure, mostly stainless steel and glass. Designed by a team of Australian and Singaporean architects, the Bridge affords you a great view of both sides of the water - the old CBD side with the familiar skyline, helmed by the Fullerton Hotel (old General Post Office), and the new side with the distinctive design of the Marina Bay Sands casino and hotel. The Bridge lights up at night with the contribution of the lights of the Singapore Flyer in the background.

Kung Fu Tea

Tea lovers please take note. Martial arts lovers also please take note. And if you are a fan of both tea and martial arts, all the better and you have come to the right place. The Chinese restaurant, Sichuan Douhua on the 80th storey of the UOB Plaza is the place to go.

First of all, the view from the top is great. One can get an almost 360 degree view from up there. But that is just the side show.

Once you have finished drinking in the view, you must turn your full attention to the tea master who wields a copper tea pot with a spout which is about a metre long. He goes from table to table, filling up your tea cup with a flourish, aiming the spout with deadly accuracy against the inside of your cup, at an angle which causes the tea leaves inside the cup to swirl in a whirlpool. He also occasionally performs a show with his tea pot, almost like how a bartender tosses his cocktail shaker and alcohol bottle around, except more stylishly and with higher stakes seeing as the liquid content is scaldingly hot. The master flips his teapot across his shoulder, stretching the long, thin spout behind his back as though it were a pole or a spear. This display of martial arts is highly entertaining. Visiting this restaurant just for the kung fu tea is alone worth it.

And oh, the dim sum here is not bad either.

Public Art Along Singapore River

The river bank on the side of the Fullerton Hotel in the evenings is a great spot to sit and watch the boats go by and have a quiet chat with a good friend. I find this side of the river very interesting, not so much for the bars and restaurants along Boat Quay, but between the Boat Quay stretch (before the bars start) and the Fullerton Hotel where the public art is.

You start off under the UOB Plaza in its vast foyer, a little further in from the river, where you will find a Newton statue by Salvatore Dali. It's such a landmark, many office workers tell their friends to meet them "by the statue with the hole in the stomach".

Along the river bank itself coming out from UOB Plaza, you will see the Fat Bird statue by Botero, a lovely, happy art work. How can one not smile when faced with a giant, fat, round bird?

Keep walking down the river towards the Fullerton Hotel and you will be greeted by artworks depicting local Singaporean scene of days gone by. There is the working ox and cart and its owner. Another one of a trio of men discussing business.

Then if you look very carefully by the side of the end of the Elgin Bridge, you will find a kuchinta, a local breed of cat with its sharp face and feline features.

A few more metres down, still on the same end of the Elgin Bridge near to the Fullerton Hotel, you will see a group of cheeky boys, pushing one another and jumping into the river for a skinny dip, including a little fella in mid-jump which is why the work is so dynamic. Such simple pleasures of olden days gone by.

Come discover the public art in Singapore, they will put a smile on your face.

Furniture With Character

Folks who are setting up home in Singapore and looking for cool furniture, read on.

For people who:-

1. do not want a whole house decked out in Ikea or Courts

2. have a love for nostalgia

3. are looking for furniture pieces with a bit of character

4. do not have a huge budget to blow

5. want friendly service and a free beer when furniture shopping

you need to check out Likethatone. You will probably need a map or a GPS to get there as it is tucked in the boonies amongst HDB (housing development board) flats and in a light flatted factory area, but it is not difficult to get there on the PIE (I think) and parking is plentiful and free on the weekend.

The stuff is way cool, with mostly Mid-century local pieces, some of which have had a creative twist added to them by the proprietors. There are so many pieces that are just calling out to me to give them a place in my home but unfortunately, there is the real life issue of space constraints (and of course budget). The folks at Likethatone have a great eye for fabrics and the new upholstery on the armchairs, wing chairs, sofas and stools are often enough of a motivation to want to make those pieces a part of your home.

They have also inspired me to get a move on to restore my own 2 1960s teak armchairs. My family couldn't quite believe how these babies now look as compared to the last thirty plus years we remember them in their old and horrid state sitting forlornly at my mum's house.

A little inspiration, a little imagination, research and effort will get you far. Check out this shop and be prepared to want to bring a lot of gorgeous furniture home.

Red Dot Design Museum

This building on Maxwell Road holds very dear memories for me because my late father used to work in this building when it was the Headquarters of the Traffic Police. I think he was based there for a short period of time and I remember going with him into his office there, I must have been about five years old.

Now it has got a new lease of life as the Red Dot Design Museum. I am glad the wrecking ball didn't get to this old dame the way the old National Library and the National Theatre went.

The Museum shop carries some really cool stuff like the Photo Curator and the best part about this place that I like is the flea market on the first weekend of every month (when there is also free admission to the museum). This is a really high quality market which only admits sellers who sell handmade items. You can get unique and gorgeous things like fabric journal covers, customised key chains, knitted scarfs, origami earrings (see picture below) and other accessories. I am definitely going back to the market to get some more special gifts for some special people.

A Slice Of Bohemia

Haji Lane in the Arab area is way cool. It is bohemian, chill-out cool.

Murals such as this and other street art/graffiti adorn the ways of the buildings in the alleyways. Photographers (usually young people) with colourful Lomo cameras prowl the laneways for a good shot. Not difficult at all to find an interesting composition in this area. Photo shoots take place each time I have visited - from wedding videos to blogshop fashion shoots.

The low shophouses are architecturally very interesting, the things sold are unique - clothes by young local designers (although the pre-pubescent sizes leave me disappointed), collectibles, knick knacks, retro-style furniture, handmade jewellery and all sorts of bits and bobs to attract the shopper who has wearied of the same-old, same-old ubiquitous shopping malls in Singapore.

Stop for a coffee, a teh-halia, a beer or a smoke of the shisha pipe. There is even earl gray and fig ice-cream. What more can you ask for?

Traditional Egg Tarts

Round the corner from Ann Siang Hill, the subject of the last post, along South Bridge Road, is this old-time Chinese confectionery called Tong Heng. The egg tarts are legendary. Not the usual round shape, but a diamond shape with the eggy custard goodness encased in a flaky pastry. You can have them on the premises as they have a couple of marble tables and wooden chairs, adding to the old-world charm. Other fare on offer are old-fashioned biscuits like "wife's biscuits" and other goodies which were traditionally wedding biscuits. You definitely cannot stop at one at this place.