Eleventh month, 'tis the season to be rainy, tra la la la la la la la la

This month, we have mostly been:

- Enjoying the advent of Christmas in Tiong Bahru.



Please note the complete absence of any season's greetings. The only signs around the base of the tree read: Danger - HIGH VOLTAGE. Nothing like a good bit of Christmas cheer!

- Experiencing life in deepest darkest China.

- Learning about an architectural wonder planned for 2010: Marina Bay Sands - two thousand five hundred rooms spread across three fifty-five storey towers topped by a magnificent 1.2 hectare Sky Park, employing more than ten thousand people and setting its sights as one of Asia's most iconic, spectacular, original and breathtaking venues. It is hoped the hotel will throw open its doors in April and the Sky Park will be ready for strolling, running, and kite-flying in June. Along with Universal Studios and Resorts World on Sentosa, Singapore's entertainment offerings are about to receive a much-welcome face lift in 2010. We can hardly wait.

- Booze Cruising in Singapore waters. Grab 99 of your favourite buddies, ask everyone to bring a bottle of their favourite poison and set sail from Marina South Pier aboard a diesel-powered vessel for the Singapore Straits.


Giving new meaning to the word "shots"

Add thumping tunes, pirate costumes, a vat of dangerous cocktail, super soakers filled with vodka, moor the boat off the Southern Islands and watch as young adults throw themselves in the water for an afternoon's alternative entertainment.



- Enjoying a quick hop to Auckland, New Zealand.

- Feeling Zouked Out. The tradition is to rent a hotel room in one of the Siloso beach resorts, start drinking at 4 pm and hope that you can still stand by the time any of the good DJs grace the stages (around 1 am). We, thankfully, were invited to substitute a delicious home-cooked Thai meal for the liquid dinner chosen by some of our friends and arrived on the beach around 2 am (after waiting in the longest traffic jam in the clubbing universe) in time to enjoy some drinks before the beginning of Richie Hawtin's set an hour later. Sadly, some of the hotel-goers didn't even manage to make it out of the rooms and on to the beach (a mere five minute walk).


Where are your friends now?

We had never seen so many train wrecks in Singapore, all gathered together in one large space, covered in sand, revelling in the fact that it was the one night of the year that the police turn a blind eye. Despite that, the atmosphere was electric and exploded when the main man of the night, Armin Van Buuren arrived to trance it up. At this point, being techno-lovers, we had to make our excuses and decided to embark on the one-and-a-half hour trek back to Harbourfront MRT. We watched the sunrise over the Universal Studios building site, admiring the twists and turns of the soon-to-be opened rollercoasters and were content that the moon was still smiling on us:



Next up is Christmas Day and all the trimmings, New Year in Thailand and our one year anniversary of being Sin City dwellers. Bring on the party season! Let the drinking games begin.

48 hours in Auckland :: 7-8 Dec'09

Being sent on a business trip at the last minute to Auckland, New Zealand wasn't on my planned weekend agenda. And so with great difficulty, I hauled my brunch drunk mind to the airport after a six hour champagne-fueled session. Thankfully, I was travelling business class, so my position at the low-lit Krisflyer lounge bar sipping more champagne was not exactly a shock to the system. I was more alarmed that the first class lounge (I was sneaked in by my fellow frequent travellers) was not proportionately better than the business class lounge. Why was I not drinking out of a gold-plated goblet and being fed grapes?

Ten hours on a flat bed later, interrupted only by my next door neighbour laughing maniacally at his screen, we rolled into our waiting car and enjoyed the slow drive to the city centre through rows of two-storey houses and green fields. I won't lie: "more sheep than people" kept resonating through my mind.

On arrival at The Westin, I was pleasantly surprised to be welcomed to a hotel right on the quayside, overlooking a vast array of yachts, large and small. Still, though, Where Is Everybody?

After our meetings finished around 6 pm, we were astonished to find out that all shops, except for the supermarket and a pharmacy had closed. It was hard to come to terms with the grief at not having Singapore style late night shopping to keep us occupied, so we consoled ourselves with enormous steaks at Jervois Steak House & Saloon, washed down with some fine local wines before heading to the ONLY bar in Lighter Quay that had any kind of 'atmosphere' (a.k.a PEOPLE), Danny Doolans. Two guys with guitars belted out familiar tunes such as 'Brown-Eyed Girl' whilst we sipped whiskies and answered emails from colleagues working on Singapore business hours.

The next day, we were treated to a late start which allowed me to indulge my oyster fetish. Six of some of the largest and juiciest rock oysters slid down my neck before we were trapped in our meeting room until 7 pm. Given that it was our last night, however, and that the meetings had progressed well, we all headed off to the exquisite Kermadec at Viaduct Harbour, just a short stroll from our hotel.

As locally caught and freshly shucked oysters were a special on the menu, it seemed a crying shame not to indulge once more. They were different from any I had ever tasted before - hats off to Head Chef, Richard Highnam. To follow, I opted for the Confit Hapuku Fillet with asparagus étuvée, toasted wheat and scampi pilaf, baby sorrel, Cotriade stock, and one eye bouillabaisse. To finish, I had the simply titled but delectably complex, 'Rooibos Red Bush Tea and Caramel Custard', which was a divine selection of five different desserts in one. A delicious Rippon Valley Riesling from 2007 helped to oil the chatter cogs whilst I learned about the quiet life on North Island, New Zealand. Apparently, it's all about owning a boat.

In all, my forty-eight hours in Auckland was enjoyable, primarily because of the superb seafood, steak and ludicrously low-priced wine (by Singaporean standards). It was a good experience to be somewhere so serene that starkly contrasted with the hustle and bustle of Singapore life. The Kiwis have perfected the 'work to live' approach to life and with so much outdoor space per capita to enjoy, who can blame them?