ampulets

Last night, despite the lure W!ld Rice's Singapore Theatre Festival , J and I embarked on a little night cycling adventure instead. I'll be honest. To call it an adventure would be an overstatement We stayed unheroically on park paths and street pavements, safe from the Homeric battles and journeys of growling trucks, roaring cars and squealing scooters. So modestly, ampulets present here the Tour de Chomp Chomp . From our flat to the busy Braddell Road (which marks the border between the dusty Potong Pasir constituency and prosperous Bishan) is a quiet but broad road, wide because it was built for container trucks. At night, with the infrequent buses, it is even more deserted... ...and creepy. At least to me. Especially when the Toa Payoh Evangelist strikes. The "Toa Payoh Evangelist" is a skinny middle-aged lady, her eyebags large behind round gold spectacles. Almost every night, she would find an unlit spot near a bus stop, or as we experienced last night, behin...

time

[Trigger warning: this post mentions death and suicide.]

Drama(grand)mama

Today is my Grandma's birthday. I think 85 year-old Tan Poh Choo is the only bona fide artist in my family. For a long time, she was able to state on official forms that her occupation was "actress", or to be exact, "opera artiste". Sold when she was a child to one of the oldest Teochew Opera Troupes ( Lao Sai Toh ) in Singapore, Grandma Amps was its star in the 50s and 60s. Her popularity was attested by a series of photographs (one above), commissioned by a wealthy fan to be taken on the grounds of his house. Once, looking through her chocolate boxes of photographs, I had also spotted one of her receiving a congratulatory banner from the now Minister Mentor himself! L-Court of the Emperor (Centre: Grandma; 2nd from left: Grandpa) R -The Rare Tear (Right damsel: Grandma) Click for larger pic Since her strong features were made even more striking by the mask-like opera makeup, it was seldom that she played the role of the damsel, whether in love or distress. I...

one-woman Taipei

Are you romanced by the idea of solo travel? Solo travel seems to be the rite of passage for some folks. But I don't fully understand this romance....Perhaps for some, they need the distance and independence from not just family and friends, but also from all things familiar to create an awareness of one's singular existence and identity. Or maybe it’s just the encounter with the exotic and what it promises.

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