It is hard to pinpoint the best date to visit Singapore. But I guess it is best to visit during later part of the year like Dec. As rain would be more frequent.
Ironically I have yet to see otters with my own eyes. I did see large monitor lizards on numerous occasions. Wild boars are also a common sight but I have yet to see one. Monkeys are easy to spot when you visit Bukit Timah hill, the tallest natural point in Singapore.
I love universal studios. I went there 10 times on a six months pass. But the roller coaster, Battlestar Galactica was down throughout that six months though
At various times I have lived in the Middle East and Australia. My trips to SG were always guided by something else. The most recent was Feb 2020 on a stopover to Tokyo (then Sapporo, Snow Festival time!). I have been at various points in the year and just dealt with whatever the conditions were. Doing all the tourist things I could fit in. Next time I will probably explore further afield.
I have also seen large monitor lizards. If you go to Palawan in the Philippines you can see Monitors and monkeys living in the same forest but keeping well out of each other's way. Quite funny to see monkeys go from trying to steal your water bottle to hiding from a massive lizard coming their way.
This location at Lorong Buangkok is the last surviving Kampong in Singapore. Kampong comes from a Malay word which means village. Note that the postal code used was still four digits as per the old days. The current postal code is 6 digits.
The Kampong was first built in 1956. The land area used to be 21460 m2 but has shrunken in size to 12248.1 m2. I believe some lands were bought back by the Government for redevelopment.
The land is privately owned and in 2007, there was a report that the land is worth 33M SGD.
There are currently only about 28 households living there. 18 Chinese and 10 Malays.
It was reported that the landlord only charged a minuscule rental of 6.50 to 30 SGD monthly.
There is actually a long term plan to demolish the place and to build a highway across it. But conservation lobbyists have been campaigning to preserve it.
I first went to the place more than 20 years ago on a paranormal activity trip. It was said that the mother of two drowned children at a pond there committed suicide and then later an image of the woman appeared on the door of her house. I could not find written accounts of this but this was the verbal story recited to me back then.
I actually took these pictures almost a year ago when I visited my aunt. She lives in the new flats built behind it.
This is a top view of the Kampong from a shot I took off the Internet. My aunt is living in one of the new flats at the back of this Kampong.
This is bought from a Thai food stall in an non air con coffeeshop. Basil chicken with an add on Tom Yam soup with mainly cabbages. It cost 7.10 SGD .
I got this screenshot from a CNA news report of the state of National Service in Taiwan. This vehicle and the weapon is the M113 120mm Self Propelled Mortar. It was exactly the same set up I was trained in during my 2.5 years (2 years now) of National Service. One of the advantages of this particular vocation was that we carried shorter carbines instead of the long unwieldy M16. The toughest part of this vocation is during the set up. We have to set up camouflage net with four bamboo poles, run a long wired signalling to the command post, set up aiming posts for calibration, having the first bomb out within a certain timing.
A towed mortar being deployed.
How a towed mortar gets around.
For reserved training, I was posted to a truck towed 120 mm mortar. It has different challenges and more physically demanding. The best part of the towed mortar was that there was very little stores. Easy to maintain and close shop after a training.
Our reservist training can last till 40 years and 45 years old for officers. Each year we need to report for training varying from 2 to 3 weeks for at least 10 years ( 13 years during my time)
I read that our towed mortar would be phased out and replaced with a self propelled version for the motorised troops in this new Singapore developed vehicle.
This M113 had been phased out in place of a Singapore built armour carrier.
I believe this is how the armoured self propelled mortar is deployed now.
Recently Channel News Asia of Singapore did a four parts documentary of Singapore maximum security prison available on YouTube. It was a very interesting watch. I will share a bit of it here from what I learned from the documentary and other sources from the Internet. Most shots were mainly taken from the documentary.
The prison has cells of different configurations. It could be single man, three men, four men, eight men. The documentary features the single man cell. It is mainly used to house inmates with longer sentences and also those that need to undergo a violence intervention programme.
A single man cell
The prison has different blocks. Cells are located in housing units. Each housing unit have their own yard, laundry, control room and a group of dayrooms.
A dayroom
The single man cell is fully monitored by CCTV 24 hrs. The inmate will sleep on a mat on the cement floor.
These are the standard issues that a inmate is given. Items are designed with unique features such as transparent toothpaste tube and mug, clear toothpaste, short toothbrush, transparent slippers and plastic spoon.
At 6 am, lights would be turned on. Inmates can do their wash up.
Shower design, without any tubings. At certain off peak hours, the water supply and lightings would be turned off. They generally would be turned on again during meal times.
At 7 to 715 am, mindfulness practice will take place as meditative music is played throughout the dayrooms.
A muster check is carried out to check on the well being and presence of inmates. Inmates are supposed to stand in front of viewing panels and greet the officers. This would be done like three times a day, breakfast, lunch and dinner.
During a muster check the cell needs to layout properly according to the picture.
Inmates would be issued with their personal shaver for 10 mins.
At 745 am breakfast is served. It consists of four slices of bread with butter or Jam and hot coffee or tea. Food is served through a bottom slot of the prison door.
Depends on the inmate's diet requirements, six different kinds of diet are available. A fruit would also be served with the lunch and dinner. Fruit is usually apple, orange or banana.
A dinner menu sample
A lunch menu sample
The menu is planned by dietitian to ensure proper nutrition and varieties.
A Wednesday lunch, typically noodles. The inmate hates it, saying that it can be hard and cold.
Meals are served via a bottom slot. Lunch is served at 1130 am while dinner is typically served 5 pm.
Lights out would be at 9 pm.
The cooks are inmates themselves on a work programme and supervised by chefs from a kitchen vendor.
Dangerous kitchen tools are chained down.
This is all for the first part of sharing. I will continue on another day as the message is getting too long.
Inmates on work programmes might be involved in other work details like laundry and cleaning. Some assist the psychology therapists in their work. Inmates on work programme are typically paid 5 to 6 SGD per week.
Inmates could use the income to buy snacks and better scented soap. The guards will limit the amount of snacks inmates could keep in the cell.
A vending machine that inmates could buy snacks and soaps by scanning their wrist bands which link to their allowance account.
An inmate showing us how he would reward himself with a small snack each day as he counts towards his release date.
Inmates are typically allowed one hour of off cell time per weekday. They could engage in activities like watching TV, playing board games, reading two weeks old newspapers.
A game of carrom. It is hard to find this game on sale these days.
Twice a week on weekdays, inmates are allowed two hours of exercise yard time. Ball games like Sepak takraw and basketball are allowed. No exercise equipment are provided. Sitting benches are not allowed to be used for exercises. Sepak takraw is a very advanced form of volleyball that is played in South East Asia. Usually popular with Malays.
Dangerous exercises like headstand pushups and reverse cycling kicks in ball games are not allowed.
An inmate changed his slippers to court shoes during a yard time.
Each day at 5 pm inmates are given 1.5 hours access to a tablet. They can use it to access key news, prison information, games, screened letters.
Inmate could also send a letter of not more than 8000 words a month. Additional letters can be earned via good conducts.
Each month, inmates are allowed two face to face visit or Tele visit. Only Tele visits are allowed now due to the Covid-19.
During visits, three outside books could be passed to the prison to be given to the inmate. The books or magazines would be subjected to screenings before handling over to inmate.
An inmate signing the take over of publications.
An inmate reads his magazine.
Ok. This is part 2 of my sharing. I thought I should just share it as it is still fresh from memory.
Inmates are monitored for good behaviours and managed with a points system.
If no disciplinary points are deducted for three months, they could exchange it for the right to have a photograph in the cell. Other privileges they could redeem are snacks and extra visits.
Inmates as a dayroom section, will also earn group points that could be exchanged for longer yard time or movies. Every three to four months, inmates are treated to a movie.
Phone calls are only allowed for family emergencies and the session could only last for 15 mins in the presence of a prison officer sitting opposite the inmate.
Routine daily cell search would be conducted selectively. Even items like origami is not allowed as it could be used to hide other contrabands. Other examples are staple bullets, straws, threads.
Inmates are not allowed to make their own hooks. They are only allowed two in living area and one in the toilet. Insufficient wall hooks appears to be a big concern of the inmates.
Inmates are not allowed to keep excessive food in the cell. Here the officer removed the third apple from the inmate's cell during inspection. The reason was that old food could lead to stomach upset.
Inmates found committing minor offences like quarrelling and having excessive or modified articles may be issued warnings, confinement to punishment cell up to seven days or have their release date extended.
Major offences include fighting, hoarding of medications, and tattooing. Punishment can include caning or referral to police.
An inmate shared that his illegal prison tattooing cost him 21 days extension and four strokes of cane. Tattooing in prisons are considered dangerous and could cause infections. Inmates might gather illegal contrabands like staple bullets to achieve their illegal tattooing.
Each time an inmate leaves his cell for activities like rehabilitation sessions, yard times, out of cell time, he has to be stripped for simple rub down of his clothings. This would be repeated when returning to cells. The inmates do not wear any undergarments.
Activities available for inmates include sport activities, drama, drawing lessons.
Inmates who are interested in arts can apply for an arts training programme. It covers drawings, pottery, carpentry, batik.
Inmates undergoing a group therapy session.
Inmates not involved in any weekend rehabilitative programmes might be locked up for 48 hours.
This is part 3 of my sharing. I should be sharing a part 4 soon.
Inmates can apply to attend a prison school and they could take exams leading to a General Cambridge Examination (GCE) Normal, Ordinary or Advance level certificate. Diploma and degree certifications are also available.
The inmates conducting their studies in the cells. No tables are provided. The 41 year old inmate in the foreground complains that his back hurts. He is serving a 25 years 15 strokes sentence for drugs trafficking. He said he was nearly sent to the gallows.
Inmates will be stripped and checked before going for their classes.
Professional teachers will conduct the lessons.
The yard at prison school is an open air one as opposed to the indoor maximum security yard.
Inmate was waiting for the start of his exam.
Inmates were taking an examination paper.
Students were waiting to collect their GCE results.
Towards the tail end (about one third) of their prison time, inmates would be assessed on their suitability to be placed on a community programme to assist in their reintegration into the society.
In such a programme, they may serve detention at home, at a halfway house or at a work release centre.
A conditional remission programme also exists where an inmate can be released after serving only 2/3 of their sentence due to good conduct. But he could be subjected to heavier sentencing if he reoffends.
A halfway house.
Inmates need to wear an electronic tag on a community programme.
A work release facility.
Bunks at a Work Release facility.
In a work release scheme, inmate will go to work in the day time and return to their bunks after work.
This a four men cell in a drug rehabilitation prison.
Inmates have access to a simple foldable tables here. Also instead of solid metal doors, they have bars and could see the sunlight.
Inmates in the prisons only have access to squat toilets. The toilets also double as a shower cubicle.
The yard is also an open air one.
An indoor yard. It also serves as a dining hall.
The Singapore Prison Emergency Action Response team (Spears) demonstrated how they handle a prison riot.
Spears showing how they breach a prison cell using what I think is a stun grenade.
Restraining a violent inmate enactment.
Showcasing a violence restraining mobile wheels.
The assault rate in prison has risen in the past few years. About 46 per 10,000 inmates for FY2021. It was mainly due to an increase in violent crimes offenders.
Overall Singapore has maintained a low recidivism rate with reference to global numbers.
The two years recidivism rate is 20 percent as of 2021.
Based on a 2015 CNA statistics, there were 12,394 Singapore inmates and 70 percent was related to drug offences. In that year, Singapore also has the third highest prisoners to population figures in the developed world with 219 prisoners for every 100,000 people. The first was USA at 693, followed by Israel at 256.
Under the law, a person faces a maximum of 10 years' imprisonment or S$20,000 fine, or both, if found guilty of drug possession or consumption.
This is the final part of my Singapore prison sharings. Thank you for reading.
In the early days of Singapore when malls is still not a thing. Going to a amusement park was big thing. There were four such amusements parks back then. One of which is known as Gay World Amusement Park.
It was first set up in 1937 and was initially known as Happy World.
After a change of ownership, it was renamed as Gay World in 1966
Inside gay world you could find simple mechanical rides like Ferris wheels, game machines, cinemas, live cabarets, an indoor stadium, games booths, retailing. I think I went there fewer than a handful of times.
I have strong impressions of some games booths but no one seemed to remember. There was one where there are different rows of battleships and you will shoot them electronically with a rifle, if you hit it, it would light up.
I got no chance to catch any cabaret shows though. There used to be one cabaret with topless Russian performers, the only one in town. Neptune theatre. Too bad I never had the chance to visit it. I think it had closed down.
The last time I visited gay world was to watch an inter school basketball match during my secondary school days. I was forced to attend.
Gay world finally closed down in 2001 after a last basketball match. The whole place has been demolished and the place now is just an empty piece of grassland.
The only remanents of the place that reminded you of Gay World is this hotel opposite the land that named itself after the theme park.
I walked past the hotel earlier and just wanted to share this.
I was at my armed forces clubhouse last night to catch World Cup 2022 in a match between Japan and Germany. The nervous look of the lady was quite amusing when Germany was leading 1-0
I was sitting near a Germany supporter. Germany is a four time world cup title holder. Japan generally has never performed well in world cup
The joyous looks of the audience when Japan scored a goal.
The people in the room were deliriously happy after Japan scored another goal
The despondent Germany supporter removed his jersey and changed to a different one while waiting for the next game. I think it represents France.
How the clubhouse's screen looks like when I was there the previous night.
This was taken before the 3 am Singapore time match at my community hub. The late night matches are held in this air conditioned small room. The early games of 6 pm and 9 pm are held in the big screen area. So for the time being there will not any movies screening at night on the big screen.
A programme schedule for the big screen area.
Programme schedule for the small function room area for late night football matches.
Movies screening continues at another smaller screen area. For some unknown reasons, I think my hub has never shown Fast and Furious 1 to 4 before. Many of the shows have been repeated over and over again. Some of the regular attendees are really getting tired of the titles shown.
Replies
At various times I have lived in the Middle East and Australia. My trips to SG were always guided by something else. The most recent was Feb 2020 on a stopover to Tokyo (then Sapporo, Snow Festival time!). I have been at various points in the year and just dealt with whatever the conditions were. Doing all the tourist things I could fit in. Next time I will probably explore further afield.
I have also seen large monitor lizards. If you go to Palawan in the Philippines you can see Monitors and monkeys living in the same forest but keeping well out of each other's way. Quite funny to see monkeys go from trying to steal your water bottle to hiding from a massive lizard coming their way.
This location at Lorong Buangkok is the last surviving Kampong in Singapore. Kampong comes from a Malay word which means village. Note that the postal code used was still four digits as per the old days. The current postal code is 6 digits.
The Kampong was first built in 1956. The land area used to be 21460 m2 but has shrunken in size to 12248.1 m2. I believe some lands were bought back by the Government for redevelopment.
The land is privately owned and in 2007, there was a report that the land is worth 33M SGD.
There are currently only about 28 households living there. 18 Chinese and 10 Malays.
It was reported that the landlord only charged a minuscule rental of 6.50 to 30 SGD monthly.
There is actually a long term plan to demolish the place and to build a highway across it. But conservation lobbyists have been campaigning to preserve it.
I first went to the place more than 20 years ago on a paranormal activity trip. It was said that the mother of two drowned children at a pond there committed suicide and then later an image of the woman appeared on the door of her house. I could not find written accounts of this but this was the verbal story recited to me back then.
I actually took these pictures almost a year ago when I visited my aunt. She lives in the new flats built behind it.
This is a top view of the Kampong from a shot I took off the Internet. My aunt is living in one of the new flats at the back of this Kampong.
This is bought from a Thai food stall in an non air con coffeeshop. Basil chicken with an add on Tom Yam soup with mainly cabbages. It cost 7.10 SGD .
I got this screenshot from a CNA news report of the state of National Service in Taiwan. This vehicle and the weapon is the M113 120mm Self Propelled Mortar. It was exactly the same set up I was trained in during my 2.5 years (2 years now) of National Service. One of the advantages of this particular vocation was that we carried shorter carbines instead of the long unwieldy M16. The toughest part of this vocation is during the set up. We have to set up camouflage net with four bamboo poles, run a long wired signalling to the command post, set up aiming posts for calibration, having the first bomb out within a certain timing.
A towed mortar being deployed.
How a towed mortar gets around.
For reserved training, I was posted to a truck towed 120 mm mortar. It has different challenges and more physically demanding. The best part of the towed mortar was that there was very little stores. Easy to maintain and close shop after a training.
Our reservist training can last till 40 years and 45 years old for officers. Each year we need to report for training varying from 2 to 3 weeks for at least 10 years ( 13 years during my time)
I read that our towed mortar would be phased out and replaced with a self propelled version for the motorised troops in this new Singapore developed vehicle.
This M113 had been phased out in place of a Singapore built armour carrier.
I believe this is how the armoured self propelled mortar is deployed now.
An ample looking busker at my community hub.
The prison has cells of different configurations. It could be single man, three men, four men, eight men. The documentary features the single man cell. It is mainly used to house inmates with longer sentences and also those that need to undergo a violence intervention programme.
A single man cell
The prison has different blocks. Cells are located in housing units. Each housing unit have their own yard, laundry, control room and a group of dayrooms.
A dayroom
The single man cell is fully monitored by CCTV 24 hrs. The inmate will sleep on a mat on the cement floor.
These are the standard issues that a inmate is given. Items are designed with unique features such as transparent toothpaste tube and mug, clear toothpaste, short toothbrush, transparent slippers and plastic spoon.
At 6 am, lights would be turned on. Inmates can do their wash up.
Shower design, without any tubings. At certain off peak hours, the water supply and lightings would be turned off. They generally would be turned on again during meal times.
At 7 to 715 am, mindfulness practice will take place as meditative music is played throughout the dayrooms.
A muster check is carried out to check on the well being and presence of inmates. Inmates are supposed to stand in front of viewing panels and greet the officers. This would be done like three times a day, breakfast, lunch and dinner.
During a muster check the cell needs to layout properly according to the picture.
Inmates would be issued with their personal shaver for 10 mins.
At 745 am breakfast is served. It consists of four slices of bread with butter or Jam and hot coffee or tea. Food is served through a bottom slot of the prison door.
Depends on the inmate's diet requirements, six different kinds of diet are available. A fruit would also be served with the lunch and dinner. Fruit is usually apple, orange or banana.
A dinner menu sample
A lunch menu sample
The menu is planned by dietitian to ensure proper nutrition and varieties.
A Wednesday lunch, typically noodles. The inmate hates it, saying that it can be hard and cold.
Meals are served via a bottom slot. Lunch is served at 1130 am while dinner is typically served 5 pm.
Lights out would be at 9 pm.
The cooks are inmates themselves on a work programme and supervised by chefs from a kitchen vendor.
Dangerous kitchen tools are chained down.
This is all for the first part of sharing. I will continue on another day as the message is getting too long.
Inmates could use the income to buy snacks and better scented soap. The guards will limit the amount of snacks inmates could keep in the cell.
A vending machine that inmates could buy snacks and soaps by scanning their wrist bands which link to their allowance account.
An inmate showing us how he would reward himself with a small snack each day as he counts towards his release date.
Inmates are typically allowed one hour of off cell time per weekday. They could engage in activities like watching TV, playing board games, reading two weeks old newspapers.
A game of carrom. It is hard to find this game on sale these days.
Twice a week on weekdays, inmates are allowed two hours of exercise yard time. Ball games like Sepak takraw and basketball are allowed. No exercise equipment are provided. Sitting benches are not allowed to be used for exercises. Sepak takraw is a very advanced form of volleyball that is played in South East Asia. Usually popular with Malays.
Dangerous exercises like headstand pushups and reverse cycling kicks in ball games are not allowed.
An inmate changed his slippers to court shoes during a yard time.
Each day at 5 pm inmates are given 1.5 hours access to a tablet. They can use it to access key news, prison information, games, screened letters.
Inmate could also send a letter of not more than 8000 words a month. Additional letters can be earned via good conducts.
Each month, inmates are allowed two face to face visit or Tele visit. Only Tele visits are allowed now due to the Covid-19.
During visits, three outside books could be passed to the prison to be given to the inmate. The books or magazines would be subjected to screenings before handling over to inmate.
An inmate signing the take over of publications.
An inmate reads his magazine.
Ok. This is part 2 of my sharing. I thought I should just share it as it is still fresh from memory.
I will continue next time.
If no disciplinary points are deducted for three months, they could exchange it for the right to have a photograph in the cell. Other privileges they could redeem are snacks and extra visits.
Inmates as a dayroom section, will also earn group points that could be exchanged for longer yard time or movies. Every three to four months, inmates are treated to a movie.
Phone calls are only allowed for family emergencies and the session could only last for 15 mins in the presence of a prison officer sitting opposite the inmate.
Routine daily cell search would be conducted selectively. Even items like origami is not allowed as it could be used to hide other contrabands. Other examples are staple bullets, straws, threads.
Inmates are not allowed to make their own hooks. They are only allowed two in living area and one in the toilet. Insufficient wall hooks appears to be a big concern of the inmates.
Inmates are not allowed to keep excessive food in the cell. Here the officer removed the third apple from the inmate's cell during inspection. The reason was that old food could lead to stomach upset.
Inmates found committing minor offences like quarrelling and having excessive or modified articles may be issued warnings, confinement to punishment cell up to seven days or have their release date extended.
Major offences include fighting, hoarding of medications, and tattooing. Punishment can include caning or referral to police.
An inmate shared that his illegal prison tattooing cost him 21 days extension and four strokes of cane. Tattooing in prisons are considered dangerous and could cause infections. Inmates might gather illegal contrabands like staple bullets to achieve their illegal tattooing.
Each time an inmate leaves his cell for activities like rehabilitation sessions, yard times, out of cell time, he has to be stripped for simple rub down of his clothings. This would be repeated when returning to cells. The inmates do not wear any undergarments.
Activities available for inmates include sport activities, drama, drawing lessons.
Inmates who are interested in arts can apply for an arts training programme. It covers drawings, pottery, carpentry, batik.
Inmates undergoing a group therapy session.
Inmates not involved in any weekend rehabilitative programmes might be locked up for 48 hours.
This is part 3 of my sharing. I should be sharing a part 4 soon.
The inmates conducting their studies in the cells. No tables are provided. The 41 year old inmate in the foreground complains that his back hurts. He is serving a 25 years 15 strokes sentence for drugs trafficking. He said he was nearly sent to the gallows.
Inmates will be stripped and checked before going for their classes.
Professional teachers will conduct the lessons.
The yard at prison school is an open air one as opposed to the indoor maximum security yard.
Inmate was waiting for the start of his exam.
Inmates were taking an examination paper.
Students were waiting to collect their GCE results.
Towards the tail end (about one third) of their prison time, inmates would be assessed on their suitability to be placed on a community programme to assist in their reintegration into the society.
In such a programme, they may serve detention at home, at a halfway house or at a work release centre.
A conditional remission programme also exists where an inmate can be released after serving only 2/3 of their sentence due to good conduct. But he could be subjected to heavier sentencing if he reoffends.
A halfway house.
Inmates need to wear an electronic tag on a community programme.
A work release facility.
Bunks at a Work Release facility.
In a work release scheme, inmate will go to work in the day time and return to their bunks after work.
This a four men cell in a drug rehabilitation prison.
Inmates have access to a simple foldable tables here. Also instead of solid metal doors, they have bars and could see the sunlight.
Inmates in the prisons only have access to squat toilets. The toilets also double as a shower cubicle.
The yard is also an open air one.
An indoor yard. It also serves as a dining hall.
The Singapore Prison Emergency Action Response team (Spears) demonstrated how they handle a prison riot.
Spears showing how they breach a prison cell using what I think is a stun grenade.
Restraining a violent inmate enactment.
Showcasing a violence restraining mobile wheels.
The assault rate in prison has risen in the past few years. About 46 per 10,000 inmates for FY2021. It was mainly due to an increase in violent crimes offenders.
Overall Singapore has maintained a low recidivism rate with reference to global numbers.
The two years recidivism rate is 20 percent as of 2021.
Based on a 2015 CNA statistics, there were 12,394 Singapore inmates and 70 percent was related to drug offences. In that year, Singapore also has the third highest prisoners to population figures in the developed world with 219 prisoners for every 100,000 people. The first was USA at 693, followed by Israel at 256.
Under the law, a person faces a maximum of 10 years' imprisonment or S$20,000 fine, or both, if found guilty of drug possession or consumption.
This is the final part of my Singapore prison sharings. Thank you for reading.
This fine Briton has just been fined 8000 SGD for refusing to wear a mask in a shopping mall last year.
Read the news here.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/briton-fined-8000-for-refusing-to-wear-mask-in-city-square-mall
This brooch that the Queen wore was a gift from Singapore based on a news article in May 2022
https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/style-beauty/queen-elizabeth-singapore-gift-bird-paradise-brooch-favourite-312466
My community hub is screening the live telecast for Sat and Sun
Narration is loud but cannot feel the volume and vibration of the roar of the engines.
Drone footages above the Marina Bay Sands hotel
The brightly lit tracks in the Marina Bay area
Once the race ended, my hub immediately cuts to a live telecast of football match between Liverpool and Brighton
The joys of Brighton players on their first goal
I watched this cartoon in my childhood before
It was first set up in 1937 and was initially known as Happy World.
After a change of ownership, it was renamed as Gay World in 1966
Inside gay world you could find simple mechanical rides like Ferris wheels, game machines, cinemas, live cabarets, an indoor stadium, games booths, retailing. I think I went there fewer than a handful of times.
I have strong impressions of some games booths but no one seemed to remember. There was one where there are different rows of battleships and you will shoot them electronically with a rifle, if you hit it, it would light up.
I got no chance to catch any cabaret shows though. There used to be one cabaret with topless Russian performers, the only one in town. Neptune theatre. Too bad I never had the chance to visit it. I think it had closed down.
The last time I visited gay world was to watch an inter school basketball match during my secondary school days. I was forced to attend.
Gay world finally closed down in 2001 after a last basketball match. The whole place has been demolished and the place now is just an empty piece of grassland.
The only remanents of the place that reminded you of Gay World is this hotel opposite the land that named itself after the theme park.
I walked past the hotel earlier and just wanted to share this.
I was at my armed forces clubhouse last night to catch World Cup 2022 in a match between Japan and Germany. The nervous look of the lady was quite amusing when Germany was leading 1-0
I was sitting near a Germany supporter. Germany is a four time world cup title holder. Japan generally has never performed well in world cup
The joyous looks of the audience when Japan scored a goal.
The people in the room were deliriously happy after Japan scored another goal
The despondent Germany supporter removed his jersey and changed to a different one while waiting for the next game. I think it represents France.
How the clubhouse's screen looks like when I was there the previous night.
This was taken before the 3 am Singapore time match at my community hub. The late night matches are held in this air conditioned small room. The early games of 6 pm and 9 pm are held in the big screen area. So for the time being there will not any movies screening at night on the big screen.
A programme schedule for the big screen area.
Programme schedule for the small function room area for late night football matches.
Movies screening continues at another smaller screen area. For some unknown reasons, I think my hub has never shown Fast and Furious 1 to 4 before. Many of the shows have been repeated over and over again. Some of the regular attendees are really getting tired of the titles shown.