Anyway, I won't be here during the CNY break; we're going to Yogyakarta to visit Borobudur and Prambanan. If we're lucky, we may even be able to see the present sultan of Yogya when we visit the kraton (palace). Managed to get a pretty good package for less than SGD500. Accommodations provided by the Hyatt Regency (*photo courtesy of Hyatt Regency.com) but the catch is we have to fly Garuda. I've flown Garuda to Bali and well enough said. We have a four hour transit in Jakarta so I wonder what we can do. Given Jarkarta's traffic, staying in the airport is best! I just have o worry about the furballs now.
Had to run around Maxwell Road area for the better half of the day, trying to settle some of my dad's matters (will post on my frustrations another time). Had lunch at an authentic Vietnamese cafe on Smith Street called Vietnam #1 Restaurant or something. Being new to flogging, felt weird to take photos of my lunch. Walked over to People's Park to catch a bus; the rain got really heavy again. My slippers (Sembonia from KL 3 years back) decided to die then. Ended up in OG (did you know it's short for Ocean Garments?) and got a pair of Crocs. Not the ugly ones but the Mary Jane pumps. Maybe I should have gone for a size 8; as Drakon always says, my heels got bitten by the 'crocs'. I didn't get help form the sales stuff who were having a gossip session, oblivious to customers. Tsk tsk.
I ended up at the newly renovated National Museum of Singapore. Still think I didn't get my $15 worth but I had a talk to attend. I think I'll get the membership. There's so much info that an afternoon's visit is not enough.However, my main purpose was the Maria Theresia exhibition and I did not regret it. Couldn't take pix though and I am not going to be a spoilsport and sneak taking one. Having worked behind the scenes in heritage, I have to support my ex-colleagues' efforts! She was a dynamic force and I suppose you could say she was one of the original working mums from the 18th century! Only beef, besides the no photography thing, was that the color of the font transfers made it a bit hard to read. It was wonderful to be transported back into the Habsberg-era Austria. To add to the authenticity, Wiener Kaffehaus has opened a little snack bar at B1, outside the exhibition gallery.To those who haven't been to its original Neil Road outlet, you have to. Those who know me, also know I am a coffee addict. My favorite is the Einspaenner.
I ventured to the new 'rotunda', the glass spiral wing that one sees from Stamford Road. That is the Singapore History Gallery and is the gallery I haven't quite finished with. You get around using the aid of the 'Companion' audio headset guide. I liked that idea, as it allows you to explore at your own pace. Kudos to the curatorial team, a lot of effort went into the gallery. Worth the wait! Only problem I had was that I wished there were captions for the artefacts that were not mentioned in the audio guide. I felt my hair stand at the WWII section; it was even worse when I had to walk through it a second time to revisit an earlier section. No one was around and well, I just scuttled out as quickly as I could. I was really taken by the video show depicting 14th century Singapore (*which linked to the talk I attended later that evening) as well as the section dedicated to the women of early modern Singapore.(remember my passion is in women's history) I was surprised to find that they had woven a commentary around Ms Sophia Blackmore, who had founded my alma mater. There was a display of a lace cheongsam; women were really tiny back then. No wonder my Aunty Ivy's wedding gown, which you can see at Memories at the Old Ford Factory needed a child's mannequin.
I ventured to the Singapore Living Galleries in the old wing of the building. That's the one we all grew up with. You know, where the dioramas, the Jade and the Peranakan Collections used to be. Being the fashionista that I am, I really loved the fashion gallery. I will be back again to take in the details. Also, foodie that I am, I also liked the Food gallery. The neato things was that they managed to incorporate the element of 'smells' for some of the common spices used. Visitors just have to pull at the ring and one can get a whiff of anise, cinnamon, wolfberries and kaffir lime. Divine!
I paid $15 for a combined ticket, which allowed me to check out the visiting exhibition and the Singapore Galleries. You save about $3 that way. Otherwise, the museum is a lovely place to chill out if you DON'T want to pay. Besides Wiener, there's a Wa Cafe and Novus Restaurant. It's a lovely building (Maybe coz it wasn't crowded on such a rainy day) and I forgot I was in Singapore for awhile. Kind of reminded me of the Museum in Perth. I left after being there for about 3 hours (NOT ENOUGH TIME) and trudged towards Cathay. Drakon forgot his HP so I had to wait for his call. So what did I do? I ended up getting my eyebrows threaded. My blogs rambled on long enough. Part II to follow.
