this is just wrong

this advertisement was on the Chitose Airport – Sapporo – Otaru train line, and i can’t imagine why anyone would want to eat it. I love tomatoes, but i think they’re best raw.

Japanese food

i went to Hoshigaoka today at Lido for dinner; before I went on JET it was considered one of the better affordable Japanese restaurants.

Unfortunately, 2 years in Japan does quite a lot in changing your opinion of what’s acceptable Japanese food and what’s not.

I ordered the tempura udon. The udon was overcooked and perhaps made of lower quality flour too, as it had none of the springy-ness that i’ve come to appreciate in even warm udon – the cold udons are simply the best – and was even a little soggy.

Likewise, the tempura batter was a little too thick and wasn’t light or crisp enough. They were quite stingy on the tempura too – all I got were a thin slice of carrot, one shiitake mushroom, a bit of something that seemed to be a slice of some root vegetable and one slightly mushy (either not fresh or overcooked) prawn.

So sad. No more can I get thick slices of renkon (lotus), satsuma imo (sweet potato), shiso leaf and juicy fresh ebi (prawn). Surprisingly you dont really get shiitake tempura in Japan unless your set is a little pricier or it’s autumn/winter.

Anyway, it’s just a little disappointing on the whole I think, if this can be taken to be the general standard of Japanese food in the affordable restaurants. I was with my mum the other day at Tonkichi and their grilled shio saba was overcooked and dry, when just well-done saba is extremely smooth and juicy. Tonkichi’s pork katsu is ace though, and their curries quite good, so I think I should just stick eating to what they’re famous for making when I visit.

Perhaps the next place I should try out is Sun With Moon – I have had Japanese people tell me that it’s comparable to the quality of food in Japan, so i should go take a look for myself!

taking the shine out of diamonds

there was an article in the Straits Times yesterday on diamonds – they have recently come into the spotlight yet again with Naomi Campbell’s involvement in a court case regarding blood diamonds – that raised two important points:

1. Diamonds have little intrinsic value and

2. They are not scarce

I think most are aware of the first point, but that diamonds aren’t scarce is new to me. De Beers apparently buys up 70% of the world’s rough diamonds and hence is able to control diamond prices, which only makes me more firm in my conviction that it’s really stupid to spend thousands of dollars on diamond jewellery.

Also, it was revealed that despite industry measures via invoicing to ensure that blood diamonds aren’t bought or sold, these measures are more or less voluntary and there’s no organisational body responsible for checks. As few retailers keep jewellery certificates which guarantee that the diamonds do not have illicit origins, there’s really little in place to actually stamp out blood diamonds from being sold – that ring on your finger might well have been mined by someone under forced labour, whose parents have had their limbs amputated and whose sister has been made a sex slave.

All the more reason not to spend insane amounts on diamond jewellery!

Alive Gallery @ Downtown East

i wasnt back in singapore for long before i saw the advertisement for the Alive Gallery on TV. it was marketed as an interactive exhibition “where paintings come alive” and help you to understand and appreciate them better.

since i quite like looking at art (except modern or abstract art) and do wish i were able to appreciate them better, i headed down to check it out at Downtown East.

tickets are $17 for adults, and NTUC U card members get discounts, as well as students, senior citizens (above 55 years, $13), etc.

i think the tagline of the exhibition wasn’t inaccurate, as it featured many animated versions of paintings and even this short 3D clip that featured 4 famous classical Greek sculptures – Venus of Milo being one of them.

Unfortunately, the exhibition failed to impress.

While it did a good job of trying to make art more interesting and accessible, with one section even allowing you to talk to an animated Mona Lisa, the images were blurry and didn’t always provide enough background for the viewer to fully understand what’s going on in the painting and in the animation as well. One of the pieces – an Egyptian painting featuring a pond with animals – was animated such that there were ripples across the surface of the painting, but the end result was that you couldn’t see anything at all, not even to make out the shapes of the animals in the artwork.

Also, the organisers might have spent too much money and attention on the interactive element and neglected a significantly more important aspect – the art piece itself. For example, there was this long and frankly rather boring video clip featuring Michelangelo giving some explanation on his frescoes adorning the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel – yet the images in the clip were dark and blur, with the only other versions of the frescoes being tiny (and blurry as well) ones on the explanation panel. i mean, why bother telling a story of what a fresco is, how it was painted and the story behind its painting, when the only reference the viewer has to it is something at least this small?:

(The Last Judgement, Michelangelo)

The replicas of the paintings – actual, inanimate ones hanging on the wall – were also not very well made. I’ve seen some original versions in museums in Europe, and because I'm not very well versed in the technicalities of art appreciation, most of the time what hits me is the very bimbotic thought of, Oh these colours are so pretty – especially when looking at the pre-Renaissance (?) pieces depicting either war or holy figures, as the reds and blues used in them are quite stunning.

Sadly, the replicas here had none of the vibrancy of the originals and seemed – you’ve guessed it – slightly blurry too. Perhaps it was the dim lighting as well, but it was a bit disappointing to see paintings that i really like, such as Seurat’s Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte (below) appear less pretty than they really are, especially when this exhibition is meant to stir up more interest in art – and beauty will always attract its admirers.

There were, however, two fun photo opportunities. here below, mum and i appear to have stepped right into a painting by an artist whose name i’ve unfortunately forgotten – he was hailed for his skill in the use of perspective, with the row of trees converging to a point in the distance:

and another scene from Van Gough’s Cafe Terrace at Night:

    

I think if you have children it might well be worth checking out this exhibit, but if you’re hoping to gain a lot more art education then perhaps you could give it a miss.

Furano, Hokkaido

Hokkaido is such a popular destination for Singaporeans, although i encountered far more tourists from Hong Kong and Taiwan when I was there. interestingly, Hokkaido’s trains that service tourist destinations and the airport have announcements in mandarin and korean, as compared to just english and japanese in any other part of the country.

Visitors should definitely get the Furano/Biei Free Pass as it saves you loads of money than if you were to travel without (savings of more than 5000yen), and from Sapporo, look out for this sign that tells you where the train will stop:

I visited Hokkaido this year from 23rd to 28th July, and a warning to anyone reading this – late july is TOO LATE to visit Hokkaido.

One big reason is because it rained most of the time i was there. We only had 2 sunny days when we were there; according to weather forecasts, around that time is when the warm and cold fronts coincide over northern japan, resulting in rains (it flooded in Sendai and some other places) in that area but scorching hot temperatures in the central and southern region.

Another reason is because the end july is the END of the flowering season. Take for example the famed lavender fields of Furano that tourists flock to see:

 

they were bare of lavender! when i visited in mid-july 3 or 4 years ago, this entire slope was in bloom and was so gorgeous. the lavender that was still remaining at Farm Tomita also seemed a bit dull. its colour was this:

when it should have been something more like those in the picture below – the first flower field that visitors encounter once they enter the farm. now, just imagine the first lavender field above covered with bright lavender like those below!:

 

what was also a bit disappointing was the Irodori Field. This is what it’s meant to look like – and this was indeed what it’ll look like in early to mid july:

instead, they’d harvested the flowers and it looked like this instead:

 

of course there were still some poppies and fuzzy purple flowers in the fields, but the Hong Kong couple who came here for their wedding photos didnt seem too happy:

 

farm tomita is a great place to visit, and even more so when all the flowers are in the height of bloom. there’s a sunflower patch on the way to the farm:

there are cute lavender coloured vehicles in the farm:

   

but best of all, there’s lavender-flavoured ice cream! it’s an amazing flavour that i’ve never seen elsewhere in Hokkaido – lavender ice cream is very light and refreshing, and does not smell of lavender at all. in fact, the whole of Farm Tomita doesnt have a strong lavender smell at all, and those who dislike the smell of lavender – like myself – need not worry, and should definitely try the lavender ice cream. it was so delicious that i had two, and was the first thing i zoomed in on, upon arriving at Farm Tomita.

The Furano/Biei Free Pass allows you to take the Norokko Express. ‘Express’ is a little bit of a misnomer as it doesn’t travel very fast at all – instead, it moves along at a steady pace through the fields of Furano and Biei, allowing passengers to admire the view. Just perhaps try not to take it in the late afternoon, else you’ll get sun shining in your eyes!

Some of the fields near Farm Tomita are pretty – shadows of people waiting at the temporary station nearest to the farm:

 

It is a must to plan your trip to Furano very very precisely, as buses and trains run infrequently and the schedules do not coincide at all. Most of the recommended itineraries required us to depart Sapporo on an 8-something train, which i think is quite ridiculous. but if you’re willing to wake up early in the morning (but it’s a holiday!), perhaps you can check out more sights in the area, like this tiny cheese factory that was 5min and 1350yen by taxi away from Furano station:

i wouldnt call it a must-see as it’s really small and you can’t the exhibits for the cheese-making process are rather lacking, but it has some fun stuff, like this robotic cow that you can ‘milk’ and have it moo for 100yen:

the cheesecakes, cheese-custard and other cheese items on sale (there’re limited cheese samples, like that of squid ink cheese!) are AMAZING though. they were so delicious that i’d have bought more if not for the fact that they needed to be refrigerated and i had to leave Japan and my apartment 4 days upon returning from Hokkaido.

oh – there was also an old tractor out at the front that children and shameless adults like me can climb onto:

good fun! :)

Singapore, the land of acronyms

A recent letter to the Straits Times carried a complaint regarding the frequent use of acronyms in print and broadcast media in Singapore. The writer took issue with the usage of ‘YOG’ and ‘NDP’ in broadcast media, since saying ‘Youth Olympic Games’ and "’National Day Parade’ only requires 2 or 3 more syllables.

While i’m not entirely convinced by his arguments, the usage of acronyms in Singapore – especially in the public sector – can indeed be an eyesore.

Take for instance the press releases on free trade agreements (FTAs). I certainly understand and support the usage of FTA in place of its full name and it’s used widely in print too.

What I don’t understand however is the shortening of names such as the Singapore-Costa Rica Free Trade Agreement to the very clumsy SCRFTA, and subsequently using it in the press release in the forms of “The SCRFTA is…” or “Under the SCRFTA…”, when one could simply do without the ugly acronym and say “This FTA is…” or “Under this FTA…” instead.

After all, since the press conference is about the Singapore-Costa Rica Free Trade Agreement, any reference to an FTA would presumably be with regard to the agreement between Singapore and Costa Rica and not anything else.

The same press release also saw the need to acronymise several other terms like technical barriers to trade, intellectual property rights and sanitary and phytosanitary (measures), even though those acronyms were not subsequently used in the release.

It’s a pity that those unnecessary capitalised acronyms visually sullied an otherwise faultless piece of writing.

Women’s All Round Artistic Gymnastics Finals at the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games

i’m glad i got tickets for this event!

truth be told, it’s more exciting seeing it on tv because of the commentaries provided – i think i learn a lot more about the strengths and weakness of the routine from the commentary – but it was just really cool to be there in person and to be able to see the gymnasts up close (kind of) in the flesh.

the hall is a lot smaller than i thought it’d be, and all the mats and apparatus seemed so new and fresh:

i really liked this guy’s get up:

the announcers’ table:

before the competition began, the commentators tried to get the crowd going and gave some explanation of the apparatus. Some children from 9 –12 years of age also gave a hip hop performance:

the gymnasts report to the judges:

some of the competition action:

 

A lot of the gymnasts seemed to be rather weak on the uneven bars, as they appeared to lack the strength to do the rotations and accomplish the transitions between bars, especially from the lower to upper bar. It’s interesting to watch the YOG because it highlighted which apparatus are more challenging, as you can see gymnasts who’re still only stars in the making.

Bishan Sports Hall was quite packed:

there was a guy with huge muscles. i think he might be a gymnast himself:

 

My favourite two were the balance beam and the floor in this competition. Partly because the beam was right before my seat, and the floor had great musical accompaniment.

check out the Russian’s amazing performance. She was so skilled, so steady – she and China’s Tan Sixin were the only two to complete three back flips – and graceful on the beam. I thought she was better than Tan Sixin but the latter scored a higher score of 15.35 compared to 15.25:

Now watch Tan Sixin’s performance:

Some floor action:

Italy’s gymnast – each country was only allowed one representative – had a fairly solid floor routine, and came in third place overall. She beat Japan’s Sasada Natsumi by only 0.25 points; i think Japan would have won if Sasada did a clean landing on the vault.

Tan Sixin was touted in the papers as the favourite, but she lost to Russia by almost 3 points – 58.5 compared to 61.25.

Here you can clearly see that Komova is a class above the rest – just watch how high she jumps! It’s utterly amazing and the crowded loved her. She reminds me a little of another famous Russian gymnast – Svetlana Khorkina – because of the little flairs in her routine, and she’s certainly a gymnast to look out for at London 2012!!

the proud medallists:

Aerin’s – Raffles City

Aerin’s is a nice, relaxed restaurant at the basement of Raffles City. The escalators soar upwards at the edge of the restaurant, meaning that the ceiling of Aerin’s is the ceiling of Raffles City itself. Together with the ample distance between tables, Aerin’s feels spacious, something which is somewhat lacking in Singapore. On top of it all – and perhaps the main draw – is that Aerin’s surrounds the fountain at the basement; it feels wonderful sitting next to the lap of water with limitless space above you.

The food there is pretty good too. M ordered the fish and chips ($18) that came with a tasty dip, good fries and three pieces of crisp, battered fish that were smooth and soft on the inside.

I’m trying to find good Italian pasta like that at Pomodoro Fresca in heartwarming Momodani, Osaka. The last meal I had in Japan was actually Tagliatelle Ragu – the pasta had a delightful texture and taste, the tomato sauce was perfect and the beef was a wonderful mix of meat and fat:

It was so heavenly that, in my quest to find something similar back home, I immediately zoomed in on Aerin’s Tagliatelle ($22) when I saw it on the menu. It was slightly pricey for pasta, but the cream sauce was delicious and the servings of mushrooms and smoked salmon very generous. I’m not sure if mushrooms and cream actually goes with smoked salmon, but I like all three so I was happy enough :)

after dinner, we went for the Baked Apple and Rhubarb Pie ($12). It’s a monstrosity of a dessert:

Unfortunately I didn’t like the taste of the pie’s crust that much, and discovered upon breaking it down that there was a baking dish beneath, filled with apple chunks and rhubarb in a sauce – not quite my idea of an apple pie. Admittedly it was true to the description on the menu, but I think it was the general so-so taste of the dessert in general – except the vanilla bean ice cream which was good – that made it a little disappointing.

still, dinner was delicious and the ambiance relaxing – it’s on my list of restaurants good for repeat visits, and M happens to like it very much too :)

for more pretty pictures of Aerin’s food on their website, please click here.

Dogs and Demons: The Fall of Modern Japan

I’m two-thirds into this book written by Alex Kerr that seeks to provide some explanation as to why Japan has yet to recover from the burst of the bubble, and highlights lots of disturbing information about the mismanagement of Japan’s natural environment, business markets, culture and so on.

It’s interesting primarily due to the all the shocking revelations, although Kerr has a tendency to repeat himself in terms of facts, figures and quotes.

What I think I’ve liked the most in the book so far is this hilarious paragraph from Kerr – wait for the punchline! – and the fact that I actually got the joke, thanks to hanging out with all those people from JET:

‘Nations, like people in this respect, may pride themselves most highly on the quality they most lack. Hence “fair play” is a golden virtue in Great Britain, the county that attacked and subjugated half the globe. “Equality” was the banner of Soviet Russia, where commissars owned lavish dachas on the Black Sea and the proletariat lived no better than serfs. The United States prides itself on its high “moral standards”, while perpetuating racial and moral double standards. And then there is l’amour in France, a nation of cold blooded rationalists. Or Canadians priding themselves most on being so distinctively “Canadian”.’

My new laptop

I just bought a Lenovo Ideapad Y460 – it was in the papers and on a National Day promotion, so it’s really cheap at the moment at $1349. it also comes with a free 250GB portable HDD and a wireless mouse, so it’s quite a good deal although i have to collect these freebies myself from Sim Lim.

i really like the white keyboard and orange trimming, although i’m not sure how long the keyboard will remain white. it’s very nice to type on too, and so much faster than my old laptop, making it a joy to use – the old one was Packard Bell and shit from the very beginning, so please don’t buy their laptops!

i encountered some problems with the installation of programmes – a few times the black screen of death appeared, which really freaked me out. the advice given from several sources was to run windows update and install all the newest patches and so on before installing any other personal programmes – why doesnt anyone tell computer idiots like me this kind of useful information? so far so good, although i’m keeping my fingers crossed.