Randoms...

Family outing @ Universal Studios Singapore

Went over to Universal Studios Singapore yesterday morning 'coz Sis had free tickets but couldn't make it - Princess had to go for her vaccination jab. Needless to say, the trip rendered us lethargic. Not because there were lots of things to see/ play, but because of the long minutes/ hours of waiting to take on each ride or attraction.

If I were to add up all the waiting time, I suppose it would've took up 3-quarters of our time there. And someone should really install some benches or seats along the waiting queue so that the elderly and the kids could wait in better ease under this damn hot weather. I don't care if they don't have it in other Universal Studios. This is Singapore. Summer all year long. Average 35 degrees. Queuing 45 minutes or more under the hot sun is not funny. Argh!

Okay. Forget about the angst for now.
Now back to the experience.

Good thing the Hollywood Boulevard was air-conditioned (sort of) and lined up with interesting buildings and cars/ stalls...



... and we even managed to catch Po for a family pix. Unfortunately, he was the only mascot we bumped into along the way. There were no others around. Sure, I saw Beetle Juice, Frankenstein and Marilyn Monroe, but their presence doesn't scream 'Take me! Take me!'. Where were the characters from Shrek??? Or how about Madagascar???



Damn! As we moved along, away from Hollywood Boulevard, we realised that the Madagascar attraction was not ready as yet. What a downer. But there was this other King Julien's Beach Party-Go-Round (which was essentially a merry-go-round). Had wanted to take that and my parents were almost onz when my bro commented that that ride was for kids - we were not kids. That statement got my parents to retract their initial intention and we moved on to another attraction. ARGH!!! Never mind, I could always go Far Far Away (no pun intended) :P



Had to queue for about 50 mins but it was kinda worth it 'coz Pa enjoyed the 4D show and was laughing whenever the water was sprinkled onto us when the characters sneezed, and also when the kids behind us squeaked everytime an eerie sensation descended upon us or when the chair jerked to the movie. Mom on the other hand got all panicky and was trying to search for her tissue paper in the dark. She kept grunting 'aiyo... why got water one...' But she seemed to have enjoyed it nevertheless.

The Treasure Hunters on the other hand, was total crap. What a complete waste of time. We had to queue for 35mins just to take on an extremely short automated jeep ride. The ride was like 2 mins? Okay, maybe the duration was not that important. But the thing was that it's such a boring ride. There's nothing much to see. Kids would hardly get excited over it. Oh well...

Lucky thing there was a redeeming attraction in the park - Revenge of the Mummy!



Had great fun and a good scare cum adrenaline rush with that roller coaster ride in the dark. Hate the bit where it suddenly moved backwards in fast motion. But the rest was okay. It was Mom's first time taking a roller coaster in her entire life too! I'm not sure if the same goes for Pa though. But mom said she enjoyed it and she went on and on after the ride. We got the photo that showed us screaming in the ride, which was damn funny but I won't post it here 'coz I looked totally unflattering. Mom looked as if she was screaming with her mouth wide open in the pix, but she kept insisting that she was just coughing. Erh... I didn't know one can open mouth that wide while coughing...

Went over to WaterWorld after that to catch the live show. Kinda felt that the stage was too small. Kinda limiting to carry out 'WOW' performances. But good try. Oh well...

And here's a view of the park...



There were some characters that we came across along the way but I wasn't sure if I had ever seen them before. For example, this one:



And some other cute vehicles/ stalls along the way, like this one below:



We went past the Sci-Fi City, which was a bore...



... and the impressive-looking Battlestar Galactica which was still under repair.



The special effects demo in the Lights! Camera! Action! attraction managed to lift our spirits for a while though.

We also took the Canopy Flyer @ The Lost World too. But it was the Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure that was really fun... and annoying 'coz we got soaking wet from head to toe whereas the strangers sitting opposite us, were hardly wet. Bro participated in this soaking ride too. And he was drenched.



After that ride, we decided that it was time to head home. We (Bro and I) argued with Pa that we should take a cab home but Pa was adamant that with the weekend crowd, it would be much faster to just take a bus home. And so, all of us, soaking wet (but not dripping wet), waited at least 20 mins for our bus at the Harbourfront bus interchange and sat our wet butts onto the bus seats. Fortunately, the seats were waterproof. Otherwise, it would have been damn embarrassing when we got off 40 mins later. Oh well.

19th June (土曜日) - Opera in the Park with frenz

After much anticipation, the girlies and I finally met up to attend our first ever 'Opera in the park' @ the Singapore Botanic Gardens. \(^ _ ^)/

As we didn't have much time to prepare our own picnic food, we met up at Scotts Isetan to get whatever we need instead - sandwiches, drinks, pastries and etc, before heading over to SBG.

And as we walked the long way up to the venue, we passed by this lovely pavilion that looked as if it was set against an autumn backdrop.



The only problem is... there's no autumn nor spring nor winter in SG. Only summer. All year. Nevertheless, the sight (including cute babies and dogs that we spotted along the way) lifted our spirits as we followed the crowd to the venue.

Just take a look at the crowd! Never knew Singaporeans are so 'onz' about opera/ orchestra. Well, there's a fair mix of Caucasians too though.



Here's the list on programme highlights:



While waiting for the event to start, we settled upon a nice picnic spot, spread out our mat and glanced around. Apart from noticing that most people had brought proper picnic food (i.e.: fruits, salads, home made food and WINE/ CHAMPAGNE), I was admiring the gigantic tree some distance from us. And as I watched the kids get in line to climb the root/ tree, I was extremely tempted to join them - not that I've ever climbed a tree and knew how to do it. I just wanted to do it. You know. Like interact with nature a bit more? Sadly though, just as I kinda made up my mind to do it, the opera started. So I stayed rooted on my butt.



Had some shots in between...



And as the evening continued, we laid relaxed on the mat and look up upon the darkening sky, whilst listening to live opera/ orchestra...



... and kept saying "DAMN! We should've at least bought some Barcadi Breezer. Next time, we shall bring that or champagne."

12th June (土曜日) - Zhihui's belated bd @ Hairloom & Caramel

Nice place...



Nice stuff (for sale)...



and nice food...



for a group of nice people like us (^~^)

5th June (土曜日) - Moments @ Haw Par Villa

Before the bat mobil, there's the Tiger (balm) mobil. Probably.



Discovered the long abandoned outdoor amphitheater...



Chinese version of Titanic?



How about Chinese version of Jaws?



Erh... I didn't know that Chinese myths/ legends have mermaids in them, let alone naked ones...



Same goes to the bunch of gorillas. Not the nakedness, but their existence in chinese folklore.



'See what see, never see a knife before izzit? Owe $ Pay $.'



A red cross rat? Well, i would never have imagined...



This just looks soooooooooo wrong.



Just us. Goofing around.

5th June (土曜日) - Trip to Haw Par Villa

Woohoo! Finally got down to visiting Har Par Villa (虎豹別墅). I've been wanting to do this for years but somehow or rather, other things just kept popping up and the plan to visit just didn't materialize, until now (^ _ ^)



Basically, to quote Wikipedia, it's a theme park (free admission) that "contains over 1,000 statues and 150 giant dioramas depicting scenes from Chinese folklore, legends, history and illustrations of various aspects of Confucianism. The attractions include statues of the Laughing Buddha and the Goddess of Mercy, as well as dioramas of scenes from Journey to the West. The most well-known attraction is the Ten Courts of Hell, with gruesome depictions of hell in Chinese mythology".

Needless to say, the Ten Courts of Hell was first on our list.

Here's a taste of what awaited us...



... and there were the ox and horse constables of the underworld at the entrance...



... and into the gates where the person's sins and misdeeds were brought forth before Yama ...



In the 1st Court of Hell, the virtuous would be exempted and led over a golden bridge to heaven.



But for the sinners, they would be sent to repent before the Mirror of Retribution (where all their past sins are revealed to them) and then taken to a court of hell for punishment.



2nd court of hell - conmen, robbers, and those who had inflected physical injury would be thrown into the volcanic pit. Those who were into corruption, stealing and gambling would be frozen into blocks of ice. And for prostitutes, they would be thrown into a pool of blood to drown.





The ungrateful and those who had either shown disrespect to elders or had escaped from prison would be brought to the 3rd court to have their hearts cut out. The drug addicts and traffickers, tomb robbers and people who urged others into crime and social unrest would be tied to red hot copper pillar and grilled in this court too.



4th court of hell - tax dodgers and those who had refused to pay rent or had committed business fraud would be pounded by stone mallet. And those who were disobedient to their sibling or had shown lack of fillal piety would be grounded by a large stone.



5th Court - those who had plotted another's death for his/her property or money, and those money lenders with exorbitant interest rates would be thrown into a hill of knives.



6th Court - People who had stolen from temples committing blasphemy and those who killed animals mercilessly would be made to kneel on iron nails, saw in two or chopped in half, and later gnawed by rats.



7th Court - The rumor-mongers and those who had sown discard amongst family members would have their tongues pulled out. Whereas the rapists and those who drove others to their death would be thrown into a wok of boiling oil.



8th & 9th Court - Robbers, murderers, rapists and those who had conducted any unlawful conduct would have their head and arms chopped off. And those who had neglected the old and the young would be crushed under boulders.



10th Court - After serving their sentences, the sinners arrived here for King Zhuanglun to pass the final judgement, before they were allowed to drink the magic tea that made them forget their past life and go through the Wheel of Reincarnation. Depending on the sinner's past life, he/she may be born into a life of ease and comfort OR into sorrow and suffering.



All in all, this attraction's rather educational. It's something worth bringing my kids to (if I have any in time to come) and kinda give them an education/ overview on the various virtues and about Karma, and linger about especially around the displays on 'fillal piety'. Hiak, hiak.

OK, moving on to something more light-hearted. This park's not just about scary, gruesome stuff. There's also stuff on Chinese folktales...



... epic mythical war scenes...



... characters and scenes from 'Journey to the West'...



... statues of gods...



... and displays on 'modern' sins and virtues.



Too many scenes to absorb and too long an entry to write. So I guess I'll just end it here :P