The Napkins

Or, Rather, the Lack Thereof
Sometimes it's the little differences that are the most interesting. Here in Singapore, you usually are not given napkins when you eat at a coffee shop. So, you carry your own around - really, they are tissues, not napkins. I noticed the same thing in Hong Kong and Tokyo. If you run out, there is usually someone around to sell you a pack.

You can also use your tissue pack to save your seat. So, for example, you go to a hawker center or a coffee shop and you secure your table. You order your drinks from the drink-seller and once that is done, you mark your seat with a napkin pack and make your way to one or many food stalls to order your food. Once you've ordered, you go back to your seat and wait for the food to arrive.

Malaysian Golf Outing

Shoulda Stayed in Bed
It just wasn't our day. I left early in the morning from Serangoon with Ping-Ping and her friend MC towards Malaysia for a round of golf. We stopped for a quick breakfast at Toa Payoh and 30 minutes later passed immigration and customs on the Singapore side. We then drove across the bridge to Malaysia. First warning sign - I had to fill out a three page form but there was none being handed out until we arrived at the custom officer's booth - damn inefficient country. The customs officer was a young guy who looked through my passport and declared "nowhere to stamp." We blinked and looked over at him. "Nowhere to stamp." I was sure we had to turn around but Ping-Ping took over. She slid a 10 ringgit note ($3) inside the passport. "Not enough" came the reply. She then replaced that with 10 singapore dollars ($7.) "Not enough." Finally, she put in a 50 ringitt note ($30.) He somehow then found space to stamp.

MC was disgusted. Ping-Ping was just mad that she didn't have smaller riggit notes to bribe with - she knew she over-bribed and it bothered her. We drove for another 30 mintues into Malaysia to the resort. High on a wall were pictures of some Malaysian royalty. I wonder if a piece of all the bribes make their way to these two, like a Mafia tribute - they sure were dressed like that was the case.

The lobby was nice enough - a little dated, but considering you get a round of golf and a lunch for $20, there was no reason to complain.

I stepped out onto the patio to take a look at the course and was impressed. It was very well-kept and looked to have a lot of water obstacles, which I enjoy. "Do you think it is going to rain?" MC asked me. "Sure it will, but not for long." I answered. It was overcast and getting darker. Ping-Ping didn't bring her golf clubs so she had to rent a set. She also had to buy a hat since she didn't have one. By this time she was out of pocket significantly and was getting salty.

We were in the middle of the first hole when the sirens went off - we had to come back in because of thunder and lightning. We sat on the patio under the overhang - Ping-Ping and MC ate lunch. Within 30 minutes it was raining hard and not until 30 minutes after that could we go back on the course. All the while there was a constant rumble of distant thunder. On the 4th hole, one of our carts died so the three of us squeezed into one cart. Two holes later, the siren sounded again. We pulled over to the shelter and waited. 10 minutes. 30 minutes. 45 minutes.... It was 4pm already. We packed it in and left. We should have stayed in bed.

Golfing Downtown

A Public Course Across from Downtown?
I'd almost given up on the idea of golfing in Singapore -it seemed that all the clubs were private. Google Maps to the rescue. A few days back I was playing with Google Maps and zoomed in on an area east of downtown that appeared to be a golf course. "How sweet" I thought to myself, that must be one expensive club to join. Just for the heck of it I did some research on the net and found out this is one of the few public golf courses in Singapore - it's only a few years old. Now, I'm not going to tell you that it was so easy to get a tee-time. There were plenty available but I had to prove that I had a legit handicap and fill out a three page form. Ping-Ping did all the paperwork, thankfully. I printed out a copy of my handicap that I maintain on an internet site and it worked - they accepted me. The views from the course were absolutely incredible.

Deep into the Asian Experience

Well, At Least Needle Deep...
So, I was sitting around a few days ago minding my business when Ping-Ping told me "you have an appointment with my Aunt in a few days." What kind of appointment I asked? "Accupuncture, for your sinuses" she responded, so sweetly that it felt like she said "she is taking you to buy a banana fudge sundae." The idea appealed to me - my sinus problems are chronic and I've tried a million other things to no avail, so what the hell. We got up early today and hopped in a cab with Ping-Ping's aunt towards the east side of the island. I learned during the trip that the doctor was a little old lady who rented a room in a private house to ply her trade. The room had two small beds separated by a curtain and a burea at the head of one of the beds. I got on the bed and the doctor began to quiz me. What hurts? Where? How long? How else have I tried to fix it? I decided to give her a try at my left wrist, which bothers me from time to time. I watched her burn the needles, then closed my eyes. You can definitely feel them go in, but it doesn't really hurt much, surprisingly. Once they're in, you cannot feel them at all.

When it came time for the sinus work, I was curious to see where she was going to jab. I never would have guessed inside my nostrils. She gave me a small device that looked like pliers to open up my nostril and off she went. Those felt really strange - again, it didn't hurt much, but it is strange to feel a needle sink into the inside of your nose, so deep that it touches bone. She jabbed at least seven different spots in the left nostril and five in the right. I thought the needles were actually still there but Ping-Ping told me she simply inserted the needle, twisted it and then pulled it out. As you can see, she then sunk in 9 or 10 into my face. After they were all in I had to lay there for about 45 minutes. Ping-Ping was crackberrying away and talking to the doctor in Mandarin. She kept asking me if I were ok.

Funny, but even though I don't speak Mandarin, I knew that Ping-Ping was telling the doc "oh, and at night he doesn't breathe good, like he is choking sometimes." BIG MOUTH!! Guess what that little tidbit of information got me? Tongue accupuncture. Yeah, a needle being jabbed into my tongue over and over. I cannot make this stuff up. About 100 jabs, both on top of the tongue and on the underside.

Here is live action of the tongue jabbing. Now, what you are wondering is if it worked.... Truth be told, my left wrist did feel much better but no such deal for the sinuses. Turns out, sinuses require repeat visits so Big Mouth got me another appointment for Saturday morning. Yay, I cannot wait....

You Think Your City is Green?

I Mean Green, Really Green....
One of the things I love about Singapore are all the trees and greenery. I think the locals take it for granted, they seem to be amazed by my amazement. Here are some examples from downtown. This is a shot of the Tanjong Pagar subway stop. There are ferns galore and a thick tree canopy.

Just a few steps away, looking a different direction, the greenery does not thin out in any way.

As if the tree canopy were not enough, the sidewalks are covered with an overhang to block both sun and rain.

This is a shot looking northward along Telok Ayer street, where Ping-Ping works.

Working on the Swing

The Type of Work I Love...
I tried out a different range today just for a change of pace. Thank goodness I did - this one is really nice. It is in a neighborhood called Toa Payoh, one subway stop away from Ping-Ping's house in Serangoon. Here is a shot looking out onto the tightly mowed grass range. It is quite reasonable too - just 3 bucks for 80 balls.

The stalls were nicely maintained and by about 5pm, they started to fill up. As I hit I started to think about tomorrow's round in downtown Singapore. Yep, that's right - I found a public course near downtown and I play there tomorrow at 11am. I am excited.

Right behind my stall was a place for "refreshments." Most were swigging beer but I decided to just get some waters. I hit 80 balls to warm up and then hit another 80 while taking video of myself while hitting. I would check the video once in a while to see if I liked what I saw. Mostly I did - I am working on flattening and shortening my swing so some video feedback makes it easier to do.

Made for the Maid

I Sure Could Get Used to This
Ping-Ping's family has a maid. Her name is Nani, she's from Indonesia and she is awesome. I have to say, I've never felt too comfortable with the idea of paying someone to clean up after me. I feel guilty making a mess or not lending a hand. The more I'm here, the more that guilt starts to fade. She cooks good stuff, she does the laundry, she cleans the house, she does it all. She washes the clothes I use every day. I come home, open up the closet and there are all my clothes, washed, ironed, folded. I think I have only used 10% of the clothes I brought as a result.

Getting My Workout On...

Singapore Style...
Ok, so I've been getting up early to jog. Yep, it's true - don't know what's come over me, I guess I am just tired of being out of shape. You gotta get up around 6:30am and be done running by about 7:30 or it's too hot. I went two days in a row, but not this morning - I just couldn't talk myself into it. Perhaps I should change up my approach and join one of the community work out sessions. This one was going on next to the Roti Prata place yesterday morning. I asked the Ping-Ping to explain but she seemed embarrased by it. I don't know why, it seemed pretty cool. Not sure if the self-hitting is to increase blood flow or just a distraction from the fact that you are moving around and stretching.

After the Jetlag

I Think the Jetlag is Over....
I really struggled to stay awake for the whole day yesterday. It was all kind of a blur. We had lunch with some of Puff's girlfriends. We went to a place famous for their Bao, otherwise known as steamed buns. I then played some Mahjong, which given my mental fogginess, could not really be referred to as playing. More like getting played. I got waxed. In the evening we went to a driving range. I hit some balls and watched videos of my swing that Puffin made for me with her camera. Not too pretty to watch so I will save you the pain and not post those videos.

Puffin and her friend each bought a lottery ticket after lunch. They played the same number: 4641. This morning we learned that they both hit. They won 500 Singapore dollars each, which equates to about $350. I talked Puffin into celebrating by going for a breakfast of Roti Prata. See the details HERE on the Puff List, I posted a cool video of the prata maker in action.

My New Best Friend

PuppyMutt aka LaLa
I expected a warm welcome from everyone except her. So, imagine my surprise when she didn't bark once and was actually wagging her tail. My last trip she spent about 90 percent of her time barking at me and running around in circles. Here she is snoozing on the cool tile floor, trying to beat the heat - which is running high in both temp and humidity.

Later Frenchies!!

I'm Outta Here (for a Bit)
Done with my meetings here, so am headed to Singapore for 10 days. Gonna go hang with the Puffin, get some good food, play some golf, lose money in Mah Jong. I look forward to Roti Prata for breakfast. Mmmmmm........

Coming back to gay Paree on June 1st or so. Can't wait!!! (not)

Marché des Enfants Rouges

A Walk Around the Local Market
I am very lucky to live where I do in Paris - in the 3rd, near a lot of good food, markets and subway stops. One of my newly favorite places to go is the Marché des Enfants Rouges. It's only a 5 minute walk away from my apartment and is a covered market with many small grocers, restaurants and food stalls. It is supposedly the oldest covered market in Paris, originating in the early 1600's.

You enter from rue Bretagne through a small gate - take a look over my shoulder as I walk it:

Ping-Ping went to the Japanese restaurant shown near the end of the video the last time she was here and enjoyed it a lot. A few days back I bought some baguettes here and took em home to slather them in butter and jam.

My Hood in Paris

Franco-Chinois
As I've said before, I live in a mini-Chinese neighborhood in Paris. Here's how it looks when I leave my apartment in the morning and walk down my block. As you'll note, there is no traffic - it is not allowed - there are barriers that only allow foot traffic, which keeps the noise down. This is at 8am - nobody is even up yet - totally empty. Paris is a sleepy city in the morning.

One of the Pluses, However....

Is How Much Daylight There Is in Paris...
I remember the winter here when there was only about 8 hrs of daylight. On the flipside, in the summer you get about 16 hrs of daylight. Crazy, but true. Last night it didn't get dark until around 9:45pm and when I turned over at 6am this morning it was bright again. Here is the official sunrise and sunset figures for June.

Of course, my priorities being what they are, I immediately thought about golf. Perhaps I will be able to play 9 holes in the evening? We'll see....

Back in the City of Light...

Yeah, Right. More like City of Rain
Just arrived on the overnight flight. As usual we sat at JFK on the ground for an hr for no reason before leaving. I am back in the same hood, same apartment. Seems like I never left. Still in the mid 50's, still raining, still expensive. Already went out for some of my favorites - a baguette from La Fougasse and a praluline from Pralus. As far as my less favorite things - dogshit everywhere, guys dressed like sissies and crap weather - yep, they're all the same too, Ping-Ping.


Here is a walk around the apartment. If you listen closely, you can hear the 400 year old floor boards creak beneath my feet.

Trying to Pay off the Bet

But It's Getting Harder and Harder...
A while back I lost a bet with Ping Ping, the payoff of which was to learn to play "Mary Had a Little Lamb" on the violin. I was in no rush to pay off so Ping Ping went on Craigslist and found me a teacher from Brooklyn College. I emailed back and forth with the teacher around 17 times to find a convenient date. Last Friday was lesson one. We jumped on the 5 train to the end and took a one-block walk to campus. Strange the way life works out - turns out the teacher was a young man from Paris here in NYC to get a masters in violin. He took one look at me and asked "where eez yore violin?"

Honestly, my first thought was "goddamned disorganized French people!!" Seventeen emails and the guy doesn't bother to tell me I need to bring my own violin. Anyway, we head upstairs to Gershwin Hall and he unpacked his 300 year old violin. He looked uneasy letting me use it so I asked him what most students do. He recommended that I rent a violin, which I could do for around $40/month. I suggested that we cancel the first class and that I would reach out to him after I rented a violin. Problem is, I am headed back to Paris in 10 days for about 2 months.......