B & B's Singapore Sling

2012-01-29T17:40:00.000-08:00

The time has come for us to move back to Vancouver from Singapore and after much deliberation over what our final trip in SE Asia should be we settled on Sri Lanka. The decision delivered everything we could have hoped for and more.

We started with a quick bite before we got on the plane. A little Sake

Some ramen and tempura before we head into curry central

Sake leads to laughter. Things are starting out well.

And of course we can't walk by duty free with out buying a couple of safety bottles of wine. Never travel empty handed we always say.

The Colombo express. Let me just say there is no such thing as express in Colombo

Our Hotel in Colombo, The Lakeside Inn.

Barbara scored on this one

Our first breakfast, the Sri Lanka. Curry potato's, sambal, curry eggplant, basmati rice, roti, and lady fingers (okra, for us Okies). That was for both of us, Barbara wasn't so impressed, she thought she was getting some bacon and eggs.

Sigiriya Rock

Sigiriya is a unique witness to the civilization of Ceylon during the years of the reign of Kassapa I. The site of the 'Lion Mountain' was visited from the 6th century AD, by passionate admirers. The frescoes of Sigiriya inaugurated a pictorial style which endured over many centuries. The poems inscribed on the rock by certain of these admirers, and known as the 'Sigiri graffiti,' are among the most ancient texts in the Sinhalese language, and thus show the considerable influence exerted by the abandoned city of Kassapa I on both literature and thought. In the heart of Ceylon, the extraordinary site of Sigiriya, a lofty rock of reddish gneiss dominating, from a height of some 150 m, the neighbouring plateau, has been inhabited since the 3rd century BC, as attested by the graffiti which proliferate in the grottoes and the shelters of the Buddhist monks. The fame of the 'Lion Mountain' is, however, due to one single factor: during a short period in the 5th century AD, a sovereign established his capital there. King Kassapa I (477-95), son of Dhatusena, only came to power after he had engineered the assassination of his father and had, briefly, dispossessed his brother.
Justly fearing the vengeance of the latter, Kassapa had a fortified palace built on the rock of Sigiriya which was reputed to be impregnable. However, it was there that he was defeated after a short but cruel battle in 495, following which he cut his throat. After the death of Kassapa, Moggallana returned the site of Sigiriya to the monks, thus condemning it to progressive abandonment. During the eleven years that Kassapa resided in Sigiriya, he created a residence of exceptional splendour and founded his capital there, impressive vestiges of which are still extant.
At the summit of the rock is the fortified palace with its ruined buildings, its cisterns and its rock sculptures. At the foot of the rock are the two quarters of the lower city which are defended by a massive wall: the eastern quarter (perhaps postdating the 5th century), which has not been sufficiently excavated, and the aristocratic quarter of the capital of Kassapa I, noteworthy for its terraced gardens embellished by canals and fountains, as well as for numerous monumental remains which have been disengaged from the forest which had invaded the ruins.
Halfway up the rock, within an inaccessible rocky shelter in the vertical wall of the western face are rock paintings which have brought universal acclaim to the site of Sigiriya - 'The Maidens of the Clouds', 21 non-identified female figures, comparable to the most beautiful creations of Ajanta.

We didn't get a lot of pics here because when we arrived it started dumping with rain. So the pics we did get were in between downpours

These are the pics of the Maidens of the clouds

Obviously the Cloud Maidens were quite proud of the "Girls", or at least the guys doing the paintings were

A little safety feature. The rock is balanced to slide off if an attacking horde arrives.

All that is left of the Lion that gave the mountain its name. Massive paws. I told Barbara she didn't have to go to the top. There was a relatively dry spot down here to wait but she powered on. Have I mentioned she is afraid of heights and that staircase is on the side of a shear cliff?

We made it

And it was pretty amazing, too bad there was so much cloud and rain it would have been that much more impressive

Lobby at the Queens Hotel.

The bedroom. Not a bad place to rest your head

I have never seen as many Stupas as we saw in Sr Lanka.

A Buddhist library written on Bamboo

Prayers tied to a Bodhi tree

Tuk Tuk ride anyone

Bats

Diggin the flames

The banana sellers

Modern transportation

Insanity

Who needs a stand just toss your wares on the ground, pull out a machete and get the job done

There were some very cool old buildings in Colombo

A little randomness for you. This was painted on a money changers wall, way off the beaten track.

Your basic old auto parts welded together to make a Ganesha

A crisp glass of wine on a hot day. Perfection

I did love the personalized Tuk Tuks.

I think that the business to be in is Tuk Tuk accessories

Work is done. Love the lounge chair in the back of the truck.Well played sir

Our driver, Tissa, no not the goof in the red hat

And there you go. Anyone need some elephant poo paper?

Elephants make people smile

The Bar, really that's what it is called. Down the street was The Pub. Seriously, I can't make this stuff up.

Entrance to a temple with two people whom I do not know posing for me. Kinda freaky lookin temple, huh

More rain. Yeah it rained quite a bit while we were there.

Sigiriya rock, side view...

Duck

His and hers washroom sign. Love it

Those things are frigging DANGEROUS

Spice

fruit and veggies

fish

it's all there right on the street

Tea fields everywhere in the mountains

Waterfalls too

At the factory

The tea pickers on break. Only women pick the tea

Hard at work, it was kind of surreal

The fruits of their labour. I was never a black tea drinker until I had some of this. Now I can't get enough of the stuff. So good

Hey a convertible

The steps to our place in the mountains/jungle

I liked it,

Barbara was a little skeptical. Thank god for the safety wine we brought.

That's pretty much how the roads were for 90% of our trip and those rickety buses would come out of nowhere hammering their horn for us to get out of the way. Scared to crap out of you a lot of times. Nuts

1800 year old carvings in the rock

Keeping an eye on us

Pretty cool if you ask me

Big lizard crossing

Peacock

We went on a safari in Yala national park. Did I mention it had been raining?

This happened when we first entered the park. Lucky it wasn't our vehicle. After about 20 minutes they got it out and we carried on

This was a first. A standing monitor lizard. Goes to the theory that part of mankind came from Lizards (George Bush)

Yeah they are big and I don't think he's really liking the look of us

Then this big fella comes sauntering out of the bush. Awesome

Boar eating a leopards leftovers

Look close and you can see a crock waiting. Those things blend in a little too easily for my taste.

Ooopps. Another casualty of the rain. Remember that crock. That thing could be anywhere.

Apparently we were very lucky seeing this guy. They are a rare treat as there are only known to be 9 of them in the park.

He put on a little show for us, ate a few ants

and then left. Love his little feet

That's the road we came in on. The one with the jeep stuck. At this point we are a little screwed

Our Chariot. If I ever see a truck with emblem this truck had I am buying it. She doesn't look like much but the thing was a tank. At times there was water coming over the hood and it never slowed down.

Another crock

This is an area where the tsunami hit a few years back. The Japanese donated this memorial. There were around 100 people on safari that lost their lives that day.

This was were a house used to be

Our guides

This guy is definitely getting it done

Then out of nowhere comes the elephants

And they just kept coming 7 in total including the babies

Keeping an eye on us

We were watching this in awe and then look up

and realize this guy is watching you

I think in a fight he's gonna win

Barbara has had enough

This was another absolute score on a room. Barbara wins hands down in the hotel department

These guys greeted us in the morning

A relic from the tsunami left where it ended up

Our last day with the amazing Tissa

Hmm what shall I have for dinner?

Lobster will do thank you very much

View from our room in Unawatuna

Fort in Garre

Barbara walking the wall of the fort. I will never understand why she follows me sometimes. We are at least 20' above the ground on the right and 50' on the left

What no Pizza?

Perfect

So we saw these guys n the roof outside our balcony one night

And the next morning we found

This mama cat with a bunch of new born kittens taking up residence in our planter box. She was pretty mellow, even more so when I brought her ham from breakfast and shrimp from dinner

Sea turtle hatchery

Baby turtles

You just want to sit down and have a conversation with this guy

Happy Barbara

The sea was angry that day my friend

The sticks the fishermen sit on every day. Every day they can get to them that is. The are handed down from family member to family member.

Another seafood feast for the missus

And me, and some for the cat.

Oh yeah baby, another full on Sri Lankan feast. Even Barbara is starting to like it.

Our chef.

Our new babies

Drinking her coconut pig drink thing

Some sort of fabled God

Barbara narrowly missed being part of the show

Oh yeah he's playing with fire now

And safety standards are pretty low here in the Lanka.

How this crazy dude didn't go up in a ball flame I do not know

Yeah I think the thrill is gone for Barbara and curry. Good thing this is the last dinner for this trip. I don't think curry will be on the menu anytime soon.

More FIRE

Crazy

Some things still need a little work in Sri Lanka but over all we would highly recommend to those who have ever entertained the thought of traveling to this part of the world to book those flights. Its a beautiful place and the people are great. (The food is spot on as well, if you like curry that is)

2011-11-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

Taiwan, I had no expectations and was pleasantly surprised by what we found. Jumping into a country where none of us, myself, Barbara, and our friends Kelly and Cloudy, (yes I was with three women) could speak a bit of Mandarin was a bit of a challenge but the people were helpful, friendly and pretty great all around. Right down to the lady that gave us half her food on the street because we were intrigued by what she was eating, they turned out to be little doughnut things. Whoever has her as a grandma or mom I am sure that person is very well fed. All in all I would say if given the chance to go to Taiwan jump on the plane and go, spend a week in Taipei and travel the country side a little bit, just watch out for the poisonous bee's, snakes and other little devils you might stumble across. Now on with the show
Liking the advertising right away. No question about what they are selling here
Tunnel through a mountain on our way to the National museum
Rabbits
Chaos aka the National Museum. So many people running around here it was crazy but no photo allowed past this point, so moving on
House on the hill. I love this stuff
And our favorite the Ice Cream sweater. I don't know who but someone will buy this thing, the question is why.
Another bold fashion statement from maybe the eighties
And this is the store these beautiful items were sold at. Fitting I think
Green means go, not sure where since it led into a wall but go none the less
Taiwan housing from 30 years ago, still going strong
Girls
Taipei 101 in the distance
Enjoying a cuppa. I liked this little fella, he looks so happy
Love the construction signs
OK the patchwork leaves a little to be desired. I can just hear the guys doing the repairs, "Do you think they'll notice?" "No it looks great, lets go get some noodles"
A tree, photo shop is itching for this pic
Not sure what this means, Are we eating turtle and cat and owl whatever that other thing is and we don't know it? I guess it doesn't matter as long as they are proud
Like it
Asia loves its weird mascots
Love this guy, He's sitting on his bike in the middle of a sidewalk so everyone has to move around him yelling into his phone. Awesome

Taipei 101 front door. Its really tall
Aww
More mascot crap
From the top of 101 at night
Quite cool
On top outside. Barbara not so happy to up here. Inside she's fine, out side not so much
Jade carving
There were lots so bear with me

They were stunning and really expensive
This is what I expected everything to be like. Lots of colored lights and Chinese writing. Like in the movies
Big chain link
Kelly being fabulous in the wicker pendulum chair
The W hotel, not where we stayed
Every bathroom should have an electric tennis racket in it
The flower market under a bridge. Singapore needs something like this
People and their dogs
Its a bit much if you ask me, really the thing has twice as many legs as a human and your carrying the damn thing around, or rolling it in a baby cart, jeez
Thirsty found herself a perfect sized martini glass
Very cool bonsai
Yeah they were just walking down the street with their pet monitor lizards and quite proudly stopped for a pic. I like these people
Love the criss cross sidewalks
Remember the little doughnuts I was talking about in the beginning, they were shaped like animals and Barbara loved them
More great advert's. No groping on the MRT. I like how the guys tounge is hanging out and he's WHITE
I wonder if there is an abnormal university??
On our way to the hot spring for a little rejuvenation
No idea where we are going
I get the everyone hold hands and peace and love and all that but what is that one dude holding onto, there's no hand there
rejuvenating in the healing natural spring water
with a little champagne
Never thought I would see the day that Barbara would wear pink slippers but she did and these are the ones. You'll have to take my word for it that she put them on, she refused pics, surprise
The night market from afar

The insanity up close. Madness, but fun
Again, no idea what anything really is but they say they have frogs eggs.
A whole different concept on the umbrella. I guess if it's raining and you get thirsty, you'll have some water to drink?
Uh huh
Barbara trying her luck at the games stall
And look at what she won.
Now that's a big sausage
On our way to Taroko Gorge
Headphones on for Kelly and a nap for Cloudy

Our cabins in the gorge
Beds on the floor, nice
And the hats that come with the room
Pretty swank
We ate wild Boar on the first night and we got some kind of rice wine shooter served in the clay boar glasses to start with, Of course Barbara bought some of the boars glasses, as did Kelly and Cloudy. Girls are suckers for that stuff. I just wanted what was in them screw the glasses

You drink it from the snout so your kissing the pig. Sexy huh
Boar ribs, boar skin salad, weird big ass mushrooms and green beans, yummy. (I ate all the boar skin salad for the girls, I hear it keeps you looking young)
The entertainment
After the entertainment I was headed back to the cabin and saw this fella, pretty good size stick bug. As I was trying to get the perfect angle for the shot I almost
Sat on this guy, he's about 2 feet long slithering on the railing, Yeah I almost wet myself.

Nice snakey. So I should say at this point during our time at Taroko Gourge we had yet to see any of the Beware of poisonous bees, snakes spiders etc signs.
The next morning was beautiful, a little cool which was a nice change from the smothering humidity of Singapore. We decided to make our way to breakfast and walked outside our cabin
and there was this guy hanging out
and then there was this guy and many many more along they way. The damn things are as big as your hand
We went for a hike that day and this was our first stop. It reminds me of the classic Chinese painting, just in real life. Very cool
That's my girl
A little Buddha action
And finally the first warning sign of the treacherous beings
Beautiful clean water. Reminded me a lot of BC hiking around here
More wildlife

A nest of killer bees, I am sure of it
Barbara found a friend
I think we are getting closer to getting a pooch, don't anyone tell Barbara
I love this. Dude has his IPad out taking video
His wife is getting ready for her glamor shot. Some might call it a money shot. Really though your Ipad
Next stop Swallow grotto, where apparently the swallows frolic
We were not given safety helmets
All of these people were, but not us
So Barbara and Kelly resorted to the next best thing, holding their hands above their heads to protect themselves. Now that is ingenuity
She walked around like that for two hours and I laughed the whole time. I love her
More Buddha
Steps
Pagoda up on mountain
Very cool Buddha
Suspension bridge, interesting
Very low entrance
typical. I should really read the signs
Yeah this made me comfortable
On the way to the airport after a 4 hour train ride and 20 minutes trying to find a translator for our taxi driver
Some weird food in cans at the airport
Congee in a can, Life doesn't get much better than that
If it has to be explained to you as an adult maybe you just shouldn't leave your house
Now is this saying that driving will lead to drinking ?

oh well, next stop Sri Lanka then back to beautiful BC for good. Looking forward to it but really gonna miss the amazing friends we have made here.

So long for now

2011-10-12T00:30:00.000-07:00

Ok ok I know its been a while since I posted a blog and I have been hearing about it from both sides of the Pacific so here we go. Let me just say this is a real hodge podge of pics and its been so long since I did this that I did it all ass backwards and didn't realize until it was too late and I am too damn lazy to go back and start over. So there you go, here we go and that's that

Everything is better now

They thought they grew them big in Texas. This is a huge grasshopper. Mind you he has had some good grub gnawing on the plants on our deck for the last few months. He's so big the cats have stopped coming bye and hunting the grasshoppers. He's like the Godzilla grasshopper
China Town
Out on a boat. Its taken us 2 years to find some friends that have a boat to go out on here in Singgy Pore and of course now we are leaving. Typical
Loving the wavy gravy hair baby
The proud papa and his boy, I think Alex might have farted
This is what the boy turns into after dark
And Kalyna. Yup she walking now, everyone look out
Yeah we still got it

Romans good side
Roman deep in thought
I don't know about any one else but I think it suits her
Ummm birthday cake
Its hard to believe but it's been a year

Heather is very proud of something. We might be a little tipsy and she stacked some beer cans or something. Obviously we are not far removed from the dorm life
Really we're not
She seems so innocent. I don't trust her
Golf.
I love golf
I don't like my scores in golf but I do love playing golf. This is probably the nicest and most challenging par 3 I've ever played. And its only $20 to play. Quite the bargain in Singapore, especially since at some places a beer cost close to $20.
Kokanee, even when it's warm its better than Tiger
and my Honey brought me six. It's 2 months that she's been back and I still have 4 left. And Barbara says I can't budget.
Sherry and the D man
I think that's jerk wings and plantain chips at the reef. Hmm I think I want some of those
Happy Mary
The proud Ma and Pa
My buddy
A genius in the making, after all she's a Gill
John John John, what kind of mischief are you up to
Umm sushi
Our soon to be landlords
umm more sushi
Barbara at a groupon lunch
with Trish the Dish in lovely Van City, Aww hell yeah
Sippin some wine on the deck at mom's
At margaritas for lunch
Doryan with his pimpin ride
Kits Beach
Barbaras future car????
That's right boy WORK
Cobb salad at Joe Forte's
Eva lookin lovely
The daper Mr Owen Hurley
Gio passing on the love
Trouble
A great deck and good food, and oh yeah some pretty damn fine cocktails to go along with that
Doryan at his new keyboard
Opening the keyboard
And showing us his new Jedi moves, Sweet
This says it all, growing up fast
I miss proper cactus club wings, sigh

Oh well, soon

Bye for now

Moving ahead while standing still

2011-07-25T01:21:00.000-07:00

Since we are not traveling anywhere soon, at least not together (Barbara is headed to Vancouver in a weeks time) I thought I should share a few random shots around Singy pore As my mother in law would call it. I think Barbara is trying to get my attention here, probably doing her best to convince me we need to buy something ridiculously expensive, which could be just about anything here from a North American magazine to a Prada dress, it all cost the same
As you can see I am having none of it. took it for the team and got a win for the boys on this one. I probably crumbled later after she plied me with wine
Such a little ham. I swear when the cameras come out she starts posing
Is it a bird, or a rat? No it's Jimmy the super squirrel at Heather and Romans
Emerald Hill, a nice place to grab a beverage after a day of strolling Orchard Road in the heat.
I thought this was super cool. It is at a gallery at Ion Mall on the expensive level, well they are all expensive, but this one is especially costly. It's a Mickey Mouse bust made entirely of hangers, then silvered. Awesome until you see the price tag, $33,000 US. Maybe Obama should commission a bunch of these, sell them and then the debt crisis would be over. Hey it's forward thinking right
Garlands in Little India. I wish they sold these in Vancouver's Little India, they smell amazing
The supervisor watching the guys put the garlands together. All day they sit in this alley and string these things up
My new kicks. I actually went out and bought 2, yes 2, pairs of shoes without any prodding from Barbara. I felt so grown up on that day. Oh yeah, they were on sale, of course.
A very nice bottle of vino at our favorite French restaurant, Le Bistrot du Sommelier
The first one was so nice we decided to stay for another. Apparently we had the last one so we went for this, and slap my face if this one wasn't as good or better.
It was hard not to want more wine here when you are surrounded by wine boxes on the walls
Really who doesn't want to be a Changi Millionaire. We try and try, maybe next time.
Barbara midway through that second bottle of wine.
I wish I could have gotten a better pic of this guys Vespa but the light was changing and I was in the middle of the road waiting for my camera on the phone to open up. He has about 30 lights on that thing
I love the bikes that you come across around here. How in the hell this happens I don't know It's like leaving your car on the street in the Bronx and you come out to find it on blocks
A rock star in the making
Ready to crowd surf and throw out the high fives
What?
Again WHAT? Baby cord spirit, that is some messed up sh*t
Big watermelon. And they thought they grew everything bigger in Texas
This was kinda weird. An artist put this out with a little blurb saying that there should be places to relax wherever you go. You are supposed to lie down on this and have a cat nap or something.
One of those apps I forgot I had
I kinda like though. You might start to see more of these kinda pics
Artsy huh
She has really got the "I am just going to ignore you" thing down to a fine art. I guess 17 years of practice is starting to pay off. It seems so natural
Contraband found buried in a drawer for two years. It was kinda stale and hard but it is gum and yes I am chewing it right NOW
I miss Caesars on Sunday mornings
A farewell to the beard
First some scissor action
Then a little razor
Tempting
A drink, a Caesar actually, to dull the pain
And we are back, beardless and ready for another hockey season

Yogyakarta

2011-07-04T02:59:00.000-07:00

Waiting at the airport for our flight to Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Barbara is looking pretty content
Must be the free leg massages
Our hotel view from the balcony
The pool and courtyard
Hockey viewing area/bedroom. It was the cup finals while we were there
Balcony
And the rest
Just after we arrived, come on I had to make sure the connection worked. There was a game first thing the next morning
The door we wish we could have for our place in Vancouver
And of course your basic huge fake sunflower by the railroad tracks
Alleyway next to
our first major discovery, Lucifer's, a fine place to grab a drink. There weren't a lot of these around since it is a very Muslim area

The local 3 wheeled chariot of death.
I like the name of this guys tri-shaw. He wasn't jogging anywhere
I just thought it was cool
The next morning, anxiously waiting for the puck to drop
Breakfast arrived about 5 minutes into the first. A very good morning it was, we won
The biggest thing to stick out to me in Yogyakarta was the onslaught of graffiti
It was everywhere

Of course we had to take a carriage ride
On the road
Cruisin' old school
Again with the graffiti

The water Palace
Pretty swank place
I think we look pretty good here
Even here there is graffiti. No respect
Another pool, i think this one is for the Sultans wife, or wives
This dude is barefoot, no thanks
Playoff beard in full effect
The Sultans seal at the Sultans Palace
Music room
Sultans Quarters
The circumcision area, Yeah that's right, this is where they do circumcisions a couple of times a year, and you have to be at least 5 years old and no anesthetic. No Thank You.
Some sort of cerimonial noise maker, probably to drown out the screams of the kids getting cut
Cerimonial drum
The box where they keep the tools and instruments for cerimonial activities
The current Sultan
His wife. Apparently he only has one but you are allowed up to 5, unless you decide to drink alcohol, then you are allowed only one. I'll take the one wife and a bottle of Jack please
The Sultans carriage
And his wifes, much smaller of course, bothe carried by a herd of "Servants"
Nice door
Demon mask that keeps the evil spirits out of the Sultans Palace
And the lock for the front door. Its a big front door
I think he thinks he blends in, or he's envious
Shoe art, I love it
Bikes
We were headed Borobrodur the next morning and Barbara is hoping that this is our ride
Sunrise with the Buddah and a volcano

A very cool place
Buddahs everywhere. This is the largest buddist temple in the world, right in the middle of the largest muslum population in the world

Pretty spectacular

Buddah sentinals

Very special place
Headed to the volcano.
More graffitti. This area was completely devistated by the eruption last year
Still smokin'

Prambanan Hindu Temple

Shes seen enough, there were hords of people there and they all wanted to stop and have their picture taken with us.This is where I got my two new monikers, Triple H and Chuck Norris, I'll take Chuck Norris
Bakso, local speciality
Your basic street noodle soup with mystery meats
Tucking in
And back to Lucifers
For a little antibiotic, just to be safe
More
and more
Graffiti. Some good
Some bad

The local garbage truck

Some of the graffiti makes perfect sense
More street food
Barbara takin a break
Our last bottle of wine in Yogyakarta
Some appy's

The get the camera out of my face look
And the here comes our food look
Lamb curry for me
Steak Frites for Barbara
And we are out of there, flying over the tops of volcanos. A great trip.

Golf In Singapore

2011-06-07T02:23:00.001-07:00

So I finally did it, I broke down and played a round of golf in Singapore. Actually I only played 9 holes which quite honestly was enough last Friday, it was 35 degrees at 8 in the morning and only got hotter.

Here's how it, and I, broke down;

First Roman and I had to make a reservation online and fill out a form which you had to give your passport number or residency card number as well as your credit card number on. Basically if you make the reservation you are going to pay, and if your credit card doesn't work they will send the Singaporean Caining squad to your house to get the cash from you.

So we arrive at the course and the green fee for 9 holes, yes 9 holes, is $59

Next we have to pay $10 for an old Singaporean guy to examine our swing to see if we qualify to play on the course

But wait I don't have any clubs so I have to rent some. I make my way to the clubhouse and ask to rent clubs. The guy behind the counter gets this look on his face like he has just won the lottery and say's that will be $68, I almost shit myself

Well at this point I know I need some balls, I felt like mine had just been kicked into my stomach, so I asked for a sleeve of balls, $18. No they don't have used ones here this is Singapore of course

I make my way to the old Singaporean guy to hit a few balls and he gives me the OK, what a relief I probably would have ended up in jail for beating on a old Singaporean if he had said I didn't "qualify" to play on their course. As I was walking away he stops me and says "I need to see the bottom of your shoes". Of course I know where this is going and after seeing I don't have on spikes he says I need to get some shoes. I say "of course" with absolutely no intention of getting any and walk away.

We make our way to the first hole and a guy stops us and asks to look at my shoes again and upon seeing no spikes says I have to get shoes with soft spikes. At this point I am getting a little pissed and its 35 degrees out which doesn't help. I say" Why, I don't have steel spikes. I don't have any spikes so isn't that better for the course than having even soft spikes.." He looks at me with that same shit eating grin and says I have to go get some shoes with spikes or I can't play. I could have throttled him, but off to the club house I go and it was like they were waiting for me.
$15 dollars later and I had some rental golf shoes. I might as well have been bowling.

So lets add this up $59 for Golf
$68 for club rentals
$10 for the old Singaporean guy to watch me swing the rental clubs
$18 for 3 golf balls
$15 for rental golf shoes that look like bowling shoes

Total to play 9 holes of golf in 35 degree heat with 100% humidity 1st thing in the morning

$170. Priceless my ass. No wonder I don't play golf in Singapore.

Ok, So all bitching aside it was a nice course, well kept and obviously the old Singaporean guy keeps the divot makers to a minimum. I am sure they have cameras everywhere to monitor your play and if you don't repair a divot they have cainers close by

Nice back drop, the city one way and the ocean the other.

And they imported their bunkers from St Andrews

Lucky enough I didn't play on the beach but Roman did. 6 swings and he still wasn't out so picked up the ball threw it over his shoulder and we counted it as 1 stroke

I am not sure where the section they are talking about is, this looks more like the edge of a patio with a 8 foot drop off. Safety standards in SE Asia leave a little to be desired

Another weird sign in a weird place in Singapore. There wasn't anywhere to wash your shoes
In need of a beer
Happy it's over. Next time we play in Indonesia where its cheaper.

Penang

2011-05-27T20:05:00.001-07:00

Bags packed and ready to hit Georgetown in Penang, Malaysia
Passports in hand
And the beard keeps growing, (insert Go Canucks Go)
And as per usual when arriving in Malaysia there was a down pour. The driver told us this was very unusual of course and it should pass shortly
The hotel we stayed at. Very nice
Comfy bed
Spacious plus very cool windows
And best of all a whirly tub, which surprisingly enough was Barbara's favorite spot in the room
Oh yeah the rain didn't "stop shortly"
It lasted for at least three rounds of drinks
Finally after it stops we headed out and found that we were just steps from the restaurant that made Malaysia
And they had the Crazy Set Dinner for 19.90 ringgit, that's like $7.00 sing. CRAAAZY
Clan house
Ice house, yeah that's the ice sitting on the ground in the 33 degree Celsius heat with 100% humidity. How long do you think its gonna last?

Some of the buildings were very colorful.This one must have been special since it had some kind of map or board saying what it was out front, I didn't read it of course, I just take the pictures and move on
a license plate for a rickshaw, love it
Night outside of another clan house. They turned on the lights to let people know that they were starting Kung Fu class
Is that politically correct..
Now this I loved. I didn't notice it at first but when I did I cracked up. You can even see the hockey sticks in the guys hands. I'm thinking that someone bought this off e bay
Kinda hard to make a call without a receiver
Free loaders
Taxi stand Georgetown style
Girl on a bridge, my girl on a bridge, even better
Government building
I'm sure that they've upgraded the national defense
Tempting
I love the electricians works, exposed wires in a country that an average of 80% humidity year round, oh yeah this is also a tourist area, Liability suit anyone
My Sandinista ready for battle
They're just cool
As was the Blue Mansion
I took as many pics as I could before I was shut down by security

Sounds good to me

I bet with an oil change and some fresh gas this baby would hum, its a Kawasaki after all
Inside another clan house
A little creepy but what ever
Chicken for dinner, a little rubbery but...
Lets shine a little light on the subject
I liked this picture and then I looked a little closer and liked it a bit more
What the hell is he sticking up his nose
Preparing for a ride in a rolling coffin of death, aka rickshaw
They are smiling now
Then they realized they were going the wrong way down a one way street
We were headed to the E&O Hotel to have a beverage. The driver pointed at this and said it there it is. I was a little disapointed
This was right next door, obviously what he was pointing at. Good thing I would have had a real problem paying 17 dollars for a pint of guiness in the other place. Hell I had a problem paying 17 dollars for a pint of guiness here who am I kidding
The girls drink G&T's, Did I mention we met up with Harriet and a friend of hers Frith
I just had to
White House Hotel, you think Obama stays here when he comes to Malaysia
An upscale taxi
Amazing what cameras have come too when you look at where they came from
Back garden of the hotel
Pineapple anyone
Sidewalk in Georgetown
Enough said
Nice setting for a dinner party, maybe some of that chicken from before
Who do you think is in there
A patio we would love to have
Another tardis
Polka dot bamboo
Crayons

A lovely afternoon snack
spoons
And we are done
Just before the rain

A few random picks around Georetown

Our own personal street
Bubbles bubbles
Keeping up with the game in the morning with a cuppa nescafe
Nice doors
If you ever need a pill this is the place to go

Some more of that lovely wiring
One last sunset
The gang after our final meal together at an Itallian restaurant, Barbara's suggestion, and 4 bottles of wine! The perfect way to finish off our trip to Penang.

Next stop Yogyakarta, Indonesia to visit Borobudur and the worlds largest Buddhist monument, very excited, but let me put everyones minds to rest, I shall not miss a Stanley Cup final game

GO CANUCKS GO

Langkawi

2011-05-10T18:51:00.001-07:00

Say hello to Langkawi, Malaysia
It reminded us of Cuba, mainly because when we arrived in Cuba it was a torrential downpour
And that's what we got here.
We needed a boat to get to our room.
Once there it was lovely. A little butterfly key chain
Your own broom outside your room
And a huge can of bug poison. Actually a good thing we had this, it came in handy one night when we a tropical intruder. He didn't last long, That stuff really works. Actually it worked so well that in my earnest to calm my lovely wife I gassed us out of our room for the rest of the evening. It was so bad that when we returned 4 hours later I had to keep the door open for about an hour before we could spend anytime in the room. So in short I endorse Ridsec as a highly effective chemical weapon.
Barbara kept feeding this little guy french fries. I tried to tell her she is contributing to an imminent bird heart attack but she wouldn't listen. At least he's got a full belly
As she sips her bevvy
I've have come to understand that Tiger beer is basically the Budweiser of SE Asia. I have come to like it just as much, so I no longer support Tiger, unless its free of course, but is that really supporting???
We were shocked at how few people were there, especially for a long weekend in Singapore. It pretty much rocked.
A boat flew in and unloaded all this stuff on the beach then disappeared
About 2 minutes later this guy comes strolling down
Finds a way to load everything up
And then he had to push it up the beach
Not an easy job

Deserted beach Loving It
The prototype for the Durians in Singapore

The great hunter stalking squirrel
The Landcons Hotel. Looks like a nice place
Apparently it was a little ambitious in its size though, but nothing an Adidas factory outlet store wont take care of
I saw these things everywhere. Didn't eat one, since there was so much great food around but if I was ever in desperate need of an Oblong Burger, I now know where to get them
I loved this little Bug because it advertised the Red Tomato's Restaurant, but the car was fuscia, I guess the painter was a little color blind
Hi
Mexican in Malaysia, might be good, but we'll never know
Our front door cat, quite pregnant but always present. Thankfully she didn't give birth while we were there
Our first dinner
Some Thai Chicken Curry for Barbara and Vindaloo for me.
Vindaloo gone, check
Thai curry gone, check. Pretty darn good grub if I do say so myself. Good drinks too, wink wink
Our alarm clock
A little pissed that someone has invaded our beach, gonna have to talk to management about this
or maybe go for a massage, yeah that's a better idea
Then a few bevvies. Notice that I am not drinking Budw, I mean Tiger
After a massage and some bevvies, what else do you do
High tech advertising at its finest
Next time I think we stay here, 3 steps to the beach. Perfect
My Honey, me and the playoff beard. Long live the beard
Yellow Cafe, great meat on a stick served here
And lots of it for cheap. Again Barbara was serving up bird heart attacks with the fries
Later that evening we hit another restaurant and a nice bottle of Chianti found us
Along with some crab bruschetta
And prawn fettachini. Damn fine meal. We would have taken a picture of my meal but it was decimated before Barbara could snap a shot
Up to this point we had been wondering where all the people were, not that we were complaining, but we finally found them
They were all at Babylon. We wanted to stay late but it started to rain, it was an out door bar, so we headed back to the room and thats when we realized the bug incident mentioned earlier wasn't over, the poison fog was still thick in the air. Good thing we had beer and wine in the room to weather the chemical attack, and that that cat hadn't given birth on our love seat outside. That would have been ugly

After a long day of doing nothing on the beach, very stressful, we headed to the Bonton Resort for our last night in Langkawi.
Barbara felt right at home.
Beautiful setting for a sunset
And as luck would have it we were joined by a ghecko.
The meal was fantastic. Started with some roti bread with cheese and spices in it, yummy
And then we shared the seafood platter with lobster tails, prawns, snapper and possibly the best calamari that we have had in SE Asia
And then we did something we never do, we ordered dessert and it was AWESOME. We should definately order dessert more often.

We had to catch an early flight the next morning so we checked out the night before. Since our room came with breakfast they asked if we would like them to put it our room that night. Of course we said yes and thought it would be something like some cereal and fruit to put in the fridge
This is what we got, a feast, boiled eggs, huge bread basket, sliced meats, cheeses, fruit plate, two large glasses of OJ, tea and coffee, hell I want to live here
And after all that we finally found what we had been missing on this trip Wafito. Obviously we would be better people if we could eat these everyday.

Next stop, Penang

Bye for now

The S'pore

2011-04-18T23:20:00.000-07:00

I will let you figure this one out
So Barbara found out about a bag and shoe sale so she dragged me out to it. There were a lot of driven women there. The type of women that would gladly scratch your eyes out if you happen to pick up a pair of shoes they were interested in. I was a little scared.
See that slightly deranged look in her eye. I could feel the credit card starting to heat up in my wallet
The animal kingdom was well represented. Here we have the bird family
Cats
Snakes and sea life
Anything and everything shoe was there
Oh yeah and then there are the bags
There's that look again
I'm not sure where the hot pink snake comes from but I am pretty sure it's the tropics. Probably highly venomous
The fluffy leather wolf bag, so now we have found the canines
Lets just say it was a bad year for snakes and gators
Later that night we met up with the Matla's and went for a little grub. Ribs to be exact. Not sure what it is with the Matla men but ribs really bring out the best in them.
I think there may be some sort of latent cannibalistic boar gene buried in their DNA
A random set of keys hanging on a street sign...
Interesting advertisement. Not sure when the first week of Wednesday is
This one looks like it was printed in China Town somewhere in the Bayou
So Please guess how much these two boxes of Cheerios cost in Singapore...

$20 YEAH $20 That's all I have to say
Last week we had a fantastic meal with the Matla's. This was the menu - all recipes can be found at http://biggreenasianegg.wordpress.com. These along with everything else they cook on the egg
How I ended up with this little squirmy worm I am not sure. I decided to hang her upside down and let her play in the rain. It seemed to work
What???
Ah Ye Ol Bug Zapper. Something you don't find very often in Vancouver. This is one especially efficient, it has a suction fan so the little blood suckers can't get away
The mad scientist at work
Um mm roasted duck, yum yum
The chef pontificating on his bbq'ing prowess
A fine looking meal, and yes the taters were done in duck fat, doesn't get much better than that
And the slaughter begins
Happy Barbara
Oh yeah chocolate tort for dessert
A little scrabble after dinner
Roman didn't win, he blamed it on his glasses
The design for George Lucas's building to be built in Singapore. Its going to be called the Sandcrawler. I guess it kinda looks like a Sandcrawler
And of course the 501st was on site, to keep the peace
Is that a clone trooper out of uniform?? Oh no it's Barbara's boss
The dragon dance
Blessing the site
The inaugural ground breaking
Of course it wouldn't be complete without the 501st breaking ground as well
Is she really a reporter or is she trying to get a date?
So Barbara and I celebrated our 17th anniversary this month and we went to the White Rabbit, a very nice French restaurant in an old Church

Barbara started with some champagne
The pics didn't turn out so good, I think that means we will have to go back (darn) but this gives a little bit of an idea of the interior. I'll do better next time.
And we got a gift with purchase, a Veuve Clicquot ice bucket, or is it a trash can or maybe even a paint pail, what more can you ask for?
The Singapore flyer from a cab.

That's all for now

2011-04-04T01:32:00.000-07:00

So tell me what does this picture imply???

Yup you guessed it we are on another plane flying across the ocean again. This time for a little work for Barbara and some quality family time for me in beautiful OKC and then up to Van City for a little time with some friends.
Downtown OKC, or as the sign says Pizza Town OKC
Say hello to my two nieces , Aubrey, 4, and Camden a few months.
Not sure if anyone recognizes who this is but Aubrey wanted to make sure that I got a picture of her and included her on the blog. Judging from how fiercely protective she is of her baby sister I thought it was in my best interest to do as she said, so here you have it, Barbie on B&B's blog, who da thunk it?
And now to Madonna, you might call this a yin and yang moment
A dogs eye view, squirrel huntin'
And then there is Doryan, the Jedi Padawan
And favorite nephew
BC place naked. I think it's kinda cool looking, like a ship with out sails
Aurora, just saying hi
A super star pitcher in the making. Baseball season is close and the boy is ready

And in the off season
A future pop star. Kids got some moves
We made it over to Matt and Laura's for a gourmet meal and ran into the Gills. Mr Mike himself reluctantly drinking a Kokanee, one of my favorites by the way
And the food which consisted of chicken, duck, fresh caught halibut from The Queen Charlotte Islands, officially Haida Gwaii, thought I would throw that in to show my Canadian side, potatoes, salad and chocolate torte for dessert. Like I said it was gourmet.
A big thumbs up from Doryan, who doubled as bartender and dessert maker.

Ok, This is a who farted look if I have ever seen one
And the requisite I think it was you look from his lovely wife
Mr. Mike informing someone that they don't have all the information and he would be glad to enlighten them
Barbara had taken Doryan out for a walk in the afternoon and wanted to stop and look at some shoes, Doryan really didn't want to stop and look at shoes, a little too girly for him, so they found a way to compromise. Those shoes probably looked pretty good through all that ice cream
Hi John
And Murray
And Dutch
Lets not think about where his hand might be
So after we got the cat drunk, Barbara and I did something I didn't think I for one would ever do. Murray busted out some sort of dance game for the Wii, and after much protest from myself, the next thing I knew we were all dancing to the TV in John and Murr's place. That's the second time in 2 weeks that I found myself doing something I swore would never happen, 1st it was playing rock band and ending up with the microphone in my hand belting out the lyrics and now dancing to Beyonce in John and Murray's living room! Singapore has definitely had an effect on me, good or bad has yet to be determined
So this is what we would look like if we had kids. Even Aurora is fascinated
After a Canuck's loss. She is gonna be such a die hard fan. She really has no choice with Mike as her Dad. Lucky girl.
Non-alcoholic, just so you know
Its a little hard to tell but this guy had the best fro I've seen since Vietnam (see previous post)
Eva and Sandra aka Trouble
B&B aka NOT trouble
Ok maybe Barbara can be a little trouble, but hey who doesn't like a little trouble every once in a while
Nectar of the Gods, the almighty Caesar
Half of the Mairi and Chris tandem, indulging us in out Cactus club addiction
Wings and ribs. They are a must whenever we make it to Van
Part two, I must say both looking very relaxed and happy. Maybe it was the Caesars but hey whatever works
And of course our other indulgence, Toshi. It's not a trip home without a stop at Toshi
Ok so maybe there is a little trouble here too
AAHHH tataki
Matt and Laura never let us down when it comes to Toshi. We got there and Matt was standing at the front door, first in line. He had probably been there for 20 minutes and happy as hell to be there. Its just that good
Ummm
And Laura doesn't even like sushi. Crazy girl. Whatever it is she eats must be pretty good though. It's cooked so I don't go there.
After Toshi a last visit to the Gill household and Aurora who is getting very close to walking as you can tell from the road rash on her chin.
Barbara's last day and she spent the afternoon with Dutchie. I went to Dave's to watch the hockey game, priorities, and Barbara went to Steveston
The boardwalk
And the real reason she was there, Steak Frites, I know you thought it would be fish and chips but noo not Barbara, she went for the turf not the surf

And wine of course
Another airport at 3am. Yes I am excited
So's Barbara.

Here we go again, more planes, trains and automobiles.

It was a great trip home and we had a great time. Looking forward to the next one. Bye for now

2011-03-10T15:03:00.000-08:00

Ahh Green Egg how I covet thee. I dream at night of spiriting you away, well maybe not since the damn thing weighs 300 pounds. It would take me and a team of four guys to carry it, but oh I do love the food you give forth. I was lucky enough to be invited over to Heather and Romans for some lamb kabobs and a fridge salad, you know the type where you open the fridge door and throw whatever leftovers you can find into a bowl and say "Hey there's a salad" (they are usually the best kind), and for something so simple damn was it ever good. The lamb was done to perfection, just on the rare side of medium and the onions were still crunchy, perfect. Roman tells me he has had a couple, and by a couple I mean literally 2, misses on the egg but I have trouble believing him because everything I have sampled has been fantastic. It was a great evening for a few of reasons, 1) the food of course, 2) the company of very good friends and 3) Kalyna didn't throw up on me so I consider it a home run all round. Thanks for the grub guys and I look forward to the next grilling (could it be crab?????)

Go to biggreenasianegg.wordpress.com to see pics of the egg in all its glory.

2011-02-24T16:13:00.000-08:00

While my mom was here we thought she should see a little more than just Singapore. So we decided that a trip to Krabi Thailand was in order. I think they are ready to go
So lets getter' done
I think half of Singapore had the same idea for Chinese new year
Barbara started shopping before we got out of the airport
Our ride
Happy Mom
The view from above through the eyes of the hipstamatic
Barbara has had one heck of a workload since the beginning of the year and this was the perfect time to catch a little shuteye before the whirlwind of Thailand
The anticipation is growing
And we have arrived. First a little food
Then a little sight seeing. I should say here that Krabi is awesome. I can't think of a better place to have taken my ma during her time here. It was beautiful, very laid back and I would recommend, that if given the chance, everyone should visit here.
Taking in the sunset

After a little dinner we took on the task of figuring out what tours we should take part in.
While doing this the waitress brought over a Jenga game. My mom had never played Jenga before but took to it immediately.
It started out pretty tame
And progressively got harder
As you can tell by mom's expressions

And a sense of relief. I thought we did pretty darn good considering we were outside, there was a breeze and we had been drinking. It didn't last too much longer than this.
The next day we hopped a longtail boat and took off for Railay Beach.
Boating fun
After coming from Halong Bay at Christmas I have to say that I would take Krabi anytime
Love it
This is as close to a swim wear shot that is allowed
Love the safety in Thailand. The safety harness isn't hooked up and they were both flip flops. I guess neopreen doesn't conduct electricity so they are super safe for electrical work.

The diamond cave between East and West Railay. Pretty cool.

Only problem was that we found out that my mother doesn't really like to be in caves, especially with some what unsteady footing. Ah well at least we were learning.
A little rock climbing

Yeah its inescapable. Wherever we go there is either a storm trooper or frigging darth vader lurking around
Sunset

Happy happy
Another day, another boat. Today we are on our way to...
James Bond Island. Oh hell yeah
Looks a lot bigger in the movies, but hey so does everything else
It was pretty cool
Except for the old russians wearing bikinis. Obviously they didn't get the memo
Parking was a little tight
And the winner for best fro in Thailand goes too...
Really,,,, not bad though
Very cool

Okay so this guy was obsessed with getting the right shot
I thought this one turned out pretty good and i didnt have to crawl around on my belly to get. I just sat on my ass and watched him then pushed a button, technology, amazing
Yes it is, yes I did, and yes it was, but don't tell Barbara. I guess I kinda blew that one
UUUMMM, Banana pancakes. The hot dog with bacon wrapped around it was healthier than these, but damn were they good
Read the sign and tell me how does this happen? It printed four times and spelled three different ways. Hell I could be a printer in Thailand, hmm
Shopping
Shopping for a hat
It goes on
and on
and on
and on until this guy finally had the right one. We actually saw the hat here first but his "price wasn't right" so we passed, until we looked at every other shop in the town and realized there was only one hat she was happy with. I'm surprised the price didn't go up by the time we made it back.
See my mom needed a hat for the elephant ride. Thing is she didn't know she would be riding in the back of a pick up truck to get there. She hasn't been in the back of a pick up in probably 20 years, maybe more
Barbara either. They weren't so impressed
Okay everything is better now. Come on, get on the back of an elephant and the world seems to become a better place.
And they had the biggest ham of an elephant to boot. Couldn't have been better
This guy was extreme. Go into water, ok, his eyes were under water, awesome
I'm telling you this guy wants to be a movie star, just look at him
After the elephant was the Tiger temple. Nice huh
Oh and then there was this. If you read the sign it tells the story
Let me make that a little more clear, yes that says 1,237 steps, and no they were not little steps they were the type of steps that came up to your knee
They were up for it and off we went
The monks were kind enough to let you know how far you had come. Let me tell you this was not easy.
Spectacular views, but you paid for it
Ony 39 to go
And there they are.
Contemplating the best plan of attack
This better be worth it
Enough said
I don't even want to know what she is thinking right now, it can't be good
Worth it? YES
Spectacular
And after a while the girls were ok with it too
Just a reminder
And then we have to go down
Yes mom we have to walk down too. This was actually the worst part, but what a trooper
About halfway down we past a couple younger than Barbara and I that had made the decision to turn back because it was "too hard". This was huge moral boost to mom since we made it to the top and back. Love her for this
Ice cream at the end.
And yes, much street food to follow the journey
A little pool time and everything is better
Maybe a little shopping to ease the pain helps as well
And a cocktail or two of course
I think she enjoyed Krabi
One last sunset
Don't think she wants to leave
But our ride is here. I definately think another trip to Krabi is in the works for us. Possibly our favorite place in Thailand.

2011-02-14T03:07:00.000-08:00

After months of anticipation the day was finally upon us that my mom arrived. It was actually very surprising how quickly the time went by before she arrived and even more surprising how quickly the time went by while she was here. It seemed that she had only just arrived and the day of her departure was upon us. Never the less it was a great visit and tons of fun showing her around Singapore. She is quite the trooper, I think she slept for 3 days when she got home she was so exhausted from me dragging her all over the place but she saw it all, well at least some of it. She really wanted to go to the Chinese and Japanese gardens so that's where we started.
How great would it be to have a yard you could sculpt it like this
And have these little fellas running around. Lets call him the welcoming committee
So serene
And picture perfect. I think my mom could have spent every afternoon here
And of course we had to go to the Turtle museum
A little cucumber snack, he tried to get a little finger dessert to go along with that. I think my moms heart skipped a beat or two. Lets just say he got the rest of the cucumber
Now which one do I feed. They're all so cute
Remember the movie Attack of the Killer Tomato's ...Makes you think
Next we went to the Jurong Bird Park. This was pretty cool since it was a first for me
Except for the RAIN. This was the hardest rain I have seen in Singapore since I got here almost 2 years ago. Nice
Didn't stop this guy from having a little lunch though. Look close and you can see the fish in the back of his throat, waddly thing whatever that is, there's a fish in there
You'll get used to our striking green attire. More to come, oh yeah that's my Mom
Toucan Sam
I have to say there were some seriously funky looking birds in this place
And this guy could rip your face off. Look at the beak on this dude
Loved the Macaws
Hey is that Danny DeVito
Color and more color
It was very cool in this place. very much like the zoo where everything was right there where you could almost touch it, not that I am saying I would want to be at the zoo and touch a lion or anything, sorry I'm rambling

Again with the color or is that colour
She found the Tardis..Awesome!!
It took us to the zoo and landed us in the tiger pen, oh Sh*t
So as you can see the zoo was our next stop and no it wasn't the same day, but the weather was the same, more friggin rain. Aren't you glad you came in February mom
Ok so I am very aware that there is a thick piece of plexi glass between us and this black cobra, native to Singapore I should add, but seeing this thing rise up and spread its hood sent shivers down my back, FREAKY
Yes it was raining, and yes a little miserable, but this being my 5th time to the zoo I saw more animals than ever before. When the rain was coming down they were under cover by the glass. Never have I seen this guy up close, score
Notice the nice green outfit. Really I am not sure why she brought a suitcase full of clothes. This was all she ever wore
And when the rain stopped it was cool out and the animals were very active. All in all it was an awesome day at the zoo, my best yet. When you get to see rhino's playing you know its a very good day

And that my friends is the making of some very nice boots

Another must for my Ma was the Orchid Garden.She loves Orchids. I know that I have posted a million pics of flowers and orchids in the past so I will try to be sparing
See not even a flower in site, really that's just a tree
Sill no flowers
Oops oh well here we go
How can you resist, they are quite stunning

And super cool. These are my favorites, have I said that before?
No flowers
Lots of flowers
No flowers just a really BIG tree.
More fl, oh nevermind
OK so now that the big three requests are done she's ready to shop
Shoes anyone
Its Chinese New Year so China Town is a little nuts, or should I say orange
Mom loved it. Oh the insanity
She shopped and I
Well I didn't shop
Everyone was in the spirit. Just to let you know this guy isn't chinese, I know he has the hair and the hat but don't let him fool you
So it wouldn't be a trip to Singapore without a trip to the wetmarket
I don't know what the hell kind of fish these things are but they must taste good. Look at the chompers on those things. Really don't want to run into one of those while out snorkeling
Crabs anyone
She actually enjoyed the market
But I think she liked the massage better
Right up to the point where I got her to dip her feet in the prianah tank, I mean fish spa
"It feels really weird" now imagine that in an unnaturally high voice
This should be a scene from Piranah 2: Attack of the minows
Guess what I am a year older. And guess what else, that means everyone else is too. Just making sure I am not alone in this. At least I got a pie, Lemon Merangue Pie to be exact, uummm. Wait there is more
Cookies, Chocolate chocolate chip and chocolate chocolate chip bacon cookies. Yeah I was pretty happy.
So since my mom was here, and let me say its the first time we have been together for my birthday in at least 16 years which in itself was pretty great, but since she was here and she brought some Jimmy Deans I put her to work. Hey its my birthday, I'm not doing the cooking, and we had the usual suspects over
Can't forget the biscuts. A little side note here, this is now my desk top pic
Gravy
That's not a over protective dad, thats a man wanting food. As soon as the food was served he tossed the baby and started throwing elbows to get at the food. What can you say, he's Canadian
Where do you think these two are from?
So after Roman tossed the baby and knocked a few people down my mom was there to spoil the child. I think this made her happier than being around for my birthday.
So, what more could Brett possibly get beside pie and cookies? Well let me show you
It was definately a surprise
A new computer, and a very nice computer. Thanks Honey, you're too good to me
Now I have to figure out how to use the damn thing
Whe my mom arrived I distinctly remember her saying that she didn't want to eat out a lot and I said OK no problem. Whatever, welcome to Gyu Kaku
Time for a little Kobe beef
And a lot of other stuff
Also she needed to be introduced to Din Tai Fung
And the soup dumpling
It took a little explaining on the process
Yep into the spoon, then poke a hole in it
Then pop it in and
Hey Mikey she likes it. Immediately after eating the first one she started asking how do you make these. I hope when I go home in March she's figured it out
Say hello to the egg. I love this thing. Have a look at biggreenasianegg.wordpress.com for some great pics of Roman and his egg, I get paid for every visitor I send his way
Again my mom and the baby
Teaching her early, hold on tight

And the meat fest, that was some damn fine pork
And this is what can happen when you eat too much pork
So one last stop on the food train and it had to be Lagnaa. Now my mom isn't a huge fan of Indian food but a stop at Lagnaa is sure to convert almost anyone. We had a little Butter Chicken, Chicken Masala, Dahl Makhini, some Okra and Naan bread.
I think her plate says it all. So as I said before about the not eating out while she was here, WHATEVER.

Next stop Krabi Thailand