Uncle Roger (the comedian Nigel Ng) is a fellow Malaysian. When critiquing Western chefs over their less than authentic ways of making Fried Rice or Pad Thai, he usually throws in other bits of advice for ‘niece and nephew’. This should ensure Niece and Nephew never make the awful mistakes other people make. Instead, they should now be equipped to face the challenges coming their way.
I don’t have particular advice for my and Mr Gochugaru’s nieces, because truth be told, young people these days are quite capable of forming their own opinions. They would hardly take kindly to advice from an Aunt or Uncle.
But I have always listened to sound advice. It saves time learning from my own mistakes. One such is from the Bible where from the beginning God instituted a day of rest: By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done (Genesis 2 v 2-3).
In the past five weeks I have not had a rest day, because it is vital that my mother gets the same level of care and interaction daily. Sometimes it feels like she is on a continuous treadmill but this is what it takes to keep her going.
In previous trips I have flown straight back to London and picked up where I left off. This time, I thought it would be wise to take one day of rest for every week I have worked. So I am here in the wonderful city of Singapore. The Singaporean Pastry Chef Cherish Finden has a favourite phrase when she comes across perfection when judging baking creations i.e. Love it! Love it! Love it! Get a sample here. For me, I can say the same of Singapore (yes, I love it, love it, love it!)
I hired a car and driver to bring me down from KL to Singapore. He told me that in nine years of doing this run, he had not had a client check in to the Fullerton Hotel. I said it was my first time also, and he asked how expensive it was. The answer is, probably less than it ought to be, given the location, service, facilities and size of my room. In fact, it reminds me very much of the Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur, which I adore for sentimental family reasons. I felt like I already knew the hotel when I entered the lobby.
The Fullerton was once home to Singapore’s General Post Office, from 1928 to 1961. Robby and Lizzy are the hotel’s mascots: giant teddy bears normally dressed in postmaster uniforms. This season they are dressed in colours of the Singapore flag, to celebrate National day on 09 August.
Below are photos and brief notes from my first two days here. I decided to take things easy and not do too much. The Asian Civilisations Museum and the National Gallery are both a short walk from here. I intend to save them for my final day, after checking out of the hotel, as my flight is only late at night.
A very good start: TWG Tea in my hotel room
Views from the hotel’s pool
I have very generous and deep-pocketed Singaporean friends. On Friday evening Accountant friend invited me to: Fish Pool (I am still thinking of how to swim like a mermaid), dinner at Akira Back followed by a live performance of beautiful songs by Penang-born Andrea Stevenson in Cool Cats. Some familiar songs: Empire state of mind, I will always love you, Can’t take my eyes off you, Dancing on the ceiling, Staying alive, La Isla Bonita, Reflection (from Mulan). Accountant friend and I stood up and raised our hands a little to Dancing Queen and I am glad most of the other patrons were our age or older, so we are safe from any embarrassing home videos.
Saturday morning began with a swim, then a very hearty breakfast. I skipped lunch, save for my favourite snack of a curry puff. This one was from Old Chang Kee, although Shoe Lady says she prefers the ones from 1A. This is Singapore, anything less that A and 1 will not do. The hotel has complimentary tours and this afternoon’s one was on the history of the hotel and the site on which it sits. I learnt a lot about the development of the area from the time Singapore was founded in 1819.
Dinner was an invitation by Ex-Investment Banker Friend and Shoe Lady at Suzuki Omakase Restaurant. This consisted of around a dozen different dishes hand crafted in front of us. Since one course was called 7 Kinds of Sushi, there really was a lot to eat. The prized ingredients included fatty tuna, wagyu beef, dashi made from freshly shaved bonito flakes. It all rounded up to a creative, interactive, chatty and most delightful evening.
There are plans for the next few days, but we take each day as it comes. Changes and disruptions abound for a whole host of reasons, and this without the disruption a global IT outage. Goodnight from Singapore. I am afraid another early morning swim is called for, if I am to continue enjoying all my meals here.