Not enough time!
Door: Yaisa
Blijf op de hoogte en volg Yaisa
09 April 2008 | Singapore, Singapore
“I’ll sleep when I’m dead” (Bon Jovi, Keep the Faith)
I’m getting nervous… now that my departure date is set, I’ve scoped out all the things I still want to do before I leave… Just over 6 weeks to go, my calendar is filling up quickly and time is ticking… What am I doing here behind my PC writing a blog to spam you again? I should be out, breathing the nicotine-free air of Singapore nightclubs, walk along the river by night, explore the reservoirs surrounded by lush rainforest, discover my neighbourhood and her hard working girls…
But rest assured, I’m not sitting still all the time.
I’ve actually started to do some “cultural” stuff… Over the past year, I haven’t been to a single concert, museum or anything of the sort here in Singapore. So, I went on the internet, browsed for interesting events and found quite a few. And luckily, enough people to join me.
Last week, I went to a classical concert. A young promising violin player was going to give her debut concert in the Esplanade, the Singapore concert hall. Typical me, I hadn’t read the description properly. It turned out to be a VERY young violin player, as she appeared to be 14 and the accompanying orchestra was the Singapore National Youth Orchestra, none of the musicians were older than 16. Haha, not quite the level of the Radio Philharmonic, but nevertheless very impressive. It also brought back quite some memories of the time I played in a youth orchestra myself and I can honestly say that I never reached their level… Glad I didn’t give up my day-time job… (eeehm, what exactly am I about to do in a few weeks? :-) ) I missed Ying Wei’s expert comments on the performance, but VK and I enjoyed the concert and I can tick “Classical Concert at the Esplanade” off my list.
Next on my must-do list is a pop concert in Singapore. And I found the perfect one. James Blunt with his All the Lost Souls tour is performing in the Singapore Indoor Stadium in May. So these last few days, I’ve had James Blunt blearing out of my CD player, to get in the mood and memorise the lyrics… Not that I expect I will be singing along very loudly during the concert - somehow Singaporeans don’t strike me as people who go out of their mind during a concert… :-) But at least I’ll come prepared! This time Helen will be my chaperonne, but only after our long weekend in Vietnam. Yes, beginning of May we will be spending a few lovely days in Hanoi, roaming the Old Quarter, catching a glimpse of Ho Chi Minh (if he’s not in Russia for his yearly plastic surgery) and enjoying the best noodle soups of the world along the sidewalks…
And by then, I’ll be a super pro photographer! I’ve decided to buy a new camera and I thought it wise to take a photography course so that I can make the most of my future new gadget. So coming weekend I’ll be getting up very early (bleh…) to go on a fieldtrip with my photography class… And after that, I’ll go and buy the best SLR camera I can afford! So I’m expecting lots of compliments on my pictures afterwards… :-)
Then there’s my last dragon boat race, Koninginnenach (Queen’s night) at Harry’s, an offsite with work in Bintan, Indonesia, a diving trip with colleagues off the coast of Malaysia the last weekend before I leave, last dinners with friends, a farewell party to organise… When in heaven’s name am I going to pack and store my stuff??? Oh well, I'll sleep when...
So this week, Brenda and I went to a screening of two films featured by the Singapore Short Film Festival. The first one was so strange, I can only quote the description I found on the website “Takeshi seeks refuge in a hotel room to escape from the past. It has become a ritual since the death of his wife. On one of his stays, he discovers a shawl left behind by another guest. Their vivid imagination of the past and present connect the two people.” Vivid imagination they say… Very prudish these Singaporeans… My imagination is much more vivid, I can tell you that!!! :-)
The second movie was very interesting though. It is made by a woman who documents a part of Singapore where soon there will be entertainment farms, chalets and spa’s for tourists but where there used to be old kampong houses and where there still are about 300 agricultural farms… A side of Singapore I didn’t know still existed… If I would have more time I would definitely explore that area… but time is ticking, so much to do, so much to see!!
Anway, last week, lady O’Toole was here and besides spending hours drinking champagne and G&T’s on the couch, talking about love, life and music, we went to a new black pepper crabb place and we found out that the SilkAir hotline offers crappy service. Nevertheless, she managed to book a ticket to Langkawi for some diving and I flew to Perth to get a first peek of little Lauren, Nicole & Marcus’ treasure. Of course the party wouldn’t have been complete without Nina, so there we were again, the three girls, talking about love, life and babies…
Gosh, I’ll miss them so much, not being a 5 hour flight away from them…
But then again, the Red Sea is only 5 hours away from Holland… and Darja will be only 5 minutes away!
Here are some pictures and as Nicole said “This is how memories are made…”
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=35055&l=880da&id=523210814
Time to go to sleep, might as well...
xYx
I’m getting nervous… now that my departure date is set, I’ve scoped out all the things I still want to do before I leave… Just over 6 weeks to go, my calendar is filling up quickly and time is ticking… What am I doing here behind my PC writing a blog to spam you again? I should be out, breathing the nicotine-free air of Singapore nightclubs, walk along the river by night, explore the reservoirs surrounded by lush rainforest, discover my neighbourhood and her hard working girls…
But rest assured, I’m not sitting still all the time.
I’ve actually started to do some “cultural” stuff… Over the past year, I haven’t been to a single concert, museum or anything of the sort here in Singapore. So, I went on the internet, browsed for interesting events and found quite a few. And luckily, enough people to join me.
Last week, I went to a classical concert. A young promising violin player was going to give her debut concert in the Esplanade, the Singapore concert hall. Typical me, I hadn’t read the description properly. It turned out to be a VERY young violin player, as she appeared to be 14 and the accompanying orchestra was the Singapore National Youth Orchestra, none of the musicians were older than 16. Haha, not quite the level of the Radio Philharmonic, but nevertheless very impressive. It also brought back quite some memories of the time I played in a youth orchestra myself and I can honestly say that I never reached their level… Glad I didn’t give up my day-time job… (eeehm, what exactly am I about to do in a few weeks? :-) ) I missed Ying Wei’s expert comments on the performance, but VK and I enjoyed the concert and I can tick “Classical Concert at the Esplanade” off my list.
Next on my must-do list is a pop concert in Singapore. And I found the perfect one. James Blunt with his All the Lost Souls tour is performing in the Singapore Indoor Stadium in May. So these last few days, I’ve had James Blunt blearing out of my CD player, to get in the mood and memorise the lyrics… Not that I expect I will be singing along very loudly during the concert - somehow Singaporeans don’t strike me as people who go out of their mind during a concert… :-) But at least I’ll come prepared! This time Helen will be my chaperonne, but only after our long weekend in Vietnam. Yes, beginning of May we will be spending a few lovely days in Hanoi, roaming the Old Quarter, catching a glimpse of Ho Chi Minh (if he’s not in Russia for his yearly plastic surgery) and enjoying the best noodle soups of the world along the sidewalks…
And by then, I’ll be a super pro photographer! I’ve decided to buy a new camera and I thought it wise to take a photography course so that I can make the most of my future new gadget. So coming weekend I’ll be getting up very early (bleh…) to go on a fieldtrip with my photography class… And after that, I’ll go and buy the best SLR camera I can afford! So I’m expecting lots of compliments on my pictures afterwards… :-)
Then there’s my last dragon boat race, Koninginnenach (Queen’s night) at Harry’s, an offsite with work in Bintan, Indonesia, a diving trip with colleagues off the coast of Malaysia the last weekend before I leave, last dinners with friends, a farewell party to organise… When in heaven’s name am I going to pack and store my stuff??? Oh well, I'll sleep when...
So this week, Brenda and I went to a screening of two films featured by the Singapore Short Film Festival. The first one was so strange, I can only quote the description I found on the website “Takeshi seeks refuge in a hotel room to escape from the past. It has become a ritual since the death of his wife. On one of his stays, he discovers a shawl left behind by another guest. Their vivid imagination of the past and present connect the two people.” Vivid imagination they say… Very prudish these Singaporeans… My imagination is much more vivid, I can tell you that!!! :-)
The second movie was very interesting though. It is made by a woman who documents a part of Singapore where soon there will be entertainment farms, chalets and spa’s for tourists but where there used to be old kampong houses and where there still are about 300 agricultural farms… A side of Singapore I didn’t know still existed… If I would have more time I would definitely explore that area… but time is ticking, so much to do, so much to see!!
Anway, last week, lady O’Toole was here and besides spending hours drinking champagne and G&T’s on the couch, talking about love, life and music, we went to a new black pepper crabb place and we found out that the SilkAir hotline offers crappy service. Nevertheless, she managed to book a ticket to Langkawi for some diving and I flew to Perth to get a first peek of little Lauren, Nicole & Marcus’ treasure. Of course the party wouldn’t have been complete without Nina, so there we were again, the three girls, talking about love, life and babies…
Gosh, I’ll miss them so much, not being a 5 hour flight away from them…
But then again, the Red Sea is only 5 hours away from Holland… and Darja will be only 5 minutes away!
Here are some pictures and as Nicole said “This is how memories are made…”
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=35055&l=880da&id=523210814
Time to go to sleep, might as well...
xYx
-
09 April 2008 - 18:47
Mama:
ja niets aan toe te voegen, zo moeder zo dochter, maar jij slaat me in alle opzichten! en straks ook in de fotografie, geniet van de laatste weekjes in Singapore en omgeving, er wachten je nog vele reizen. -
09 April 2008 - 18:53
Mir:
en ik word met de dag meer jaloers;-) -
09 April 2008 - 19:46
Katelijne:
Yais, geniet van de laatste weken Singapore! Op naar het volgende avontuur... Shine on with your smile as bright as the sun! (je weet wel van wie :-) ) -
09 April 2008 - 20:21
Anjo:
TikTakTikTak -
10 April 2008 - 09:26
Naam Bekend Bij Y.:
Yais,
Er moeten een paar dingen over je laatste weblog gezegd worden
Soms begin je met een quote, maar I'll sleep when I'm dead is een nummer op het Keep the Faith album en niet een quote uit het nummer Keep the Faith. Wil je wel een beetje consequent blijven?
Daarnaast je keuze om mee te zingen en uit je dak te gaan bij James Blunt. Deze vals zingende kat is geen enkele eer waardig en nu ga jij, mijn zeer gerespecteerde collega, naar deze non muziek? Schaam je! -
10 April 2008 - 09:27
Yais:
Zeer gewaardeerde collega en mede-ex-HPPer,
Ten eerste: ik zou toch verwachten dat je je kritiek op mij en mijn schrijfstijl zou durven delen met de rest van wereld. Je weet dat ik niet van mensen houdt die zich verschuilen. Derhalve doe ik het maar voor je.
Ten tweede: Ja, I'll sleep when I'm dead is een songtitel, maar de titel was ook wat ik heb ge-quote. Dientengevolge heb ik de titel niet herhaald in de referentie. Maar ik waardeer je gevoel voor consequentie ten zeerste en zal je dit commentaar niet aanrekenen.
Ten derde: Aangezien ik zelf ook een vals(e), zingende kat ben, heb ik nou eenmaal een persoonlijke voorkeur voor James Blunt. En daarnaast schaam ik mij nergens voor.
Ten vierde: Je keurt James Blunt af, maar bent wel zeer goed op de hoogte van het repertoire van Bon Jovi, hetgeen aangeeft waar jouw muzikale voorkeur ligt. Wie moet zich hier nou schamen?
Desalniettemin kijk ik er nog steeds naar uit om gierend dronken te worden met jou en andere gewaardeerde niet nader te noemen (ex) collega's als ik weer in het immer gezellig Amsterdam ben. -
10 April 2008 - 11:05
Ex HPP'er:
Helaas verkeerde conclusies gewaardeerde collega. het feit dat ik brede muziek kennis heb, wil niet zeggen dat ik ook fan ben. het blijft treurig dat in eén stuk klassieke muziek beschrijft en vlak daarna james (de irritanste stem van het universum)cunt.
Ik ben bang dat G. en ik niet meer met je willen drinken en gierend uit de bocht willen vliegen als je zo blijft doen -
10 April 2008 - 14:21
Yaisa:
(Nog steeds) bijzonder gewaardeerde collega (ik ben zeer vergevingsgezind),
Ben je nou al naar de kapper geweest, of ga je toch voor die Bon Jovi coupe?
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