A Bird's Eye View of Fashion, Food, Travel, Culture, Beverage and Curiosity

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):Singapore 11October2025: Kampong Glam: Muslim Quarter, Malay Enclave and Little India

Singapore 11October2025: Kampong Glam: Muslim Quarter, Malay Enclave and Little India

After lunch a further meander into Chinatown to see some restored traditional shophouses perhaps a unique Singaporean architectural feature. It is as it sounds a shop also housing its owners. Very few shophouses remain.

Then to Kampong Glam home of the Muslim quarter and Malay enclave. The quiet majesty of the golden domed Sultan Mosque dominates. A popular destination for Indonesian tourists and crammed with restaurants somewhat reminding one of Prince Arthur Street in Montreal. And yes a Greek restaurant!

Little India was jammed with Diwali festivities in gear. Saw a dance competition for young girls moving to traditional Indian music heavily adorned with jewellery and bright traditional garb. Preparations were underway for a huge Diwali fireworks display famous in Singapore.

Back on the bus all hot and steamy to the hotel. The temperatures so far are equivalent to a hot Toronto summer day at 35 degrees but the 90% humidity really exhausts you. Great weather for a cold beer!

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):Singapore 11October2025: Local Flavour Lunch With a Gringo Touch and Only Two Sodas Per Person!

Singapore 11October2025: Local Flavour Lunch With a Gringo Touch and Only Two Sodas Per Person!

The itinerary indicates a “Local Flavour” lunch which is at the tourist centric Red House Seafood restaurant. Our tour guide managed to pick up some real local flavour Singaporean Chicken at the best place for this dish (sort of a hole in the wall) as we walked towards the restaurant seemingly used to handling tourist buses so as to speak. Get em in and out fast!

In this blistering heat and humidity a cold beer was on the mind of most of the group but bearing in mind the parsimonious streak of ABC International, the tour organizers, NO BEER and ONLY TWO SODAS OR WATERS PER PERSON! Cheapo supremo! I paid for this trip in USD so I want a fair deal!

This place was so “local” no chopsticks only western cutlery which oddly the Americans in our group were happy with but we Canadians had to ask for chopsticks! The food was mundane and to cater to the gringos the Singaporean Spiced Crab was already deshelled. I mean why not ask for Dinner Number One – Dinner Number Four just like in a 1974 Chinese restaurant in Toronto. Much better than airline food!

The best dish was the Singaporean Chicken “smuggled” into the restaurant. A simplistic looking dish but oh so tasty. Our tour guide got shit for bringing it in. Very cold and unfriendly staff at the restaurant.

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):Singapore 11October2025: Hokkien Temple in Chinatown

Singapore 11October2025: Hokkien Temple in Chinatown

Away from the modern urbanity we head to a more rustic and “authentic” destination in Singapore, a Hokkien temple; Thian Hock Keng Temple located in the heart of Chinatown dedicated to Mazu, the goddess of the sea and protector of sailors, the temple was built between 1839 and 1842 by early Chinese migrants seeking a better life in Singapore. It was built using traditional Chinese methods serving as a place of worship for the Hokkien community. A prime example of southern Chinese temple architecture, it features intricate carvings, colourful tiles, detailed sculptures and imposing columns with the roof being adorned with mythical creatures and scenes from Chinese folklore its interior being decorated by porcelain figures and the temple’s vibrant colors and artistic elements make it a visually striking place. Often called the Temple of Heavenly Bliss it is not only a religious site-it continues to be an active place of worship but also a symbol of a rich cultural heritage of Singapore’s Chinese community.

We had half an hour to walk around Chinatown which is less vibrant and smaller than Toronto’s Chinatown but there is street life giving Singapore some soul.

RKS Literature: Why is Frankenstein’s Creation so Malicious? (Mary Shelley)

“I am malicious because I am miserable. Am I not shunned and hated by all mankind? You, my creator, would tear me to pieces and triumph; remember that, and tell me why I should pity man more than he pities me. You would not call it murder if you could precipitate me into one of those ice-riffs and destroy my frame, the work of your own hands. Shall I respect a man if he condemns me? Let him live with me in the interchange of kindness, and instead of injury I would bestow every benefit upon him with tears of gratitude at his acceptance.

Mary Shelly, “Frankenstein”, 1818.

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):Singapore 11October2025: Singapore Panoramic Tour: Is Singapore Soulless?

Singapore 11October2025: Singapore Panoramic Tour: Is Singapore Soulless?

“Singapore Panoramic Tour” sounds a bit easy peasy just what the doctor ordered for haggard jet laggers. On a luxury coach (no WC facilities) at 09:15. First stop Merlion Park at the Esplanade Bridge. Right behind us one views the Singapore skyline with innumerable skyscrapers many with bank and insurance company signage. Is this Manhattan? Our tour guide, a former trader of financial instruments, notes Singapore is the third largest commercial centre in the world. Despite the urban nature of the city centre lush foliage plantings create an illusion of space. Is Singapore soulless in all its glitter and affluence?

Across the water from Merlion Park one can see a huge casino and hotel somewhat as imposing as the Sydney Opera House. I am not sure I expected such bland modernity and the wealth of Singapore. The only toiling masses I can see in the blistering heat and humidity are Bangladeshi construction workers.

The tourists, many Indonesians on this visit, flock to the statute of the mythical Merlion which possesses the body of a fish and the head of a lion. Its fish like body symbolizes Singapore’s origins as a fishing village. The statue’s head represents the city’s original name Singapura (lion city in Sanskrit). According to legend, Sang Nila Utama- a Srivijayan prince of Palembang- landed on Singapore’s shores amidst a tempest at sea. Near the mouth of the Singapore river, the prince spied a strange creature, which he identified as a lion, thus giving Singapura its name. This legend is embodied in the statute at Merlion Park.

Spouting water at its mouth, the Merlion statue stands at 28 feet high. It was designed by Kwan Sai Kheong, built by local craftsman Lim Nang Seng and unveiled in 1972 by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew. It faces east which is believed to a be a direction that brings prosperity.

RKS Literature: How Can Frankenstein’s Creation Cease His Threats to Humanity?

“For some days I haunted the spot where these scenes had taken place, sometimes wishing to see you, sometimes resolved to quit this world and its miseries forever. At length I wandered through these mountains, and have ranged through their immense recesses, consumed by a burning passion which you alone can gratify. We may not part until you have promised to comply with my requisition. I am alone and miserable; man will not associate with me; but one as deformed and horrible as myself would not deny herself to me. My companion must be of the same species and have the same defects. This being you must create.”

Mary Shelley, “Frankenstein”, 1818.

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version)

Singapore 11October2025: Cultural Enrichment Session on Singapore: Getting the Quietly Obscene Gesture from a Trumpist

Jagged sleep. Nightmare about giving a botched political speech. A portent of political mischief to come momentarily?

Given this is the first day of our tour and our group of 18 are Americans (5) and Canadians recently arrived suffering from 12-15 hours time difference ABC International has no pity in holding a cultural enrichment session at a hotel meeting room at 08:00. Fascinating session when fatigue wasn’t tuning you out. Ethnic composition of Singapore is 75% Chinese, 14% Malay and 9% Indian. A simplistic explanation of Singaporean history given. In a nutshell: Singapore a wealthy country, many expats including Bangladeshi construction workers, a financial centre, paternalistic democracy and no homelessness.

In a question session I asked if President Trump has rattled his sabre at Singapore as he had been doing to Canada calling it the 51^st state, insulting Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau and calling Canada the land of the igloo people. I was told one of the 4 Americans on the tour and present in the room gave a polite obscene gesture in my direction after asking my question. I should have worn my sealskin boots are these are what Canadians wear to ward off the cold 365 days a year!

RKS Literature: Frankenstein’s Creation Declares War on Humanity (Mary Shelley)

“I became fatigued with excess of bodily exertion and sank on the grass in the sick impotence of despair. There was none amongst the myriads of men that existed who would pity or assist me; and should I feel kindness towards my enemies? No; from that moment I declared everlasting war against the species, and more than all, against him who had formed me and sent me forth to this insupportable misery.”

Mary Shelley, “Frankenstein”, 1818.

RKS 2025 Travel: Destination Southeast Asia (Short Attention Span Version):

Singapore 10October2025: Yet Another Parsimonious “Welcome Reception to Meet Your Fellow Travellers”

Given the hefty sum paid for this tour upon reading in the itinerary “Welcome Reception” one expects somewhat of a full-blown reception with nibbles, cocktails, wine and perhaps a bit of music. But my past experience with our tour company ABC International in Malta this year taught me differently. In Malta the “Welcome Reception” at our hotel consisted of bargain basement Spanish wine and peanuts and chips. Malta, being a producer of wine and the focal point of the tour, should have been at the table, with its wines. In this case in Singapore, it was low quality wines from Southeast Australia, mass produced Singaporean Tiger lager with mixed nuts, supermarket potato chips purchased by the Tour Director, stuffed cherry tomatoes and mini cheesecake bits. Given the superb cuisine at the Singapore Shangri-La what miserable food. At least the nuts were mixed. How much extra did the almonds and cashews cost ABC International? A step up from peanuts in Malta! Extravagance!

RKS 2026 CANADIAN Wine: Tempranillo in British Columbia!

Look out Rioja! Tempranillo has appeared yet again in British Columbia, Canada. The first Tempranillo I encountered was from Stag’s Hollow in the Okanagan area of British Columbia and it was mighty impressive. This is far less so.

Inniskillin’s Discovery Series presents 500 cases of its 2020 Tempranillo from the Okanagan.

Aroma: Jampacked black fruit with cassis, black cherry and blueberry asserting themselves. Some cedar and dark chocolate. Impression is gruff and rough.

Palate: Packs a punch despite its thin texture. Runs hot. Acerbic and acidic. Brackish.

Personality: Hoping my novelty disguises my personality.

Cellarbility: Five years in the bottle hasn’t done much for the wine.

Food Match: Some hot and spicy meat dish.

Price: $35 CDN.

RKS 2026 CANADIAN Wine Rating: 73/100. Wine Align 89.

(Inniskillin Discovery Series 2020 Tempranillo, BC VQA Okanagan Valley, Inniskillin Estate Wines, Oliver, British Columbia, 750 mL, 14.5%).