Island in the sun

*insert generic apology for not updating sooner here*

So much has happened since my last update.

Firstly, we threw a Christmas party for the kindergarten kids. Naturally, being the new guy, I got roped into playing Santa. I think I did a pretty god job, although I did have issues with my Santa-guts falling out. I'm pretty sure that no photos exist of this event.

To get away from the record low temperatures in Tokyo, we decided to spend Christmas and New Years in Singapore. Our hotel, whilst 80's-styled-yet-somewhat-futuristic...



...actually had very little going for it. Except for UNLIMITED BACON FOR BREAKFAST

An example of UNLIMITED BACON

Christmas Eve was far less sensible than I expected it to be. One of the bigger shopping / tourist strips, Orchard Road, was filled to the brim with revellers, each and every one of them armed with cans of Silly String or Crazy Foam and covering anyone who moved (or those who didnt move quick enough). By about 2am you were walking ankle-deep in empty aerosol cans.







Christmas day was festively spent taking a river cruise...









...drinking festive Christmas beer...



...and finishing up the night with festive chips and the first of many Singapore Slings



The rest of our time in Singapore was mostly filled with doing the normal touristy stuff, like going to the zoo...

A bongo.

...the night zoo (which is pretty much the same thing as the regular zoo, except its at night)...

I don't know what this is. It was dark. Maybe its another bongo.

...the bird park...





...and Sentosa Island.



Sentosa made us nearly vomit with disappointment. Not only was the promised monorail under construction (estimated completion: June 2006), the much-lauded Musical Waterfall deserted and covered in pond scum, the mini-golf course was also covered in pond scum, and everyone was generally rude and pushy. The highlight was getting a milkshake and seeing this sign:

Paradise city? Hardly.

Sentosa was also going to be home to "Asias grooviest beach party" on New Years Eve, featuring an "Olympic Sized swimming pool filled with foam, and inhabited by numerous hot bods". Sounds to me like Asia isnt very groovy at all.

Our New Years eve was spent in a restaurant knocking over bottle after bottle of Australian wine, then stumbling back to the hotel bar to catch the end of the house band, Strikers.



Apologies for the blurry phot. The blurb says:
"Striking the right chords for your listening pleasure!
Few bands can match the power of this dynamic female trio who will mesmerise you with thier toe-tapping numbers and sultry voices. The Strikers have the perfect music repertoire to fit any occasion from pop to jazz evergreens to top 40 hits. Every night from 8pm onwards."

I take issue with a number of things in this statement. Firstly, I can list at least 4 bands which can match the power of Strikers.
Secondly, I dont consider a pre-programmed Casio keyboard, matching vinyl pants and some side-to-side dance/stepping attributes "dynamic". Unless "dynamic" is used in the same way "Asias grooviest beach party" is used.
Thirdly, there were several occasions on this holiday when some Bon Jovi was warranted. Despite our requests, not one Bon Jovi song was played.

Despite the woefulness of Strikers, we still went back. Every night. Ah, Strikers. Just like karaoke, but no-one else got to sing.

Some other random highlights from Singapore:

Shopping here was fun

Shopping here was not so fun

Better get the marketing guys onto this one

My first attempt at animal smuggling:

STOP HIM! HE'S GETTING AWAY!

Food choices were many...



...and varied...



...but always expensive.



And thats about it. All thats left is one more photo of a bird...



...and a promise to tell you about my "60 minutes of amphibious fun" another time.