Anime X Stamps @ Singapore Philatelic Museum

Celebrating 100 years of anime, an anime-themed exhibition is happening now at the Singapore Philatelic Museum.

Featuring an impressive collection of more than 700 stamps from 80 titles, spot your favorite anime characters such as Astro Boy, Doraemon and Naruto!

Also on display are rare artwork from Naruto and limited edition figurines from ONE PIECE, Dragon Ball and Mazinger Z.

Some of the earlier anime like Astro Boy, Doraemon, Heidi, Girl Of The Alps, RANMA 1/2 and Rantarou evoked some nostalgia sentiments as I grew up with these during my childhood.

If you are a fan of anime, this is an exhibition not to be missed. There is no excuse not to visit if you are a Singaporean as there is free entry.

Fuk Tak Chi Temple @ Telok Ayer Street

During my search for Nam Seng Wanton Mee, I accidentally stumbled upon this Fuk Tak Chi Temple (福德祠) along Telok Ayer Street. If you exit Telok Ayer MRT Station via Exit B, this temple is just right across the road on your left.

According to the plaque at the entrance, this temple is one of the oldest around since the 1820s. The temple, founded by the Hakka and Cantonese immigrants, served as a place of worship and a social meeting place for the two communities. The temple was closed in 1994 and has since been converted into a museum.

Inside, you can find a diorama depicting a street scene outside the temple with the early immigrants going about their daily lives. If you are wondering why there is a pier with bum boats docking along it, that is because this place used to be a coastal area. Much of Telok Ayer is built on reclaimed land.

In fact, the name Telok Ayer actually means "Water Bay".

Syonan Gallery: War And Its Legacies

After a year-long revamp, the former Ford Motor Factory along Upper Bukit Timah Road has finally reopened its doors to a closed-door opening ceremony for invited guests on 15 February 2017.

Renamed Syonan Gallery, its opening was aptly timed to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the fall of Singapore.

A highlight of the private event was a weapon presentation ceremony, where recruits from the 2nd Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment (2 SIR) received their Singapore Assault Rifle (SAR) 21.

I think there is a significant meaning for our own army to take up arms at the very site where the British put down theirs. It is a dark chapter, but one that we must always remember; we can rely on no one except ourselves to defend our land.

We have come a long way and while we treasure the peace we have now, let us not forget the atrocities of the war that our ancestors had to go through.

With a heavy heart, I visited the museum on the next day when it is opened to the public.

Jubilee Weekend Part 3: Artscience Museum

And so, we have come to the second day of the Jubilee long weekend.

I couldn't get over the fact that I didn't manage to visit the Artscience Museum the day before, henceforth, I returned to join the queue for the second consecutive day.

To be honest, I did not expect that there would be such a long queue on the first day. After all, I don't think many people would like to visit the museums which can be such a boring place. I believe that morning's ComChest Heartstrings Walk participants contributed quite a bit to the length of the queue after their event ended

I guess the onus is on myself to find out if there's any other activities happening at the same time, same area when I decided to visit a place.

Activities For The Jubilee Weekend!

Can you feel the footsteps of the Jubilee weekend approaching?

As Singapore marks 50 years of independence this year (09 August to be exact), the President has declared 07 August 2015 (Friday) a public holiday. This will make for an extended Jubilee Weekend over the 07 to 10 August period so as to enable all Singaporeans to participate in commemorating this special milestone in our nation's history.

Over the Jubilee Weekend, special programmes have been prepared for Singaporeans around the island to revisit and experience afresh the journey of Singapore's story.

Here, I have compiled some events which is taking place during this Jubilee weekend!