Places: DragonFire Singapore: The free app featuring traditional wood firing in one of Singapore's dragon kilns.

Dear friends, please check out my review on a free app that is available for download at iTunes store: Places: DragonFire Singapore: The free app featuring traditional wood firing in one of Singapore's dragon kilns.

Places: OH! Open House, Joo Chat (2015)

No Man's Land. Beside 136 Tembeling Road.

Three weekends of art walkabout from 14 Mar 2015 - 29 Mar 2015 will prove to give any art enthusiast the motivation to walk on his/ her foot for a least two hours about the Joo Chiat neighbourhood.



You can read about highlights of my experiences at one of the tours here: Places: OH! Open House, Joo Chat (2015).

Read: Halevy's The Infinite Emotions of Coffee

Title: The Infinite Emotions of Coffee
Author: Alon Y. Halevy
Publisher: Macchiatone Communications (USA, 2011)

Out of interest to learn more about the drink that we know commonly as coffee, I picked up a copy of Halevy's book, The Infinite Emotions of Coffee.

This book discusses about the origins of coffee. It also takes readers to a reading adventure of how coffee has evolved over time at various parts of the world. While reading this book, I realized I have missed a number of opportunities to drink from some of the world-renowned coffee-houses in various parts of Europe. This probably suggests that I would have to make another trip to these parts of Europe in the future to drink the coffee from these famous coffee-houses. While I was in Italy for holiday a few years ago, I had been offered espresso drinks every single morning and I did not realize how good coffee in Italy could be. Now I know.

In the meantime, if you are interested to visit Halevy's favourite cafes at different parts of the world, check out Alon's list of Favourite Cafes here: http://www.macchiatone.com/alon-s-favorite-cafes

A copy of this book is available locally from Bettr Barista's online shop.

Read: Philatelic Rambling in Singapore Money

Title: Philatelic Rambling in Singapore Money: From 1953 Queen $1 Note to 2013 Merlion $1 Coin
Authors: Tan Wee Kiat and Lim Ah Moi, Pearly
ISBN: 978-981-09-2288-7
Design and Production: Print and Print Pte Ltd
Year of publication: 2015

Do you have an interest in currency notes and coins that are issued for use in Singapore? In this latest book written by the two authors, Tan Wee Kiat and Lim Ah Moi, readers can learn more about Singapore's history and heritage through relatively affordable philatelic materials such as currency notes and coins.

Many thanks to the kind generosity of Dr Tan Wee Kiat, I received a gift of his latest book at an informal book launch in Jan 2015. The book is an accessible read that I read it from cover to cover within a week after receiving the book. I find it very interesting to get a glimpse of how the design of Singapore's currency has evolved over the years.

While reading this book, I was particularly intrigued by the mention of the 1967 Interchangeability Agreement. Under this agreement, the three separate currencies namely the Malaysian ringgit, Brunei Dollar and Singapore Dollar were kept equal in value. In 1973, Malaysia withdrew from the agreement. Singapore and Brunei continued to keep the currencies interchangeable. No wonder as a child, I recalled my mother telling me that one Brunei dollar is equivalent to one Singapore dollar. I could appreciate why after reading this book.

This book could be found at major bookstores. Enjoy a good read to support your hobby of collecting currencies and coins.

Celebrations 2015: Homecoming

You are cordially invited to support us for this concert:


CELEBRATIONS 2015: HOMECOMING NUS
Symphony Orchestra conducted by Lim Soon Lee
Sat 21 Mar | 8 p.m. | UCC Hall
Tickets at $19 and $16 from SISTIC (Excludes SISTIC fee).

Programme:
VERDI's La Forza Del Destino Overture,
CHEN's Saving Theseus, Ariadnes Love (performed by Lim Chun, viola)
GERSHWIN's Rhapsody in Blue (performed by Soh Ser Yee, piano),
LEONG's Blessing the Seas Overture,BIZET's Carmen Fantasy (performed by Alan Choo, violin), TCHAIKOVSKY's 1812 Overture.

Under the skillful baton of Maestro Lim Soon Lee, NUS Symphony Orchestra will perform an exciting programme of concertos in honor of the 110th anniversary of National University of Singapore. The concert, which features NUS alumni from different years of graduation, celebrates the role that NUS has played in nurturing young musicians and classical music fans through the decades.

For more information, please visit:
http://www.nusartsfestival.com
http://www.sistic.com.sg/events/celeb0315
https://www.facebook.com/events/306444706211859

Read: Ken Chee's Value Investing for Beginners

Title: Value Investing for Beginners: How to build a Multi-Million Net Worth as Simple as ABC
Author: Ken Chee
Publisher: 8 Media Pte Ltd
Designed and Printed by: Worx Printing and Packaging Pte Ltd
ISBN: 978-981-09-3982-3

This book is indeed for the beginner because the concepts of value-investing were explained in a fairly easy to understand fashion. It was written with new retail investors in mind.

As written on the book's back-cover, the book discusses the following:
- Why one needs to start investing?
- The universal theory for investment
- How to unearth and invest in good business that will generate consistent and sustainable returns?
- The 3-R process in evaluating stocks.
- The difference between valuation versus the price of a stock.
- Ways to proceed with one's investing journey towards financial freedom.

When I laid my hands on this book, I read it from cover-to-cover while I was commuting on the public transport, and I gladly completed a good read of it within two consecutive days.

Long-time value-investors may find this book an easy book to read during bed-time so as to revise the concepts of value-investing. Just be mindful that seasoned value-investors may not learn anything particularly new from this book. Then again, I believe in the power of repetition. What is useful is still worth reading over and over again, even though there is nothing particularly new.

To get yourself a copy of this book, you could visit: http://www.millionaireinvestor.com/store/

Places: Celebrate Monuments! At Sri Thendayuthapani Temple

The festive period is a good time to catch up on writing articles. Here is an article on my recent visit to the Sri Thendayuthapani Temple on 11 Jan 2015:

Places: Celebrate Monuments! At Sri Thendayuthapani Temple

Places: My second time onboard: Secrets of the Red Lantern

Looking for a way to spend a Friday evening in Singapore learning about the secrets of Chinatown's past? If you are 18 years old and above, have an open-mind and are curious about the history of the darker side of Chinatown, the following post may let you decide to go for one of the Secrets of the Red Lantern tour!
Places: My second time onboard: Secrets of the Red Lantern

Places: An interesting tour: Cultured Leopard, Rising Tige...

In Jan 2015, I went for a tour by one of my favourite tour providers in Singapore and have had an interesting time learning about and exploring Haw Par Villa with the rest of the tour group. Here's a post that is overdue: Places: An interesting tour: Cultured Leopard, Rising Tiger: Finding Your Tao at Haw Par Villa.

Places: Ju Ming Taichi Series, Monumental Outdoor Exhibition

Ju Ming's Taichi Series - Preparation for Underarm strike,1985. Bronze.

Ju Ming Taichi Series, Monumental Outdoor Exhibition 

Singapore Botanic Gardens, Bukit Timah Core 

17 Jan 2015 -16 Apr 2015 

Free admission 



Recently, I have made a special trip to the Singapore Botanic Gardens so as to catch an outdoor art exhibition. Please read about my adventures here: Places: Ju Ming Taichi Series, Monumental Outdoor Exhibition.

d'Bassists official webhome: BASSically will be performing in Miniatures 2015: ...

BASSically performing in Miniatures 2014.

Dear friends, you are invited to support our local double bass ensemble, BASSically. Together with other chamber music groups, BASSically will be performing in Miniatures 2015 on 14 Jan 2015 (Wed), 8 p.m. Please refer to this URL for more information: d'Bassists official webhome: BASSically will be performing in Miniatures 2015


Miniatures 2015: It's a Small World by NUS Symphony Orchestra 
14 Jan 2015 (Wed)
8 p.m. 
University Cultural Centre, Theatre 
50 Kent Ridge Crescent, 
National University of Singapore 
Singapore 119279 

Free admission
Tickets will be available at the door (on a first-come-first-served basis) one hour before showtime. The audience capacity for UCC Theatre is 400.

Places: Signature Art Prize 2014

No time to browse all the contemporary artworks by artists from the Asia-Pacific region? No worry.
The Asia Pacific Breweries Foundation Signature Art Prize 2014 will treat you to the artworks by 15 selected finalists chosen from a total of 105 nominated artworks. The exhibition of the 15 selected artworks is now being held at the Singapore Art Museum. Grab your chance to see some of the most outstanding contemporary artwork from the Asia-Pacific region that were created in the last three years.
What will your favourite artwork from this exhibition be?
If you are curious what are my favourite picks from the exhibition, please visit: Places: Signature Art Prize 2014.

Places: Recommended: Leonardo da Vinci's Earlier Mona Lisa...

There is an exhibition that is now being held in Singapore that only exhibits one piece of art. Yet, the piece of art is one that sets me marvelling for more. Read more about my visit to this exhibition here: Places: Recommended: Leonardo da Vinci's Earlier Mona Lisa, the exhibition. Leonardo da Vinci's Earlier Mona Lisa 16 Dec 2014 - 11 Feb 2015 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. The Art House at the Old Parliament 1 Old Parliament Lane Singapore 179429

Places: A visit to ArtScience Museum: Da Vinci: Shaping the Future

The legacies of Leonardo da Vinci have always fascinated me. Therefore, when I heard that there is an exhibition at the ArtScience Museum that focuses on da Vinci's largest notebook, Codex Atlanticus, I simply have to find time out to make a visit. Here goes my report on my first visit to this exhibition:

Places: A visit to ArtScience Museum: Da Vinci: Shaping the Future.

Da Vinci's designs for flying machines.

In this section, visitors can see Da Vinci's design for a parachute.