Singapore Wonder Girls - "Nobody but you"

I was at the SAFRA AGM 2010 on Sunday 31 October 2010 at SAFRA Mt Faber. In the entertainment segment after the meeting a cute version of  the Korean Wonder Girls song "Nobody but you" was presented in Mandarin/Hokkien dialect by Singapore's Wonder Girls "BIG" - Big, Intelligent and Glamorous. Pay attention to the chorus - everybody mei you (mandarin=do not have) bak chew (Hokkien=eyes).



For those of you who likes this catchy tune, here's a pretty cools cover version done by a Vietnamese boy living in Singapore. Enjoy : )

Checking out the The Subaru Challenge at Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza

Last Sunday I decided to check out the action at The Subaru Challenge at Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza Orchard Road for the first time since it's inception nine years ago. This year it is called Subaru Impreza Challenge 2010 - The Asian Faceoff, with challengers from Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, China, Thailand, Taiwan and for the first time10 new challengers from Vietnam. The prize - Subaru Impreza WRX 2.5L Manual worth SGD 80,000!

I spoke to the guy holding up the placard "DO NOT GIVE UP". He was himself a challenger who have dropped out earlier in the day from car  No.9 and was back to give support.  It was  interesting to see camaraderie developed among the contestants. This guy too have not  been there ever before to witness the competition and yet he decided to enter it.

 Friends and family members were there to lend their support. Some camped overnight.

And the winner for this year is ........46 year old technician Aloysius Lim, who lasted 75 hours and 17 minutes.

 

 

Afterward I took a stroll down the pedestrian mall and came across a two piece band busking. It was a pleasant surprise for me to see a large group of people mostly Filipinos dancing merrily to the music. The band "D' Highlights" comprises an organist and a vocalist. They played mainly lively disco music. They were good. I couldn't resist, so me and my wife did a rock and roll. I would love to see more of this including the HDB heartland. In Shanghai and Beijing people would get together in a neighborhood park to dance freely.

A new road named Albert Winsemius Lane

A new road has been named after Dr Albert Winsemius, Singapore's Chief Economic Advisor from 1961 to 1984.So who is Albert Winsemius?

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Winsemius

Albert Winsemius (1910-1996), a Dutch economist, was Singapore's long-time economic advisor from 1961 to 1984. He led the United Nations Survey Mission to Singapore,^[1] and was to play a major role in the formulation of Singapore's national economic development strategy. In 1960, Dr Winsemius led the United Nations team to examine Singapore’s potential in industrialization. At that time, Singapore had just attained self-government and was facing high unemployment and growing population. He presented a 10-year development plan to transform Singapore from an entrepot trade port into a centre of manufacturing and industrialization.

Albert Winsemius Lane as it is called is located off Clementi Road/Sunset Lane. It is not quite a road as you would expect a road to be. It starts from the entrance to the soon to be completed Centre for Aquatic Science Research CASR Blog, squeezed between the NEA South West Regional Office and the Eastlodge Hostel. Set up by Singapore-Delft Water Alliance (SDWA) at the bank of Sungei Ulu Pandan along the the Park Connectors, the centre is set to be the hotspot for freshwater research and is the first if it's kind in Asia. It will be open to the public showcasing their projects and technologies for public education.

Credit: SDWA

SDWA is multi-national, interdisciplinary research Centre of Excellence for Water Knowledge involving PUB (Singapore), National University of Singapore and Deltares (The Netherlands), established through an initiative of the National Research Foundation in Singapore. SDWA is hosted by National University of Singapore and provides research home to scientists and engineers from all partner organizations. 

View CASR location in a larger map