We're sorry, but not THAT sorry

Sign posted on the door of a prominent coffee outlet:
Once was enough. Don't ask us to apologize again.

Idyllic. . .

. . .that's what Singapore's weather has been like this month. It's been amazing! Balmy, breezy, sunny, and dry. Man, I love January!!

For all you readers who actually live here: fling your windows open wide and let that awesome, refreshing breeze in, go sit by the pool and enjoy breakfast (and lunch and dinner while you're at it), take a walk and revel in the fact that you can get farther than 10 steps before you're sweating, stare up at that big blue sky and those white puffy clouds and memorize the feeling. . . it won't last long.

Christmas on Orchard Raod

Every year for the last 25 years, Orchard Road, Singapore's designer shopping district, transforms at Christmas into a magical world of lights and 50-foot trees (well, one 50-foot tree and several others well past the 30-foot mark). It feels so Christmassy, except that instead of mittens and scarves, almost everyone is in shorts and tanktops!

Here are a few pictures. . . I hope you enjoy them =)

A Winter Wonderland--2007

Josh and Caleb in front of Tangs


An icy effect. . . but I mean that in a good way.


A Sweet Christmas--2008
Caleb admires his new basketball; Annabelle admires the lights =)

This arc is about 4 lanes wide!

This is one of about 5 displays telling the Christmas Story.
The REAL Christmas Story.

Merry Christmas to all!!

Team blogging

The last two posts were by Josh, but for some reason, Blogger attributed them to me. Not that I wouldn't be willing to take credit for them, but since they weren't mine, I figured I better set things straight.

Recent Trips (part 2): Phuket, Thailand

Thailand is a must-visit for anyone traveling in Southeast Asia... why? ... because the beaches are beautiful, the rock formations are amazing, the water is blue, the food is great (mostly), and the people are friendly. Hence, our 3rd visit to Thailand in less than 2 years. I'm opting to embed a slide-show for this post since (I think) the picture quality will be better.

Recent Trips (part 1): Hong Kong, Macau

One of the (many) beauties of living in Singapore is the fact that it's a major hub in Southeast Asia...translation: it's really easy to travel to many different countries. There's always the caveat of vacation time & funds to make the traveling possible, but teaching has opened up more time than my previous jobs, and inexpensive flights make the funding a bit more affordable.

Even though Singapore is a great place to live or visit, it's always a treat to leave Singapore and escape the heat/humidity for a little while.

In October, we visited Hong Kong...second time for me (Josh), but first time for our family. It's amazing how much you can cram into a short vacation of 3 full days. Here's a quick picture-synopsis...

who likes airplanes?

disneyland hotel

disney mtr

whoopin' it up at starbucks

elements

two international finance center

view from the peak

peak terrace

praia grande (portugese restaurant)

a-ma temple

macau tower

ruins of st. paul's

lovin' it

disneyland hollywood hotel pool (annabelle's first swim)

disneyland...duh

Busted

Did you know that drug trafficking in Singapore is a capital offense? I'd seen the signs in the airport, but figured they were probably scare-tactics to make would-be offenders think twice. Apparently not. I recently read this article in the local newspaper. That got me curious about the subject. I read an interesting analysis and then looked at these stats. It turns out that Singapore has one of the highest per-capita execution rates in the world. In case you're not able to read the articles yourself, here is a quote that helps explain the government's position on this issue:

"The basic difference in our approach springs from our traditional Asian value system which places the interests of the community over and above that of the individual. . .In criminal law legislation, our priority is the security and well being of law-abiding citizens rather than the rights of the criminal to be protected from incriminating evidence."
Singapore's Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew

Agree or disagree, you can't argue with the fact that Singapore has done an amazing job of maintaining a low crime rate.