#celinewandersandwonders

[atotaltaitaitale]

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Wednesday Wanderings and Wonderings

Contrast. Singapore

It’s a perpetual contrast between the old and the new, the well kept and the slightly run down

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[atotaltaitaitale]

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Wednesday Wanderings and Wonderings.

Haji lane on the side of the Sultan mosque.

I was taking Black & White photos (you can set your iPhone to this setting) for a photos project but somehow I wanted to see what it would look in color, because this street is usually very colorful (you can kind of see it on the background of the photo) and that’s when I noticed the yellow… almost just black white and yellow.

26012022

[atotaltaitaitale]

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Wednesday Wanderings and Wonderings.

Still life… Singapore style.

I will never be able to see a red plastic chair and not think of Singapore.

They are everywhere. Usually in a stack in the corner, never chained, because well Singapore. You take one, you seat and then you stack it back up when you are done.

The Little Red Chair on the Little Red Dot… forever linked in my mind.

[atotaltaitaitale]

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Wandering around new neighborhoods.

Sometimes rough and not perfect is better

Back story: After taking this picture, we moved the trash bins for better esthetics but it was lacking… the wanderer and the authenticity. Not that you would have known better without the bins in the picture but this is the real Singapore, blue bins in every picture 🤷‍♀️

Authentic is better than perfect.

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[atotaltaitaitale]

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The official name is D’Leedon.

I call it Club Med…

Well, with 2 large swimming pools, 4 children and relaxation pools, 2 large jacuzzi, 2 clubhouses as well as indoor and outdoor fitness facilities. Then 4 tennis court, 1 basketball court, bbq pits and that’s not counting 2 screening rooms, 2 golf simulator rooms, 2 billard rooms, 2 game rooms, 2 karaoke rooms, 1 piano room. add that 2 party houses, 2 functions rooms and several BBQ pits. We even have a maze 😂

With 1715 units it’s one of the largest condominium in Singapore (only outshined at the end of 2019 by a development in Tampines which will have 2,203 apartments, when completed) however the 7 towers in D’Leedon occupy less than 30% of the site, with over 70% given to landscaping & facilities.

Finished in late 2014, the Seven skyscrapers with flower-shaped plans are dotted across this residential complex in Singapore, which was completed by Pritzker Architecture Prize recipient Dame Zaha Hadid*

I was walking home around sunset a couple days ago and I decided to go to the HDB nearby to grab some pictures from a high point of the place I have called home for 5+ years (longest I ever lived somewhere). Wasn’t disappointed with change of light and the outcome.

Sometimes the Wanderings and Wonderings are just under your nose.

* Zaha Hadid was a predominant architect in Beijing landscape and I photographed a few of her buildings

[atotaltaitaitale]

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Wednesday Wanderings and Wonderings.

This is Holland Village

There are no windmills (but quite a few cranes!)

It wasn’t named because of the country (well actually Holland is a geographical region of the country The Netherlands which has 12 regions in total with 2 “Hollands”; the North Holland & the South Holland —The things you learn just by reading this little blog 😂)

It was named after Hugh Holland who was an architect and amateur actor and was an early resident of the area.

We are 1 MRT stop away from HV or about 15 mn walk. “The neighborhood is a popular shopping and dining destination for younger Singaporeans and expatriates. […] NB Holland Road is known as Hue Hng in Hokkien which means “behind the flower garden” the flower garden being the Botanic Gardens”

I had an hour wait between appointments, I could have gone for a mani/pedi at the shopping center, instead I opted for HDB climb to see the area from above ;-)

NB: Thinking of petitioning for my neighborhood being renamed “Suiter Hood”. Well if Holland could I don’t see with I couldn’t 🙄

[atotaltaitaitale]

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Wednesday Wanderings and Wonderings.

One of my newly arrived friend asked me to take her on a little adventure in Singapore. She knows I love wandering around HDB so she suggested we did that.

I took her to the top of the 40-story newly built HDB then we went to the soon to be torn down Queenstown HBD & Tanglin Halt.

We crossed the green corridor and ended up in Wessex Estate. It’s full of Black and White bungalows (and is often home to artist). We finished at the Colbar which I finally found (I must have passed by a few time but it’s well tucked away)

Colbar, which is short for Colonial Bar, was first opened in 1953 by Mr Lim at Jalan Hang Jebat to serve as the unofficial canteen for members of the British Army.

[atotaltaitaitale]

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Wednesday Wanderings and Wonderings.

I went for a little walk today as I wanted to take a couple pictures from a place (ended up not liking any of them) then a move to another place to take another updated photo but it was not possible either (it was cordoned off) since I was within walking distance (well my own term walking distance not necessary other people walking distance 😉) I went to a third place and was not pleased with the situation or photo opportunity either.

You would think that with all those inconveniences I would have written this morning off but on the contrary I had lunch at a dumplings place which I never remember to go to unless I’m in the neighborhood, coffee with a view of the Marina Bay Sands hotel and a 4 kms walk around the city.

As I was heading to my MRT station I made a quick stop to take a picture of the Fountain of Wealth at Suntec City so I had a little something to share.

Suntec City was designed by Tsao & McKown Architects with emphasis on Chinese feng shui. The five buildings and the convention center are arranged so that they look like a left hand when viewed aerially. The Fountain of Wealth appears like a golden ring in the palm of the hand. As the fountain is made of bronze, it is believed that the balance of metal and water paves the way for success. Further, the specially selected Chinese name, 新达, means "new achievement"

The Fountain of Wealth is listed by the Guinness Book of Records in 1998 as the largest fountain in the world.