Singapore Wet Markets

In Singapore we have places called "wet markets". It is sort of similar to a farmers market except Singapore's wet markets are in open air buildings and they sell more than just produce. You can buy almost anything at a wet market. Fruits, veggies, fresh herbs, poultry, meat and seafood, tofu, eggs, freshly made noodles, flip flops, mops and all sorts of household items. They are called wet markets because the ice used to keep the fish chilled while out on display will melt keeping the floors wet. There are wet markets in most neighbourhoods and some (or maybe all of them) have a second or third level with cooked food stalls. They are open everyday, Mondays are probably the slowest day with the fewest number of stalls open, not much fresh fish or pork on Monday. The fresh food stalls open early, some as early as 6 am and close around lunch time, noon - 2pm ish. The cooked food stalls and housewares shops will stay open later.

Tekka Centre Little India

Tekka Centre is a two story wet market and cooked food market with tons of shopping on the second floor. They have ladies Sari's, children's clothes, men's clothes, tailors, etc.

If you buy a fruit like jack fruit or pineapple, if you like, they will cut it up for you so you don't have to bother with it at home.

Spice shop. Good place to get premixed curry and garam masala powders.

Fresh veggies. See the colander, normally you grab one and put what you want to buy into the colander and then give that to the shopkeeper. She will then add it up and bag it up. 

Fresh fish. You can buy them whole or they will prepare as you like, fillets, steaks, skin removed, etc.

I had not noticed the egg stalls before.

These are tiny dried anchovies and shrimps. Sometimes its OK to have allergies and a stuffy nose :)

Larger dried and salted fish.

Dried squid.

Fresh noodles, wonton wrappers and bean curd skins.

Some of the cooked food stalls at Tekka Centre.

Second floor of Tekka Centre. Need a new outfit?

Mops, mats, sponges....

Tiong Bahru Market

Every time I come here I get lost. It isn't even that far from the train but it is a sure thing for me, I will be lost. This day was no exception.

I believe this stall is selling offerings. Not sure but it looks like it. My Singlish isn't sharp enough to pick up what the shopkeeper was saying...

Whole coffee beans to be freshly ground. Smells great in this stall! 

Cooked food stalls on the second floor. I was here at lunch time and this is a popular place to go.

I have eaten at this stall, Tiong Bahru Lee Hong Kee Cantonese Roasted. Super delicious roasted pork and rice. I always look for a long line and just jump in it. Must be good to have a long line when there are so many options.

I wouldn't get in this line no matter how long it is. Pig Organ Soup. Not for me. I'll have some Chwee Kueh, Laksa, Char Kway Teow, Chicken Porridge, Popiah, Sliced Fish Soup, La Mian anything, the list goes on.

I like the potted plants and fresh cut flowers at Tiong Bahru. 

Nice view of downtown from the third floor car park.

Not so many pictures of the fresh meat, pork, fish or poultry. I have to say I have only heard good things about it. Very fresh, clean, sometimes the best meat you can find in Singapore. It doesn't photograph well, but I am sure that is just because I am the photographer. On a hot humid day the last thing I want to do is smell a dozen stalls of raw, very freshly butchered anything. There are refrigerated cases and it is all good stuff but the "fresh meat smell" is a bit much for me. I stick with the produce :)

Happy Friday!!!

A walk around Marina Bay

I have been training for a half marathon, my first ever, for the past few weeks. I was doing pretty good until last week anyway... I pulled a muscle in my leg and I have been limping around since it happened. I am not able to run at all and walking is even painful after a short time so I have been taking it easy and hoping it heals quickly. Since I have been resting my legs I thought I would share a few pictures I have taken recently at the Marina Bay Sands which is close to home.

There are gondolas inside the mall. 

The clouds were so pretty, the skyline is great and I like the reflection in the pond.

The lotus pond is surrounding the Art Science Museum. In the background you can see the Double Helix pedestrian bridge and the Singapore Flyer (giant ferris wheel). The flower is there temporarily as an art installation.

Singapore is the first stop in Asia for the Love and Peace installation. There is one in New York and several in Europe. You can check it out at lovepeaceflower.com 

That is the Marina Bay Sands in the background. The top of the building (the part that looks like a boat) has a skypark, infinity pool and a restaurant. The mall and casino take up the first few floors and the towers are hotel rooms.

Interesting point of view. Love the sky! It started raining seconds after I took this picture. It didn't look like rain was so close. The lotus shaped building is part of the Art Science Museum. 

Happy Friday!

Hungry Ghost

Hungry Ghost Festival is celebrated in the 7th lunar month by the Chinese Community to pay respects to the dead. It is believed in this time, the "gates of the spirit world" are closest to the physical world and the spirits of the dead are free to roam the earth. People purchase paper products, such as hell money, paper clothes, paper versions of most material goods and burn these items as offerings to the spirits. It is a way for people to respect, honor and look after their ancestors to make sure they have a good afterlife. Large bins for burning have been set up around the island for this use. You will also see small altars with food such as oranges, cakes sometimes even whole roasted pigs, laid out on tables with incense burning. These are also offerings for the spirits. They are called Hungry Ghosts because they are unable to enjoy food in the spirit world and can only enjoy the smell of smoke and the aroma of food. Here are my photos of Hungry Ghost festivities around town. 

Burning hell money for spirits. See the large stack of papers on the left, that is the hell money. 

Here is an alter at the Chinatown food center with a few large paper mache sticks burning.

Another offering in Chinatown. Most offerings will consist of oranges, food and drinks, flowers and incense or joss sticks.

These giant candles burn really fast. There was no one there watching them but I happened to walk pasted them again about 20 minutes after I took this picture and they were about halfway gone.

This offering has some takeout food with the chopsticks ready to go. That is a common sight during this festival.

Nam's Supplies is located in Chinatown on Smith St. Selling all items needed, hell money, paper shoes, bags, toys, etc. The shopkeepers were inside so I asked their permission to take photos. They were very kind! The store is open year round as there are a few other days throughout the year when people burn things for their deceased loved ones, mainly holidays and special occasions.

Nice big stack of fake money ready to burn for deceased loved ones.

Shoes ready to be burned as gifts for the spirits.

Paper branded bags.

I walked through the Chinatown market again today and boy did I get an eyeful! There was a huge, presumably, Hungry Ghost celebration going on. There was a band of 5 or 6 people, drums, trumpet, symbols, etc all dressed in yellow gowns singing and playing music. There were tons of offerings with a table that had about 8 giant whole roasted pigs. I was asked to not take pictures so unfortunately you will not be able to see it here. It was really interesting! This is what I really like about living in another country. So much to see and learn.

Kobenhavn!

Copenhagen was the last stop on our vacation. We loved this city! What a nice break from Singapore's heat and humidity. Very different from Germany, but just as fun to explore. Here are a few photos of our time in this great city.

It was a short 15 minute walk (about 1 km) to the city center from our hotel. This is a much smaller city compared to Munich. Still plenty of shopping and cafes for a nice day out. 

I like how the windows open out and I like that the buildings are a mix of plain brick and colorful facades.

Lots of bicycles here, I had to be very careful when walking around not to get run over by one. They go super fast through the city. Some had big carts on the front of them with kids or girlfriends riding in the cart. 

Botanic Gardens Copenhagen. Nice reflection in the pond.

Went for a short stroll through the Botanic Gardens. Nice quiet day and it was really nice to get away from the crowds of tourists that were out and about. 

The Round Tower. This is one of the sights to be seen. It was originally built in the 17th century as an astronomical observatory.

A street in the city center. I love the bikes lined up and the open windows on the pretty brick building.

Nyhavn. Literally means "new harbour". Lots of great restaurants, cafes and hotels here. I tried pickled herring, pretty good! Geoff had an open faced sandwich that is pretty popular here. Mayonnaise is also very popular, unfortunately I am not a fan of it.

It was crowded, this was the place to be in Copenhagen. Some of the restaurants have a small bar outside so you can buy a beer in a plastic cup and sit by the boats for a quick break. 

I loved the steeples / spires in the city. They all had such great detail. 

I was really looking forward to seeing The Little Mermaid! Couldn't wait to get there. We had to take a taxi because our feet were wearing out and it was sort of far but it was worth it. It was so hard to get a good picture and I am so disappointed in this picture. I wanted to get a better angle so I had a nicer background, I had big plans for her. I have plenty of pictures with the tops of other peoples heads in them...

This is the crowd I had to fight to get a picture of the mermaid. I was standing on the rocks trying not to fall or knock anyone over on my tiptoes! 

Kastellet is one of the best preserved star fortresses in Northern Europe, according to wikipedia :) I liked the flag and I had to wait a bit for the flag to unfurl just right to get this picture. Now I wished I had composed the photo better! The military still uses some of the space, mostly it is used as a park.

This gorgeous windmill was at Kastellet.

We went to the castle to see the changing of the guards but I was too tired to stand around and wait for them. They are supposed to march through town from one castle to another. So we left and went to a cafe for lunch and they marched right past our table. I got up and ran over to get their picture. They had to wait for a red light at this intersection so I got lucky!

Happy Friday!!! Have a great weekend!!!