Singapore National Stadium

I went on a couple of walks this week and last hoping to get good photos and they were all terrible. So yesterday I did it again and I'm not too impressed but I have a few that I can share. Sometimes photography is more frustrating than fun! Ugh.

Here is the new Singapore National Stadium. There were guys on the roof doing some maintenance. 

I hope they are careful! 

The lines are cool. This is standing under the first part of the dome, almost to the seating area. No  games today, maintenance and maybe some audio testing? Loud music on and off but no one inside the arena that I could see.

Last weekend we won tickets to a football game, Singapore Selection vs. Juventus Football Club. I didn't even realize we entered a contest! I got a phone call that we were winners, automatically entered to win by purchasing Gilette products from RedMart. We had never seen a football game before and we wanted to check out the new stadium so we went and had a great time! I really enjoyed it but it was sort of sad to see Singapore lose 0-5. Wow, what a beating. It was one of those pre-season games that doesn't count and is supposed to be a friendly game.

We won pretty good seats and there was a good turn out for the game. I was afraid I would sweat thru my clothes sitting in the stadium for so long but it was covered and it was sort of cool and nice. Pleasantly surprised!

Game selfie!

I didn't bring my Nikon to the game. I thought about it but I didn't really know what to expect. We planned on going to check it out, not knowing if it would be fun or not. Ended up having a great time. The three photos above were taken with my iphone. Went back yesterday to get some more shots for the blog.

I took this shot standing on the level 3 outdoor balcony of the stadium looking down at the beach volleyball court and the river. Great view! The Marina Bay Sands and the Singapore Flyer is in the background. The two giant building complexes that are more white with orange tile roofs are condos. This is part of our weekend long run course. We go from our place to here and back all along park connectors with a bit of sidewalks by the road but not much. I think I'll show more of our running course on the next blog. Might be cool to document it for the future. I'm still amazed I can do it at all :)

Can't go too far in Singapore without seeing a mall! This is a great mall at the Sports Hub with a giant indoor rock climbing wall, grocery store and loads of clothing stores.

Singapore Indoor Stadium is in the Sports Hub also. The Singapore Slingers (basketball) play there, also netball teams and concerts.

The view of the Sports Hub from the other side of the river, near the condos. The pointy structure by the flags is a pedestrian bridge linking the residents easily to the Sports Hub, mall and train. In Singapore it is not uncommon to have a grocery store or two inside the malls. 

Better shot of the bridge.

And just opposite the bridge are the condos. A lot of families and dog owners live here. Plenty of space to play, ride bikes, walk dogs, etc. 

That's it for today. Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Happy Friday!!!

Singapore HDBs

For the month of August the HDBs display Singaporean flags around their property as part of National Day celebrations. HDB stands for Housing and Development Board. The majority of residential housing developments in Singapore is publicly governed and developed. In 2013, 81% of residents live in HDBs and 90% of residents own their apartments. They are self contained estates that may include markets, hawker centers, clinics and recreational facilities. I went around and took some photos. Here are my favorites. 

These HDBs are giant estates covering a large area. I spent the day walking around, taking trains and buses jumping off when I saw pretty flag displays. I've kept notes since last year of where to go and luckily they all had great displays again this year. The Tiong Bahru Orchid is just a few train stops away from home and its a really pretty HDB estate.

Also at Tiong Bahru Orchid. A little breeze to get the flags moving made a good shot. Tree lined street with a bus stop close by, seems like a nice place to be.

Closer shot of the front doors and balconies decorated with the flags. This was at The Beo Crescent HDB complex in Bukit Merah, not far from Tiong Bahru. Love all the colors and the mix of items on the balcony, plants, bikes, clothes and flags. As the bus I was riding pulled up to the bus stop I spotted all the flags and decided to jump off for photos. Glad I did but then I sort of got lost. Again. I'm always lost...

Some HDBs are skyscrapers and some are lower rise buildings. Hard to see the flags from the sidewalk in this shot, four rows going up the middle.

If you click on the photo maybe you'll see a bigger version, the writing on the fence is this years theme for National Day, "One People, One Nation, One Singapore".

Slightly closer...

A courtyard view looking up to the apartments. The first floor of this building has a few businesses. I like how the walkway to the apartments are open air to get a breeze but still covered to keep you dry when its raining. I didn't catch the names of all of the HDBs I photographed, wish I had.

This is Tanjong Pagar Plaza. I walk here a few times a week to buy my groceries at Fair Price, very close to home. Besides a grocery store, they have a fruit market and cooked food market close by as well as banks, clinics, restaurants and other shopping. I like the hardware stores here. When I have some odd item Geoff wants me to buy I always start here and show them a photo of what I need. They usually have it or know where I can get it, drain cleaner, odd sized batteries, light bulbs, etc. No need for Home Depot :)

Closer view of Tanjong Pagar Plaza balconies.

Another view of Tanjong Pagar Plaza.

This is Pinnacle at Duxton in the background. The bridge linking the towers at the top is open to the public and for $5.00 you can go up and walk around. I haven't been but I've heard its a great view of the city. The three story shophouses lining the street are nice. They are all different businesses, cafes, etc. Some shophouses are used primarily as residences. I just read that one of the first apartments at Pinnacle is up for resale, 90 square meters, may go for as much as S$1 million. Wowser! There are all sorts of rules with HDB sales and resales. Singaporeans have to wait a few years after purchasing a new apartment before they are allowed to sell and I think there are rules for leasing their apartments as well. Quite different that the US. 

A second view of Pinnacle at Duxton.

Happy Friday!!!

Happy 49th Birthday Singapore!

     Singapore celebrates National Day Saturday, August 9th. This year, like last year, I will be celebrating at home watching the live televised festivities. This has become our thing. Every year we watch at home and  run out to the balcony when we hear the jets coming to try to catch a glimpse of them flying past our building. They are sooo loud and soooo fast it isn't easy! Here are some photos of Singapore preparing for National Day. I took these the same day as I did the firework photo shoot during the rehearsal.

This is the floating stadium at Marina Bay. The stage will have performances by several local schools, music schools, National Cadet Corps, defence displays, local television personalities and community organizations. Singaporeans or PRs (those who have permanent residence status) can apply for tickets to the parade and performance. If your application was successful for the 2013 parade you would be ineligible for the 2014. Tickets are not allowed to be sold.

Those aren't dust spots, they are the Singapore Armed Forces parachute team! I used a Sigma 18-250 zoom lens and I am guessing I'd need a much bigger lens to really capture them, maybe a 150-500 zoom, what a monster that would be to carry around. The parachuters are a neat part of the National Day parade so I thought I'd include the photo even though they are pretty hard to see.

The Singapore Air Force pulling the flag. It's backwards for my shot but facing the correct way for the audience at the floating platform. 

Here are those fast loud jets. This is the only shot I got of them, by the time I was ready to hit the shutter release again they were gone. Glad I'm happy with this shot!

Rainbow smoke bombs? I don't know...I don't remember this from last year. The other people I was with wasn't sure either, had a good laugh though. Guess we will have to wait and see it on t.v. 

These flags were up at a reflecting pool at a park. I'm not sure if they are up all year or not since I've never been to this park before. Guess I'll have to come by in September and see if they are still up! There is an art cafe next door. You can take art classes and have a coffee/tea/cake and hang out. Sounds like fun! Might have to try that sometime. I think they even give art classes.

Flags are up all over town, we are ready!

The cresent moon represents a young nation and the five stars stand for democracy, peace, progress, justice and equality.

Happy Friday!!!