ishot - Happy Valley Racecourse

During my last HK trip, I went to Happy Valley Racecourse on Wed evening to experience live horse racing. The excitement, thrill and actions are just unimaginable!!

From Happy Valley Stand, racegoers can have a last opportunity to look at the horses as they are led around the main Parade Ring (Paddock) to warm up for the race.

Can't see the horses from where you are?? No worries, there is a gigantic video screen in the middle of the lounge...

...and small video screens next to each table. So, there is no reason for you to miss out on the action!

Have a feeling that a horse will win? Proceed to the cashier to put your bets for the race. Minimum bet is HK$10 and in multiples of HK$10. Types of bet include: 1) Win : pick a single horse to finish in the first place 2) Place : pick a single horse to finish in the top three places 3) Quinella : pick two horses to finish in the top two places, in either order 4) ...etc (Refer to the betting guide that is available for free)

Betting ticket

In the middle of the racecourse, an enormous video screen displays the races in progress, as well as all racing forms, manners of betting, and other relevant details.

and the race begins!!

ishot - Views from my seat (aircraft)

ok, I have decided to start a ishot series to "showcase" the photos that I took... =) hahaha...

Views from airplane within 15mins from take off
(on route from Singapore to Hong Kong)


Beautiful sky! at...

3.31pm

5.01pm

6.25pm

Terracotta Warriors. Anyone?

Advanced notice! I'm intending to check out this exhibition in August... Anyone?? Interested party should own an iPhone (since I don't have one...), hahaha... Why? Read on.

Terracotta Warriors: The First Emperor and His Legacy
24 Jun 2011 - 16 Oct 2011
Special Exhibitions Gallery, ACM Empress Place
Price: SGD 8.00

It is the first time the statues are being showcased in Singapore and in Southeast Asia. Made of low-fired clay, the statues brought over from Xian, China include a general, two archers, infantrymen, a cavalry officer, a charioteer, a strongman and a horse.

Terracotta Warriors is also complemented by Life After Death, an adjacent exhibition by Singaporean artist Justin Lee featuring his familiar pop art-rendered versions of the warriors previously seen at the National Museum Of Singapore.

With the help of vision-based augmented reality, interactive storytelling and iPhone, the terracotta soldiers will scowl at you, shoot and reload crossbows, crawl out of a tunnel and let you give them rabbit ears for a happy snap. This free app, which can be downloaded from the Apple app store, uses the iPhone’s camera to focus on a marker, after which a virtual Terracotta Warrior will appear on your screen.

For a review of the exhibition, click here.

Artscience Museum. Anyone?

Intending to check out the current exhibitions on show at ArtScience Museum before end of July. An admission ticket (SGD30) lets you view all the exhibitions on show... This should be a whole day event cos the 3 exhibitions are really interesting! and I believe spending 2 hours per exhibition won't be enough... hahaha... Anyone??

SHIPWRECKED: Tang Treasures and Monsoon Winds
Till 31 July 2011
Shipwrecked: Tang Treasures and Moonsoon Winds (Shipwrecked) is a special exhibition showcasing one of the oldest and most important marine archaeological finds of the late 20th century.

Shipwrecked is a priceless find that tells a dynamic tale of the existence of a Maritime Silk Route between China and West Asia centuries ago. It features an astonishing cargo of some 60,000 objects carried from China by a ninth-century Arab dhow. Amongst the artefacts are a large number of mass-produced ceramics, as well as exceptional items such as the earliest complete examples of Chinese blue-and-white dishes and intricate items of finely worked gold.

Until its discovery near Indonesia’s Belitung Island in 1998, the cargo had lain undisturbed on the ocean floor for more than 1,000 years. With this exhibition, Singaporeans and visitors now have a wonderful opportunity to view and appreciate this tremendous collection.

Above photos taken from Yesterday.sg. Check out the full article here.

Dalí: Mind of a Genius – The Exhibition
Till 30 October
Immerse yourself in the surreal mind of Salvador Dali through a fascinating collection of over 250 of the artist's works. This is the first time that such a large number of works have been assembled in one place, and includes sculptures, lithographs, furniture and Daum glass sculptures. Even a seemingly convoluted mind such as Dali's shows some form of compartmentalisation, and the exhibition is thus divided into three themed areas - 'Femininity and Sensuality'; 'Religion and Mythology'; and 'Dreams and Fantasy'.

Check out these websites for more details, click here and here.

Van Gogh Alive - The Exhibition
Till 6 November
Vincent Van Gogh is one of the greatest Post-Impressionist artists whose artworks influenced the art scene till today.

Van Gogh Alive – the Exhibition will allow visitors to explore the work and life experiences of Van Gogh through an artistically choreographed sequence of sights and sounds. Masterpieces of Van Gogh will be projected onto walls, columns, roofs and floors, accompanied by a beautiful musical score and educational text. The numerous columns, islands and spaces erected along the aisles also serve as additional surface area for the projection of the works, as well as giving the projected art pieces more depth and dimension. Visitors will come to understand the techniques and colors used by Van Gogh in a scale never seen before.

Into the Woods

Hey folks, inviting you all to check out this production with me. It's by dream academy and many of our local experienced talents are inside. You'd recognize many of them:

Starring Selena Tan, Adrian Pang, Sebastian Tan, Emma Yong, Denise Tan, George Chan, Lim Kay Siu, RJ Rosales and Robin Goh, together with Ria Jones (London West End: Chess, Cats, Les Miserables; Singapore: A Twist of Fate) and Sheila Francisco (London West End: South Pacific; Singapore: The Full Monty).

What first attracted me was how all the characters in the brochure, Cinderella, Jack (and the beanstalk), Rapunzel, Red Hiding Hood, etc., had a darker and twisted look. Apparently, the story weaves all of them together in a search for happy ever after and in the end, we wonder if there is such a thing in the first place.

I like how familiar or actual pieces are given a new lease of life through story-telling. Be it in National Treasure (with Nicholas Cage) or Da Vinci Code. So we will see further character development in people we have grown to know so well since our childhood.

There are only 13 shows starting from 29 July. Prices are: $118, $108, $88, $68, $58 & $48 (Excluding $3 SISTIC fee). 15% discount with various cards and memberships but may be limited to higher end categories only.

For more details, either visit:
http://www.dreamacademy.com.sg/production-into-the-woods.htm

Or to go into extreme spoiler mode (with details of each Act), visit:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_Woods

I'm definitely going for this and am rather excited actually. So spreading the news to you!

In fact, i think that there are a lot of interesting productions lately, such as I love you, you’re perfect, now change and Dick lee’s beauty kings. Think i wanna slowly build up my experience and refine my taste in arts so that in future art festivals, i would be able to close in to what i know are good works. But then again, sometimes theatre is not just trying to be arty farty but just be damn fun! Like in Cinderellah and Full Monty were very different from Emily of Emerald Hill.

And i wanna stop relying on reviews which only come up after the first show (duh) and by then, the good tickets are gone. So it is only by good faith, pure support or just plain sincere interest that people go for it without the reviews.

So on top of The Lion King in July (We have yet to come up with the date...), i'll be going for this too! How bout you?

p/s club med is back on the menu as some "don't mind". well, i can't go to japan for sure even though cheap tickets, etc. due to work and school (this year is really damn chui and dog is supposed to be really lucky this year but this topic is for another day). i'm even toying with the idea of club med + bangkok for a few days to shop. Club med deffo need other people but bangkok can be a solo trip. Anyway, i just let you all know in case we have same wish but never communicate and becomes a regret.