Landspout

You have heard of hurricanes, tornados, whirlwinds and waterspouts. Have you heard of a landspout?

Singapore recently had such an incident – a landspout. According to Singapore’s National Environment Agency's Meteorological Service, the rotating column of wind was caused by the development of an intense thunderstorm under unstable atmospheric conditions.

Read all about the landspout, and watch the video Here – First Reported Landspout in Singapore.

We have witnessed several waterspouts before. Usually, they are far away, out to sea, and appeared small and faint. But it seems that they are getting nearer, and bigger. The waterspout in May this year was a big one, and near too. Click Here to read about it.

The recent landspout caused some concern. It looks terrifying in the video. Luckily, it didn’t last very long, and didn’t cause too much damage. I hope that it is a one off incident and not an indication of more to come.

Singapore has been lucky so far, when it comes to natural disasters. Apart from the occasional flood, we don’t have disasters like earthquakes, or tornados, or hurricanes. (I hope I am not tempting fate in saying that). This recent 'whirlwind', or landspout is the closest to being a natural disaster – if my memory serves me right.

Jokes

A Walk About Town

Last weekend was the F1 race in Singapore. Since I wasn’t interested in the race, nor know anything about it, I didn’t mention it. However, while I was out last weekend for a walk on the outskirts of Chinatown, and the business district, I managed to snap this photo. It was a pop up stall selling memorabilia of the F1 race, outside a shopping mall. For those who followed the race, you might know who the racers in the photo are. I am clueless.

And here are some pictures taken during the walk. There was a bit of haze, but not too bad. So, the pictures turned up quite all right.

This is the Singapore River.

And this, a river taxi. River taxis ferry passengers between the quays and the business district.

That's the business district in the back. And in the forefront, a man answering a very urgent call/message in the middle of the road.

Memes

Moth Orchids

While wandering about town on Friday, my friends and I wandered into a building. What I saw in the foyer took my breath away. The Orchids in the foyer looked divine. I had to have a feel to assure myself that they were real Orchids. I am sure whatever the shops in the building are selling are also real expensive.

Google ID the Orchids as Moth Orchids, and this is what Wikipedia said of the Orchid.

Phalaenopsis amabilis, commonly known as the moon orchid or moth orchid in India and as anggrek bulan in Indonesia, is a species of flowering plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae, native to the East Indies and Australia, and widely cultivated as a decorative houseplant. - Wikipedia

The foyer is quite long and there are beds and beds of these gorgeous Orchids.

Only Time Will Tell

I have just finished reading ‘Only Time Will Tell’ by Jeffrey Archer. It is the first book in the Clifton Chronicles. I believe there are five volumes in all.

The book is easy to read and the plot moves along at a quick, and smooth pace, with twists typical of Jeffrey Archer’s style.

Briefly, it is a tale of how a poor boy from the Bristol Backstreets rise to high society – how, along the way family secrets were reveal, and life changing decisions had to be made. Saying anymore would be revealing the story. I will not spoil it here, in case you want to read the book.

The story continues in ‘The Sins of the Father’. However, this is a standalone book too, meaning if you do not read the following book, it is all right too. But chances are, you will want to.

Haze

So, it has been a rather hazy week. On some days, there is a lingering acrid smell in the atmosphere.

I am lucky that the haze don’t bother me much. I still take my daily walk. But on days when there is that arid smell, I usually cut short the walk. There will still be some walking and jogging when the haze is light, but when it is bad, the numbers decreased significantly. Only the odd jogger or two.

The sun is hazed.

The Southern part of Singapore, in the business district is most affected.

Source

The haze comes from the fires in Indonesia’s forests. Every year, from July to October during Indonesia’s dry season, many farmers take advantage of the dry conditions to clear vegetation for palm oil plantations using the slash-and-burn method. The land area is big, and the fires quickly spin out of control, spreading into forested areas. According to the meteorological center, there are over 600 hot spots in Indonesia.

The haze from the fire spreads to the neighbouring country like Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines. In Malaysia, it was so bad that schools were forced to close. In Indonesia itself, I have seen on the newsreel, the haze is so bad, visibility is less than ten meters. Flights were cancelled due to visibility, or the lack of.

This is the situation in Indonesia.

Source

In Singapore, so far there was only one day when the Pollutants Standards Index (PSI) levels went over the unhealthy level. Looking out of my window now, I think the haze today is also at a unhealthy level.

The haze is quite disruptive. Outdoor activities are forced to cancel or moved indoors where possible. There is an increase in respiratory problems. Doctors are seeing more patients – especially the elderly and the children. Eye-drops and masks are flying off the shelves. There was a year, when it was particularly bad, all the stores ran out of masks. After that incident, the stores are now more prepared. They are assuring people that they have plenty of masks.

Unfortunately, there is not much we can do about the situation, except hope for rain, rain and more rain – or a change of wind direction. That will have to be in late October.

Affected countries complained to Indonesia and asked that they do something about the fires. But as the President himself said, it is not a simple nor easy matter. One of his ministers go so far as to say, we didn’t thank them for giving us 11 months of clean air, and yet we complain about a month of haze.

With that sort of mentality in government, we don’t really see an immediate solution to the haze problem. So, while waiting for Indonesia to do something about the fires, while the forest razed and burned, we can only grin and bear it.

Trivia

Trumpet Tree

It looks like the trumpet trees are in bloom again. The locals call it the Sakura season. This is because the trumpet tree is known for its impressive flowering display, where the entire tree is spectacularly covered in blossoms, like the Cherry blossom in Japan. These trees are along my walk route. So, it is always a joy to see them bloom. They add so much colour to the route.

The tree’s name comes from its trumpet-shaped flowers, which range in colour from pink to white. The scientific/botanical name for the trumpet tree is Tabebuia rosea, and they can grow up to 24 meter tall.

This is just the beginning of the blooms. Some of the trees haven't start blooming yet. It will be more impressive, absolutely divine, when all the trees bloom, and are at their peak.

It was a very hazy day here yesterday, so the pictures are not very clear, which is a pity.

This is a young trumpet tree. I noticed there are quite a few of them on one end of the route. It would be great when they are grown and blooming. More colours on the walk route.

While the flowers fall, they retain their colour for a couple of days, forming a beautiful carpet of flowers around the tree. They bloom twice a year, each season lasting a week to 10 days.

Mid-Autumn Festival

Today, the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the Lunar Calendar is the Mid-Autumn Festival. It is believed that the moon is the roundest, biggest and brightest, on this day of the year.

There are many stories and legends surrounding the celebration of this Festival which started some 2,000 years ago. As with any tradition, or customs that old, the origin of the festival is always murky. You will no doubt find the stories and legends preposterous. So, we will not go there.

The version I believe in is that, once upon a time in China, farmers celebrated their bountiful harvest on this day outdoors when the moon was brightest. Families gathered to feast and make merry. They also made bean paste based pastries which they called moon-cakes. They enjoy the moon-cakes and moon gazed, as they catch up with each other.

In those days, there were no electricity, so the farmers made paper lanterns and hung them up for light. They also made small paper lanterns for the children to carry around their compound, to keep them amused.

Later on, during the late Yuan Dynasty, there was unrest. The rebels communicated the date of the revolt by hiding the message in the moon-cakes. The revolt was successful, and the new emperor, declared the moon-cake festival an official annual event.

When the Chinese immigrants headed down to South-East Asia, they brought the festival with them. Unfortunately, the meaning of this custom/tradition was lost in transition. Nowadays, most people don’t even know the origin of the story behind the celebration.

These days, people celebrate the festival, by buying moon-cakes as gifts for their elders as a gesture of respect. Friends too buy each other moon-cakes as a gesture of friendship. Companies gift them to clients, and employees gift them to their superiors to foster goodwill.

The festival is now very commercialized. Businesses cash in on this occasion to churn out all sorts of flavoured moon-cake. The packaging themselves are eye-openers. Look at the picture below. The cost of these moon-cakes will also make one open his/her eyes wide.

In Singapore, the two places that celebrate this occasion in a big way is The Gardens by the Bay, and The Chinese Garden. I have never been to the celebration in the Chinese Garden. But from reports from the press, it was more like a lantern show. There was a display of lanterns of various sizes, shapes and designs, some of which were very intricate.

I was at The Gardens by the Bay last year to take in the display. The Gardens by the Bay is a lot bigger than the Chinese Garden. There were stalls selling things that are synonymous with the celebration. There was also a performance by a Chinese Orchestra.