Singapore's Chinese Gardens

Today i went out to the Chinese Gardens out at Jurong, Singapore. The weather wasnt that great, and I really wasnt in a photography mood, hence why they arent great photos, but you'll get the drift.

Temptation - Is It Worth It?

"Buddhism teaches that a craving for things outside ourselves causes an unhappy and pointless search for security. It teaches me to stop following every impulse and to learn restraint. Obviously I lost track of what I was taught."

Apology

Something didn't sit right about his apology. But does he need to apologise to me? Heck no. I don't care. However he still came across as very arrogant... robotic...

Nevertheless, the above statement that he made was probably the most important part of it, even though his apology was so scripted and contrived...

Nnot every impulse needs to be followed. Lack of restraint inevitably leads to unhappiness, however fun the temptation was at the time.

Thanks for the lesson, Tiger. Now disappear.

Some Days Really Suck.

Some days are really tough. There are days when I feel like I am walking on eggshells, days when I am not sure what my purpose is, days when people do things which disappoint me. But right now, there are more "good" days than "bad" days so I know that on this occasion, this bad day too shall pass.

The good news is that I arrive back in Australia in 7 days to see the family and see the IMOM. Then the IMOM and I are heading down to Tasmania, where we will spend 3 days exploring the wilderness, staying one night in a log cabin, and enjoying the freedom.

Following that, I have a weekend coming up where I will be heading up to the Perhentian Islands in north Malaysia (now that its not monsoon season) and then following that, the IMOM and I have a week in Bali, Indonesia over Easter.

Ha! And you all thought I was stopping the travel!

Who was I kidding?

Random Acts of Love

Thanks for the kind words, guys. They lifted me up, as did a big cheer on from the International Man of Mystery.

I am sure he wont mind me quoting him, but it was put to me like this:

"The world is full of critics....many of which we do not ever hear from or known about, likely because they are pasty, fat, introverts that don't ever go outside, but instead earn a few pennies trading their SecondLife dollars on mythical stock exchanges, whilst playing World of Warcraft until 3am."

Brilliance. Utter brilliance. I had to laugh. Such a great depiction!

Anyhoo, the word is love, and we're all feeling it. You. Me. Everyone. Thanks for all of my readers' support. I really appreciate it.

Facing the Realities of BlogWorld

All,

Over the last 24 hours, I have had over 700 visitors to my website. I expect that come morning, I will have over 1000 people registered as having viewed it.

It is not because anyone really cares about what goes on in my life. It is not that they are genuinely interested in my life in Singapore, my photography, my stories of travelling.

It is because someone (once again) took my photos and made reference to my blog as they did so. They did this on Yahoo Finance, a considerably popular website with a great degree of traffic passing through it.

Since then, there have been derogatory comments made about me on the thread by people who do not know me. There have been comments about my weight - that I am fat and that I should eat some more burgers, that I should "get back on my bike, b*tch", that my blog is pathetic, that my photography is crap, and many more comments.

The fact is, I do put my life out here to be seen. Perhaps I share a little too much of myself on the blog. However, what I do not expect is to have to deal with strangers making comments about me, about what I do, about my appearance.

*sigh*

I can't fight back. There is no point. I will just, as best I can, continue along on this journey and pray that those strangers who have visited my blog today take the time to look beyond being selfish assholes, and see that there is a real person behind the blog.... real stories....people with feelings.

Happy Chinese New Year - Year of the Metal Tiger - River Hong Bao Pt I

The entrance of the River Hong Bao, at the Marina.

It is indeed the Year of the Tiger!

A fun time for family and friends.

And lots of traditional chinese goodies and crafts.

The massive God of Fortune, on the floating marina barge.

More crafts!

And of course, a lot of traditional chinese food!

Apparently, Chinese delicacies tend to have very high sugar and fat content - as a sign of richness. If you could afford to buy sugar, then you were considered rich.

Ducks - their hearts, their tongues, their claws and the intestines. I think i'll pass!

Lanterns - which light up at sundown!

Mr. God. God of Fortune. You cant miss him!

Another chinese tradition - Sugar Sculptures.

Lanterns

Fish lanterns.

Me - and the Tiger.

Happy Chinese New Year - Year of the Metal Tiger - River Hong Bao Pt II!

For the River Hong Bao, the fun really begins at nightfall, when the lantern sculptures light up and the fairground starts.

Year of the Tiger Lanterns

Beautiful Chinese Lanterns

The many Singaporean-Chinese residents reflected on the year to come... and hoping that it is one of good fortune and happiness.

So many colours, so many exhibits of lanterns.

The massive Tiger exhibit - sponsored by Tiger Airways of course!

The lit-up entrance to the River Hong Bao.

The Fairground Fun begins, and carries on well into the night for the youngsters.

Happy Chinese New Year!