Thaipusam Singapore 2010

Another event that took place last Saturday was the Thaipusam festival wherein Singaporean Hindus in the street procession coming from one temple to another four kilometers away traversing major streets of Singapore. I caught the procession along Tank Road while I was on my way to the Singapore Art Museum. This is my second time to witnessed such event.

Thaipusam is a Hindu thanksgiving celebration in honor of Lord Murugan who represents virtue, youth and power and is the destroyer of evil. Devotees carry milk-pot offerings and others attach kavadis (large metal frames) to their bodies using hooks and spikes! The kavadi bearers were joined by relatives and co devotees  who

Barrio Fiesta at Singapore Art Museum

Last saturday I went to Singapore Art Museum for the barrio fiesta celebration which was being held for two days last weekend. It is part of the National Heritage Board's Philippines Fiesta, an on-going event that started last October and will close in April, commemorating the four decades of diplomatic relations between Singapore and the Philippines. The The Land of the Morning, the Philippines and its People was part of this Philippines Fiesta event. The barrio fiesta program includes the Santacruzan procession, Ati-atihan, and the concert of Noel Cabangon and

My Trip to Phuket, Thailand

I went out of Singapore again last weekend, my second for the month, this time to Phuket, Thailand. It was short weekend holiday but I have a wonderful time. I arrived Phuket Saturday night and after checking in I immediately went out to experience nightlife. I managed to try three bars and by 1am I finally called it a night since I have a booked island tour the next day. There are so many choices online for the Phi Phi island tour and though they're offering the same itinerary, the price varies which ranges from 800 baht to as high as 3000 baht. If you choose the cheaper rate you will be spending more time on traveling than in the islands. I booked for the tour which uses speedboat as it is faster, less passengers and more time in the islands. In the evening, I explored the nightlife vicinity of

Side trip to Battambang, Cambodia

My third day of my trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia was spent in nearby province of Battambang. I have been invited by a Filipino friend working there. He was hired by a non government organization based in Europe to assist and provide training to one local agency run by the government. There is nothing much to do there nor have any place of interest to speak of, so the only thing you can do there is to observe and feel the daily life of the locals. it's pretty laid-back provencial town. On thing I observed though is that there were hotels scattered with in town center though I spotted only a few tourists during the day I was there, and mostly backpackers.