When MH370 never turned up...

There are more road fatalities than flight related deaths, yet when it hit the news, a world grieved with their family members. Maybe it was the fact that there is little we could do when a plane comes roaring down, even less so when nobody knows where it is. And with this knowledge of our helplessness, we questioned our faith in even the safest of all transportation mode, even more so at the company operating it.

It affected every one of us. Even reporters broke down. The social media was filled with retweets and reshares. We all had been following the news and discussing the possibilities. We grieve for MH370, for the family they left behind and for the destinies they never fulfilled. 

A dedication to a lost friend (image adapted from DailyMail).

Deep in our hearts we couldn't ignore the tiny voice asking, "Am I safe in the next flight?" "Will this be the last time I see that face?" Already creeping into some minds is the question over the safety of budget airlines mushrooming as budget travellers roamed the Earth unchecked. "How much cost have they cut to maintain that low airfare?"

Farewell, my friend. It has been an honour to make your acquaintance and sorry for not getting to know you better when circumstances allowed. May you find peace at wherever you are, and may this post serve as a dedication to your memory.

Announcements taken direct from MAS website dedicated to the MH370 incident.

Singapore Food Blog - Bangkok Jam @ Plaza Singapura

Location: Dhoby Ghaut, Central Business District (CBD), Singapore

Note: This post is written base on the dining experience in Plaza Singapura branch. Experience may vary from that of other outlets.


I visited this establishment when the riots were in full swing in Bangkok. The flow of tourists who once flocked to the vibrant city slowed to a halt, countries advising their citizens against entering the city, or the nation even. Bloodied images of chaos painted a grim picture of the city, with most captions questioning the future of the nation in the coming months. And the name Bangkok Jam reminded me of all that even as I was seated in its compound.

A riot of color and organised chaos (if there is such a thing) greeted my senses at the entrance of this establishment. Lampposts and traffic lights stood randomly in the "compound", itself an interesting but effective utilization of space by situating itself next to a bank of elevators and in a spot where the geometry of the floor plan induce headaches with most interior designers. Seated within the restaurant was akin to street side dining without the noisy traffic and dusty environment such seating came with.

To my utmost surprise, the menu was presented like a newspaper, with the news content being the dishes and the hottest news being none other than the recommended dish. Such a concept was employed by Ambush, invoking memories of delicious European dishes as was shared in Singapore Food Blog - Ambush @ Jurong Point.

The menu was presented in a newspaper format, in a way reminding me of Ambush restaurant which uses a similar concept.

Dinosaurs - Dawn to Extinction Exhibition @ ArtScience Museum - Part 2

Location: Marina Bay, Central Business District (CBD), Singapore

Note: This is the second and last part of my experience in the Dinosaur exhibition. The previous part of the article can be read in Dinosaurs - Dawn to Extinction Exhibition Part 1.

The Dinosaurs exhibition had been fun so far, but I didn't feel impressed until my first encounter with a skeleton the size of a room. A large room in fact. Life was entering the late Triassic, and so had I. Welcome to the world where the dinosaurs started to win the competition for land and food.

Giant beings started roaming the Earth in the late Triassic era even though it wasn't their heyday yet. My first encounter with these looming giants was a battle scene re-enacted in a room, one between a towering Lessemsaurus and a carnivorous Fasolasuchus. The latter was smaller in size, but its barring teeth won in ferosity. To walk under the stretching tail of the Lessemsaurus sparked imagination of the roving giant stepping over you while battling its aggressor, and all would be awesome until you realized that you may not survive such a battle when it was stomping around.

To walk under and behind the Lessemsaurus granted me an unparalleled experience. It felt as if it just stepped over me to fight against its predator, until I realized that were that the reality, I most probably would not stand a chance of survival. 

Dinosaurs - Dawn to Extinction Exhibition @ ArtScience Museum - Part 1

Location: Marina Bay, Central Business District (CBD), Singapore

Note: This is the first of a two part sharing of a visit to Dinosaurs exhibition in ArtScience Museum. The coming article can be read in Dinosaurs - Dawn to Extinction Part 2.

I admit it here - I was a dino fan, the operative keyword here being 'was'. The rat race and reality altered my path out of my dream of being a palaeontologist, a job which involves multiple disciplines, a lot of patience and very little to show unless you struck gold (dino gold that is). Still, with a dinosaur exhibition in town, the deadened amber rekindled into a fire of passion. I may not be able to be a dino hunter, but I could still get to see what others managed to hunt face-to-face instead of going through still photos. ArtScience Museum, here I come!

Roar! Here comes the dino!

Headline Places - Kiev Riot Turns Deadly

Location: Kiev, Ukraine

Kiev had captured tourists' attention as a cultural and scientific centre of Eastern Europe, but recent events had captured the world's attention - in a negative light. Three months of protest recently turned ugly as shots were fired upon, leaving as much as 82 people killed and the capital city of Ukraine, especially Independence Square, the site where most of the protests had been held, devastated. With the embattled Ukrainian President, Viktor Yanukovich fleeing the capital, and the parliament declaring him constitutionally unable to perform his duties (Feb 22, 2014) and setting an early election on May 25, Kiev may see a positive turn of events. Unfortunately that is not to be the case as masked gunmen tried to overtake key buildings in Crimea and Russia flexing its military muscle for a possible intervention.

Question: Where is Kiev in Ukraine?

One of the most powerful and viral image submitted to Imgur - a composition of the beauty of Independence Square before and its devastation after the riots (image taken from Reddit).

2014 Germany Trip - Willkomen in Deutschland!

Location: Germany

German: Deutschland (Germany, as it is called in their own language)

Itinerary and full experience of my visit to Germany can be accessed through the link below:

2014 - Germany trip

I guess I didn't realize how much I missed Germany after my last trip here nearly a year ago. With only 2 weekends to spend for myself in that last trip, there wasn't much space for me to explore, however my current assignment will last months, allowing me the rare chance to tour as much as the European country as possible. Maybe I should plan some excursion to nearby countries as well to maximise my experience in this piece of continent.

And I shall break the ice with some introduction of this faraway land that will be helpful to readers planning for a future trip to this nation.

The current black-red-gold flag scheme originated from the German Revolution of 1848 in Berlin, but it wasn't until the Weimar Republic was formed in 1919 after World War 1 that it was officially adopted (image taken from Wikipedia).