All posts tagged: singapore

The Tempest – Singapore Act

Published by

Kudos to Sam Mendes & the traveling cast of The Bridge Project. Singapore is one of the 7 cities to be stricken by The Tempest. If you are or were ever into Shakespeare, watch it! Watch it for creative, insightful direction by Sam Mendes (of the American Beauty fame). Watch it for a mind-blowing performance by Ron Cephas Jones as Caliban. Watch it for Prospero’s ardor, Miranda’s innocence, Ariel’s fragility, Trinculo’s humor, Gonzalo’s frailness. Watch it for the love of theatre. In exploring the Shakespearean themes of betrayal, love, power, wisdom, sacrifice, forgiveness & magic, The Bridge Project team did every bit of justice (and more) to the written version of the play. The actors breathe life into the characters with oodles of imagination & emotions, backed by stunning sets, and an apt selection of sounds & music. “These our actors, As I foretold you, were all spirits, and Are melted into air, into thin air, And, like the baseless fabric of vision, The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, The solemn temples, the great globe …

Saturn & Stargazing

Published by

2009 is a special year in the night sky. The Earth is exactly at the same level as Saturn in space, allowing us Earthlings to catch a vertical view of the second largest planet in our solar system, a one in 15 years phenomenon. To celebrate the International Year of Astronomy, the Science Center in Singapore has opened up its Observatory for free stargazing sessions every Friday night. This week, the main telescope was aligned to focus on Saturn and its moons, and it made for a spectacular sight. In the magnified view of the telescope, Saturn appears exactly like it was depicted in secondary school geography textbooks, complete with the rings. The rings, which are really pieces of dust and ice moving at tremendous speeds, look gorgeous! Of the 62 moons of Saturn, only 4 of the brighter ones were visible through the telescope, and appeared as though they were protecting the rings of Saturn. To the naked eye, or through a pair of binoculars, Saturn only appears as a bright star in the sky. …

Earth Hour 2009

Published by

To some of our minds, climate change is still a far-fetched issue, way out of our grasp and way beyond our time. Even as we speak, people are getting trapped in poverty and hunger all over the world. Our generation is suffering, and climate change is trying to make us reflect upon the well-being of future generations. I don’t know if it’s a just cause, but I do know that we are genetically coded to be futuristic. After all, we do all we do in our life time, so our race could survive further, consciously or sub-consciously. Above is a glimpse into climate change. If you have ever been awestruck by the picturesque view from a hill top, been hypnotized by the turquoise blue of the sea, or simply marvelled at the sheer beauty of the evening sky, you know that our planet is worth saving. You can read more on CNN’s exclusive section Planet in Peril. Earth Hour is an initiative by the WWF, that tries to urge each individual, household and organization to …

Coldplay Live in Singapore!

Published by

We didn’t get to heaven but we made it close.  This is going to be a really short post, because I can’t even begin to describe what it feels like seeing Coldplay perform live! Chris Martin is really awesomeness personified, with an unbelievable voice and a truckload of energy. *Bows* I am still suffering from Coldplay withdrawal symptoms, or as my friend would say, Coldstroke! I can still hear violet hill live in my head, I can still choke on Chris Martin doing fix you,  I am still speechless imagining the hardest part, I am still lost. What a concert! And in the end We lie awake And we dream We’re making our escape… Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.

Viva la vida!

Published by

Good days are here. I am off to Malaysia early tomorrow morning, to scale the 4th highest peak in South East Asia – Mount Kota Kinabalu!  Coldplay is coming to Singapore! Yes, finally. I’m ecstatic at the thought of hearing them play Violet Hill live! 23rd March, here I come. I have 2 subsequent Malaysia trips brewing! Tentatively, Malacca and Cameron Highlands.  I am working on a community service expedition with Habitat for Humanity, to build homes for slum-dwellers in a village near Bangalore. We are in the midst of launching a social media campaign to create social awareness. Look out! And in the middle of all this excitement, I’m turning 21!  “The future looks so bright, we’ve got to wear shades…” Shivya NathWelcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. I’ve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, I’m just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and …

The Singapore Grand Prix!

Published by

The Formula One came to Singapore this weekend, made the city glow in the dark, and left everyone awestruck (and deaf) by the sheer speed of the race. Oh, that night race was a spectacle!  Our vantage point was less than five feet from the F1 track! That’s right. The best view we could’ve asked for, without paying a dime! A humble Alonso supporter, I was thrilled, ecstatic, to see him race to victory, after Massa and Kimi crashed. Alonso’s first win of the season, and it had to be the Singapore Grand Prix! Life couldn’t get better!  Force India enjoyed a few laps of fame too, with Adrian Sutil in the third place, until of course, he slipped lower and crashed. Here’s to my first Formula One race, an unforgettable view of the F1 track, the blinding speed of the F1 cars, and of course, Alonso’s long-awaited victory!  The video: The third last lap of the race, with Alonso in the lead, followed by Rosberg, from our vantage point beyond Marina Mandrin, by a …

Working in a bank

Published by

For a long time, I thought banks were plain evil. I guess it started with how everyone (almost everyone) in college wants to get a job in a bank, some bank, any bank. To me, it came as a stark reminder of how people are all rowing their boats towards the same lighthouse, and how they’d probably crash on the same rock. It isn’t for the love of the work. Only money. A series of poor judgments and a phase of desperation later, I find myself working in, well, a bank! It puts my ‘principles’ on dubious grounds. It makes me a two-faced hypocrite. It took nothing less than courage to walk into that office, stamping over everything I had quite believed in. A week and a half into it, I’m almost proud to say I’ve survived. I must admit how baseless my “logic” was. At least as far as Marketing is concerned, a consumer bank is extremely similar to any other consumer goods company. They merely sell financial plans, like a telecom company would …

Changi, Singapore

Published by

Changi is probably the single nicest place in Singapore. Also probably the only one without the Singaporean feel you get in the rest of Singapore, which by the way, you start to get really bored of when you’ve been here for three years. In fact, you can start noticing the difference even in areas close to Changi. The greenery makes you forget the ‘financial hub’ that Singapore is with its omnipresent modernistic buildings. On either side of the road are tons and tons of trees, and contrary to the rest of the country, all natural (at least they look natural). And at Changi, despite its own modernity, things just feel a lot more, well, ‘international’, for the lack of a better word. I mean it’s the one place I’d come to escape Singapore, literally too! I like the way it spans over lots of land, and even within Changi, the way things are really spaced out, unlike the claustrophobic layout in the city and within most malls. I guess I’m sort of partial to Changi, …