The very great feeling of seeing my ‘baby’ grows up.

My ‘baby’ here refers to my first ever building project in Singapore since I started working here last year. I have to clarify that first hand before it all leads to confusion and misunderstanding. My first building project here is a data center building. I have not known much (actually I have known nothing) on this building type until I was assigned to it at its early concept design stage early last year. It is a challenge to me (even until now) to understand most if not some more extensive operational and M&E requirements that play huge role to architecture and design of a data centre facility.

Ahh..let’s not go too technical on that. I am not the one designing the building (that honor goes to my boss of course) but I am the one that does most of the drawings for it. I have been to the site office for few times already but I have never visited the construction site itself. Today is the day that I finally got to see my building which has risen up and will be completed mid of next year. Yes…I called it my ‘baby’ because it is very significant and holds a huge part in my life as an architect. It is not my first ever building project but it is considered my first ever ‘massive’ building project.

You will never understand the feeling of seeing the building that is finally built after months of seeing it on screen and papers only. That very great feeling…contented and fulfilled to see lines that I have drawn being translated to reality. That is one of the reasons why I choose architecture as my career path. I seldom visit construction sites and I take every visit as an opportunity for me to observe construction details and learn more. Architecture involves a learning process that is never ending. It is also an opportunity for me to overcome my fear of height (I’m not that afraid but I’m still afraid)…I have to climb a series of temporary steps dangling on the side of the building at about 9 floors high up. And the worst thing is that the stairs are made of perforated metal (so you can see through what’s in front of you and also the ground way below). I have to admit that my legs were shaking a bit that time…haha

There were also a series of meetings today and I’m glad that they are all finished right before my clock out time at 6pm. I’m ending the day with a good rest at home now and and getting hyped over the new trailer for Disney movie ‘Mulan’ set to be released on March next year. There’s still a long way to go (can’t wait for it). The trailer looks good and its new rendition of the ‘Reflection’ music in the trailer is epic and gave me goosebumps. ‘Mulan’ is one of my favourite Disney animated films (and Mulan is a rare badass Disney princess) and I hope that this live action remake will not disappoint.

That’s it for my post for the day…and that’s it, the end of the first week of December. That was fast. My 28th birthday on the past Wednesday is also over. Just a month later and I’m unofficially 29. I’m nearing 30 soon (shit!). That is no good. A very good message for my this year’s birthday is that I have to live in the moment as time does not wait. Yes!

It’s December already?!…and early birthday greeting to myself!

Holiday season is around the corner. It’s now the last month of the year and that means;

• we are only about three weeks away from the joyous Christmas celebration.
• our end of year bonus is coming! (what’s better than seeing our bank account having additional income for this month besides than our usual monthly salary).
• we only have one month left to fulfill our year 2019 goals (if you have…)…so hurry up!

This is going to be a month full of events for me. I have been appointed to organize the Christmas party for my office along with several of my colleagues. There’s a lot of things to do for that (order catering, planning for games, decorating the office, organizing gift exchange and lucky draw, etc) on top of the usual job tasks that I have to complete daily. Anyway, I’m up for it to create an amazing Christmas party celebration for my colleagues.

Another best thing for this month is the office closure on the last week of December. That gives me ample of time to take a break (not able to plan any vacation due to the short notice of the office closure), rest and chill with my family and friends in both Singapore and Malaysia. The sacrifice here is my forced annual leave for the office closure. It would be awesome id there’s a 30 days annual leave for the first prize winner for the Christmas party’s lucky draw and I win it. Haha….I’m dreaming too early…

Few more days and it will be my 28th birthday (my birthday falls on 4th December)! Arrgghhh, shit….I’m nearing the end of the twenties. When I was a kid, I would love to celebrate birthday because I wanted to grow up so fast to become an adult. Now, I felt the other way. I don’t want to grow old so quickly. Haha…but that’s the inevitable part of life. I would want to quickly do all the things that I really wanted to do (besides the usual boring daily routine) before it is too late.

Haha…so many things coming soon…That’s it for my post today. Early birthday greeting to myself and I wish for a great December and awesome holiday ahead for me and you too! Let’s enjoy the last month of the year before we bid farewell to 2019 and welcome year 2020!

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

 

TVB Anniversary Awards 2019 likely to be postponed to January 2020 and a review for the series ‘The Man Who Kills Troubles’.

With the protest still showing no sign of stopping and increasing violence in recent weeks, many events or celebrations in the city in these few months were either reduced in scale or cancelled. Concerts expected to be held in Hong Kong Coliseum by Eason Chan are cancelled and the recent 52nd anniversary celebration of Hong Kong largest television station, TVB is conducted in a more moderate and respectful way. There is even news that its annual TVB Anniversary Awards expected to be held on 15th December (next month) will be postponed to mid of January 2020.

The Taiwan’s prestigious Golden Horse Awards had just ended a moment ago and for this year, not a single Hong Kong star is attending due to the extreme political sensitivity especially after last year’s event when a winner in the awards ceremony voiced out support for independence for Taiwan and received huge backlash from China. Hence, not a single China or Hong Kong films is allowed to participate in this year’s Golden Horse Awards which in previous years is known to be the most prestigious Chinese language film awards. If Hong Kong films are allowed to be nominated this year, I’m pretty sure that my favourite actress, Sammi Cheng (more famous as a singer as she is a Cantopop queen) will easily get a nomination for best actress and even highly likely to win for her outstanding performance in the film ‘Fagara’. Luck and timing is not on her side always in the near 20 years of her involvement in films.

Going back to TVB, I have just completed another series and it is ‘The Man Who Kills Troubles’ (解決師) starring both TV King, Vincent Wong and TV Queen, Natalie Tong. The 30-episode series also starred Jonathan Cheung, Crystal Fung, Kelly Cheung, Joseph Lee, Sharon Chan, Eric Li, Law Lok Lam, Michael Tong, etc. The plot revolves around Vincent Wong as a fixer who works for triads to solve difficult problems. He wished to leave the triads and return to normal life but could not do so after knowing that his girlfriend doesn’t die from an accident but rather murdered. He then met Natalie Tong who is a daughter of a triad leader and they both fell in love. He then committed to protect his lover, uncover the truths behind his former girlfriend’s death, and bring the triads to justice.

I think Vincent Wong is more selective of his work after winning best actor two years ago. He didn’t act in many dramas in recent years and whenever he does, that drama usually turns out good and he is sure to give excellent performance. I always don’t like Natalie Tong (find her more suitable in supporting role rather than a lead) but she is actually doing quite fine in this drama. Crystal Fung had quite a stellar year in 2018 (winning most improved female artiste last year too) but her performance in this drama is quite poor, rigid and felt unnatural. On the other hand, her on-screen partner, Jonathan Cheung is doing extremely well as the police officer who turned evil near the end. Also shoutout to Eric Li who usually portrayed villainous role and is given quite a good amount of screen time and acting here. He is good in here as the brother of Natalie Tong. There are some supporting characters who are quite pointless in this series such as the ones portrayed by Sharon Chan and Michael Tong. They add nothing significant to the story at all.

The story is quite draggy and boring in the beginning but it gets more exciting and intense once it reaches half way. The main focus of the story in the beginning that sets mostly at the school is quite boring and gives not much continuity to the main story of the drama (which is about the police, triads and the fixers). Once things get serious near the end, any sight of the school is no longer found and hence there is a loss of story flow. The action sequences are good and there are some very cool dramatic and suspenseful scenes in this drama that add points to the series. Out of 10 points, I rate ‘The Man Who Kills Troubles’ a total of 7.4. It starts off pretty draggy but able to picks up later on in the last half of the series. Now, I’m looking forward to the next series called ‘Wonder Woman’ starring Miriam Yeung (didn’t see her in drama for a very long time already), Pakho Chau and Raymond Wong.

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

 

Exploring the ‘other parts’ of Sentosa Island today.

Most tourists entering the Sentosa Island, Singapore will only visit the famous places or the major attractions nearby to the Sentosa Express station. They are the Resorts World Sentosa and casino, Universal Studios Singapore theme park, SEA aquarium and maritime museum and a huge Merlion statue (that will soon be demolished). I have been to the island a couple of times in the past and I do visited all these places in the past.

I didn’t know until today that there are actually a lot more other interesting attractions to check out in the island. Or before that, I didn’t even know that Sentosa Island is actually quite big. Forget about those overrated places, it’s time for me to explore the beaches, bridges and viewpoints that form the ‘other parts’ of the island.

I went to the Fort Siloso Skywalk and a quick walk around its museum. The skywalk that is at least 10 stories high up in the air offers beautiful view of the island, sea and the city. The only downside of the skywalk is its plain concrete floor. They should make it more interesting by putting glass floor instead (now there’s only a small portion near the tower with the glass floor). The museum is closing very soon by the time I reached there and I only managed to see a small part of it.

I then went to the Palawan Beach which is famous for its suspension bridge to a tiny islet which is the southernmost point of continental Asia. I felt a bit dizzy for staying too long on the bridge as it sways a lot and I spent a lot of time there taking pictures. The end of the islet is the best spot to enjoy the sea view with many ships around and the majestic sunset view.

I didn’t spend a lot of time there today and that means there’s still a lot more areas in Sentosa that I have not gone to. And that means there will be soon another visit to the island. I don’t mind going there soon again although my trip to the island would require me to transfer train two times. I ended my trip to Sentosa today with a very far view of its nightly Crane Dance from VivoCity and a super expensive steamboat dinner at the mall.

All eyes on Hong Kong again due to the super long protest that has escalated into violence.

It all began with introduction of extradition bill to the laws of Hong Kong. This move is seen by most Hong Kong citizens as a China’s interference and sparked a mass protest in early June. The protest back then was orderly and calm and saw over million of participants flooding the streets and squares to show their objection to the bill.

Several months later on, the protest had evolved into greater call for democracy and protection of the unique ‘one country, two system’ rule after Hong Kong Chief Executive, Carrie Lam had withdrawn the bill and called it ‘dead’. At this point, I do admire the determination of the protesters to be able to carry on protesting for this long (for months!).

However, things get really ugly recently. I can still ignore the vandalizing acts that these protesters have done to the city’s infrastructures (MRT station, shops, malls, banks, government buildings, etc) as well as road and airport blockage attempts. These acts had already gave a huge impact to the city’s economy and tourism. However, burning a man alive when he voices out his disagreement to the protesters?! Hitting another man of the opposing side with a brick?! (and the victim died.) That has seriously gone overboard. Burning down shops that have close link to China is also a very unwise thing to do.

These protesters are not only childish but they have turned violent. This already strays away from their earlier call for democracy. They should have stayed on with their protest in peace and order. The police will not use force if you don’t. They are just protecting themselves and is protecting the country from further destruction. You cannot claim yourself loving Hong Kong if you keep destroying it with such means. Protest with peace is still the best solution.

Thinking that the government will not hear if you just protest calmly? No, they will still hear as the protest has already gained international attention much earlier on already and that gave pressure for the Hong Kong government to really look into the matter. They have already withdrawn the bill, and with more proper communication, I’m quite certain they will employ more steps to solve the concerns by the public later on.

There are a lot more peaceful ways to protest than creating weapons, vandalizing, and attacking people and police officers. They do fire shots at times due to the urgent need to just protect themselves from harm inflicted by the protesters. It’s all clearly shown in the videos captured. Most of these protesters (especially recent ones that do all the violent acts) are just very young students. They should think deeper for the place they called home and not be immature.

I knew those who support the protest will hate me for what I’m saying here and will shut me up since I’m an outsider. However, I believe I have a right to give my opinion too. In the beginning (and even now), I do support the call for democracy and protection of Hong Kong special rights. But I strongly oppose the recent violence done by these irresponsible protesters that have gone extreme and uncalled for. I do understand your anger and frustration, but still…no to violence.

I have visited Hong Kong once before and I do hope visit the place soon again (definitely not now since it is in chaos). Hong Kong is a very beautiful place and I do wish that the city will get back to peace and order very soon. The protest (already lasted half a year by now) can still go on but should not involve any more violence. That is the best way to do if you sincerely love Hong Kong.

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

‘Midway’ doesn’t deliver while ‘Joker’ is inevitably heading to 1-billion dollar.

I just saw the trailer of ‘Midway’ like two weeks ago and I asked myself, ‘How come I didn’t know that there is this action-packed war movie coming that soon to the theaters?’. I think the movie lacks advertising and its trailer looks very promising. However, I was left disappointed after watching the movie just now.

This movie definitely reminds a lot of people on another war film released like many years ago. That’s ‘Pearl Harbor’ movie. Hence, it is unavoidable to make comparison between these two. In fact, this movie is about the events following the Pearl Harbor attack. I left the theatre and the first thing on my mind is ‘Now I felt like ‘Pearl Harbor’ is a classic and is so much better’.

There are a lot of cool war scenes in ‘Midway’ but they were plain. They lack emotional punch and intensity, and that’s the main thing that brings the movie down. I hardly feel a thing (like sad or intense during those supposingly climatic or touching scenes). There is also no focus on any character’s development because the movie goes more on the history storytelling route (involving large cast ensemble) rather than solely focusing on a main character’s (or two) direction.

The only thing better for ‘Midway’ as compared to ‘Pearl Harbor’ is that there is a generous amount of screentime for the Japanese side too and this movie didn’t portray them in a very bad light. Both sides suffer major losses too during the wars. Out of 10 points, I rate ‘Midway’ a total of 6.7. A war movie that fails to capture my attention (I always look at the watch while in the theater just now) and lacks emotion and drama.

On the other hand, ‘Joker’ is now inevitably heading to the wonderful 1-billion dollar milestone. It will achieve that mark by this weekend as its current grossing already stands at US$ 984 million. (Update on 16/11/2019 – the movie grossed over US$1 billion today before the weekend arrives). It will be the 7th film this year, 4th DC film ever, first ever R-rated film and 44th film in history to accomplish that milestone. This achievement is made more impressive with the fact that it is not even getting a release in China (one of the biggest movie market now). I really didn’t foresee this movie earning this much of money.

That’s truly an impressive box office performance this year. There will be at least 2 more films released later this year that will be very likely to join the 1-billion dollar club (Frozen 2 and the Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker). That makes the number of films this year each grossing over 1-billion dollar at 9. It could even turn to 10 if the Jumanji sequel is gaining huge popularity like its predecessor. We will see at the end of December.

(Images in this post are from various online sources)

Fascinated by these aerial videos showing KL city skyline in its most captivating moments.

I recently stumble upon some aerial videos showing city skyline views of Kuala Lumpur from YouTube. Most of these clips are from a production team called SkyRun and I’m really impressed with their works. I think we shared the same interest; admiration to the density of buildings, beautiful architecture, impressive skyscrapers and iconic landmarks that made up the picturesque skyline of Kuala Lumpur.

Paired with captivating background music, these clips really took my breath away. We usually observe our city on street level and it’s hard for us to imagine how it would look like if viewed from above (unless you are a bird). Now, with easy access to drones and popularity of YouTube, we can enjoy these bird-eye views too. I’m glad that I found these clips that allow me to study the city more in detail especially in present time when I’m not staying there anymore.

With these videos, I also got to check out the latest construction updates of some future landmarks of KL such as the Tun Razak Exchange development (the one with the completed Exchange 106 Tower), Bukit Bintang City Center (BBCC) development (on the former Pudu Jail site), PNB 118 Tower (future tallest building in Malaysia), The Star Residences (to be one of the tallest residential towers in Malaysia), Permata Sapura Tower (near to KLCC), KL Eco City development (at Mid Valley area), etc.

I’m glad to see that KL is getting denser year after year with quite a substantial amount of huge construction projects on-going. Last time, we would be able to have a full view of Petronas Twin Towers easily from various corners in the city. Now, it’s hard to do that anymore since more and more buildings are cropping up especially at the KLCC area. That’s a good thing; the denser the city is, the more beautiful the city skyline it would be.

There are also some videos capturing the city at the perfect timing such as during sunrise / sunset, in the evening when the city is lit up, and when the clouds are low (giving an impression that those tall buildings float above the sky). They really offers new perspective of the city and is really a good platform to introduce the city to the world (these videos will definitely aid in boosting the city’s tourism). Sadly, KL is not as famous as other major global cities and it certainly deserves more international attention.

So here are some of the videos that I found and would like to share with my readers here. Check it yourself and enjoy these amazing clips. Didn’t expect that KL can be this beautiful honestly.

(Clips in this post are from YouTube by various authors)