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Showing posts from November, 2011

Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli

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{ Naples, Italy - May 2011 } I love how the Italian words sound, and being able to understand them is even better! During the trip in Italy, I kept trying to eavesdrop in conversations, especially when those older Italian men were talking loudly with such passion and many hand movements. But I digress. My point is, I can read and understand the title of this post - Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli is the Naples National Archeological Museum. It has many collections from nearby Pompeii and Herculaneum, and served as a great introduction to Pompeii that we planned to go the day after. Then again, the exhibition on Pompeii in the National Museum of Singapore the year before was one of the reasons I planned the trip to Pompeii. There were many sculptures exhibited, that remarkable as they were, became fuzzy and similar after awhile. However, there were two that stood out - Farnese Artemis and Aphrodite Kallipygos. Artemis was a Greek goddess, and I have been to the site of her

Lazy Sunday morning at Blackbird Cafe

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{ Singapore - November 2011 } Nothing like a cup of coffee to start the day, although the day started pretty late on the lazy Sunday morning that we were having brunch at Blackbird Cafe. Ordered a cup of Cafe Vienna - espresso with whipped cream - that I had come to love during my years in Australia. There are not that many places in Singapore that serves coffee this way, but Blackbird Cafe, a New Zealand cafe, does. The coffee beans were imported from Wellington, and were pretty good. The brunch menu was pretty simple, but good enough for me. We ordered Eggs Benny (normally known as Eggs Benedict) with poached eggs on English muffin with hollandaise sauce. I liked how the simple ingredients could have such an interesting taste. Believe it or not, this was the first time I had a proper Eggs Benedict! We also ordered the Blackbird Big Brekkie with scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, cake, tomato, baked beans and sourdough bread. The Big Brekkie would be good for those who love a h

Moments that take my breath away

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       Sitting on the steps of a church by the Grand Canal in Venice Looking down Cappadocia from the hot-air balloon Watching the sunrise from Alishan mountain Feeding elephants in Chiang Mai Sitting at the desk in the New York Public Library Stepping on the Lijiang's Old Town for the first time Moments like this are the reasons why I love travelling.  So, here's to many more moments that will take my breath away.

Deep in the heart of historic Naples

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{ Naples, Italy - May 2011 } Walking down the chaotic historic centre of Naples, you would never guess that there is a whole world deep underground. There are various sites and tours that bring visitors under the city, but on our visit we decided to explore the Naples' underground with  Napoli Sotterranea , which literally means Naples Underground. We were led to an apartment building, down a flight of stairs into the remains of a Roman theatre. Imagine, to be living in a building not knowing that it was built on a couple of thousands year old theatre! According to our guide, Emperor Nero, the Roman emperor, sang in this theatre through an earthquake. Many families are still living in the apartment above it.  We were then brought to another passageway, down hundreds of steps underground, into what used to be a Greco-Roman aqueduct during the Roman times. The aqueduct was eventually not used, and the water redirected. Standing inside the aqueduct, I could not help

Paris in the rain

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Been reading up on Paris and planning my trip to Europe next year .  And it has been raining everyday here in Singapore.  Which makes me wonder... how will Paris look like in the rain? { Photo from weheartit }

People of Napoli

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{ Naples, Italy - May 2011 } In my previous two posts on " People of Venice " and " People of Vatican City ", you can see how touristy the places are. Venice was full of day-trippers and we could only escape them early in the morning, or when we started wondering the tiny alleys. In Vatican City, with only 800 residents, there are literally only tourists that you see! Which brings me to Naples. Just from these photos, you can see the difference between those tourist cities and this charming historic centre. There are no shortage of locals, and really, not that many tourists. So, if you, like me, love to people watch, the best place to watch the locals would be Naples.          This charming old lady, deserves a special mention. Saw her from the window of our Bed and Breakfast, while we were taking some photos of the street downstairs, Spaccanapoli. Quickly snapped a photo of her, which she noticed, and started scolding vivaciously before going back

The Muppets are coming to the big screen!

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{ Upcoming Movie: The Muppets } Why are there so many songs about rainbows  and what's on the other side?  Rainbows are visions, but only illusions,  and rainbows have nothing to hide.  So we've been told and some choose to believe it.  I know they're wrong, wait and see.  Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.  The lovers, the dreamers and me. If the lyrics sound familiar, that is probably because you have heard the song before (one time, or the other). The song is called Rainbow Connection, and it is sang by my favourite muppet, Kermit the Frog. I mean, just look at that face! And, don't you just love the simplicity of the lyrics and the froggy dreamy voice of his? I just found out that the song actually received an Oscar nomination in 1980. Well, Kermit the Frog will be singing the song again in the upcoming movie The Muppets. Apart from all the Muppets that we have come to love, the movie will also star Jason Segel and Amy Adams.

Peperoni Pizzeria pales in comparison

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{ Singapore - November 2011 } After blogging about the Da Michele's pizza in Naples , I felt like having Italian pizza. So, we went off in search of an Italian pizzeria in Singapore, and ended up in Peperoni Pizzeria. With the Italian name and simple decor in green, white and red (the colour of the Italian flag), it looked promising. We ordered Caprese salad that we have came to love in Italy. A simple salad with just tomatoes, mozzarella and rocket salad, I love the simplicity and the freshness of the cheese. Not a big fan of rocket salad, though. In Peperoni Pizzeria, you can order two toppings for each pizza. So, we ended up having four toppings on our two large pizza - Margherita (mozzarella, tomatoes, basil and oregano), Frutti di Mare (prawns, clams, scallops, squid rings and fish), Prosciutto Crudo di Parma (parma ham and rocket salad) and Suprema (shitake mushrooms, chicken sausage, onions and red chilli). If I have had the pizza last year, I would have said that th

L’Antica Pizzeria Da Michele

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{ Naples, Italy - May 2011 } Growing up in Malaysia, and then studying in Singapore and Australia, the pizza that I knew and grew up with were those American pizza with thick crust and lots of toppings. I was never really a fan. Soon, I discovered thin crust Italian pizza that I came to love. So, when in Naples, the birth place of pizza, what do you think is the must eat dish? Pizza is probably the most popular and the best known creation of all Neapolitan cuisine. And the most popular pizzeria in Naples is arguably Da Michele. A small unassuming pizzeria, with no decorations except for the white and green tiles, that offers only two types of pizza - marinara (with tomato, garlic, and oregano) and margherita (with tomato, mozzarella, and basil). There must be a good reason why Da Michele still manages to attract long lines of customers after 140 years. And being featured in the book and the movie Eat, Pray, Love is not the reason. The reasons are these... When you are able t

Gut-wrenching violence in 3D

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{ Movie Preview: Immortals } Eons after the Gods won their mythic struggle against the Titans, a new evil threatens the land. Mad with power, King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) has declared war against humanity. Amassing a bloodthirsty army of soldiers disfigured by his own hand, Hyperion has scorched Greece in search of the legendary Epirus Bow, a weapon of unimaginable power forged in the heavens by Ares. Only he who possesses this bow can unleash the Titans, who have been imprisoned deep within the walls of Mount Tartaros since the dawn of time and thirst for revenge. In the king’s hands, the bow would rain destruction upon mankind and annihilate the Gods. But ancient law dictates the Gods must not intervene in man’s conflict. They remain powerless to stop Hyperion, until a peasant named Theseus (Henry Cavill) comes forth as their only hope. Secretly chosen by Zeus, Theseus must save his people from Hyperion and his hordes. Rallying a band of fellow outsiders—including visionary

Pulcinella in Naples

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{ Naples, Italy - May 2011 } Walking down the streets in the historic centre of Naples , we soon saw a recurring figure that seemed to the unofficial mascot of the city. A character dressed in white with a black mask, there were many figurines of him playing various musical instruments and even with pizza and spaghetti in hand. We later found out that the character is Pulcinella, which means "chick" in Italian, and it originated from 17th century theatre. { Click here for other travel tales from Italy and  a list of my travelogues }

Photography Brassaï

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{ Singapore - November 2011 } I loved that whole side of Paris at night - it was part of the reality of the city. I never went after extraordinary subjects. I always loved the common things, the everyday things - because I think if you really look at them, they're often the most amazing things.  Brassaï, a photographer who took many photos of Paris at night in the 1930s, said the above. It sums up his photographs pretty well, and that is what I loved about his black and white photos. He captures Paris at night - the people, the buildings, the bridges with all the lights and fog. It was a small exhibition, but one that showcases some of Brassaï's most famous works. It was great to see that Singapore is slowly bringing more and more art and photographs to this small island. Looking forward to more exhibitions in the future! ::: Footnotes ::: Photography Brassaï  Presented by Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts 22 October - 18 December 2011  11am - 7pm (Closed

How I fell in love with the historic centre of Naples

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{ Naples, Italy - May 2011 } I have a confession to make. When I was planning the trip to Italy, I did not plan to go to Naples. We finally decided to go just because we wanted to visit Pompeii, and wished to break the journey from Rome. Even then, I was apprehensive and reluctant. I had reservations about the city after reading about the gritty, dirty city. However, there is the food that I have heard so much of, and so I thought that the food and Pompeii should be more than enough reasons for us to spend a day in the historic centre of Naples.  Stepping down from the train, and walking from the station to our little Bed and Breakfast in the historic centre, the main roads were filled with garbage and there was a massive strike happening on the main road. My apprehension grew the longer we walked and I remembered that I just wanted to be in the B&B, away from the crowd. When we reached the outside of the B&B just off the main street in the historic centre, Spaccanapoli

Churches and gallery on the last day in Rome

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{ Rome, Italy - May 2011 } The last day in Rome was spent with a whirlwind tour of the places that we had not been, but was in our list of the places to visit in Rome. We started the morning in Saint Peter's Basilica , followed by Campo de' Fiori . After having lunch at Campo de' Fiori, we made our way to a church that I was actually pretty reluctant to go.  Chiesa di Santa Maria della Concezione dei Cappucini The reason for my reluctance? The crypt just under the church contains the bones of 4,000 Capuchin friars, arranged in elaborate fashion, decorating the various chapels. The crypt started in 1631 when thousands of bodies were exhumed and transferred to the crypt. Why would they want to do that - I am not sure. I expected it to be eerie and scary. However, it was actually okay. I did have any scary or eerie feelings. Various parts of the human skeletons decorated the ceiling and walls, and some full body skeletons were also displayed. No photography was allowed,