Tana on hirmus aikeseline paev jalle. Poistel on nyyd koolivaheaeg ja proovime iga paev midagi ette votta. Just tana ei olnud suuremaid plaane ja kavatsesime basseinis mangida, aga ilm on liiga jube. Nyyd istuvad ja vaatavad Spidermani ja hoiavad korvu kinni, kui valjas liiga kovasti myristab.
Eile kaisime muuseumis Mozarti naitust vaatamas voi oieti katsumas. See ongi lastele moeldud ja peaks neile naitama, kuidas sel ajal elati, nii et saab kostyyme selga panna ja hobuse vankrisse ronida ja hambapulbrit teha ja parukaid jne. Ega nad nyyd kyll aru ei saanud, kes see Mozart siis selline on, aga tore oli niikuinii. Pean siis uuesti minema, kui Beatrice'il vaheaeg tuleb.
Pyhapaeva ohtul kaisime parast pikki kohklusi Boat Quay'l Kunstifestivali avamisel. Ja oli muidugi tore, et laksime. Siin on alati ohtul palju lapsi valjas, koik on tsiviliseeritud. Soime seal joe aares korea sooki ja vaatasime prantsuse vee-teatri etendust joel. Hasti vagev - vee peal soitsid auto, karavan, jalgratas, voodi, mingi hasti suur ratas, kus onu oli sees ja tadi istus korgel, igasugu vee-elukad, inglid torvikutega jne. Koike saatis muusika ja ilutulestik, mis oli eriti uhke, kuna see peegeldus ymbruse korghoonete pimedatel akendel. Eemalt paistis ka varviliselt valgustatud Singapore Flyer - ehk siinne uus korge vaateratas - kus olime just laupaeval kainud. Nii et koigil oli ponevust kui palju.

Very cultural

We have been doing a lot of "culture" recently. Last week I went to the Singapore Art Museum which was a nice surprize. For me Asian art has always been very much traditional art so far. Probably because where we were in Korea - there wasn't anything modern to see in these areas, Seoul surely is different. Well this museum here mainly exhibits modern art from the region and some of it is very interesting indeed. I was impressed by a few fusion kind of works where traditional techniques were mixed with modern and abstract expressions - like chinese ink painting of Singapore highrises or batik portraits or Vietnamese lacquer in modern abstract images. A very interesting ceramics exhibition as well.
On Robert's insistence we went to the Philatelistic museum on Saturday - and it wasn't boring at all! Lot's to touch and do for the children and quite interesting for adults. Found even some Estonian stamps.
Now the Singapore Arts Festival has started and after long doubts we made our way to the opening performance at the Boat Quay on Sunday evening (well, school night concerns etc.) Glad we did as it was truly spectacular - we had dinner to the sounds and sights of a French water theatre performance on the river. There were cars, caravans, angels, bicycles and all sorts of creatures floating on the water with music, live fire and fireworks. I guess they perform it around Europe as well but this setting was quite unique especially when the fireworks reflected on the dark windows of the surrounding highrise buildings. Just haven't quite got used to the idea that it is perfectly normal here to go out with children in the evening - many families dining and everything so civilized. Wouldn't take the kids to Soho after 8 or even to downtown Tallinn.
Now that the boys are off school we have our own daytime program going on. Did the library yesterday and a museum today. There is an exhibition about Mozart in the National Museum specifically for kids with dress-up and lot's of hands-on activities. They had a great time but no clue about who this guy Mozart is supposed to be. We'll try with Beatrice when she is off school.

Lovi muna

Joudsime siis ikka lopuks loomaaeda. See on kyll koige toredam loomaaed, kus meie oleme kainud - ei yhtegi puuri! Kogu poolsaar, millel ta asub on nagu yks suur dzhungel, vahepeal kaivad kylastajad korgetel puidust teedel puude latvade vahel. Loomadele paaseb uskumatult ligidale ja sellises ymbruses naevad nad valja nagu kodus. Eriti uhked on valged tiigrid, kes on kraaviga vaatajatest eraldatud. Nii palju kui maletan, on eriti tiigrid jatnud apaatse mulje mujal loomaaedades. Need kolm liikusid ringi, ujusid, esinesid vaga vaarikalt ja rahulolevalt. Vaga imponeeriv oli orangutangide pere. Nende juures paasesimegi korgele puude otsa, kus moned neist paris ligidal pikutasid ja ilmselt arvasid, et meid on neile sinna vaatamiseks toodud. Ja bioomis olime kaeulatuses suurtest nahkhiirtest (flying fox). Kui lovide juurest mooda laksime, oli seal mingi valjapanek munadest ja Karl tegi tabava jarelduse, et koige suurem on lovi muna (tegelikult vist siiski jaanalinnu). Ainuke, kes tundus kuidagi vales kohas olevat, oli jaakaru, kes oli kyll oues, kuid saab tuppa kylma minna kui tahab. Ta paistis siiski piisavalt rahul olevat selle olukorraga, sest ta on siin isegi lapse saanud.
Erilist huvi pakkusid suured ja vaiksed ussid, maod ja sisalikud. Vaga praktiline oli naha ara koik need kohalikud maod, teiste hulgas kobra. Mul oligi nimelt kaks paeva hiljem selline kohtumine. Jooksin gym'is ja nagin akki enda ees meetri kaugusel (kyll akna taga) midagi liikumas. See oli yks yle meetri pikkune paradiisi puu madu, kes seal poosa otsas kuhugi teel oli. Pikk aga peenike, rohelise ja musta kirju, igati ilus tegelane, aga kuna ma ei maletanud tapselt, kas ta voiks myrgine olla, ytlesin igaks juhuks valvurile. Neil vottis aga oma riistade otsimisega nii kaua aega, et madu oli vahepeal korgemale puu otsa roninud ja sealt yhe tubli meetrise hyppe palmipoosasse teinud. Nii et katte teda ei saadud. Loodame, et ta ei otsusta jacuzzisse ujuma tulla, see on paari meetri kaugusel. Raamatu jargi olevat kergelt myrgine. Aga siin peab sellega vist harjuma, et niisugused tegelased ringi liiguvad.
Igatahes tagasi loomaaia juurde tulles - kui keegi peaks siia sattuma, siis see on kindlasti minu tipp-soovitus, isegi kui on ainult yks paev aega. No voibolla valja arvatud neile, kes just Aafrikast safarilt tulnud on. Meie jargmine projekt on o"o"-safari loomaaias.

Peale selle olen nautinud oma viimast poistevaba nadalat ja kainud muu hulgas kunstimuuseumis. (Nad on kyll suured huvilised, aga kahjuks ikka veel katega kallal.) See oli paris tore yllatus, arvasin et on pohiliselt traditsiooniline Hiina vark, aga oli palju moodsat Kagu-Aasia kunsti, mis on vaga huvitav. Eriti sellised tood, mis on kombineerinud traditsioonilise tehnika moodsa abstraktse sisuga. Nagu malai batika portreed voi Singapuri korghooned hiina tushimaalis. Vietnami kunst paistab olevat hasti kuum sona just praegu, eriti ponev traditsioonilise "lacquer" tehnika kasutamine abstraktsetes toodes.

Have survived the long weekend. We did finally go to the zoo which is one of the top attractions here and an absolute must-do. It definitely is a fantastic experience so if anybody has just one day in Singapore, this is the thing to do. At least of all the zoos we have been to, this is the winner. It is like combination of zoo and botanical gardens with fantastic plants and settings. No cages or fences, mostly just moats or glass walls. Partly visitors walk on tree-top trails and get really close to all sorts of animals, most fascinating probably being the orangutans. The white tigers are pretty impressive as well. They seemed to be really comfortable in the surroundings, moving around a lot and getting into the water. I only ever remember tigers sleeping in any other zoo I've been to. Also there is a biome where we got really close to lots of monkeys and the big bats - "flying foxes" were hanging from the trees so close to the trail that we could have literally touched them. Also they do quite a lot of feedings where visitors can join in (not the tigers!) - like kangoroos, elephants. Just after the lion's enclosure there was an exhibit about eggs - chicken next to ostrich - and Karl drew a smart conclusion that the bigger one was a lion egg. We all liked the snakes and lizards a lot.
And just as a slight reminder of where we are I saw a snake today well over a meter long just 2 meters away. Well, there was a glass between us. I was on the treadmill in the gym and the snake was outside climbing on some branches right in front of the window. I told the guard but by the time someone with appropriate tools arrived (10 min later) the snake had made an impressive jump of a meter at least into a bush where they have no way of finding it. It was the paradise tree snake according to my book and it is mildly venomous. Looked pretty but I hope they will catch it eventually or it will stay in the bush where it is and will not decide to go for a dip in the jacuzzi just next to that.
Now Beatrice will come home soon with a friend from her class. She has been so excited about it. It is a bit trickier here to arrange after school playdates because we have to arrange it with the bus company if they are not normally on the same bus (and as a rule they aren't). Also the pickup afterwords is more hassle because everybody lives miles away from eachother. We'll see how it goes today.

This is the official start of the blog. So please come and check it out if you fancy.
I'll try to keep it up!

Teretulemast!

Tegin nyyd siis ikka selle blogi, loodetavasti viitsite siis aegajalt lugeda! Kirjutan siin vaheldumisi eesti ja inglise keeles esialgu, eraldamiseks eri varvi tekstiga. Vaatan siis, kuidas edaspidi.
Nautisin oma eelviimast "vaba" nadalat. Sain lopuks pedikyyri, mis on siin koos muude iluprotseduuridega suure osa expat prouade pohitegevus. Olin ammu kokku leppinud seda teha koos yhe Beatrice'i klassi emaga, nyyd lopuks joudsime siis nii kaugele. Vaga monus ja eriti tore koos kellegiga, siis saab samal ajal juttu ajada ka. Lapsed olid mu uutest roosadest varvastest igatahes vaimustuses ja Karl soovib omasid ka varvida. Ja et asi veel parem oleks, kaisin yhe teise sobraga veel facial'is paev hiljem. Sain kaks kinkekaarti mobiilifirmalt ja pidime need ruttu ara kasutama. Nii et selline "ladies who lunch" elu peaaegu.
Nyyd on pikk nadalalopp - vaba esmaspaevaga, sest see on Vesak day ehk Buddha synnipaev. Loodetavasti jouame homme lopuks loomaaeda.

Hi everyone!
I have tryed to start a blog because I am getting all mixed up with the sporadic update emails and cannot remember what I have already written to whom. However I have not noticed that anybody at all has read it. Are we all too old to engage in generation Y pasttimes??? Well I have now copied the message into this email.
Please give me feedback if you are prepared to read a blog at all or I will try and send regular emails instead. (if we have been doing something worth writing about and if I have been disciplined enough to write it of course).
It has been a while since my last update already. Time just flies.
Two weeks ago we had our first night out since coming to Singapore. I have found a kind burmese lady who looks after the kids occasionally. We went for dinner to Clarke Quay with friends. It was exciting to see all the hustle and bustle of Singaporean night life. Lots of small children were out there quite late as well so we couldn't help thinking that this would have been fun for the kids as well. However it was nice not to have to chase the three-year-old little devils in these crowds right by the riverside. Maybe some day. We had dinner with an old Korean friend and her new husband. We had lost touch after moving to England and only found out about her being here in Singapore through a freaky coincidence - the secretary in Robert's company comes from Okpo and knows her. Well talking about "small world" I found out that I have to revise my original impression about Koje island in Korea. Whe I first arrived there I was sure that was the end of the world. Now it turns out, it really is the centre. We told Mia and James how I met Pam in Applemore preschool and how it turned out that we have both lived in Okpo just at different times and that both our men worked for LR. And Mia goes "Oh, Pam, of course, she used to live two floors under me and Alex went to school with Charlotte." So here you go.
There are people who display fantastic electronic remote controlled kites at Clarke Quay. They look like out of star wars, so I guess eventually we have to take the kids there, they will be fascinated.
We went on and did a must-do Singapore thing. Went to Raffles Hotel's Long bar and had a Singapore Sling. Fun to spill all the peanut shells but otherwise it seems to have grown to a bit of a tourist trap. Mainly people just passing through, among them loads of russians. We spent for the 2 drinks as much as we could spend on 3 hawker stall or food court lunches for the whole family. That is another Singapore-specific thing I guess - you can spend absolutely loads of money if you wish but you can get by quite cheaply as well if you have/choose to. Well, Raffles whas been ticked off now.

The whole last week I had the boys at home - school was closed because of hand-foot-and-mouth disease outbreak. We had a good exploring day on Monday - went to the Fort Canning Park and chased some lizards. Then shared a bowl of noodles at Clarke Quay and took the train home. Lots of walking and very hot but they keep up very well. Just short distance from home we met our biggest lizard so far. It was a monitor lizard that walked quite lazily by the canal. It was nearly 1 meter long and unlike the small ones who escape quickly this one just stood there and watched us until we left 15 minutes or so later. They are supposed to live in the nature reservats but this one was just here in the city!
I planned to continue our explorations the next day and we went to the botanic garden. managed to get halfway through and were hit by a heavy shower. After we had waited for it to stop and dryed ourselves we wanted to go to the other end to the childrens garden. Unfotunately it was wet and slippery and Karl couldn't stop his bike going down a steep slope, so he fell and Raoul came from behind and couldn't stop either so he fell all over Karl. Karl bruised his knees badly, they are just starting to heal now 10 days later and Raoul had probably gone over his face because he had a blue eye as well. So that was the end of this adventure and slowed us down for the rest of the week.
1st of May is a public holiday here and they open the president's palace and grounds for the public. As we had spent nearly 5 years in England and never made it to the Buckingham Palace I thought to take the chance here asap. It was a good day out. Quite amazing to find this kind of green space right at the Orchard Road. Lovely manicured lawns with swanpond and golf greens, old colonial buildings, magnificent plants. They had built a temporary kid's playground and had children from schools performing music. The main palace was quite impressive . Mia and James came along with her son Alex who is 7 and the kid's had a good runaround. Karl fell on his injured knees a few times and was miserable of course but never mind.
The boys are back at school now and I have even had a chance to have my hair cut and explore a bit of the town with Mia. Went to Arab street which is very nice and laid back area with nice shops, palace, mosque, museum, old shophouses. A completely different pace compared to chinatown.
Beatrice is happy at her new school. It is more work, at least homework compared to England. She has a spelling test every Monday and last week she had to learn words like "nocturnal, dictionary, suction" etc. I am having trouble with these! They have been to a museum, had their first assembly and charity week last week, going to theatre tomorrow. She has been to 2 birthday parties already and seems to make friends quickly. Enjoys the swimming lessons.
We have booked our tickets to Estonia for the summer and will arrive on 20th of July, leave on the 16th of August. Robert will be there for the last 2 weeks. Also his mom will come and see us there.
Thats all for now,
take care and lots of love from us all
Maris xxx

Singapuri elu

Avastasin ehmatusega, et viimane korralik ylevaade meie elust siin eestikeelsetele sopradele on juba kuu aega vana. Palun vaga vabandust. Yritasin vahepeal mingit blogi alustada, aga sellele ei ole eriti hea vastukaja tulnud, nii et saadan siis parem maili.
Nyyd oleme siis korralikult oma uude elusse sisse elanud. Lapsed koik koolis ja igapaevane rutiin kaigus. Beatrice on nyyd paar nadalat koolis kainud ja paistab oma eluga seal rahul olevat. On juba kainud kahe klassikaaslase synnipaevadel, esinenud aktusel, kainud muuseumis jne. Klassis on 16 last, mis on ju tublisti parem kui inglise riigikooli 26-30. Tood on ka rohkem - iga paev uus raamat kodus lugeda, igal esmaspaeval sonade kontroll (spellings). Kusjuures sonad, mis nadala jooksul tuleb ara oppida, on paris keerulised, naiteks eelmisel nadalal oli "nocturnal, dictionary, suction" jne. Inglismaal nad yldse veel nii kaugele ei olnud joudnud. Eelmine nadal oli koolis heategevusnadal, siis kaisin ka paar korda seal - laadal ja sponsoreeritud aktusel. Paris hea atmosfaar on. Tore on ka see, et meie condominiumis elab veel lapsi sealt koolist. Beatrice on sobrunenud kahe korea tydrukuga - 10-aastased kaksikud. Kui nad koik on valjas basseinis, siis voin rahus oma asjadega tegeleda, tydrukud mangivad isegi hea meelega meie poistega.

Poistel oli vahepeal yle nadala aja koolist paus. Nimelt on siin suur "kae-jala-ja-suu-haiguse" epideemia ja valitsus soovitas koolid, kus oli rohkem kui teatud arv juhtumeid, kinni panna. See on vaga nakkav ja eriti just vaikestele lastele. Onneks meie seda ei saanud ja loodetavasti on nad selle meie koolist ka nyyd valja juurinud. See loi muidugi minu suured plaanid segi. Kavatsesin siis poistega koos ringi kaia ja kohalikku elu uurida, aga eriti kaugele me sellega ei joudnud kahjuks. Esmaspaeval uurisime Fort Canning Parki, mis on selline vana kindlustusrajatis 2. maailmasoja aegsete maa-aluste kaikudega. Sinna asutas ennast ka Singapuri rajaja Raffles. Poisid ajasid sisalikke taga. Koduteel kohtasime aga just meie maja ligidal seni suurimat elukat - ligi meetripikkust monitorsisalikku, kes ei moelnudki eest ara joosta vaid meiega rahumeeli 15 minutit tott vahtis. Kuni pidime ara minema, sest Beatrice hakkas koolist tulema. Paris kihvt loom. Elab siin meie maja taga kanali aares. Juba teisipaeval, kui kaisime botaanika aias ja kavatsesime sealsesse laste aeda minna, juhtus teel onnetus, mis koik nassu ajas. Vihma oli sadanud ja maa oli libe. Karl ei saanud oma ratast pidama ja kukkus teel maest alla. Raoul tuli tagant ja lendas talle otsa. Karli polved olid hirmus katki ja silm ka sinine. Siis oli igavene tegemine, et sealt pargist koik need vigastatud lapsed ja rattad takso peale tassida. Ja oma hirmsate haavade tottu oli Karl muidugi ka mitu paeva rivist valjas. Nyyd on siis onneks koik jalle ok.
Me oleme saanud ka yhe lastevaba ohtu. Leidsin yhe Burma naise, kes vahest lapsi valvab ja koristab. (Yldse ei teadnud Burmast eriti midagi ja nyyd akki opin nii palju, eriti veel kuna just oli see hirmus tsyklon.)
Kaisime siis moni nadal tagasi ohtul valjas. Alustuseks sopradega soomas Clarke Quay'l. See on selline restoranide ja meelelahutuse keskus joe aares. Vaga tegevusrikas. Ja palju lapsi ohtul hilja valjas. See oleks kindlasti meie omadele ka meeldinud, aga ausalt oeldes oli ikka hea vahepeal niisama istuda ja mitte muretseda, et keegi on kadunud voi jokke kukkunud voi keegi tahab WCsse minna voi midagi muud sellist. Eks ykskord viime nad sinna, sest ohtuti on seal koos sellised tuulelohe lennutajad, kes korraldavad toelise tahtede soja taolise vaatemangu. Lohed on elektrooniliselt kaugjuhitavad, hasti manooverdatavad ja oma varviliste tuledega uhke vaatepilt.

Parast tegime ka yhe kohustusliku Singapuri kylastamise asja ara - joime Singapore Slingi Raffles hotelli Long Bar'is. Sealne pohiatraktsioon on voimalus pahklikoori maha visata. Ja seda koik ka monuga teevad, sest muidu voib siin prygi maha viskamise eest vaata et vangi minna. Aga pohiliselt on see siiski yks turistiloks (millesse eriti palju venelasi naib langevat). Meie kahe joogi hinna eest voime kolm korda kogu perega hawker stall'is korraliku lounasoogi saada. Aga see on ka yks Singapuri eripara, et voib kulutada raha suurte hunnikutega aga kui ei saa voi ei taha, siis saab paris odavalt ka labi. Naiteks taksosoit on kindlasti poole odavam kui Tallinnas (kui mitte rohkem).Yldse oleme kohaliku transpordiga nyyd hasti tutvunud, kuna auto pidamine on seotud igasuguste erilubade ja maksudega ja oluliselt kallim sellest kui koguaeg ainult taksoga soidaks, siis me autot ei kavatsegi osta. Soidame nii bussidega kui metrooga kui taksoga.

Kindlasti ei ole joudnud koigile kirjutada, et mingi eriti ebatoenaolise kokkusattumuse tottu leidsime siin yhe vana sobra Koreast. Roberti firma sekretar on korealanna Okpost ja tunneb Miat, kellega me seal tihedasti labi kaisime. Vahepeal olime yksteist kahjuks silmist kaotanud, kuna olime koik maailmas ringi kolinud. Nyyd siis koik siin. Mia on juba kaks aastat Singapuris oma poja ja uue mehega. (Nendega kaisimegi valjas.) Eile olime lastega nende juures mangimas ja soomas. Alex on 7, nii et sobivad Beatrice'iga vanuse poolest hasti, poisid on muidugi vaimustunud tema spidermani kraamist ja pyssidest jne. Nii et koigile midagi. Mina olen leidnud onneks kellegi, kellega ei pea tutvust jalle small-talkist alustama. Oleme isegi saanud kahekesi linna peale! Toeline luksus.

Vaatamisvaarsustest oleme veel tutvunud kohaliku presidendipaleega ja selle pargiga/golfivaljakuga. See avatakse laiemale publikule paar korda aastas riigipyhade ajal, ehk nyyd siis 1. mail. Paris uskumatu tundub, et selline suur roheline ala ja vanad koloniaalajastu hooned voiksid olla otse Orchard Roadil. Vahe uhkem kui Kadrioru VPK.

Olen joudnud lopuks ka juuksurisse ja saanud sealt olulist informatsiooni - mu juuksur Desmondil on olnud yks eestlannast klient varem. Nii et meid on siin rohkem! Kuigi mingit ametlikku voi poolametlikku esindust ega yhendust kyll pole leidnud ega ka juhuslikult kedagi kuskilt. Aga - mai lopus dirigeerib siin Beethovenit Eri Klas ja meil on piletid esimeses reas!No nii, nyyd on koik tanaseks koolist koju joudnud ja vaja hakata jalle tegeliku maailmaga tegelema nagu ohtusook ja ujumisriided jne.