Singapore - SAM (Singapore Art Museum)

When my husband and I travel, we enjoy visiting museums, especially art museums.  The Singapore Art Museum (SAM) was just a block from our hotel and one of the first places we visited when we arrived into town.  We were fortunate enough to go on a day that offered free admission!!  Although the museum was not very big, there were many interesting pieces of artwork on display.  We thoroughly enjoyed the museum.  Here are some pictures of my favorite artwork in this museum!  (Remember that you can click on a picture to enlarge it.)

I just love these next three paintings.  

There were part of a larger collection of about 20 paintings, but these were my personal favorites.  

The next 8 sculptures are part of a group of about 25.  Each one is only about 8 inches tall.

This BIG puppy was outside in the courtyard of the museum.  It stood well over 15 feet tall.

This piece is called "Smash the Cool!"

Apparently everyone is a smoker, even the Mona Lisa!

 

This one is called "Boom Box Liberty".

This piece just amazes me.  The entire thing is made of plastic shampoo bottle tops.  

Some are open and some are closed.  So simply, yet so creative!!

Close up of the shampoo bottle lids.

This sculpture is made entirely of shredded Thai Baht (money).

This artwork is made of small statues of Buddha.  Each one is stuck into the wall to create this image.

Close up of the little Buddha statues that make of the large face.

Singapore - Gardens by the Bay

For the winter holiday break, Mike and I visited a couple of countries in Southeast Asia.  Our first stop was Singapore.  While in Singapore, Mike and I visited the Gardens by the Bay.  The key attractions here are two conservatories, the Flower Dome and the Cloud Forest, along with the Supertrees.  The Flower Dome is a two-level glass building and houses 1000 year old olive trees along with numerous flowers and trees of the Mediterranean and subtropical regions of the world.  The Cloud Forest is a seven level glass structure that contains lush green plants and several flowers that I have never seen before in my life.  Although both conservatories are beautiful, my favorite is the Cloud Forest.  There is a huge waterfall that goes right down the middle of the conservatory and paths that wind around the plants and waterfall.  The conservatories are a part of a larger complex which includes several outside gardens and a new series of structures called Supertrees.  The 15 Supertrees are metal structures that stand 7 to 35 meters tall and are scattered throughout the gardens.  All of the Supertrees have plants growing on them with hopes of one day covering all of the metal.  Some of the trees are connected together by a narrow walk way that can be accessed via an elevator inside two of the trees.  The largest of the trees has a restaurant and observation deck at the top, which Mike and I visited and had a round of drinks.  Here are some pictures from our visit to the conservatories, followed by some pictures from the observation desk of the Supertree.  The video at the end is taken from the very top of the Supertree, where it was quite windy.  (Remember, you can click on a picture to enlarge it!)

My guardian angel drives a moto

After living here about a month, Mike and I purchased a scooter.  It's a cute red and white Fino and we were excited to finally have our own mode of transportation.  (I should note that scooters, motorcycles, motorbikes are all collectively referred to as "motos" and are the most common form of transportation here in Cambodia.)  A few Saturdays later, we drove our moto out to the school where we work.  The school is located about 8 km outside of Siem Reap and we made the trip out there without a problem.  Riding along side a herd of cows, occasionally waving to small children playing along the side of the road, whizzing past rice paddles with the hot, humid air blowing in our faces, we were loving our new purchase.

Unfortunately, on the way home, our moto completely stopped working and we were stranded on the side of the road.

Within five minutes of our moto breaking down, a young Cambodian man pulled over to the side of the road near us.  He spoke English quite well and offered to help us out.   He tried to start our moto but it would not go.  After trying for several minutes, he offered to walk with us down the road to a mechanic who might be able to fix our bike.  He spoke with the mechanic and served as a translator between the mechanic and us.  The mechanic looked at the bike and informed us that the bike would need a lot of work and he does not have the tools to fix it.  Seeing that this mechanic was not going to work out, the young Cambodian man suggested that we get a tuk-tuk to take us into town and find a mechanic that can fix the bike.  Since we were outside of town and there was little traffic, we struggled to hail a tuk-tuk.  The young Cambodian offered to go into town and find a tuk-tuk driver that would help us.  About fifteen minutes later, the young man returns with a tuk-tuk driver in tow. Again, serving as translator, he communicates with the driver what we need then process to help Mike and the driver load the moto into the carriage of the tuk-tuk.   

By the time we loaded our moto into the tuk-tuk, almost two hours had passed since this young man first stopped to offer help.  Throughout this time, he happily conversed with Mike and me, calling us his brother and sister.  He never asked for money for his services and at one point even called his wife to let her know he would be late for lunch because he was helping us.  I am tremendously grateful for this man and his willingness to help out complete strangers.  Over the years, many people have come in (and sadly out) of my life, stepping in and offering help when I needed it most.  Sometimes it's a family member, coworker or friend, other times it's a complete stranger who just happen to be in the right place at the right time to extend me a helping hand.  These individuals I lovingly refer to as "my guardian angels".  On this particular day, my guardian angel drove a moto.