Singapore Day 2008 in Melbourne
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Yesterday was the long-awaited for Singapore Day 2008 here in Melbourne! It's the second Singapore Day, with the first one held in NYC's Central Park last year.
It was very exciting to see so many Singaporeans gathering at Flinders Station to make the walk to the venue. I had at least five different groups of friends who were heading there but I got impatient with the excitement when I arrived at Flinders Station and decided to make my own way there first, ahead of everyone else in my groups.
Psst... can you guys spot the loooooong queue already forming up ahead in the background of the photo?
The day before, it was cloudy and rainy and we were a tad apprehensive about the weather, but according to one of the MC's at the event, they not only brought Singapore Day to us, they also brought the lovely Singapore sun along.
It was really lovely... it was sunny, but cool like an air-conditioned room at the same time. 
Wah biangz... not one, but TWO very very long queues!!!
I later overhead from a Singapore Day volunteer that 11,000 people had registered to attend the event online and 12,000 were expected! 
Biangz... I arrived there 15 mins early and yet, was already so far behind in the queue!
This is how the queue looked like 10 mins after the event started. FINALLY, I reached the entrance for a quick security check by the security guards. Then, after submitting my e-ticket, I was promptly tagged and stamped.
On to the show!!
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The event was held in the Sidney Myer Music Bowl, right in the city. It was awesome to view the city skyline from the gardens!
It was an interesting terrain with lots of slopes to climb. Good for working off the carbohydrates from the FREE food! Yes... FREE food!!
The super kiasu damn early birds were already having their little picnic, having taken their food way before the queues formed.
I thought it was an Aussie thing to just sit / lie smack on the grass with nary a care in the world but apparently, lots of Singaporeans adapt and adopt the lifestyle, including moi.
It was very thoughtful of the Singapore organisers to include a picnic mat in the FREE goodie bag too. Getting really excited now, I joined my first queue for the day - Bak Chor Mee!
Long, long queue! You have to queue for EVERY different dish you wanted! Sian, man! No one could have tried ALL the stalls because of the bloody queuing.
FINALLY, me and my bak chor mee!
Unfortunately, the Mee Pok at Singapore Chom Chom tastes way better.
I was offered the Bak Kut Teh as well but I didn't like the look (and smell) of it - the black peppercorn smell was too overpowering, plus the stall was manned by ang moh's and non-Chinese and I didn't think it would be authentic so, not interested. 
Breytonhartge and friends and also, Bear's sis and friend were two of the groups of people I knew were attending the event but, sitting down on the grass to eat my Bak Chor Mee was more important then...
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After finishing the Bak Chor Mee, what to do next, ah?
Darnit... should have quickly gone to join the queue for Satay (because that finished quickly and the queue soon became incredibly loooooong) and Chicken Wings but I was a tad amused at how long the Nasi Lemak queue was...
But ah, this queue is nothing compared to the queue for Satay, Char Kway Teow, Hokkien Mee and Chicken Wings!!
The shortest queue in that segment was for Kaya Toast. Haiz... Glory Kaya is so easily available here, so I guess no one really missed it.
Quite kewl of the organisers to think of using Singapore Street names...
For one day nia, a walk from Fort Canning to Newton Circus only took half a minute!
And waaaaah... sooooo good to be 'in' Bouna Vista again, my lao jia!
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Yeahh!!! I have some friends who went there....and i was told the queue was so long...=( too bad i didn't have any car or people around to go with....
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Aaaah harharhar... even the SAF had a booth cum a mobile kitchen stand in Singapore Day! The MC's said, "Just in case you guys miss home too much!"
Tastings of army food was distributed. I saved my appetite for the more substantial stuff.
Gave up on Nasi Lemak because of the crazy queue... saw these instead...
Spaghetti? Gotta be kidding... one can get the best in Lygon St! Therefore, I went for the claypot rice.
The display looked nice...
But of course pian lang one. What you got was more like soya sauce rice with two side dishes. All the portions were teeny portions nia, because free one what... what do you expect?
One last wistful glance at the Nasi Lemak ...
... and then on to the concert!
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Look! The Eureka Towers standing tall in the background! It's Melbourne's tallest residential complex. If you squint, you can see the protruding little 'cube' at the top floors where the skydeck is. It's all in glass and you can pay to go stand in that 'cube' where the floor is ALSO glass!
The concert had not begun, so on to take a look at Singapore's model classroom, obviously an effort to try to woo overseas Singaporeans back home.
The crowd is getting larger by the minute!
Ah ha!! PCK! He got all of us laughing with his antics! What was really interesting was there was an Indian Singaporean who dressed her son to look like Phua Chu Kang! That little boy got called onto the stage during a 'volunteer' segment.
And then a kinda weird, or rather, 'new age-y' kinda performance by the ... what do you call them... the drama and artistic productions arm of the SAF?
The stage backdrop actually looks pretty lovely.
One of the first Singapore Idol contestants, Daphne Khoo, performed two songs. She's apparently studying in the RMIT now.
Suddenly, a crowd gathered... orh... got VIP arrival! Can you spot the VIP?
My second favourite performance of the day, after PCK, of course - the Acapella group, Vocalicious!
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there're so many Singaporean there?
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Sigh... nearing the end of the day, one last chance for makan! I made a beeline for the Hokkien Mee because it received rave reviews and I saw one GIANT prawn given with each serving!!
Lookee... GIANT prawn!!
Compare that sibey tua jiak prawn to my thumb to have an idea of how really sibeh tua jiak it was!!
Shiok, man!! And look at how everyone is enjoying themselves, just sprawled out wherever, whenever, doing whatever!
Do you think they can woo us back to return to Singapore for good?
I don't think I can ever give up the carefree, leisure-packed lifestyle in return for the stressful ratrace back home, man! You can tell we are Singaporeans from how we prioritise our food! Standing up / sitting down / lying down, alone or with friends and family, food comes first!
And all too soon, it all ended.
I only got to meet two groups of friends and missed meeting up with the other three groups. I guess we were all too busy doing the most important thing of all - queuing up for food! I had a fantastic day, but am pissed at one thing - I didn't realise the Singapore Day T-shirts were given FREE and thought I'd go buy them after the concert, but by then, gone!!! They were all gone!!!
I'm really grateful to the organisers and the volunteers who helped to make this event possible. So much thanks to the hawkers who slogged non-stop for us and to the performers too, for making us laugh and for giving us a feel-good, nostalgic feeling.
I wonder where they will hold Singapore Day 2009, but hope that sooner rather than later, Singapore Day will return to Melbourne again. -
Originally posted by fairlady_xoxo:
Yeahh!!! I have some friends who went there....and i was told the queue was so long...=( too bad i didn't have any car or people around to go with....
You've got to get over your apprehension of public transport and slowly learn how to get around Victoria via public transport. It took me a while to get the hang of it, so no worries, eventually, you'll get there!
I did have five groups of friends, at least, who attended the event, but I only met up with two groups. I was by myself most of the time and yes, a large part of time was spent queuing up for food.
A bit sian... didn't get to eat Mee Siam, Mee Soto, Chilli Crab and Satay. I wonder how come no Rojak, Chee Cheong Fun, Soon Kueh, Bee Hoon and Ngor Hiang. But oh well, free one, cannot hiam!
BTW, which suburb are you in? I'm in Richmond.
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fairlady in sydney
hahaha
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Har ?!?! .... Spaghetti ? ......
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SAF tat one is MDC - Music and Drama Co
Daphne Khoo apparently did her attachment overseas in Melbourne when she was pursuing her diploma course last year
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I'm at Kensington, NSW
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Wah lao! the seccom officer protecting WKS looks like WP's LTK!!!!! for a moment i tot the VIP was him! hahahahahaha
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goodness. there're so many singaporeans in melbourne! looks like fun was had by all, although I tell you, I'd have been too lazy to queue for food.
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looks like a really cool event!
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I still don't get it .... how come, between the nasi lemak and claypot rice .... there's ....... spaghetti .....
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Originally posted by av98m:
goodness. there're so many singaporeans in melbourne! looks like fun was had by all, although I tell you, I'd have been too lazy to queue for food.
Yeah, the queuing was buggerall! However, don't forget that there are those of us who've been here for years and so, they die die MUST eat the food!
Hopefully, Singapore Day will soon return to Melbourne or anywhere in Australia because I will plan a trip with my other Singaporean friends here just to go join in the fun.
BTW, there were booths where potential employers tried to recruit the Singaporean Uni students. There was also subtle propaganda to encourage Singaporeans to return home for good although I must say it was done tastefully.
One of my Aussie friends commented that I'm an odd mix of fierce pride in being a Singaporean, yet I have chosen to migrate for good.
I do love Singapore and I consider myself lucky to have been born there and enjoyed the education and relatively 'clean-cut' childhood without all the booze and drugs and such, and I guess deep inside, I'm always a Singaporean BUT... I love Singapore more when I'm far far away! Makes sense? -
Originally posted by Fatum:
I still don't get it .... how come, between the nasi lemak and claypot rice .... there's ....... spaghetti .....
PRECISELY!! I was a tad surprised too!
I mean, if I wanted good spaghetti, I'd head to Lygon Street or one of the many Italian restaurants along Chapel St! -
Hey, Fatum... wanted to ask you this : Did you have this experience whereby when you first arrived in Canada, your state seemed terribly large but as you slowly explore the neighbouring suburbs, your 'territory' expands and the distances you had to travel no longer seemed THAT far, and the places you go to no longer appear to be THAT distant either?
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Originally posted by Rhonda:
Yeah, the queuing was buggerall! However, don't forget that there are those of us who've been here for years and so, they die die MUST eat the food!
Hopefully, Singapore Day will soon return to Melbourne or anywhere in Australia because I will plan a trip with my other Singaporean friends here just to go join in the fun.
BTW, there were booths where potential employers tried to recruit the Singaporean Uni students. There was also subtle propaganda to encourage Singaporeans to return home for good although I must say it was done tastefully.
One of my Aussie friends commented that I'm an odd mix of fierce pride in being a Singaporean, yet I have chosen to migrate for good.
I do love Singapore and I consider myself lucky to have been born there and enjoyed the education and relatively 'clean-cut' childhood without all the booze and drugs and such, and I guess deep inside, I'm always a Singaporean BUT... I love Singapore more when I'm far far away! Makes sense?
when you're far away its easier to selectively remember the good parts and filter out the bad -
Originally posted by av98m:
when you're far away its easier to selectively remember the good parts and filter out the badTrue! True!!
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Originally posted by Rhonda:
Hey, Fatum... wanted to ask you this : Did you have this experience whereby when you first arrived in Canada, your state seemed terribly large but as you slowly explore the neighbouring suburbs, your 'territory' expands and the distances you had to travel no longer seemed THAT far, and the places you go to no longer appear to be THAT distant either?
you get used to different yardsticks of distance ..... in here I'd be groaning at a 40 minutes journey ... in pluto I wouldn't think twice of driving 3 hours just to go fishing ......
and yeah ... the land mass is huge, but the place feels no bigger than singapore after a while ...
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Originally posted by Fatum:
you get used to different yardsticks of distance ..... in here I'd be groaning at a 40 minutes journey ... in pluto I wouldn't think twice of driving 3 hours just to go fishing ......
and yeah ... the land mass is huge, but the place feels no bigger than singapore after a while ...
Interesting, isn't it?
I recall that when I first arrived, I thought Honeymousey lived like very, very, very far away, like off the face of earth, almost!
Now, it's like, chey, not THAT far what! Besides, on the occasions when friends and I drove up to the countryside areas, the drive was really enjoyable. We got to see amusing road signs on the way, look at cows and horses grazing, look at pastures, look at trees, sheep, flowers... all very lovely!
Sigh... all my friends are bugging me to go get my driving licence soon...
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yes you better ! ......