DONALD AND CATHY'S WORLD ADVENTURE

Our apartment!

 

Our apartment in Singapore - the living room.

 

Hop on over to my art blog - ma vie trouvee to get the full tour.  Enjoy!

 

 

 

Thaipusam- a Hindu festival

 

  Thaipusam

 

Warning……this post is not for the faint-hearted!  I thought we had interesting parades in Brussels…wait to you see the photos from this one!

 

Thaipusam is a fascinating Hindu festival celebrated in India, Singapore, and other places around the world.  We have a sizable Indian population here in Singapore so the festival was quite large.  D had to work, so I went with H, a new friend I made here in Singapore.  We met at 6:55 am – we did not want to miss anything!

The festival commemorates the occasion when Parvati (a Hindu Goddess) gave Murugan (Hindu diety or god)  a "spear" so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadam - which he did.

 

 

Thaipusam is a time for Hindus of all castes and cultures to say thank you and show their appreciation to Murugan.  

 

It is not so much a celebration, but more of a time of penance and consecration to the gods, usually involving self-mortification in a test of mind over pain.

 

 

The foot procession starts at the Srinivasa Perumal in the Little India district and ends at Thandayuthapani Temple – a 4 kilometers walk (approximate 2.5 miles).

 

 

Yellow and orange are the colors of Murugan, and this is what you will see most people wearing.

 

Most carry pots of milk or "paal kudam" on their heads or in pails as a show of devotion and love to the gods. 

 

 

The most intense form of devotion is the carrying of kavadi — an elaborate framework carried on their shoulders. 

 

 

The kavadi has various shapes and sizes, from the simple - a wooden stick with two baskets at each end (they contain rice, milk or other articles that the devotee has vowed to offer the gods) slung across the shoulder....

....to the decorative structure of flower interwoven with peacock feathers.

  

 

 

To wear a kavadi, the devotees must abstain from meat, alcohol, cigarettes and sex for at least a week prior to the festival, some extend the period up to a month.  And they must fast completely for 24 hours prior to the walk.

 

 

 

They attach the kavadi by piercing a number of metal rods into the torso skin to hold it in place.  

 

So if you were wondering if it really went through the skin...you can see the answer is YES!

 

 

 

 

The white powder is holy ash.

 

 

Some of the kavadis can weigh up to 60 pounds.  In recent times, the men wear belts in order to carry the weight of the kavadi on their waist instead of on the piercings. 

 

 

 

 

 

It is said that devotees are able to enter a trance, feel no pain, do not bleed from their wounds and have no scars left behind.  Really?  I am pretty sure I would be crying from the pain!  We did not see any blood.

 

 

 

Many of the hooks had limes at the end.  The lime symbolizes protection by the deities but it is also to add weight and therefore pain.

 

 

 

 

Most of the men carrying the kavadi were pierced with two skewers (or 'vels' - symbolic spears); one through the tongue, and one through the cheeks. 

 

 

 

 

The piercing by skewers symbolizes several things including that the devotee has temporarily renounced the gift of speech so that he may concentrate more fully upon the deity and that the devotee has passed wholly under the protection of the deity who will not allow him to shed blood or suffer pain.   

As a rule, men wear kavadi; the women "only" skewer their tongue or cheeks and we saw very few women with piercings.

A few of the men were pulling a small chariot with hooks attached to their backs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How about this photo??  She is as happy as she can be while he is struggling to walk.

 

Some walk on sandals studded with nails.

 

 

 

Some believe carrying the kavadi washes away sins through self-inflicted suffering; others say the kavadi symbolizes the triumph of good over evil.

 

 

 

 

An entourage of relatives and friends who support and encourage them throughout the pilgrimage accompanies those who carry the kavadi. 

 

This made it very difficult to photograph them as the entourage was in the way of the “perfect” photo!  The helpers sing and dance and protect them from the crowds and form a protective ring around the kavadi so that the wearer can dance freely….Yes, these men actually dance around with spikes in their sides!

 

 

 

 

It is definitely a family event and all ages participated from the young to the old.

At the end of the night, the kavadi is dismounted, the needles and skewers are removed by the priest, and the milk in the pots—which has stayed pure—is poured over the deity (god) from head to foot.  

Next year, I hope to get to see the actual piercing take place!

 

Happy Chinese New Year - January 23, 2012

 

Happy Chinese New Year -  January 23, 2012

2012 The Year of the Dragon

 

 

To learn all about this fun and interesting holiday,

 click here to visit my art blog - ma vie trouvee. 

Happy New Year!

What and where are we eating?

 

At hawker stands!

 

A hawker center is the name given to an open-air complex that has several small booths or hawker stands that sell a variety of inexpensive food.  

Each dish is made to order, so it arrives hot and is delicious.  You can add additional peppers or spices if you like it hot.

 

 

Hawker centers sprung up in urban areas in the 1950s and 1960s and were considered a venue for the less affluent.  They were primarily built to reduce the unhygienic food preparation by unlicensed street hawkers.  

Over the years, hygiene standards have vastly improved and the food stall operators are given cleanliness grades (A,B,C) by the National Environment Agency (NEA) to help customers make an informed choice.

Today the hawker stalls are becoming mainstream and are popping up in food courts in shopping malls.  They are still independently owned by the family - no McDonald's or Burger King in these food centers.

 

All meals are served with rice or noodles.  They predominately serve pork, chicken, and fish.  And eggs, lots of eggs.  Beef is not very popular here.  

 

The one below has dried fish on the top - I think this is an acquired taste.  Luckily I tasted it before I mixed it in the soup. 
 

 

 

Oh and the very best part of the hawker stands is they are CHEAP!  We have never paid over 5 Singaporean dollars ($3.85 USD) for these meals.

 

 

The restaurant in the photo below is one step up from a hawker stand. They seat you and take your order, but it is still very casual.  This one was located in the part of Singapore they call Chinatown.

 

This restaurant served chicken only and you could have it on noodles or rice.  Look at that beautiful crispy skin.

 

 

We picked noodles.  This meal was twice the price of the hawker stands, 9 SD ($7 USD).  The owner told us they have been in business since 1963!  It was very good.

 

 

 

 

If you want to see what a rambutan is - hop over to my art blog, ma vie trouvee.

 

What's In - What's out list for 2012

 

 

Donald and Cathy’s

What’s in / What’s out list for 2012

  

In                                          Out

 

Singapore                                                    Brussels

 

sandals and flip-flops                                         boots

 

shorts                                                                skinny jeans and tights

 

casual short sleeves for work                            suits  for work

 

English                                                               French

 

bubble tea and fruit juice                                  beer and wine

 

iced coffee                                                        hot coffee

 

hawker stands                                                   Michelin restaurants

 

chop sticks                                                        forks                                           

 

ice cream sandwiches                                        waffles

 

fish                                                                   beef        

 

rice                                                                   potatoes

 

broth-based meals                                            cream-based meals

 

ice in drinks                                                      never ice in drinks    

 

Asian décor                                                       Paris décor                                  

 

full-sized refrigerator                                      tiny refrigerator

shoe lockers                                                      coat closet

 

marble floors                                                    wood floors

 

cold (air conditioned ) apartment                      hot apartment           

  

Singaporean dollars                                           Euros

 

all stores open on Sunday                                 all stores closed on Sunday

 

most stores open until 11 PM                            all stores close at 7 PM               

 

buses                                                               trams

 

right-hand drive                                              left-hand drive

 

muggy heat                                                      muggy cold

 

green outside                                                  gray outside

 

tissue sellers                                                  street bums      

 

tweeting birds                                                honking car horns

 

customer service                                            indifferent clerks

 

This is from our first four days in Singapore!  We are enjoying it all - learning new things by the minute.  

 

Our new grocery store in Singapore

 

Singapore Begins Now!

 

We are settling into our new apartment - well,  with three suitcases full of stuff.  We have been out and about and have explored the neighborhood.

 

The closest grocery store - about a 5 min walk across the main street is what they call a wet market - which is an outdoor market with very local food.

 

Beautiful fresh fish.

 

 

 

 

Unusual fruits and Vegetables.

 

We bought these - sweet and interesting - some what like a lychee.  They are called Rambutans.

 

 

And the very smelly, icky durian fruit.  We have not tried them yet - but will soon!