Ghost month is here

This is a very common sight around Singapore today... It's the start of Ghost month, when the ghosts of deceased are supposedly released from heaven and hell to wander around the earth for a month. And so shops and eateries set up tables with food offered to these ghosts, and gold coloured joss paper and hell money is also burned so that the ghosts can use them.

Households also do their fair share of burning of incense and joss paper, to please the wandering ghosts so that they don't bring misfortune into the house. This picture above is the ground floor of our block of flats... I guess people improvise rituals to suit modern day living by doing the burning at the edge of the tiled floor area of the block.

To read more about the Ghost month, consult the fountain of knowledge - Wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_Festival

Do I get preferential treatment...

... on the MRT train nowadays? That's what a friend asked me today. Well, it is generally regarded as a common courtesy to offer your seat "to those who need it more". That includes the elderly, the handicapped, those with young children and the pregnant. And there are many advertising campaigns to remind the general public of this obligation.

Well, I replied, only somtimes. Maybe I don't look that pregnant yet. Pong is constantly amused by me asking him if I look pregnant. I think it rather depends on what clothes I wear - sometimes I just look fat. Although Pong now replies almost every day that I do look pregnant, regardless of what I wear. I guess at 24 weeks, it is hard to hide the fact that I am pregnant.

I think sometimes people don't offer me a seat, not because they do not think I need it more than them. (Indeed, I may not need the seat as much as them. After all, pregnancy is not an illness, but a normal life event right?) I think sometimes people are just too engrossed in what they are doing to realise who is standing in front of them or what is going on in front of their eyes. This man was so engrossed in looking at his phone that he didn't realise I took a photo of him, even though I was standing right in front of him in a crowded MRT train.

More pictures of the baby... it's going to be a girl!

Here is one of her with her arm and hand reaching towards her face.

And this is one of her face! Pong says it looks a little scary at the moment...

General elections are here!

General elections are here, and there is really a sense of excitement in the air. This is the 2nd time since independence in 1965 that the People's Action Party (PAP) was not returned to power on nomination day. At the last elections in 2006, 47 out of 84 seats were contested, the first time that the PAP was not returned to power on nomination day. But they still won 82 out of 84 seats in parliament.
This time around, 82 out of 87 seats are contested, and there is a hope that this will be a watershed election where the number of opposition seats in parliament can grow.

There is a great disparity between the support for the incumbent and opposition at the nightly rallies. But whether this opposition support translates into votes or not remains to be seen. First picture is of turnout at PAP rally, second picture is of the turnout at an opposition rally.

For Matthew...

Well, these are technically trams rather than trains... but I thought Matthew might be interested in them still... it's a cross between a train and a bus.

There's a green one... they share the road with cars and bicycles. So there are tram lines in the middle of the road, and more complicated traffic rules at junctions.

And here is a brown tram waiting at the traffic light for its turn. The brown trams are free for everyone apparently, sponsored jointly by the tourism board and the city council and maybe someone else.

Hello from Downunder!

I am currently holidaying in Melbourne, Australia, for a week, visiting my aunt and uncle who have migrated here. And this is my prize photo from today's visit to the city centre.

Mobile phones are taking over the world!

Well, at least they seem to be doing so in Singapore.

On the MRT (mass rapid transit) train, almost everyone entertains themselves by looking at their mobile phone...

My husband is no exception, here he is playing with his phone.

Even little kids play with them! If ever there was a plan to take over the world, I think the plan will have to include mobile phones.