Street Soccer II

The winding down of the European club season marks an annual rite of Spring here in Singapore: the Abacus Street Soccer Tournament. This is put on by the company's Rec Club, which breaks the employees into four teams for various competitions throughout the year. Last year, our teams were named after animated characters: X-Men, Justice League, and so on. My team was the Incredibles (appropriate, given my participation; those who have seen the movie will understand the reference). This year, we are named after Formula One teams: Ferrari, BMW, Renault, and my team, McLaren.

Tonight, we took to the street soccer court for the annual showdown. You may recall last year, when I scored half of our team's goals (one of the two) during our two matches, as we solidly staked our claim to fourth place. Well, I was determined to build on that this year, as I led McLaren against Renault in the semifinals.

We were overmatched, talent-wise, and we found ourselves down 3-0 at halftime. They could handle the ball, pass well, and shoot with power. We claimed none of those qualities. In fact, our loan goal in the 5-1 defeat came just before the final whistle, when one of our opponents jokingly split his legs to let a slowly-kicked ball go through, much to the surprise of the relaxed goaltender, who just watched it roll in. We would again play in the consolation game.

We actually matched up well with our BMW opponents, and I am sure the pundits would have given us the pre-game nod for victory. They put nary a shot on goal the entire game, but our plentiful opportunities were wasted in haste or poor execution. So, the scoreless draw went to penalties.

For those followers of the European version of the Beautiful Game, you know how the Champions League (Europe's top club competition) ended last week. Manchester United defeated Chelsea 6-5 on penalties, after Blues captain John Terry missed what would have been the winning penalty. Well, I was to take McLaren's first penalty, and I was not about to relive that moment. So, I dribbled up the court, using my first of three touches to set the stage, and then I surprised the goaltender by firing with my second touch. Goal! Just because the ball didn't go anywhere near the direction I had intended didn't make it count any less - it had found the back of the net. 1-0. Two McLaren saves and another successful penalty gave us the 3rd place title. The Glory!

And so, we inch up the ladder. At this rate, should have my chance to play on the championship side. I just hope they keep it at four teams again next year!

A Night At The Races

The American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore hosted a Tex-Mex night earlier in May at the Singapore Turf Club. The island's race course is in Kranji, within sight of the causeway across the Straits of Johor that connects Singapore with Malaysia.

The event celebrated Cinco de Mayo (I think Americans celebrate this with more fervor than Mexicans). Cafe Iguana, a local restaurant, catered the Tex-Mex food, and we were scheduled to receive a visit by officials from the Mexican consulate, although I don't think they ever showed. The consulate did provide the festive decorations.

The event also showcased the Turf Club, which is a very nice facility (especially our huge enclosed luxury suite and a good venue to watch the races). I don't know how the horses run in this weather, but they do.

The betting is slightly different than what I am used to. Win bets are the same - your horse must come in first. Place bets are the same as Show bets in the States, however - you win if your horse comes in first, second, or third. There is no second place bet. There are other bets similar to those with which I am familiar, although named differently: a Quinella in the States is a Forecast here, and a Trifecta is a Tierce. You can even bet Even/Odd, winning if you picked correctly the parity of the horse's number.

Without doing much homework, I picked Daring Dame in the first race, and she came in a winner (well, second, but I had her in Win and Place bets). That emboldened me, and I raised my bets and took on longer odds. Perhaps partaking in the Cinco de Mayo celebrations assisted here. In any event, I did okay, down a little, but - as usual - I was THIS close in two races to having a very big payday.

All in all, it was a fun night. The Turf Club is one of the nicest tracks I have visited. Just the week after the event, it hosted the Singapore Airlines International Cup and the KrisFlyer International Sprint, two of the region's biggest races of the year. I wasn't able to attend, however, as I was in Taiwan.

Beisbol!

After missing live baseball for the first time since the Reagan Administration last year, I made sure I hit the ballparks during my visit back to the States. First up was an American League clash between the Rangers and the Minnesota Twins, on a cool, gray day in late April in Texas. I was the fortunate recipient of a free ticket, given by a man with three boys in tow (one his son, the others friends). I thought I would have a nice conversation with them, especially after he told me of he and his wife's interest in teaching English in Vietnam once his children graduated. But, I guess his tickets were elsewhere, as they never showed up at the seats!

Anyway, it was good to be back at the ballpark. And the Rangers were very good on this day - Vicente Padilla pitched a complete game shutout, as Texas piled it on 10-0 to win the rubber game of the series.

A highlight was the sight of Jerry Jones's playpen going up next door. The Cowboys' stadium looks incredible, even at its just-post-skeletal stage. While I don't like the Cowboys, I am impressed with their future home.

The Rangers whet my appetite, but I was on my way to the best baseball city in America: St. Louis. I caught the Tuesday night game against Cincinnati, again in chilly weather. The first Reds batter hit safely, and then Redbird pitchers got 24 outs without allowing another hit (including the leadoff batter in a bizarre run-down double play to end the first inning). The bullpen took the one-hit shutout into the ninth, only to give up a two-run homer in the 7-2 win. Unfortunately, the bullpen's performance that night was just a hint of what was to come.

The Cubs came to town the following weekend, and we had seats in the Champions Club along the third base line for the first game of the three-game set. Only a half game separated the hometown nine from the northsiders for first place in the National League Central, which added some urgency to this early-season series (as if you needed that between these old rivals). As usual, the park was a mix of Cardinals and Cubs fans, with the normal sea of red (a Cardinals home game crowd resembles a college football crowd, with its to-a-man affinity for the home colors) nearly matched with large swaths and random sprinklings of blue.

That Friday happened to be my brother Alex's birthday, and he came up from Amarillo for the game. I was able to get batting practice tickets, which allowed us on the field for both team's BP. After, we got to hang out in the clubhouse and drink free, cold, free beer. It was great!



The game itself was pretty tight, but a couple of glaring miscues by Cubs left fielder Alfonso Soriano (no, not Roosevelt), much to the delight of the home crowd, gave the Cardinals a 3-1 lead (he looked like a pitiful little leaguer out there). As baseball allows, however, the same Soriano crushed a two-run home run in the top of the ninth to tie the game. Only when Skip Schumaker hit his own two-run homer, of the walk-off variety, in the 11th was the game decided. Cardinals Win!



I get subtle reminders every once in a while of the things I miss. And I find that there are some things I don't miss at all. But, I really, really do miss baseball, especially going to games. Keep sending me your descriptions of the games you attend, from scores to highlights to food consumed. I just love it.

Back in the US...A

It has been a while since I last wrote. Unfortunately, it is because not much of interest has been going on. I am transitioning to two new bosses (one Abacus, one Sabre), so work has taken up much of my time. My last trip before going back to the US in late April was in February, to Ko Samui. My personal heavy season of travel, however, has begun. I was back in Dallas and St. Louis for a golf trip and much needed baseball fix, and the next four months will see journeys to Taiwan, Korea, Colorado, and Napa, as well as two visits from American friends/family and the Singapore Grand Prix. I hope to fit in a short trip to Phnom Penh and maybe the Philippines somewhere in there.

It has been more than a year now since I first touched down in Singapore. When you don't think about it, you can forget just how long and grueling travel over the Pacific can be. I find that going eastward is fine for me - I immediately acclimate to the US time zones. Coming back, however, is murder. I arrived Sunday night, and I didn't feel completely normal until Wednesday. I must be getting old.

Anyway, the trip was fantastic. I saw old friends and family, played golf and watched baseball, enjoyed the stormy late Spring weather, and ate American food only as you can get it in America.

I flew United this trip, which leaves out of the beautiful new Terminal 3 in Changi Airport. This really is an amazing piece of architecture. The airport authority has designed it to be a destination for locals, with many restaurants and retail outlets outside of security (even a grocery store!). Currently, however, you don't see too much daytime traffic going through there. United has two flights out per day - 6.45 and 7.15. This doesn't give you much time to browse the shops or get some breakfast. Most of the flights are early morning or very late evening - I counted four departing in the 9.00 pm hour, while 11 depart between 11.00 pm and 1.00 am. Until more daytime traffic arrives, it will be a quiet time for the shops and eateries.



My itinerary took me to Hong Kong, San Francisco, and Dallas-Fort Worth. The Hong Kong-San Francisco leg was tough, 12 hours packed on the window in the back of a 747. I had two older Chinese men seated in my row, and when the one in the middle spilled water on me a couple of hours into the flight, I was pretty indignant. Perhaps as a lesson in humility from above, I spilled coffee on him about an hour before we landed. Fortunately, most of the coffee spilled on me, although it was quite hot and led to some discomfort for about a day!

The quick layover in San Francisco allowed me to grab some See's Candy - my favorite - before heading to Dallas. And at 4.10 pm, 22 hours and 25 minutes after I took off in Singapore, I was in Texas.

The trip over, however, was better than the trip back. A short flight from St. Louis to Chicago was followed by a 15 hour flight to Hong Kong. A four hour layover and four hour jump to Singapore rounded out a 25 hour day - 27 door to door. As mentioned, I wasn't right for three days.

But, it was all worth it. More to come...

SIA to Houston

Singapore Airlines began its direct service to Houston on March 20th. The flight stops in Moscow on its 22 hour journey around the globe. This is an interesting option for me (now that the airline has decided to change its direct Singapore-Los Angeles flights into all business class flights), and I hope to fly it sometime. But, the advertisement for the new service really hit home - it shows the Singapore Girl in a hot air balloon overlooking a stylized representation of the southern US, which includes spots of tourism interest such as Atlanta, Memphis, and Dallas. And Palo Duro Canyon. I have attached a picture, and you can see a drawing of the canyon near the Panhandle. These ads are on the walls in several subway stations here, and they are a nice reminder of home, 11,000 miles away.

Arts: Harry Connick, Jr.

Singapore is not New York or London, but it has a decent arts scene. I wrote last year about the Singapore Arts Festival, which featured an eclectic mix of artists from around the world. This month, Singapore hosted its Mosaic Music Festival, a ten-day run of shows that opened with one of my favorite artists: Harry Connick, Jr.

I had never seen Connick in concert, so I jumped at the chance. He played the Esplanade Theatre, which is housed in the "bug eyes" structure at the mouth of the Singapore River. We had balcony seats, with good sight lines to Harry and his 11 piece band. He entitled the tour, "My New Orleans Tour", and it was a tribute to his home city. He played all kinds of songs, from upbeat classics to soulful, jazzy numbers that would have been at home in a smoky little bar just off Bourbon Street. These were peppered by solos from his talented band mates, as well as plenty of spotlight time for Harry on the piano.

Connick is immensely talented. In addition to his excellent work on the ivories, he often took centre stage to sing and dance. One number had him dancing with his friend, Lucien Barbarin, an excellent trombonist and jazz singer, that included a Ricky Martin-type booty shake across the stage. For a guy my age, Harry is in quite good shape!

On top of everything, he is hilarious. He played the crowd like a comedian, picking out people in the audience and even coming out in the crowd to get his picture taken with one fan. This after he had read the man's name, phone number, and email address from off his business card!

All in all, it was a fantastic performance. If you ever have a chance to see him live, GO! His trip in Singapore was part of a larger Asian and Australian tour, but I think his stay in Singapore, while brief, proved far more enjoyable than that in his next venue. In Shanghai, where he flew the next day, he inadvertently submitted an old song list to the authorities there, who closely monitor all Western performances. Apparently, they were in no mood to grant exceptions (the Icelandic artist Bjork just a few days earlier had ended her concert with a cry of "Free Tibet", which led to the increased scrutiny of foreign artists). So, he was forced to follow that song list, which meant that most of the time he played solo while his band sat silently on stage. I suppose that in China, the old adage applies: the song remains the same.

Travel: Ko Samui

Thailand's third largest island, Ko Samui (alternatively, Koh Samui), is a sparkling gem in the Gulf of Thailand, just off the sliver of mainland resting between Myanmar and Malaysia. I was fortunate to travel there on business, and I stayed the weekend to see the island. Bangkok Airways, "Asia's Boutique Airline" (as it calls itself), offers the only non-stop service from Singapore, and the flight is just over an hour and a half. Upon arrival, however, you feel as if you could not be farther away from the urban environment of Singapore. The airport is entirely out of doors - you walk off the plane, across the tarmac to the open air arrival area, with Customs & Immigration, baggage claim, waiting and transport pick-up areas. The ride in the hotel van takes you through back streets and what appear to be dark alleys, and all of a sudden you pull onto a heavily trafficked commercial street, full of restaurants, bars, retail, and tourists.

I stayed in Chaweng, on the east coast of the island. It boasts (according to the guidebooks) of the most beautiful beaches on the island, and it did not disappoint. The island is also home to beautiful mountains and jungle, which in some areas rise directly up from the beaches. We experienced this first-hand with a round of golf at Santiburi, a picturesque course with extreme elevation changes. The course itself was a bit tricked-up, but the views were worth it. The only person who did not enjoy was my caddy, who spent a good number of the holes looking for my drives in jungle and ravine. Amazingly, she found nearly every one!


At the end of the conference, I stayed on and welcomed a friend from Singapore for the weekend. While the beaches were calling, we decided to tour the island and hired a van to drive us all over the place. As you go south from Chaweng, the road climbs up to some very nice vistas and sea views. Just as quickly, it descends back to sea level, to Hin Ta and Hin Yai, the Grandmother and Grandfather Rocks, two formations that remarkably resemble the male and female privates. As you can imagine, this attracts all kinds of tourists. I will leave it to you to find pictures (this is a family blog!). Coincidentally, I just read an article on the "fairy chimneys" of Turkey, which appear to be geological cousins, at least to Hin Ta!

Next, we went off the beaten path to check out a small Muslim fishing village on the southeastern portion of the island. This simple village is quite poor, and life is lived like it has been for years: small fishing boats are moored in the shallow water, with hundreds of fish from the day's catch drying in the sun, while the residents go about their daily routines, trying to stay out of the sun. The village is dominated by a mosque. As we were looking at it, we were approached by a man who told us of the needs of the community in funding the construction of the site. Relentless in his explanation (he essentially read from the board on the outer wall appealing for donations), he successfully procured twenty baht from me. It is not much, but now I am a real estate owner in Thailand, as well as Dallas. We took a quick walk around, but I felt as if we were infringing on someone's home; this was not a tourist site.



So, we headed back out to visit such sites, stopping next at the Wat Khunaram, home to the Mummified Monk. Luong Por Ruam was a wealthy resident who converted to Buddhism and gave up his earthly possession. He became an honored spiritual leader in Ko Samui, with legendary abilities. He reportedly even foretold the time of his death, which occurred in 1973. Normally, Buddhists are cremated, but he told his family to bury him sitting up. Before burial, his followers noticed that his body was not decaying. Believing this to be a miracle, they put his mummified remains on display, and they remain so today. He actually looks pretty good for a mummy! Pretty hip, too, in a pair of sunglasses.


Next, we experienced the biggest tourist rip-off on the island: elephant trekking. The interior of the island features a couple of waterfalls, and we thought we could ride an elephant to see them. Because of a lack of water, only one waterfall was actually worth seeing, and it was an hour ride on the back of the pachyderm. I misunderstood the handlers, however, and I thought we could do it. So, we hopped on our elephant and headed out. If you have ridden a horse, and you remember the first time when the saddle was swaying back and forth and you were terrified you were going to fall off - well, it was like that. Only the saddle was a bench big enough for two, and you were twice as high off the ground, and the elephant weighs three times as much as a horse. To make matters worse, our elephant did not want to follow the path at first. He lunged to the left, into some trees, and began to eat. His handler (who sits on his neck - we sit on the back) took his prod - a large hook - and jabbed it below the elephant's left ear to get him to go back right. Well, the creature wasn't pleased, and he let out a huge bellow. I imagined him rearing on his hind legs, which would have meant curtains for us! But, the handler got the beast back on the trail, and we were off. We followed several other elephants on what turned out to be a 30-minute circular route around a primitive zoo, never completely out of sight of our point of departure. I could have run the distance in less than two minutes. All in all, I wasn't displeased to get off the animal. Between the ride and the zoo, it really is sort of sad, and I think that was my first and last ride on an elephant.


We stopped in the main town of Nathon (a few blocks of restaurants, a post office, and administrative offices) for lunch (including a cup of Tom Yum soup, a yummy staple for me in Thailand). It was a good stop, as I ran into a colleague who has a house on the island, and she suggested a good place for dinner (more later). Then, to round out our tour, we were off to the Big Buddha. This statue of the sitting Buddha - 15 metres tall - sits on a small island just off the northeastern tip of Ko Samui. While surrounded by typical tourist shops, the statue and surrounding wat are quite peaceful, and it is a nice stop. The staircase leading up to the Buddha is a representation of the Naga, the legendary snake that was protector to the Buddha. I could have skipped the shops (one that makes strange, full-size statues of the Alien, Predator, and Terminator out of all kinds of metal - nails, bolts, rebar, you name it; this was quite bizarre, as I can't imagine who would buy these things!), but it was worth seeing the statue.




We were wrecked, so we went to the hotel to rest before our dinner. My colleague recommended Zazen, a nice restaurant set in a leafy resort on Bo Phut on the north end of the island. This was perfect, with a view out to the sea, soft breezes, and a great menu. I could have spent hours there, but we wanted to get an early start on the next day.

I wanted to see the sunrise on our eastern-facing beach, so we were up at 5.30 and down to the beach just a few minutes later. And the sun never came up. It was gray and overcast all day, so all we saw was a gradual lightening of a drab sky. I suppose a refreshing dip made up for some of the disappointment, but I will consult the forecast the next time. For the rest of our stay, we braved a steady and at times heavy rain to do some shopping - you can't get away without a trinket or two! Actually, my favorite shop there is the Jim Thompson store, with its famous silks. This company, headquartered in Bangkok, has stores in Singapore, but the Thailand shops seem so much more authentic.

As usual, we arrived at the airport two hours in advance of our international flight. Remember, the airport is outdoors. There was an overcrowded (but very heavily air-conditioned!) coffee shop, but we opted for the departures lounge, a sitting area under a thatched roof. It was enough to keep the heavy rain off of us, and the area was actually a nice, if crowded, place to wait for our flight back to reality.


One last thing - Thailand is a peaceful and polite country. Ninety percent of its citizens are Buddhist, and I have found it very pleasant to visit on the three occasions I have done so. Thais greet others by folding their hands together and bowing politely, and this practice is pervasive throughout the country. So much so that I even saw representations of the Michelin Man and Ronald McDonald doing so.