nibbling fish (for dead skin)

another species of fish which many are unaware can be found in singapore is the nibbling fish. you do not have to go to fish spas in japan, south korea or china to experience the tingling sensation provided by these tiny, nibbling fish. you can have it here in singapore. there is a fish reflexology at the underwater world in sentosa. you can also get this treatment - removal of dead skin - at qian hu at sungei tengah.

the fish, which measures between 2cm and 4cm, are toothless and they use their suction power to remove the dead skin. these fish (garra rufa) have been used for hundreds of years in turkey to combat dry skin problem.

this species, the garra rufa, are found in the river basins in the middle east, including syria, iraq, iran and turkey.

the fish eat only the dead areas of the skin, leaving the healthy skin alone. the smaller fish are better for this job. in some spas, when the fish grow too big, they are taken off the pond as they can cause some discomfort.

over at qian hu, you pay $10 for a half-hour session whereas at sentosa you are charged $35 for 20 min of fish therapy, followed by 20 min of foot reflexology.

world's largest freshwater fish


you do not have to go to south america to see the world's largest freshwater fish - the arapaima. there are at least three places in singapore where you can see this fish, and in two of these places - haussman aquarium in lim chu kang and kok fah technology farm in sungei tengah - you do not have to pay a single cent to view the fish. kok fah has three of this fish and haussman has about five. the s'pore zoo also has one which is 1.85m long.

the arapaima can grow up to more than 3m long and weigh up to 200 kg. in spite of its size, this fish is able to jump out of the water to snatch unsuspecting birds from low-lying branches. its diet consists of fish and other kinds of small animals, including birds. at haussman, you can feed the arapaima with 'kuning' fish bought from the shop.

the fish has the ability to breathe air from the surface because of a lung-like lining in its throat. this is an advantage in the oxygen-deprived water of the amazon river. the fish is able to survive long periods of drought by gulping air and burrowing into the mud of the swamps.

as a result of over-fishing, there are very few large (more than 2m) arapaimas found in the wild.

when ivy came back for a visit in september, i took to haussman to have a look at these monsters. she was quite put off by some foul smell coming from the fish tank.

singapore grand prix @ sembawang circuit

until 1973, we could still be entertained by the thrills and spills of motor racing held at the old upper thomson and upper thomson circuit. the motor racing event was started in 1961. it was usually held in april, during the easter holidays, and was spread over a few days. building up to the main events - the grand prix for motorcycles and cars, there were many minor races for the different categories.

for motorcycles, there were events for the different capacities, from the 50cc class to the unlimited class. there was even a race for road bikes with minimal modifications.

for cars, there were races for saloons of at least two classes and i think, there was a special race just for the minis. the box-shaped mini minor was very popular in those days. of course, the fastest among the minis was the mini cooper.

i just cannot remember how much was charged for admission to watch the grand prix because we never had to pay as we sneaked into the spectator area by way of the secondary forest at casuarina road. other freeloaders watched from the hill slopes facing the race track, outside the fenced area.

i do remember some of the names for the more exciting parts of the circuit - the devil's bend, the rothman's corner and the nee soon hairpin.

stella's 60th birthday celebration at tung lok















francis, the elder daughter of choy chim and stella organised a 4-table 10-course chinese dinner at east coast's tung lok restaurant to honour her mother and to celebrate her 6oth birthday. seated around the four tables were relatives, close friends and her bible study (farrer park small group) members. i happen to be a co-opted member of the cell group.




















the birthday girl spent most of the evening cuddling and playing with her grand nieces, especially with megan and henna. i think she has four grand nieces. her own younger daughter deborah is in brussels, belgium, intending to do her phd(doctorate), after completing her masters.




















just before the cake cutting, francis made a speech in praise of her mother - a loving mother, a filial daughter, a caring aunt, an active person, a good cook.....

a simple problem requires a simple solution

in a much earlier blog, i wrote about how i was unsuccessful in fixing the leak in the water closet. i had tried changing the float - the black ball. i also tried adjusting the screw - tightening it - to bring the two contact points nearer, but to no avail. it seems that this is quite a common problem with many water closets.

after some years, the water closet tends to overflow or leak and, in time, you will see two thin black, ugly streaks in the middle of the bowl.

my friend victor narrowed the source of the problem to the worn washer. but when he tried to get the washer from the hardware store, they told him that he had to get the whole set - the arm with the floatation device which costs about $4. anyway, we got them for rm$8 each from a shop in senai, outside johor bahru.

we found out that the arm was too long for the water closet in our homes. so as not to waste the money spent, we took the washers from the two pieces we bought to replace the worn ones. still, it did not work.

our determination to fix the leak paid off. victor found a shop selling the correct washers at 80 cents a piece. he bought a few, one for his own flushing system and two pieces for. after replacing it with the new washer, it stopped leaking. so, he passed the other two washers to me.

i bought one washer from the home-fix hardware shop. they sold it to me for $1.20, 50% more than your neighbourhood hardware store.

how they measure up - superstar virgo vs freedom of the seas


if you are awestruck by the size of the superstar virgo with its 13 decks when you see it, wait till you compare it with the freedom of the seas, the largest cruise liner in the world.















the superstar virgo, built in a shipyard in germany, cost us$350 million. it weighs 76, 800 gross tons. the height of the ship is 268m and at its widest, it is 32m. its cruising speed is 24 knot. the superstar virgo has 980 cabins and a passenger capacity of 1966. it has 13 decks.

apart from the standard facilities found on board most cruise ships, there is a special area set aside for kids called the neptune's wet and wild. for adults, there is the aquaswim, a jet current exercise pool. for those who prefer to exercise indoors, there is a universal gym.














the freedom of the seas was built in a shipyard in finland and it cost us$800 million. it weighs in at 160, 000 gross tons. the length of the ship is 339m and its beam is 39m. the cruising speed is slightly slower than the superstar virgo at 21.6 knot. there are 1817 staterooms on board which makes it capable of taking in 3634 passengers. it has 15 decks.

the freedom of the sea has some unique facilities like the flowrider, an onboard wave generator for surfing. for those who love outdoor and adventure, there is a rock climbing wall. there is also a skating rink. the whole ship is wired for wi-fi capabilities.

cruise on the superstar virgo















just returned from a 3-day 2-night cruise to melaka and k.l. on the superstar virgo. did not join the land tour to melaka but did walk to the mainland when the ship berthed at port klang. just a short 300m walk to the star cruise terminal at klang. the superstar virgo and the superstar leo are the two biggest cruise ships in the star cruise's stable.















this particular cruise makes a 7-hour stop at k.l. on thursday, ostensibly to allow passengers sufficient time to tour the malaysian capital but actually it stops there to unload some of the refuse and to re-stock food, toiletries and other items needed for the cruise.




















on wednesday night, when i reached the cruise centre at harbourfront, i was met with a long queue facing the new york pizza outlet. i was wondering 'what's so special about this pizza', only to learn that it was a snaking queue waiting to board star cruise's superstar virgo. i had to wait for my travelling companion tsung kok weng before i could join the super long queue.















it was when i was in the queue that i bumped into james and sabrina. by sheer coincidence, they were also on the cruise because james had won two tickets as some lucky draw prizes. i had got my two tickets as a gift for my participation in the heartstrings walk.

we could not use the gym as we had not taken along our track shoes. we visited the casino twice, both times to watch people playing card games like blackjack and poker and also roulette, tai sai and the slot machines. you need not have cash with you to gamble; the access card for opening the cabin can be used to operate the gaming machines.

my cabin, with two single beds, afforded a view of the sea not like the hole in the wall we had when we cruised on the megastar aquarius many years ago. inclusive meals were had at the pavilion - a chinese restaurant, the meditteranean terrace and the bella vista. the bella vista offers both western and chinese cuisines. we had chinese dim sum on one morning and western breakfast on friday.

two of the shows which were a thrill to watch were street life and the musicians of bremen. the two shows were performed by the same cast - dancers from brazil and belarus and acrobats from guangxi in china.

at around 12.30 p.m. while we were having our buffet lunch at the meditteranean terrace, we already caught sight of our southern islands but it was not until 2.20 p.m. that we were able to disembark from the ship.

even though it was a mid-week cruise and school holidays had not started, the ship was almost at full capacity. i had expected to see a lot of retirees and senior citizens on the cruise, instead there were more young people. tourists from india, australia, china and indonesia made up the bulk of the passengers.