Free Sights In Singapore Horse Sculpture By Fernando - Big & Bold At Buona Vista

Impressive horse sculpture in Singapore. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.



This sculpture is amongst the shops beside the street level exit from Buona Vista MRT station in Singapore.


You can create your own free art tour of Singapore, seeing sculptures and art on the underground. Perfect places for selfies.

Where else to see Fernando Botero's sculptures?



Fernando Botero sculpture: Man on Horse, Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Public Domain.


Woman with a mirror. Picture supplied by Midir in Wikipedia.

Champs Elysees, Paris, France
Park Avenue, Chicago, USA
Venice, Italy
Berlin, Germany
Athens, Greece
Seoul, South Korea
New York, USA

Museo Botero, Bogota, Columbia




More sculptures to see in Singapore and artwork by various artists.

IN SINGAPORE

Bust of lawyer and Singapore minister David Marshall.


Statue of Raffles.

Murals, Photos and Drawing on the train lines

Mural at Newton MRT, where the blue Downtown line links to the rad line.

Useful Websites
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fernando_Botero

Singapore Airlines
Fly to Singapore on the award winning airline
singaporeair.com
At Singapore's Changi Airport See Jewel Mall's multi-storey waterfall.
Numerous artworks are round the airport.

About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

French words to use and recognize when shopping

French flag.

FRENCH - ENGLISH
boucherie - butcher's shop (just like butchery, with a silent o and t)
boulangerie - bakery

bonjour - good day

fromage - cheese

fromagerie - cheese shop

galerie - gallery
merci - Thank you
printemps - spring 

au revoir - goodbye

Adieu - old fashioned and implies you will never see them again, perhaps when emigrating.

UK flag.



Flag of England.

What to say in the shop
The people serving you in France are probably French and the people serving you in England are probably English. You may be able to tell by their accents.

French is not only used in French speaking countries. You are likely to find shops with French names all over the world. To give two examples:
Galeries Lafayette - department store in France, Singapore and other countries. 
A Boulangerie in Singapore. 
Printemps department store in France and other countries.

Boulangerie in Singapore. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

ENGLISH - FRENCH

good day - bonjour (literally bon jour, good day)
bakery - boulangerie

cheese - fromage

cheese shop - fromagerie
please - s'il vous plait (literally if it you pleases)
may I have the bill - l'addition s'il vous plait

thank you - merci

goodbye - au revoir (literally to re-see or see you again)



Photo from J S Ivry in Wikipedia under French flag.

More Words You May See


FRENCH - ENGLISH
conseil - council
de - of
francaise - French
le (l' short for le before a vowel) - the
postes - plural post/mail
republique - republic


ENG
council - conseil
Europe - Europe
French - francais (notice the cedilla under the c)
of - de
the - le (abbreviated to l' before a vowel)

French Foods and Food Shops
biere - beer
boucherie - butcher
charcuterie - cold cooked meats
boulangerie - bread shop
croissant - crescent shaped savoury pastry
eau - water (Bordeaux border or coastal city of/on the water or sea)
lait - milk
patisserie - pastries and cakes and biscuits shop
pommes de terre - potatoes (literally apples of earth)
prix fixe - fixed price, set menu, all inclusive
traiteur - take away food, deli
viande - meat
vin - wine

Kitchenware
bain-marie - double saucepan for protecting sauces from heat
couteau - knife, item which cuts
fourchete - fork

Note that the French accent in Paris is different from the French accent in Canada. To hear the french click on the sound symbol in Wikipedia, Google translate and several other websites.

You can use your French in Belgium, Canada, France, Switzerland and French islands in the Caribbean such as St Martin, and in many more countries as well as when reading menus in French restaurants, in kitchenware shops.
.
To learn more French and many other languages such as Spanish, you can use the free websites for beginners, such as Duolingo and Memrise:

Useful Websites
Free Language Learning
duolingo.com
memrise.com
Cheese Shops in London, England

https://www.lafromagerie.co.uk/
UK Tourist website

visitbritain.com
https://translate.google.com/
French Tourist Board Website

http://ee.france.fr/
Canadian Cities Tourist Board Website
http://www.visit-canada.com/
Swiss tourist official website
https://www.swiss.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printemps

About the Author

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

Learn Local Foods, Such as French Comte Cheese

French Comte cheese from La Fromagerie in London. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Learn local foods so in each country you visit you can ask for something you like when faced with a baffling menu and umpteen choices and you know little of the local language and cuisine.

From the cheese shop in London, La Fromagerie, near Madame Tussaud's by Baker Street, I have learned to like a French cheese called Comte. (There should be an acute or upwards accent on the e. To get the accent if you are typing and can't find an e with an accent,simply copy the word from elsewhere on the internet and if you can be bothered make the typeface or font fit the rest of your typing.)

Wiki reveals that the Comte cheese comes from the Comte region of France, to give it the full name -

Comté cheese - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Comté_cheese

Comté (or Gruyère de Comté) is a French cheese made from unpasteurized cow's milk in the Franche-Comté traditional province of eastern France.

Comté is a hard cheese. If you don't like soft cheese, or you want some of each, ask for Comte.

Comte is the premier or popular French hard cheese, like the English Cheddar cheese, you see it everywhere, can get it everywhere.

In London, England, you can go to one of several speciality cheese shops, Paxton and Whitfield in Mayfair behind Fortnum and Mason's, and Neal's Yard in Borough Market and one called Rippon near Victoria station, another in Fulham. We choose La Fromagerie because you can sit and have coffee or a meal afterwards, and it is near Baker Street station which suits our travels.

La Fromagerie has three branches in Highbury, Marylebone and Bloomsbury.See previous post on this place. Fromage is French for cheese and fromagerie is a cheese shop.

Useful Websites

https://www.lafromagerie.co.uk/

visitbritain.com
https://www.davidlebovitz.com/comte-cheese-making-french-fromage-jura/

http://ee.france.fr/

About the Author

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

Yul Brynner's Statue, Grave & Anti-Smoking Video - Russia, France, the USA and Thailand

Yul Brynner as King Ramsses in The Ten Commandments.

Yul Brynner starred in The Ten Commandments, The King and I, and a remake version of the Seven Samurai called The Magnificent Seven.
.
I found Yul Brynner's gravestone by accident when I was reading his life story on Wikipedia. He has long been one of my favourite actors.


French flag.

His grave is in France. You can see a picture of it on Find A Grave.


Yul Brynner's memorial carved on the gravestone with the name of his wife Juliet.

The grave is not particularly exciting, disappointingly plain, a little cross and weatherbeaten lettering. And there's no body to talk to. His cremated remains are in the Abby pasture. turned to ash, like the cigarettes which killed him.

However, you might notice something about the cross. The protestants, the majority in the UK, have plain crosses. The Roman Catholics, the majority in France, have more elaborate churches and have a figure crucified on the cross. The Greek and Russian Orthodox have a more elaborate cross.Yul Brynner came from Russia, hence the different cross.

I am more interested in the statue set up in Brynner's Russian birthplace.

RUSSIA
The statue is Vladivostok. Where is the city? It's on the East coast. That's what the name  In fact the name means East.


Yul Brynner statue. Yul Brynner park. Vladivostok. Russia. Photo in Wikipedia.

(Vladivostok, not to be confused with Moscow, St Petersburg, Leningrad, Volgograd (was Stalingrad), Stalingrad, Ekaterinaburg, Odessa on the Black sea and Ukraine).

Tripadvisor reviews alerted me to the facts that the statue has bare feet, it stands in front of the house where he was born which is not open to the public, but the city's main museum has pictures of Yul Brynner's films.

USA
A third place to pay homage to Yul Brynner is in the USA in the walk of fame. His star is 6162 Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA.


Flag of the USA.



Hollywood Walk of Fame showing the brass five-pointed stars.

Meanwhile, before taking your next trip, you might like to check out his films on YouTube.

Thailand
Incidentally, his famous film, The King and I, which put Thailand on the map and promoted the Thai silk industry, is more than unpopular in Thailand, the film and book are banned, or they were when I visited the country and I was warned not to talk about it or mention it.

The Thai royal family were apparently outraged by the implication and demonstration in the film of their revered king dancing with a mere commoner,

So, if you plan on reading the book before your next trip to Thailand, read it first back home and leave it at home. Yul Brynner's film is not revered in Thailand.

RUSSIA
No problems if you visit his statue in Russia. His birthplace. He is a hero, a tourist draw.

Anti-smoking Video
On you tube you can see the video he left to be shown after his death, of himself saying that cigarettes killed him and telling the viewer to give up smoking. Both spooky and worthy. Some might consider that this is his most memorable and admirable performance.

Useful Websites
France

ee.france.fr

Thailand
https://www.tourismthailand.org/home

RUSSIA
https://www.visitrussia.org.uk/
https://wikitravel.org/en/Vladivostok
https://www.tripadvisor.com.sg/ShowUserReviews-g298496-d6429337-r400214069-Yul_Brynner_Monument-Vladivostok_Primorsky_Krai_Far_Eastern_District.html

Yul Brynner
Brief anti smoking video made by Yul Brynner in association with the American Cancer Society
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNjunlWUJJI

USA
vistitheusa.co.uk

Yul Brynner
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yul_Brynner
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Yul-Brynner
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_Walk_of_Fame
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_stars_on_the_Hollywood_Walk_of_Fame
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_King_and_I_(1956_film)
https://www.nybooks.com/daily/2015/05/19/thailands-banned-king-and-i/

About The Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

You could use the song generator to write a song about a place rather than a person, or a person in a place.
https://www.song-lyrics-generator.org.uk/

Song Lyrics Generator

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The Way You Phone (The Calm, Mature And Creative Man Song)

By Surprises

You find so many people are bombe
But you, you are mostly calm

I like the way you phone.
You do it like a cologne.
I like the way you forgive.
You do it like a sieve.
I like the way you love.
You do it like a dove.

You find so many people are obscure
But you, you are mostly mature

I love the way you wear your hair,
Spreading your style everywhere.
You're like a style fountain.
Enough zazz for a whole mountain.

You find so many people are vegetative
But you, you are mostly creative

You're the perfect man.
No one brings me joy like you can.

You find so many people are attentive
But you, you are mostly inventive

Calm, mature and creative,
Inventive and steady too,
Are the qualities of you

You find so many people are ready
But you, you are mostly steady

Created on 28th October 2019.

Tips On The Challenges And Choices When Teaching English As A Foreign Language\; Beatles sites in the USA and UK

UK flag.

The words of many English language songs sound like nonsense, especially written by songwriters who are on ..., er, whatever.


Singapore flag.

I was teaching English as a foreign language to Chinese and other students in Singapore. I thought I would make homework more fun by allowing the pupils to transcribe the words of songs.

One girl brought in, 'We all live in a yellow submarine.'

Yellow Submarine by The Beatles.

She asked, 'What does this mean?'

I explained, 'Yellow is one of the colours of the rainbow. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet. Um, nobody uses indigo any more. It would be more useful to learn brown and black and grey.'

They looked at me suspiciously. 'Yellow - submarine?'

'A submarine is like a ship, but under water. In wartime they can hide.'

'So why is it yellow?'

'Um - has everybody translated submarine?'

They translated submarine into Chinese, Malay, Indonesian, Hokkien.

'Please miss. Is this word likely to come up in our exams?'

Maybe not.

My postgraduate student in her twenties was interested. My other pupils regarded me warily as if I were some lunatic waiting to be certified.

I received puzzled looks and incredulity. I explained, brightly, 'It was written by one of the Beatles. What is your problem?'

A pupil responded suspiciously, 'I thought you told us the Beatles lived in Liverpool'.

Now, things are easier.

The internet answers every question.

The yellow submarine was apparently originally written as a nonsense children's song about colours, with bath time sounds. It was a huge hit.

Strawberry Fields Forever was about a place called Strawberry Fields in Liverpool, where you can follow a Beatles trail and see famous places such as the Cavern where the Beatles played.




The Beatles were as popular in the USA as they were in the UK. John Lennon was killed in the USA.


US flag.


A memorial to him is Strawberry Fields in Central Park.



Two other ideas for teachers:
Ask pupils to research tourist sites connected with famous singers or other characters.
Ask pupils to research making a national flag cake, and the terms using in cooking.
For a show and tell session:
Ask pupils to bring in records or books or other memorabiliia featuring their favourite singers and authors and other characters.
Ask pupils to bring in foods from the USA or UK and translate the ingredients (which are often listed in multi-languages on the packs.

Useful Websites
https://www.wikihow.com/Make-an-American-Flag-Cake
visittheusa.co.uk
visitbritain.com
visitengland.com
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_Submarine_(song)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles_Story
https://www.beatlesstory.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strawberry_Field
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Beatles_-_Abbey_Road.jpg

In London
https://www.getyourguide.com/london-l57/the-beatles-london-walking-tour-t23780/
https://www.getyourguide.com/london-l57/the-beatles-magical-history-tour-t30586/

To Liverpool from London
https://www.getyourguide.com/london-l57/liverpool-the-beatles-t2271/?partner=true

Website background Information
UK
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7458873/Strawberry-Fields-finally-opens-Beatles-fans-70-years-inspiring-John-Lennon.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ico=taboola_feed
USA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strawberry_Fields_(memorial)

About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Where to buy cotton flowers and cotton clothes worldwide

Cotton flower bouquet. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

My investigation into cotton started with a cotton flower bouquet sent to my family in Singapore by my family in London, England. This bouquet arrived with  the stems wrapped in what looked like a piece of brown sackcloth. I thought, 'That's strange. Not a bit like a British bouquet of flowers.'

My family in Singapore looked at it and said, "That is not real cotton. It must be dyed in those colours, lavender and pale blue."

Over a week later I look out one of the cotton stalks and inspected it to see if it was living and needed water, or plastic. Hard to tell. It looked like the top was separate from the stalk.

Then I noticed that the four balls were divided by some kind of husk or imitation husk. At this point I decided to find out what cotton really looks like when it is growing. I found lots of pictures on Google internet by mistake and then found the page I was looking for in Wikipedia, which provides an overview, not just a website selling something. Wikipedia also has several handy links to back up each point. 

The major surprise for me was that the piece of sackcloth is or represents woven stiff brown linen which, like even rougher hessian, is made from the cotton plant. 

Now I know why sellers of cotton clothes (such as Patra silk) sell linen clothes. Linen is related to cotton, possibly the same factory or same exporter or same country. Same supplier. Also for those in the know, linen like cotton is a natural product, unlike synthetics.

If you are not bothered about real cotton, you can buy artificial cotton flowers. Not the real thing. But needs no watering. No water to breed mosquitoes and go off fast in Singapore tropical weather.

Very interesting to learn about cotton. But, next time, in Singapore like in London, I shall ask for potted plants, a plant which is edible, such as a tomato plant, or orchids.

Looking at cotton flowers made me think of cotton clothes.

COTTON CLOTHES
Regarding buying clothes, look for cotton or a cotton mix.

You can buy online hunting for cotton, such as from Cotton Traders. You can search without giving this company your email, although you might wish to do so to take advantage of their 10% welcome sign up now offer. You get the pop up offer on signing into the site and leaving it.

Underwear
Cotton underwear is more breathable, and you may prefer it to prevent or cure thrush. If a product is 95 per cent cotton and five per cent elastane, that could be because of the elastic around the waistband and legs. Available from cottonon.

Bedding
When it comes to buying bedding you might wish to look for more expensive Egyptian cotton or a closer weave meaning smoother fabric, harder wearing and less inclined to fray. With sheets, duvet covers and pillowcases as with clothes, you might want to consider whether you want non-iron (roughly half cotton and half synthetics provides a non-iron fabric - check the label. I find many cotton items can be pulled straight and don't need ironing (when worn under a jacket or coat), unless you want them to look crisp.

When searching online for clothes, either put the word cotton in the search box or scroll down until you see fabrics and click on cotton.

The advantage of cotton is that, if you don't like the colour or pattern, you can dye the fabric and it absorbs the colour well.

For cheap cotton t-shirts and other garments, go to the markets.

Or pick cheap shops.

DIY
Mercerised Cotton Sewing thread
Mercerised cotton is named after the man who invented the process. It is cotton thread with a shiny outside or covering.

Does it matter whether you sew with cotton or synthetics? Thread type should match the material, otherwise you risk the thread and garment shrinking different amounts in the washing machine. 

If you are sewing on a button and want a matching colour thread, and matching fabric to look right and avoid shrinkage, sometimes it is possible to pull a suitable length strand from the seam of the garment, or a piece cut off the hem when shortening.

For example,
Singapore:
Flowers:

https://floralgaragesg.com/product/joy/
ARTIFICIAL COTTON PLANT
https://www.jjshouse.com/Simple-Classic-Nice-Beautiful-Flower-Cotton-Artificial-Flowers-

Clothes
Mustapha's 24 hour department store.
Toa Payoh near Toa Payoh MRT station - lots of small shops and kiosks. Check labels for cotton.

UK
Primark.
Many supermarkets sell clothes with different and larger collections in summer and at sale time. They also sell online.
Marks & Spencers online sells cotton full brief and bras.

Useful Websites

Wikipedia
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naturally_colored_cotton
For information on satin-look mercerized thread, see
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercerised_cotton
Britannica

https://www.123rf.com/photo_10346562_closeup-of-ripe-cotton-plant.html

Clothes:

https://www.cottontraders.com/search_long-sleeve-tops/?q=cotton

https://cottonon.com/SG/cotton-rib-bikini-brief

https://www.marksandspencer.com/sg/cool-comfort™-cotton-rich-full-briefs/

About the author

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

Why You Should Plant Pots & Gardens Overseas: USA, UK, Singapore, Worldwide

Grapes, gorgeous grapes. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Grapes grown in England.


I know several people who grow grapes in their gardens.

UK Wine & Dine Groups
If you belong to a wine and dine group in the UK which meets at people's homes you often start your dinner in daylight at a table in the garden and if you arrive early, whilst waiting for latecomers you can ask to see the flowers and fruit and trees and plants.

Inspiration
On one such occasion I admired the vine leaves which had draped themselves over the fence and back of the outside of the conservatory and house so much that I asked if we could have one, or more, in our back garden in London. When you see what can be gown locally, you can also ask the gardener, who may be the householder, whether the plants do well in light or shade, how long they take to produce edible fruit.

Growing For The Future
Plant even if you are planning to leave. Because your stay might get extended.

Singapore
My family went to Singapore on a two-year contract (for the rental flat). We stayed there ten years. If only I had started growing at the start! I discovered that aloe vera is easy to grow.


Growing Vines In The UK
Growing vines in the UK. created more work than I had expected. First a space was cleared in the garden and along the fence for the back row. No point growing just enough grapes for half a bottle of wine. Grow more than one variety to find out what you like and what grows best. the wine makers usually blend two or three varieties of grapes for good reason. Some grapes produce a bigger crop in a particular year. The sweet can counteract the sour and sharp.

We had to buy stakes and dig holes. (We is the royal we. It means my husband. I was just providing advice which was not welcomed by the one who was doing the work and trips to the shops and  ordering. Lesson learned. Do not give advice until asked, or the other person has agreed to listen to your suggestions.)

As soon as the grapes appear, so do the birds. You rush out to buy netting.

Next year you have netting. The first year is the most work and the most cost.

Singapore
In Singapore where a relative of mine has been renting a flat in a condo, I got talking to a local lady in the swimming pool. She invited us to her flat to see all the plants growing on her balcony and gave us a couple of cuttings and sent photos.

If you are an expat, plant a pot on the windowsill or balcony, or garden. It will be a conversation opener with anybody anywhere.

Indonesia
In Indonesia many expats and local people employ drivers, or cooks, or housekeepers or gardeners. When friends from overseas come to stay, it's easy to pop out to the back garden for fresh fruit and vegetables. If you are not a keen gardener, you can get an employee to do the gardening.

I have had two disappearing fruit experiences. If somebody has driven over to my house to visit me, especially if I have not baked a cake, I feel obliged to give in to their requests for fruit.

On one occasion, a friend asked if she could have some of my fruit. I said yes, She took all of it. She said just enough for a pie. She never brought me any pie on her next visit. When she asked for more fruit I said no I was making a pie and there was only enough fruit for one pie.

On another occasion a friend asked for some fruit from my apple tree. I thought he would take one bag. He filled about twenty bags, my entire year's crop.

If they are allowed to keep some of the crop they will be extra keep. Specify how much they can keep, ten percent, 50 percent, not 100 or you could find nothing there when you need it, and they spend all their time growing crops to feed the family and sell whilst drawing a salary from you and neglecting all other work. You might prefer to decide which items they can have after selecting what you want to eat and store.


USA
When I lived in flats and town houses in the USA I did not do this. I was too busy with my career, writing books, and travelling, and looking after our son.

However, now that I am semi-retired I have revived my interest in growing plants. My husband's interest in growing a vine to make wine has made him more interested in which plants you can grown.

On a wet day, or when you are too tired or jet-lagged to go shopping, it's handy to have some fresh fruit growing.

UK
In London, when we had a bumper crop, we saved apples on trays from microwave meals, covered to protect the fruit from possible bird or insect or rat droppings. As the saved crop increased, we found more and more space, on shelving, above a fridge and washing machine. When we ran out of space or had to cut bad parts out of an apple, the apple flesh could be cooked to a pulp and put in labelled bags in the freezer with a use by date. I thought of making apple juice ice cubes.

Useful Websites

About The Author

UK garden grapes and La Fromagerie cheese

Cheese from La Fromagerie cheese shop in London, England. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Yes, you can eat the outside, the rind.

What can you pair with the cheese? Crackers? Home-made bread?

On a diet? How about home-grown grapes


Grapes grown in a London back garden. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

They say buy (wine) on an apple and sell on a cheese.


Grapes grown in a London garden. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Grapes of a different variety.

These small sweet grapes have a small pip inside. The skin is tough. However, you are supposed to push out the pip and eat the skin because it contains nutrients and provides roughage which helps bowel movements.

In Singapore diabetics are told to eat whole fruits rather than drink juice. Why? The juice might contained added sugar.  A proportion of those cartons on sale do not contain the 'bits' which are the roughage.

Eating home grown grapes is good for the body and good for the soul. You feel proud and satisfied.

About the Author
Angela Lansbury is British and has lived in England and Singapore for many years. Please share links to your favourite posts.