King, Queen, Country, Commonwealth, UK Carriage and Concert

We could not be in Pall Mall, parked in tents overnight, waiting to see the golden carriage. Nor could we attend the concert in Windsor great park. Wow, it is a great park, as you could see from the stage and crowds.

However, we watched it all on YouTube.

I had seen Kate Perry looking for her seat at the coronation in Westminster Abbey and looked her up. I love the Disney version of her song Roar, which she co-wrote and produced. Clever lady, not just a clear voice and pretty face. A very positive message. American Kate Perry saw her song Roar was the top in several countries, including Israel.

You can watch the BBC showings of the concert in different length extracts. My favourite parts were the illuminations from around the country. Especially the Botanic Gardens in Cambridge, illuminated trees and people riding illuminated bicycles.

I took some pictures to remind which parts to recommend to friends and family who might not want to watch the whole thing. You can spin through, using the slider underneath the video.

Prince William's speech was short and sweet and struck just the right note, praising the King and Queen, also thanking everybody, the performers, and audience worldwide, including the medics and teachers and volunteers who help run the country every day of the year. Choirs included a deaf signing choir. videos on an overhead projection showed people performing in countries around the Commonwealth.

The Beautiful Botanical Gardens, for walking, running, reading and sitting in Singapore

 

Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Entry is free.

See my previous post about Botanico restaurant.

Useful Websites

MRT Botanic Gardens

https://www.nparks.gov.sg/sbg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore_Botanic_Gardens

About the Author

Angela Lansbury is a British author who has lived in the USA.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

Angela Lansbury teacher of English (advanced and English as a Second Language or English as a Foreign Language, French and other languages, aspiring polyglot.

Angela Lansbury, author and speaker. Member of many toastmasters  speaker training clubs and speaking contest judge.

Angela Lansbury, the author of 20 books including Wedding Speeches & Toasts, and Quick Quotations, has lived in the USA, Spain and Singapore. 

She  has several blogs and writes daily on at least two of the following:

travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

Please share links to your favourite posts.

More photos and text today 

UNESCO Award-winning Beautiful Botanical Gardens

 

Just at the entrance to the MRT is the entrance to the Botanical Garden with the exciting news that it is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Plants that heal. The Botanical Gardens if full of information signs.

A good place to gather, to run alone, for a twosome. 

Photo from Wikipedia

Photo from Wikipedia

Entrance to The Garage. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

The Garage with Bee's Knees cafe downstairs and Botanico restaurant upstairs. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Upstairs patio room at Botanico.

Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Also a couple of romantic restaurants. 

Entry is free.

See my previous post about Botanico restaurant.

Useful Websites

MRT Botanic Gardens

https://www.nparks.gov.sg/sbg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore_Botanic_Gardens

About the Author

Angela Lansbury is a British author who has lived in the USA.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

Angela Lansbury teacher of English (advanced and English as a Second Language or English as a Foreign Language, French and other languages, aspiring polyglot.

Angela Lansbury, author and speaker. Member of many toastmasters  speaker training clubs and speaking contest judge.

Angela Lansbury, the author of 20 books including Wedding Speeches & Toasts, and Quick Quotations, has lived in the USA, Spain and Singapore. 

She  has several blogs and writes daily on at least two of the following:

travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

Please share links to your favourite posts.

Where to Celebrate Romantically? Botanical Gardens Restaurant Botanica Provides Perfect Plants, Beautiful Food & Wines, and Birthday Cake

 

At Botanico Restaurant in the Botanical Gardens, Singapore,  the far wall and the ceiling with greenery and the inset Fairy Lights are enchanting. This is in the open-sided section in the patio room beyond the bar. The lights spell out the word, You leaf me breathless. (I remembered it as don't leaf me.)

The building is a converted garage, hence the full name, Botanico in the Garage.

Here is the main room. At the far end is a video screen. To the left is the second dining room.

When I saw the ceiling of the patio room, we were delighted to be shown our table there.

We had eaten at the main restaurant room previously in the stifling hot summer when I chose to eat in the air conditioned main room of the restaurant. However, in March 2021 the open sided room was just the right temperature and no insects.

I went there for my birthday. All a glitter. Delighted that I matched the surroundings and the surroundings matched me.

The set meal was a meal with wine pairings.

The staff member has a t-shirt with the restaurant name. So you know who is who.

We told them in advance that it was my birthday and they gave me a delicious little chocolate cake with a candle and the words happy birthday written in chocolate.

More pictures and text tomorrow.

Happy Birthday!

The duck rissole starter was the most visually appealing item.

I am allergic to shellfish and had emailed them in advance on the booking form. My husband has the scallops dish.

Scallops at Botanico.

Fish replacement.

The scallops dish was replaced by a fish dish. 

Then a wonderful salad with a mixture of eye-catching reds and greens, absolutely delicious textures and flavours of sun dried tomatoes. Great to look at and satisfying to eat.

The main meat dish was melt in the mouth meat.

My melt in the mouth meat.

Super salad.

The salad looks like figs, greens, and sun dried tomatoes pureed.

We emailed them in advance that it was my birthday. They provided, free, a small chocolate cake with a candle and the words happy birthday written in chocolate for my dessert. I liked the chocolate cake more than the dessert they provided so that worked out well.

Botanico. The standard dessert is on the right. Not as exciting visually as the starter, or the birthday cake. The little Happy birthday sign on the dessert on the right was brought by me in case the restaurant forgot, didn't know or didn't have time to write Happy Birthday. 

The Price

It was not cheap, but cheaper than an equivalent meal with wines in London, England. We were emailed a special Woman's day offer. If you get on mailing lists of restaurants you get these offers two or three times a year. We went there to celebrate my birthday.

Alternatives

Downstairs is a cheaper restaurant, called the Bees Knees.

Elsewhere in the Botanical Garden is Halima restaurant which has turned into halal and alcohol free. That would be a good place to go if you or your guests eat halal or are against wine or having a temporary teetotal month and want to be away from temptation. (Some people give up wine in January to recover from the excess of calories over Christmas holidays.) 

However, my husband is a wine educator. The matching wines and the chance to discuss wines with the importer was part of the attraction of the evening at Botanico. The offer on March 9 and 10 was for a glass of sparkling wine on arrival for the lady. The offer on the third day, March 11 was a candle.

Getting There and Getting Home

You can take a pleasant ten minutes walk through the Botanic gardens from Botanic Gardens MRT underground train station. If you are too drunk or tired to walk back at the end of your meal, a Grab taxi will collect you from a few steps outside the door on the turning circle into the car park outside the front entrance.

Useful Websites

BOTANICO at the Garage

www.botanico.sg

reservation@botanico.sg

Reservations and enquiries (+65) 9831 1106

50 Cluny Park Road

Singapore Botanic Gardens

Singapore 257488

Facebook /botanicosg

THE HALIA

https://thehalia.com/

Bees Knees is downstairs in The Garage. For photos and a review and comment review see:

https://ordinarypatrons.com/2017/02/04/bees-knees-botanic-gardens-cafe/

For a variety of views read Tripadvisor.

Candle, a parting gift from Botanico Restaurant.

All photos by Angela Lansbury, copyright.

About the Author

Angela Lansbury is a British author who has lived in the USA.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

Angela Lansbury teacher of English (advanced and English as a Second Language or English as a Foreign Language, French and other languages, aspiring polyglot.

Angela Lansbury, author and speaker. Member of many toastmasters  speaker training clubs and speaking contest judge.

Angela Lansbury, the author of 20 books including Wedding Speeches & Toasts, and Quick Quotations, has lived in the USA, Spain and Singapore. 

She  has several blogs and writes daily on at least two of the following:

travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

Please share links to your favourite posts.

What's special about Singapore? Clean, Green, Traditional and Ultra Modern Multilingual

 

 Singapore's Views Of And From Marina Bay Sands

My son and his fiancee (now his wife) went to the Marina bay Sands hotel for a drink with a view from the top. They loved the view so much they checked in for a night and enjoyed hours in and beside the Infinity pool overlooking Singapore. You can admire Marina Bay Sands, like a giant set of three cricket stumps, from the downtown area of the city. 

Or buy a ticket to the top where your voucher buys you most of a cocktail or a pizza per person. We did that one New Year's Day.

Airport Waterfall

The airport, Changi Airport. itself has a giant waterfall in the centre of a mall linked to the terminal buildings by a walkway. When Covid-19 restrictions end, the shops and restaurants and mall and waterfall will be back, re-opened for you to enjoy. 

For gardens which are seasonally decorated and a giant waterfall with zigzagging walkways, go to Gardens By The Bay. 

Gardens By The Bay

For free you can take the waterside walk passing plants with plaques.

Another free place is the Botanical Gardens.

Now the opportunity is to go jogging along trails around the countryside, the beaches, the jungles. Bicycle trails are opening. My husband hired a hybrid bike for on road and off road, and hired a camera.

Useful Websites

https://www.visitsingapore.com/see-do-singapore/nature-wildlife/parks-gardens/gardens-by-the-bay/

https://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg/en.html

wikipedia

wikicommons

wikitravel

wikivoyage

tripadvisor

About the Author

Angela Lansbury teacher of English (advanced and English as a Second Language or English as a Foreign Language, French and other languages, aspiring polyglot.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Member of many toastmasters  speaker training clubs and speaking contest judge.

Angela Lansbury, the author of 20 books including Wedding Speeches & Toasts, and Quick Quotations, has lived in the USA, Spain and Singapore. 

She  has several blogs and writes daily on at least two of the following:

travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

 Please share links to your favourite posts.

Where to see orchids in Singapore And How To Grow or Buy Plants & Jewellery Worldwide (Quiz at end)

Orchids grow and are sold in Singapore, England and worldwide - you can find orchids everywhere. In Singapore Orchids feature on t-shirts, other clothes such as caftans, wrap around beach skirts. jewelery, and are grown in posts for you to take home.



I am wearing a tee shirt with orchids and the words Singapore Orchid. Silhouetted against my skirt are magenta orchids growing in a pot.







































Growing Orchids
At my feet is a pot of orchids and you can see them against my skirt. They were grown on the balcony of a condo in Singapore. I didn't even know I was growing orchids.
Orchids are surpisingly easy to grow. They just need water and a hot climate. These orchids were rescued, a bedraggled drooping, dying plant which I thought was a bit of bamboo. I watered it every day. Eventualy white buds appeared. Now I have these magnificent magenta orchids.

The same coloured ones were all over the five star Sheraton Towers hotel. Before Covid-19 I used to go to meeting of Toastmasters and enjoyed seeing the orchid displays in the huge entrance hall, on the display beside the lifts (Americans say elevators) and in the upstairs ladies toilet.

You see orchids everywhere on jewellery and t-shirts.

Orchid design on adjustable ring. From Botanic Gardens shop. 

Necklace in silver. Photo by Angela Lansbury. copyright.

You can buy cheaper orchid jewlelery from small shops in the big complexes such as Lucky Plaza and Far East Plaza in Singapore. If you are buying one or two or

Singapore's National Flower
The national orchid is Miss Vanda.


Wiki explains

Miss Joaquim, also known as Vanda Miss Joaquim, the Singapore orchid, or the Princess Aloha orchid, is a hybrid orchid cultivar that is the national flower of Singapore. For its resilience and year-round blooming quality, it was chosen on 15 April 1981 to represent Singapore's uniqueness and hybrid culture.

The orchid was known for a long time by its synonym Vanda Miss Joaquim. Ashkhen Hovakimian (Agnes Joaquim) hybridised this orchid which bears her name.

A wonderful collection of groups of coloured orchids is in the Botanical gardens in Singapore. I spent ages photographing the different colours. Each orchid type has a plaque.

Some orchids are named after famous people. One is named after a Korean actor I did not know.

Another is named after Princess Diana.

Another was named after Margaret Thatcher.

Orchid Margaret Thatcher. (Botanical name Dendrobium.) Botanical Gardens, Singapore. Photo in Wikipedia . Public Domain.

Orchid in Botanical Gardens, Singpore.

At the end of the one way tour you reach a shady open sided hall which has huge boards telling you all about orchids and the Botantic Gardens.


Botanical Gardens Palm Grove.
The Orchid house is at the and of the Palm Valley.

The Botanical Gardens in Singapore is free. It is huge. On a sunny day you can spend at least a couple of hours walking from one end to the other. Longer, if you stop for a meal and go round all the shops.

The Orchid House makes a charge. But if you qualify for one of the reductions the cost is quite modest.



Orchids In England
You can see orchids in Kew Gardens, London.

In England you can buy orchids in supermarkets such as Tesco and Marks & Spencer (which I read this week is closing some stores). In August the prices come down. If you are taking a car trip, you might be able to bring some back home.

The time I failed with orchids was when I bought a ready to grow orchid in a flask. A glass flask. it never grew. It cost a lot. I bought it because it was easy to pack and something to take back to the UK fro England when ggoing to a bridge party 9table of four with cold smoked salmodn and bagel and cheesecake dinner.)

The orchid never grew and was a disappointment to the recipient and to me. Of course I could not take it back to Singapore for a refund. In any case they would have said I failed to water it properly. (I used to get better service in the early days from Morrisons supermarket in the UK. Just show them something wrong and they change it immediately. All they want is the receipt or label and your signature to say you got the refund.) So I would rather buy a full grown plant from a local supermarket.

Yes, blue orchids, any orchids. My favourite are real full size orchids from Singapore, or supermarkets in the UK, or silver or gold plated orchid jewellery from Singapore.

Odd Facts About Orchids
City of Orchids - Peru
Moyobamba (Spanish pronunciation: [moʝoˈβamba]) or Muyupampa (Quechua muyu circle, pampa large plain, "circle plain") is the capital city of the San Martín Region in northern Peru. Called "Santiago of eight valleys of Moyobamba" or "Maynas capital". There are 50,073 inhabitants, according to the 2017 census.^[2] Some 3,500 species of orchids are native to the area, which has led to the city's nickname of The City of Orchids.

VISITORS' GUIDE
Places which have orchids as their city nickname or national flower are:

BELIZE
CHINA
COLOMBIA
COSTA RICA
GUATEMALA
HONDURAS
INDIA (Assam)
ITALY
PANAMA
PERU
SINGAPORE (Visit Botanical Gardens. Many souvenir shops.)
VENEZUELA
(UK - visit Kew, London, UK.)

CHINA
The orchid is the City Flower of Shaoxing, China. 

VENEZUELA
Cattleya mossiae is the national Venezuelan flower,

COLOMBIA
 while Cattleya trianae is the national flower of Colombia. 

SINGAPORE
Vanda 'Miss Joaquim' is the national flower of Singapore, 

COSTA RICA
Guarianthe skinneri is the national flower of Costa Rica and 

HONDURAS
Rhyncholaelia digbyana is the national flower of Honduras.^[29] 

Prosthechea cochleata is the national flower of Belize, where it is known as the black orchid.^[30] 

GUATEMALA
Lycaste skinneri has a white variety (alba) that is the national flower of Guatemala, commonly known as Monja Blanca (White Nun). 

PANAMA
Panama's national flower is the Holy Ghost orchid (Peristeria elata), or 'the flor del Espiritu Santo'. 

INDIA
Rhynchostylis retusa is the state flower of the Indian state of Assam where it is known as Kopou Phul.^[31]

ITALY
Orchids native to the Mediterranean are depicted on the Ara Pacis in Rome, until now the only known instance of orchids in ancient art, and the earliest in European art.^{[Note 2]}

Quick Quiz
1 Where can you see orchids in Singapore? ............. .............
2 Where can you see orchids in London? ..... ......................
3 Name two cities or countries which have the orchid as their flower. 1.................2....................

Challenging Quiz
(Hint: Choose from China, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Italy, Panama, Singapore, Venezuela,
4 Which country has a white orchid?
5 Which country has a black orchid?
6 Which country displays an orchid named after Margaret Thatcher?
7
8
9
10

Answers
1 Singapore: Botanical Gardens - Orchid exhibition house
2 Kew Gardens, London, England, UK
3 Singapore; Shaoxing, China
4
5
6 Singapore, Botanical Gardens.
7
8
9
10

Useful Websites
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=orchids+by+post
More expensive rings, bracelets, pendants and cuff links with orchids
https://www.tangs.com/productlist/brands/risis

Singapore's Bicentenial - free

Date: 1 June - 15 September 2019.

That's the whole of June, July, August, and the first half of September.

What is it all about? Sir Stamford Raffles founded Singapore in 1819. Statues have been added of his associates around the Raffles statue on the waterfront. One of them was a man named Scott.

At Fort Canning expect exhibitions, events, covered escalators, gardens.

I noticed a white statue of Raffles outside the Royal Plaza hotel on Scotts Road. The hotel often has topical sculptures in front of the hotel. Now I know why Raffles was chosen.

What else is free in Singapore?
Walking around the Botanical Gardens.
The bird show on Sentosa.

Useful Websites
The Bicentenial office is near Bugis MRT.

https://www.facebook.com/sgbicentennial

https://asianjourneys.com.sg/28-Jan-2019/welcoming-bicentennial-on-scotts-road-with-an-art-wall-spice-of-life-singapore-circa-1819

singaporeair.com

More details will be added later.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. I have several more posts on Singapore. Please share links to your favourite posts.

How The Haze And Rain Affects Travellers and Ex-pats

In May 2019 I breathe in smoke as if there's a bonfire. Yet the sky is clear enough for me to see the distant hills. Is there a haze?

My friends said they were walking in the Botanical gardens in Singapore, which is free. But in the great haze a few years back we were warned not to go outdoors I recall the schools being shut down. Even if the children were safe indoors, the janitors and gate staff would be exposed to the haze. My friend William in Singapore says to British expats, "Why don't you sell your property in the UK and transfer to retirement or investment for retirement in Singapore?"

The cheaper places to buy are Malaysia and Thailand and Indonesia and remote Australia. Every time I think about it, I see articles in international magazines and newspapers such as Time magazine or even local newspapers of Asia, in the polluted cities of India, or China, or Singapore.

I don't want the stress on my body and my wallet of constant flights back to the UK, or off to Australia. Then I wake to smell smoke and think, I've got to get out of here.

As for the rain, over here in Singapore it's just a temporary problem. You just need an umbrella. And set off early to every meeting, in case you get delayed by rain. Mostly you won't. When the rain comes, it cools down the air, so that is an advantage.

Umbrellas are cheap. Just look in the nearest chain such as 7-11, Guardian or Watsons. I keep an eye out for a colour which takes my fancy or matches my outfits.

A gentleman could match a brolly to his tie. They are so cheap. Buy two in case you lose one.

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

Which Animals Are Unique to Asia? Anteaters, Komodo dragons, monitor lizards and pangolins. Where can you see them?

You can see monitor lizards in zoos such as the Washington DC zoo, and London zoo, in England. More alarmingly, you can meet and monitor monitors in the wild in Singapore.

I stick to protected places like the Sheraton Towers hotel where you do not encounter monitor lizards. Most of the wildlife which I encounter turns up cunningly concealed in batter on my plate. However, my jogging family have encountered all sorts of creatures, in Singapore (as well as Malaysia and Indonesia) whilst roaming around remote paths, as I shall explain further on in this post.

Monitor Lizards
In Singapore you can see monitor lizards roaming freely in places such as the Botanical Gardens. Signboards joyfully alert you to the presence of the alarming lizards as if seeing them is a twee treat.

I am glad to say I have never encountered a monitor lizard, despite visiting the Botanical Gardens many times. I do monitor my surroundings carefully for monitor lizards, photo opportunities, dangers, and escape routes.

Komodo Dragons
To me, a monitor lizard looks like a small komodo dragon (found on the island of Komodo in Indonesia. You can also see a Komodo dragon in London zoo, in England. A cross between a blown up lizard and a shrunken dinosaur. Twice the size of any member of your family and far more unpleasant than even your worst relative.

How can I remember to link Komodo and Indonesia (not Malaysia). The letter o which appears twice in Komodo and once in Indonesia.

Photo by Mark Dumont of a Komodo dragon in the Cincinnati Zoo, USA in 2013. Photo in Flickr uploaded to Wikimedia article on Komodo dragon.

The komodo dragon is dangerous. To humans and animals. A very nasty creature.

Monitor Lizards?
Monitor lizards aren't always friendly, either.

 My husband took a video of what he thought was a very angry monitor lizard the other side of the perimeter fence around a Singapore army base. My husband was walking along a path when the monitor lizard appeared. It did not run away but ran ahead and when he caught up alongside it, the creature was fearsome and furious, hissing and waving its tongue around and thrashing its big body about.

So much for the idea that they are shy creatures and only get aggressive when cornered. Maybe it was territorial, maybe it was protecting babies nearby. We will never know.

Photo by Trevor Sharot, photographer. Copyright.

Blow up the picture and you can see the black tongue. This is a screen capture still taken form a video. I've also seen some horrid videos of komodo dragons circling an animal, biting it with poison, waiting a day or two, surrounding it, until it drops to its knees and they launch in for the kill and eat it.

Free look at wildlife
Entry to the Botanical Gardens is free. But no guarantee what you will see. You are more likely to see fish and birds. I am glad to say.

Photo by Piekfrosch in the German wiki and copied into an article in the English wikipedia on Pangolins.

Pangolins
This month, March 2019, Singapore Zoo and Night Safari are promoting care of pangolins. I saw an advertising poster beside a bus stop.

Poster about pangolins. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Next day I received an email inviting me to the zoo. Children are encouraged to do a series of activities and pledge to protect pangolins and at the end are rewarded with a pangolin pin.

Pangolins, covered in scales from head to toe, curl up into a ball for protection. Their name means roller in Malay.

The pangolin, altogether friendly, has no teeth. On the other hand, it has an enormously long tongue. the tongue is used for scooping out ants. The pangolin eats thousands of ants every year. If you are not a fan of ants, you might give pangolins credit for disposing of ants.

Now, there's a clue. I looked up anteater. I recognize the pangolin as an anteater.

Pangolin activities (must book)
March 2-March 31, 2019, weekends only.

Useful Websites
https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks-and-nature/dos-and-donts/animal-advisories/monitor-lizards
singaporeair.com
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/make-a-date-with-pangolins
https://www.wrs.com.sg/en/conservation/together-for-wildlife

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anteater

togetherforwildlife.sg

Botanical Gardens:
https://www.nparks.gov.sg/SBG

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