as a child i was an avid stamp collector. it was my dad that helped me start it off by letting me take over his stamp collection, comprising of local stamps from several decades ago. eventually our collection grew bigger and more comprehensive with new stamps being added, including those from all around the world.

these days, my stamp collecting has taken a backseat due to work commitment. still, once in a while i do love to make a trip to the singapore philatelic museum. a visit there is like a journey back in history. every stamp tells a story. through these stamps, we learn delicious nuggets of information of singapore’s heritage and culture over the years.

in addition to its permanent exhibitions, the museum holds temporary thematic exhibitions to keep things fresh and exciting. this being the year of the rat, they have a thematic exhibition going on called “a rat’s tale”, showcasing rat-themed stamps. my, that’s not a very appealing theme, is it? but being a stamp lover who is also born in the year of the rat, i feel compelled to pay a visit!

for such a specific theme, the stamps featured are surprisingly vast, comprising of zodiac rats, literature rats and — my favorite — adorable cartoon rats! ratatouille, anyone?

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Plugs: Global Voices Online » Singapore: Philatelic Museum’s exhibition on rats, Veron, py, tiny M, chillycraps, walter

one of my all-time favorite vacation spots is thailand, a country with a rich culture, friendly people and colorful cuisine. even while in singapore, i let myself indulge in thai cuisine once in a while just to relive the fond memories. recently i had the chance to enjoy some great and affordable food at lerk thai.

the lerk thai restaurant that i patronised was the branch at the new changi airport terminal 3. its smooth wooden facade sports a very zen look, meshing in well with the sleek and distinctive design of t3. white light glows warmly above and below the red, orange and green signage, creating a very nice ambience. and yes, t3 is the place where i spotted those beautiful glass panels from my previous blog post. i knew many of you would get it right!

here are the dishes we ordered, including a couple of really awesome ones. careful, it’s really hot stuff!

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Plugs: Veron, QuaChee, Destiny, neo

beautiful things never fail to catch my attention, especially when it’s something as huge as this massive panel of decorative glass. i spotted it from afar and was instantly attracted by the pretty splash of colors!

the glass panel is covered with colorful floral motifs in varying shades of purple and pink. i liked it so much that i whipped out my camera immediately and snapped these pictures. can you guess where in the world i saw this colorful glass panel?

here’s another one in cool blue!

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Plugs: steve, Veron, Shar, syafiqah, Holly, neo, Xwings, Paddy Tan, pkchukiss, moby, darren tee, Melissa

with the tens of thousands of people thronging the singapore expo every weekend, the food outlets there must enjoy brisk business! of these dozen or so restaurants that get to see a steady stream of diners, one of them is macau express, a no-frills eatery promising macanese cuisine.

while macanese cuisine does sound exotic, it is actually quite similar to hong kong cuisine, due to the close proximity between the two cities. during my ‘05 trip to hong kong, i made a quick stop at the neighboring macau. back then, macanese food didn’t exactly seem that unique to me. rather, it was the beautiful architecture that made a lasting impression.

at macau express, i was pleasantly surprised to see the colorful wall murals depicting the street buildings in macau. towards the right-hand side is the old ruins of st. paul’s, a famous macanese historic landmark. all this, along with a quick writeup of its history, offers diners a quick glance of macau without having to physically be there!

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Plugs: neo, Veron, Hann, walter, Melissa

i love cats! love the sound of their mews, the way they rub themselves on you, and their cute whiskered faces! last weekend, i visited the cat championship show at expo with much anticipation. it was organised by the singapore cat club that’s celebrating its 35th anniversary!

it sure felt awesome to be admiring so many cute feline beauties all in one place! they were in their own cages and visitors could walk by to ooh and ahh at them. some cat owners would proudly open the cages to let people pet the kitties!

doesn’t this exotic shorthair kitty resemble garfield? i just love his grumpy look!

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Plugs: Veron, ahwei, sylv, dingo, abra, xinyun, Kor Shu Yen, pkchukiss, Edmund Ng, Jolin, Miccheng, Valerie