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Canteen E
2008-05-18 10:30:00
We see many words tagged with the letter E these days; E-mail, E-service, E-zine, etc but I'm sure we haven't seen Canteen E before. Have you?The canteen is the place we would all happily make a beeline for after a few hours of hard work, for a well deserved snack or lunch, to replenish the stomach before we go back to our hard work in the office or in school.Our church rents a school auditorium for our Sunday morning services, and right after worship, we go to the school canteen where a sumptuous lunch awaits. For many of us, the hour in the canteen was a time of fellowship as we shovel food in our mouths.For some, though, food of a different sort is dished out liberally: food for the souls. Newbies who indicate an interest to know more about our church and/or our beliefs are invited to the few tables reserved by the big yellow Mr Smiley sign, and members of the Canteen Evangelism Team will sit with them for a friendly chat. No coercion, no arm-twisting, just a friendly chat, if ...

Chocolate Hills And Me
2008-05-16 21:03:00
There had been several new visitors/readers passing by my blog recently, and quite a number of them are Filipinos. And quite a number of them think I'm one of them. I um... don't think I get awarded honorary Filipino citizenship even though I've been a frequent visitor to your most bee-you-tee-ful country more than a dozen times in the last eight years. I've even shown off the view from my office and sung our most patriotic National Day song "We are Singapore, Singaporeans!" in a recent post but still, that didn't stop the mistaken identity and the Tagalog comments which I couldn't figure out. Hmm. What to do huh? Did I eat... I mean climb too many chocolate hills?I've taken another look at my family tree and while it's a bit unusual, I still have to declare that I can't find even 0.001% Filipino blood in it. My four great-grandfathers and one great-grandmother were from China (which part, I'm not sure, have to ask my parents again). The other 3 great-grandmothers were fro...
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Quacks
2008-05-13 19:05:00
This post is not about quack doctors, although we did find some in the course of our travels.Prey Nob Cambodia. These hatched balot which escaped being eaten err... I mean these cute little ducklings we found at the Prey Nob campsite were just beginning to learn how to quack.©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved.But they might not learn very much if they insisted on following the chicken around.* balot = unhatched Filipino egg with 16-day-old duckling embryo which had over 30 commenters very disgusted not long ago.© TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

View From My Office
2008-05-10 21:03:00
I moved to a new office at the beginning of this month, and I have been spending my waking hours (and perhaps pretty soon, some nights as well) in it. Can't tell you which building it is, but my allocated space is on the twenty-second floor and this is what I see when I look out of my window. The thing is, I don't get to look out the window very much. Perhaps only once or twice a day, just before going out, to see if it was raining. You can tell from the pic it was pretty cloudy that day at 1230pm. Need umbrella.Anyway, for foreign readers, let me introduce you to - This is my country, this is my flag... we are Singapore, Singaporeans. (Eh! All Singaporeans, please sing along with me.)Right click on the photo to view larger 1200x900 px version.©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved. © TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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PicK Of The Day: Very Busy Do Not Disturb
2008-05-09 21:03:00
Yes, that's me. No, I am not free. Not for these two months. No church camp, no more trips... SOB! till July or thereabouts.© TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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Pepsi Ambulance
2008-04-23 18:04:00
Sihanoukville, Cambodia. A doctor friend had invited us for dinner that evening, and so after attending the Parents-Teachers Fellowship at Sihanoukville Bible Baptist Church (SBBC), we went to his clinic to meet him.The doctor owned and operated this 24-hour private clinic in Sihanoukville. They specialised in emergencies. ©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved.As we waited outside the clinic for him, a Pepsi -Cola truck drew up suddenly, and the security guard went to see what was up. A moment later, he and a doctor wheeled a stretcher out from the clinic, and from the back of the truck several people helped an accident victim out from it. He had a horribly bleeding leg. No gruesome photos were taken (I was sort of like gaping at the scene.)That was certainly the most unusual ambulance I've ever come across anywhere in the world.© TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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Naked
2008-04-22 21:03:00
Er... all of you who are underaged and not allowed to go to R-rated movies, please switch off and look somewhere else now.We were on the Loboc river cruise in Bohol, Philippines, and I almost fell out of the floating restaurant when I spied these two young ladies in their birthday suits playing at the river's edge.Aren't they cute??By the way, many Wednesdays ago, I posted an entry on a very weird fruit we found in Cambodia. I've finally discovered its name and identity! Check it out!© TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Lost
2008-04-19 23:01:00
My eyes nearly fell out of my head when I read on Friday in My Paper (the English first half of it) that 42 million bags were lost at airports around the world each year and never found, and about how thousands of lost bags were auctioned off. Lost . Is that number equal or less than all the souls in the world lost forever each day? Pastor Mike used to give us the statistics in his sermons. They were mind-boggling.Then a few days ago, I got some disturbing comments (already deleted) from one of these lost ones to 'leave Cambodia alone' or some such thing. 14 million (2007 estimate) lost in their false worship? Sure, there are less Cambodians than lost luggage but no, we're not going to leave them alone. You leave me alone if you don't like when I write here.Lost. My first trip to the Philippines nearly became my last. Yes, it was due to my lost luggage, and Pastor Paul remembered what happened very well even though it was in Sept 1999, and he would relate the story often. I too r...

Visit To The Negrito Church
2008-04-18 18:40:00
Whenever we are in Iloilo City in the Philippines, we'll visit GLBC Camiros, which is the Negrito church about an hour away from the city.The Negritos are the natives of Panay - dark-skinned, curly-haired mountain aboriginal folk. Most are uneducated, jobless and very poor, and if they show up in the city, usually end up homeless and begging on the sidewalks. Pastor Cruz started reaching the Negritos several years ago, and the work died somewhat, only to be revived after Welma, our missionary, and our church heard about these people and decided to revive it.We visited the church on a Saturday morning in January. Brother Oscar from Doane Baptist Church , who's now also involved in helping the house churches, drove us there.©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved.We stopped our car by the side of the road, and here's the curious welcome committee.With Brother Oscar leading the way, we left the road and started our trek to the church.How do you do. Pleased to meet you too.Hot, isn't it. Phe...
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PicK Of The Day: Massage
2008-04-15 21:03:00
Koh Kong Cambodia. Would you like a massage? Just make yourself comfy on those pillows and we'll be with you in a moment! Thank you!© TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
More About: Massage , Pick

Waterfall Volcano Hot Spring River Steam Geyser Place
2008-03-08 04:40:00
Dumaguete City Philippines.I hardly know how to describe this interesting place we visited on our very first afternoon in the Philippines, so I am borrowing inspiration from one of our team members, Kev. He described it thus in his blog "We went to a waterfall / volcano / hot spring / river / steam geyser place on the first day."Okaaaay, that fitted the bill somewhat.©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved.The "waterfall / volcano / hot spring / river / steam geyser place" was only about half an hour from Dumaguete City. We were looking for suitable camp sites to start one of our own, and of course we found it on another island, Panay, towards the end of our trip. It had been drizzling that day, but the rain stopped whenever we needed to leave the car for a walk around. The afternoon was very cool and pleasant. Here are more pics:Hiking to check out another waterfallAnd returning from the hikeA river running parallel to the highwaySmoke?More smoke!We stopped and got out to check out the smo...
More About: Spring , River , Place , Volcano , Waterfall

Great Wall Of China
2008-03-05 00:00:00
Enough of weird fruits and nasty eggs, here's something different... and awesome for a change. I spent three days in Beijing last July, and here are highlights of the visit to one of the Seven Wonders of the World - the Great Wall Of China .©@F2008.5 All rights reserved.Related Post:The Great Wall Of China - Travelogue and more photos© TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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Cheap Charlie's
2008-03-04 13:30:00
Koh Kong Cambodia. The sign above says... and it's enlarged below so that you can see for yourself...And I say it must be very, very, VERY cheap because I couldn't see the guesthouse or any sort of house at all. It was just an empty plot of land. © TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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PicK Of The Day: Wanted
2008-03-01 18:01:00
I was reading the newspapers yesterday afternoon when I glanced at my perpetually switched-on computer nearby, and I noticed a new e-mail message which had been downloaded. The subject was 'Message from the Police', GAKKK! What did the police want with me?? What sort of spam is this anyway...©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved. It was most certainly a spam, from our local police. It began with "Dear Singnet User," and went on to describe that notorious limping terrorist who escaped from prison on Wedneday afternoon. The whole country's looking for him, and to-date, he hasn't been caught yet. Well, I'll sure keep an eye out when I head for church later on. After all, we worship in a school auditorium that was very near the prison!What's next, I'm now waiting for spam SMS/MMS from 'the Singapore Police Force in partnership with our local mobile operators'. They are sending them out over two days, and to-date I haven't got any MMS yet. Sure, it would be helpful to have pics of ou...
More About: Pick , Wanted

Meetings
2008-03-01 06:10:00
There were a lot of meetings during our trip. Meetings about the camp site, meetings about the SMC ministry, meetings about the house church ministry (HCM), seminars and talks and briefings...There were breakfast meetings... at Cafe Antonio in Dumaguete City, a meeting about camp sites.©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved. Lunch meetings... at Raphael's Farm near Tacloban City, Leyte, a meeting with Pastor Ed regarding student ministries.Dinner meetings... at Emmanuel Fundamental Baptist Church in Ormoc City, Leyte, a meeting with Pastor Odango regarding student ministries.And snack meetings in between the breakfasts, lunches and dinners... here's a morning meeting with Welma and the house church pastors at the APIBS HQ, Doane Baptist Church Iloilo City.Hello, Welma, what's that in your hand?You see, in a meeting, only one person can talk at any one time. The rest of us exercised our mouths, by munching and munching and munching...And because we were often so busy trying to listen, an...

Fruit
2008-02-26 17:40:00
I travel three or four times a year, maybe more, but I never come home with photos of world famous landmarks from London, Paris or New York (never been to those cities yet, you see).©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved.Instead, I often find myself in places where tourists are a very rare breed. I've even been to places where the people there had apparently never seen a foreigner in their entire lives before. I remembered a particular incident a couple of years ago - we were stared at until we started to wonder if we had grown an extra nose on our face, or did we look like blue-and-pink polka-dotted polar bears to these staring folk? Well, our guide told us they had never seen those things on our noses before. Eh...what things?? And we started wiping our noses as if an invisible spider had landed on it. We soon learnt that it was because those mountain folk had never seen anyone wearing glasses or spectacles before. Ohhh!However, there were also occasions when it was my turn to stare ope...
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A Different Perspective
2008-02-23 03:40:00
Am I getting lazy this weekend. Not. Just taking a break from blogging. Here's a link to Xiuying's blog, where she shared an overview of her nine-day trip to the Philippines with many great photos.©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved.When I write about my trips, nothing's new to me any more. Even when I get a tall, cool mango shake in front of me, my first thought was something stupid like, Wah, how come price increase 3 pesos since the last time?? but Xiuying wrote ...the mango shakes taste like heaven.And she's right.Here's the link. Do read.Xiuying's blog - overview of her first trip to the Philippines© TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
More About: Perspective

Egg
2008-02-19 18:01:00
Dumaguete City Philippines.This is a Filipino egg. (Imagine Pastor Sinon's deep, solemn voice resonating inside your head).©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved.It is called a 'balot'. (Many spelt it 'balut' but my understanding from a real Filipino is 'balot' is the correct spelling.) It is a fertilized duck's egg with an unhatched 16-day-old duckling inside, which is boiled and eaten in the shell.All first-time visiTORs to the Philippines are encouraged to try this wonderful delicacy at least once.Kevin and Xiuying... the two of you are first-timers, right?Errrrr.... y...e...s....And you, Deb?No, no, no, no, no, I've been here a dozen times before, PasTOR!And you tried the balot already huh, Deb? Deb? Why are you standing so far away?Taking pics, from a safe distance.And so... Pastor Sinon started his comprehensive lesson for the two first-timers on 'how to eat a Filipino egg'. First, make a hole off the top of the egg, sprinkle in some salt, and suck the soup out.Here's a d...

The Spanish Heritage
2008-02-18 20:00:00
Upon arriving in Dumaguete City on the first day of our missions trip, we received a warm welcome and partook a sumptuous breakfast at the Cafe Antonio, located at the Spanish Heritage building.©@tF2008.5 All rights reserved.Imagine this: we had been travelling since midnight. Three and a half hour flight from Singapore to Manila, arriving at 4am. Transferred via the free airport transfer bus from the international airport to the domestic airport at 5am. Checked in and waited (blinking like owls) till 7am for our flight to Dumaguete City. Arrived at 815am, and after a brief stop at the Gazebo to deposit our luggage, Ven and Francisca drove us in two vans to the Spanish Heritage. How do you think we looked? Unkempt, unwashed, lack of sleep, teeth not brushed... but our friends, Dixon and Ann, accorded us the most hospitable Filipino welcome at the cafe as if we were VIPs.I was pleasantly surprised that Ann remembered me, because three years ago in Feb 2005, I was an unexpected guest...

PicK Of The Day: Improvisation
2008-02-17 13:00:00
© TENFORTY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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To Market, To Market
2007-10-29 00:03:00
I don't know if the market at Koh Kong is extra busy on weekends, but this was what I saw when I took a slow stroll there with Marissa and Pastor Vic one Saturday morning.Outside the marketThe seafood sectionGoing into the marketI pointed my camera everywhere.
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From Koh Kong To Prey Nob
2007-10-28 12:34:00
I'm not the first to go to the Prey Nob campsite from Koh Kong. I'm not even the second, or the tenth, or the twentieth. In the past three years or so, many people I know have done it before me, and they had returned laughing, with scary tales of being on the road for hours on end, getting stuck in lots of mud, crossing the dangerous rivers etc etc. I guessed that put me off, and when Pastor Vic asked if I'd like to go to Prey Nob in March, I said no, let me stay behind in Koh Kong. The roads were improving, the hours shortened, but not much. In July, Daph joined the team and returned with the great news that the bridges were nearly completed. This must be the right time, I thought. No suffering on the journey to Prey Nob and back. Let there be paved roads and no mud or rivers to cross, please!A few years ago, I visited Prey Nob from Phnom Penh. The roads were good until the last bits, about ten minutes from the camp site. We were basically being jiggled and shakened up and down ...

No, No, No!
2007-10-24 01:12:00
That's a word we often use on small children and dogs. A word small children (throwing tantrums, accompanied by stamping feet and piercing screams) use back on us. And then, it's also a word the authorities (or those who think they're in authority) use indirectly on everybody else. We were filling up on supplies (bottled water, biscuits) in a supermarket in a small town in inner Mongolia, and it was near closing time. Not wishing to spend the night there if the doors shut unexpectedly, I grabbed what I needed, paid up and then went outside to wait for my two friends who were taking their time. Outside on the wall next to the big doors was this sign. It made me stare at it for a long, long while before I fished out my camera.

Basic Blogging Etiquette, Do’s And Don’ts, Plagiarism
2007-10-23 01:00:00
I don't usually post to my blog on Tuesdays but this is not the usual kind of post - I'm in the midst of trying to resolve a nasty issue regarding the plagiarism of one of my articles (swiped from right under my nose within 24 hours of posting!) and I'm not a happy person today. So I thought it's time for one of those Admin/Miscellaneous posts.I have been blogging since April'07 but still consider myself new and have a great deal to learn. And I've learnt a lot from many other bloggers, blog discussions and picking up blog tips along the way.I'm no expert but I can list out briefly here what I've learnt which will be applicable for the average blogger who knows little about how things work in blogsphere. It's a jungle out there, folks! Don't be ignorant and get eaten up!I'll cover the following in this lengthy post -1) Dos and don'ts in blogsphere;2) Helpful widgets and steps to protect your blog's content; and3) How do you know if your copyrighted article / photos have...
More About: Etiquette , Blogging , Plagiarism , Basic

Vibe
2007-10-21 14:42:00
An invitation from CalyXmae to hang out at Vibe Cafe on Saturday afternoon was too good to turn down, so I duly trotted to church at 3pm.The church building was buzzing with a great deal of activity. The Christmas Drama team was in the basement. The Uth ministry workers were in the office, photocopying fliers. There was another group in the fellowship hall, recording music. And finally, up the staircase in the church sanctuary, was Vibe.Vibe Cafe currently operates once a month, on a Saturday from 3pm to 9pm. The youthful waiters, waitresses, cooks, cleaners and other helpers swung into action much, much earlier, to turn the sanctuary into a very classy-looking red and black establishment.With music blaring and a never-ending stream of slides on the big screen, customers brought their friends and dogs and made themselves right at home.Gasp, I hear you say! Does the pastor of this church know what's been done to the sanctuary on Saturday afternoon?? Well, he himself turned up to mee...

On The Road
2007-09-13 16:11:00
The hot springs hotel was our last stop in a civilised city. Because after that we left the city far, far behind and headed for the Mongolian grasslands and we were supposed to spend two nights in a traditional yurt, just like the normadic Mongols. However, that yurt had no water and electricity and couldn't take in guests, and so we finally had only one night there. God is so good!We checked out of the hot springs hotel in the late morning on Monday, hopped onto our faithful bus and stayed in it for the next seven to eight hours. We did not stop for lunch, although there were a couple of rest stops to visit holes in the ground. I mean, literally, real holes. Our Filipino, Ranie was shocked as well, but I told her to go ahead and I will jaga.. I mean stand guard outside. What to do... have to go what!!!!Since we did not stop for lunch, VG, our tour manager and Uncle R bought sandwiches for us to eat on the way. Our two bus drivers received their share as well, but we heard later th...
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Spiritual Landmarks
2007-09-12 15:38:00
- an extract from Pastor Jason's sermon Jesus Restores The Fallen (click to download the full sermon)God sometimes brings us back to the spiritual landmarks of life.I remembered when I was a very young Christian... I was not saved for very long, God gave me a spiritual landmark in my life. And as I journey along my Christian walk, I meet difficulties, I meet temptations, I meet distractions and discouragements, and one thing that helped me keep focus on the direction of my life are the spiritual landmarks He has given to me.I remembered I was in Akha, it's a Northern tribe of Thailand. There I went with the youth group. It was the very first mission trip I had, and I remembered it very, very vividly even up to today. I remembered that God did a deep work in my heart. There high up in the mountains because the Akha people are fearful of waters...the churches are high up there and we went up into the mountains to the churches there. I remembered that night we had a worship service. ...
More About: Spiritual , Landmark , Landmarks

Our Hotels In Beijing, Baotou, Hohhot
2007-09-09 14:39:00
I should start a series on accomodation, because some folk who talked to me during Sunday lunch have reeeeally, really strange ideas about where we slept when we go on m-trips. Who gave you those ideas, huh? Hudson Taylor? That's soooo 18th century! We're less than a year away from Beijing 2008 Olympics, man!Our top class hotel in BeijingTwo trips to Beijing within 3 years, and both times, we stayed here, Capital Hotel, near Tiananmen Square. In between the 3 years, they built a new annex called Block B and that was where we stayed the 2nd time, so our rooms were very, very new! I remembered March 2003, when PP, Dr K and I caught a cab to get back here, and PP mispronounced the hotel name and gave the cab driver a shock. His Chinese wasn't very good at that time, and so instead of saying "Shou Tu Da Jiu Tian" (the five Chinese characters you see in the photo above) PP said something else, and the cab driver repeated it, Eh, what?? Where are you staying? Xiao Dong Da Jiu Tian? I ...
More About: Hotels , Jing

Getting Around: Rickshaw Ride
2007-09-08 06:59:00
Our first encounter with a rickshaw was on our first day in Beijing, right in the middle of the city. We had walked around the Egg... I mean the National Grand Theatre and Tiananmen Square the entire afternoon, looking for an elusive art gallery, and it was time to get back. We knew our hotel was not very far away, but seeing a few cabs parked along the road, we approached one. The taxi driver refused to take us to Capital Hotel, because it was rush hour and traffic was bad at that time. The driver pointed to a flimsy-looking rickshaw and asked us, how about taking that? We said, er... um... glanced at each other and declined with polite smiles. Even as we hurried away, the rickshaw rider pursued us for a while, calling after us, and Vivien turned to me. Do you want to, she asked. No! Do you?? I shot back. Wide, six-lane roads around Tiananmen; heavy traffic... a little bump from a bus or an impatient car from behind will send the rickshaw and all its occupants flying all the way to...
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The Great Wall Of China
2007-09-06 15:10:00
A couple of weeks before we left for Beijing, several million people who probably had nothing to do voted in the first global election for the new seven wonders of the world. The results were announced on 07-07-2007, and yup, the Great Wall of China was one of them.I was mad enough to climb the Badaling section of the Great Wall (the most popular section opened for tourists) on a cold March afternoon three years ago. This time, we were told that the Badaling section was very, very crowded during summer (meaning: standing room only), and so our tour guide took us on the two-hour drive to the Juyongguan section of the Great Wall. I checked out the history behind this part of the wall, and noted the following: it's about 50km from Beijing and is actually nearer to Beijing than the Badaling section. There were several military structures around the wall, and it was also supposed to have the most beautiful scenery of all the sections opened to the public, being built in a valley surroun...
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