ZoukOut begun exactly 13 years ago in the year 2000. The first time I’d ever been there was on their 10th anniversary. Headliners were Tiesto, and Guetta, with Afrojack, Hardwell, Dennis Ferrer, Laidback Luke, Seth Troxler…whuuut. With such great line ups, I’m not surprised they’ve managed to pull such big crowds since they started. 26,000 party goers crowded the tiny island in 2008. But that’s that, and it’s time to get excited for this year’s party.
Singapore. A conflicting place of East and West, Old Traditions and the New, Creativity and Censorship, Hawkers and Fine Dining.
It’s always a little difficult to write about a place which has shaped you, where you were born and raised in, which used to be all you ever knew. Simply because, I can never truly be completely objective of the views I have on the city, completely basing how I feel on the subjective and personal experiences I’ve had living here. But I guess that itself can be quite interesting for outsiders to have a glimpse of.
The only time I’d been in the vicinity before was during the Johnnie Walker Circuit Party in the Flower Dome, and seeing we went straight into the venue indoors and didn’t even have time to walk around, I never considered myself as ever been to Gardens by the Bay before. We were supposed to meet a bunch of friends at Indochine@SuperTree that evening and took the opportunity to have a little walk around before.
Gillman Barracks is a newly opened art district in Singapore. It’s spread out along Malan Road and Lock Road, near Alexandra Road. What used to be a military camp (duh, Barracks), is now a street of contemporary art galleries, which was refurbished and opened to the public in September 2012.
S.E.A Aquarium is located at Resorts World Sentosa’s Marine Life Park. It’s still very new, having only opened late last year. I hadn’t had the chance to have a look before the move to Shanghai, so decided to do so on my recent visit back. (Post Contains Video)
I was actually checking out the galleries at Gillman Barracks earlier in the day, with my friend Tim. We happened to see a photo of the “Crab-Man” from Haw Par Villa in one of the galleries’ installations, and Tim then mentioned Haw Par Villa was actually close by. I’ve not been back there since a child of 5. So the idea of revisiting this place after so many years was quite inviting. I was curious to see just how much of it was still similar to memory.
Ann Siang Hill happens to be an area I became quite fond of when the company I used to work for was still located in Tanjong Pagar. I would grab a quick dinner at the Maxwell Food Centre, the various Korean restaurants along Tanjong Pagar Road, or in Chinatown, before taking a rest at one of the watering holes on Ann Siang Hill.
One thing about Singapore that foreigners love and locals hate is that it’s summer all year round. The sun is always felt if not seen, rain or shine, the heat lingers, and the air remains humid.
Arab Street is pretty known to the younger locals, but still not the most talked about among travellers. Tourists often overlook this place altogether when they’re short of time. When travellers do talk about it though, they often mention the majestic Sultan Mosque, or the little souvenirs they managed to buy from the little Persian lane stores, or an expensive unique dress from a boutique store run by homegrown designers. Those who stay at night, see a totally different face to this little area.
We’ve all gone for a hair cut at a salon before and my favourite parts had always been anything but the cut itself. I loved the hair wash, and I loved the blowout styling at the end. These guys make me feel like I’ve done it all wrong – they make my hair feel and look so much healthier and lighter than if I did it on my own.
