Merry Xmas'12!

On a side note, Santa Claus must be a greater bluff than the Mayans.
On a greater side note, the Singapore National football team aka the LIONS are CH4MPIONS again and again and again! Kings of ASEAN football. More on that another day.

Singapore 3 - Thailand 1

19th December 2012. The first leg of the finals of the Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup: Singapore 3 - Thailand 1. Fantastic results for the Singapore Lions at the Jalan Besar Stadium. Tickets were so hot they were snapped up within a couple of hours. The queue even snaked all the way up to the 4th level of the stadium's multi-storey carpark. I joined the queue too late so needless to say, I couldn't get any tickets. But all thanks to my buddy, Jeremy, who managed to squeeze out a ticket from his contacts. Watch the game alone? No problem!

Arrived early at Jalan Besar. Had a plate of seafood Pad Thai. Exchanged friendly glances and acknowledgements with some Thai fans who were dressed to the occasion.

Entered the stadium, met a couple of old friends and familiar faces. Singapore is a small island after all. Watched the entire first-half at the third level beside the VVIPs section. But the mood was a bit solemn, being separated from the singing fans and the terraces below. So by half-time, I moved down to the second-level. I couldn't find any seats so I stood throughout the second-half. No regrets because when you're watching a match such as this, you should be jumping out of your seats at every moment. When Amri and Bai scored, I nearly climbed over the parapet to celebrate.

 

I like how football matches like this bring the people together. I celebrated both Singapore's goals in the second-half with the Chinese and Malay uncles standing beside me, as if we were friends. There were even new citizens from China and Westerners with local partners donning the Singapore jersey cheering on the team that is representing their adopted country.

All the President's Men. President Tony Tan celebrates with the team.

 

I've been following the Lions in the campaign since Day 1. Traveling all the way to Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur, to catch the opening game against Malaysia.  So it's without a doubt that the campaign should end fittingly for me to watch the Lions lift up the cup (hopefully) for an unprecedented 4th time, this Saturday, in Supachalasai Stadium, Bangkok.

Got my match ticket for the second leg of the finals and excitedly tried to book a last minute flight over to Bangkok on Thursday night. Unfortunately, vital commitment at work on Friday morning meant that I could not fly off on a Friday morning when the ticket is affordable and the only remaining flights are on Saturday afternoons which cost too much of a bomb (especially since I'm putting in half of my hard-earned savings into making a movie). By the wee morning of Friday, I was still frantically searching through the websites of the various airlines for any affordable tickets that might have "miraculously" popped out of no where but to no avail. I should be in Bangkok right now if only my stars were aligned. For now, I can only relish on a once-in-a-lifetime experience gone past by. Hopefully, we make it again in the finals of 2014, perhaps with the likes of Swandi and Lightfoot?

Camp Ehi-Passiko 2012

I am still recovering from Camp and another tough week at work, but here's a snippet of the traditional "family shoot" of Camp Ehi-Passiko. Our 15th year.

Singapore 1 - The Philippines 0

And the final whistle was blown. We did it! One of the best moment supporting the Lions. Now to the finals of the Suzuki Cup / ASEAN Championships. Majulah!

Indestructible

Singaporean Football

I've reached a stage whereby English football no longer excites me. I'm looking forward to the start of the new S-League season. But the biggest thing happening to Singaporean football now is the second-leg of the Semi-Finals against the Philippines. Singapore Lions were unfortunate not to have scored a goal or two at the first leg in Manila on Saturday. It's all or nothing this Wednesday at the Jalan Besar Stadium. I queued 2 and a half hours on Friday morning just to get my hands on tickets. It will be a sea of red this Wednesday. To the Azkals, welcome to the Jungle, *cue music.

A long time ago

I was Optimus Prime. Saved 2 penalties to advance into the second round. After which we bowed out to a superior team.

be like water

Bruce Lee figurines, latest spoils.

More DVDs

Some spoils from Kuala Lumpur where DVDs are so much cheaper (to compete against rampant piracy) and the shelves have a wider selection of South-East Asian films than here.

Sepet (2004) dir. Yasmin Ahmad

Earliest memory of this film was snippets shown during broadcast/cinema introductory class during freshmen year. Shot in the state of Perak where my dad grew up.

Gubra (2006) dir. Yasmin Ahmad. Feature film shot in 14 days. Can I do it in 12 days?

The Raid: Redemption (2011) dir.Gareth Evans

Dear Galileo (2009) dir. Nithiwat Tharathorn

Best of Times (2010) dir. Yongyoot Thongkongtoon. From the director who brought us Iron Ladies back in 2000.

Thai films never fail to disappoint. Quality production values and a wide variety of genres. The Thai film industry is without a doubt the most mature one in South-East Asia. Pity that most of their films don't make it into the market with English subtitles.

201 set of DVDs now. Got about 50 more to go. Got to stop buying them unless necessary. There isn't much space left on the shelves.

Some criticism I have read online like to argue that prior to our independence in 1965, Singapore was already a thriving developed port city and its people were already affluent, thanks to our former colonial masters. It is Lee Kuan Yew and his party's propaganda that suggested otherwise (that we were a sleepy backwater/fishing village). Singapore definitely had a developed central business and administrative district, thanks to the British, but the entire island too? Hardly convincing.

Today, my dad met up with his old friend from school, a Canadian. He described Singapore in the 1960s as "swampy" and full of "smelly and unhygienic shanty towns". We do not have to go far, just speak to our grandparents. Let's not be too quick to discredit the hard work and foresight of our pioneers and founding fathers even if we have different political inclinations today.

Tara

My little one.