7 September 2009 ride report - A simple blog

I wanted to do up a blog report for this ride like some of the others that I have done. But I decided that I was running out of time as the rides were coming in fast and the reports were coming out slow. So rather than let me creativity be stifled, I thought I'd just post the pictures from the ride and write something short. HEY!!! Isn't that what a blog is all about? Hahaha!

I wanted to see the eastern part of Singapore this night and started off from Mountbatten. The idea was to ensure I had the opportunity to ride towards Changi area. However, due to the timing of the meet up at 8pm, the way east was going to be congested from the folks returning home. So I decided to head out to the south first.

The Marina Barrage is a great place to be. It is almost always breezy and peaceful. The colourful lights at night makes it double the joy. We spent quite a lot of time here chatting and taking pictures of whatever caught my fancy.

I could not resist taking this series of pictures of the feature fountain. The colour of the light changes dramatically as the shape of the fountain morphs. It was a sight to behold. I spent quite a lot of time here at the fountain just because it was so captivating!

There's a magnificent roof garden at the Marina Barrage. It is mind-boggling to think that they managed to build such a large garden up on top of a roof! The view here is magnificent.

The night sky was filled with just the right amount of clouds, illuminated by the different lights from the city. I just love the way the clouds show up in a dark sky because of these different coloured lights. It is awesome!

Walking over to the other side of the roof garden, I was rewarded with a picture of serenity at work.

See the way the calm waters reflect the lights from the gazebos on the bridge and how that industrial construction area looks like its guarding this serenity with pride.

Here's a little piece of quiz for you...the next two pictures were taken quite awhile apart. See if you can figure out where I took them...

Of course, no night riding is complete without a nice spot of supper or kopi or some way to nourish the hungry tummy...this was what I had...

...and it was SUPER YUMMY!!! Sorry, no prizes for guessing where you can get hold of this solid late night supper food!

Well, that's all from me for this simple report. Looking forward to more rides...and lets hope I don't have to get a new set of protection gear...hahahaha!

4 September 2009 ride report - Hungry ghosts

Once in every 12 lunar cycles, the spirits of those who have passed on before us are given the freedom to roam the earth in order for them to visit their living descendants. During this "ghost month" (traditionally the seventh month in the lunar calendar), many elaborate practices are performed for the benefit of the "ghosts". Some of the more popular ones include the neighbourhood auctions, hungry ghosts dinners and special concerts complete with high tech lighting and sound equipment. It isn't surprising, then, that very few in Singapore would relish the idea of the ride I had planned for last night. You see, I went on a ride to some of the places many people wouldn't want to go in bright daylight, much less in the dead of night!


It was to be a night of discovery and photography opportunities - the Cemetery Ride - would take me from Hougang to Bukit Brown, from Japanese, to Chinese and Muslim cemeteries around the island. With the weather cooperating, it would be a night with clear skies lit brightly by a full moon. I had planned an elaborate route sans expressways (as usual) for this trip. I was excited! Still, the thought of riding into a cemetery in the dead of night without the benefit of any street lights is gonna be a little spooky regardless of the number of times one has done it. The regular staple of ghosts stories from Hollywood, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Thailand created an eerie shroud surrounding cemeteries. More recently, the Singapore movie "The Maid" brought the dreadful shroud straight home. So I sure was glad that one person signed up for the ride and I didn't have to do it alone!


I read about the Japanese Memorial Cemetery while researching for this ride and wanted to go there first. I had so many images in my mind of how that place might look like and could not wait to unleash my camera upon it. Unfortunately, as advised by my rider friend, it was closed for the night and we could not enter. I guess I'll have to make a day trip there one day to photograph it!


Undeterred, we set off for our next stop, the Kranji War Memorial Cemetery. I always dreamed of going to the memorial at night. I pictured in my mind how the beautiful moonlight would colour the landscape. How that moonlight will be reflected off the tombstones arranged in neat rows. And how that carefully trimmed grass would glisten in the night dew. The best thing: there are no gates to lock me out!


It was really dark when I first saw the memorial last night even with the moon shining in all her glory. The sky was bright though...but that didn't help with visibility. I could make up the tombstones and the taller structures but the shadows were heavier than expected. However, there was no eerie, hair raising, skin crawling feelings of dread...instead, the feeling was one of peace and calm that completely relaxed me.


I took to the task of capturing this magical feeling with my camera. After several tries getting the exposure right, I captured this image that stood before me.

The clear night sky was lit by two very different light sources: the moon and the street lights further away. The cool moon light gave the sky a beautiful azure quality while the street lights brought a warmer tone to the canvas. I felt they blended together well and really captured that magical quality of the memorial. The neatly arranged tombstones were covered in a deep shadow but are still clearly visible. I really like the balance between the light and the shadows in this scene.


I can never resist things that are arranged in neat rows. I would be filthy rich if I had a dollar for every picture that I had taken of things arranged in this way! So it isn't surprising that I was a little obsessed about photographing the tombstones a little more closely. Unfortunately, the deep shadow prevented any "available light" pictures from looking good (to me at least). So I did some creative experimenting and captured this image.

I bought this Energizer LED keyring, attached it to my motorcycle key and have carried it with me for all my rides. It is a life saver when I need to check on the bike, and when I want a small light source that I can control and experiment with. This was a long exposure to allow the sensor to capture the low "available light". I used my little LED light to "paint" the tombstones I wanted to highlight. I thought it worked out beautifully and was very pleased!

I walked around the memorial and chanced upon this image as I looked up to the sky. I liked the way the top of the structure was reflecting some of the moonlight, while other parts of the structure was bathed in shadow.

I wanted to re-create the feeling I had when I looked up and saw this structure in all its magnificence. I knew I did not want a "straight" image, rather, I wanted the sense of dynamism I felt when I first glanced at it and was captured by it. It took me several tries to get the exposure and colour balance right. The exposure was tough because I wanted that band of light on the top and still keep the shadows. The colour balance was tough because of the mixture of moonlight and street lights. When you view this picture in X3 size on my Smugmug gallery, you can see how intricate the golden cross looks at the top of the structure, and the interesting texture of the column that is holding it up. I simply love it!

Walking out, I turned back for one last look before saying goodbye and was greeted by this image.

While it is a simple image, I felt very moved by it...probably because I could see the many walls that had the names of every single soldier that died to protect this land. The sheer number of lives lost is reason enough to never take this freedom that I have today for granted. The Kranji War Memorial has always been special and continues to be so with every visit.

The next venue was the cemetery at Lim Chu Kang. I took the usual route via the Kranji Dam and Neo Tiew Road. The ride was refreshing and fun as usual given the perfect balance of bends, elevation and straights on this particular stretch of road. All too soon, I found myself turning into the Chinese cemetery at Lim Chu Kang. The initial stretch of this cemetery was pretty well lit, thanks to the enormous and bright dormitory right next to it housing hundreds of workers. However, it turned very dark, very quickly.

I could see row upon row of tombstones designed in the traditional Chinese style. Many of the tombstones had a "temple roof" design and at some angles, the place looked like a field of mini temples! There were many small lanes connecting the different parts of the cemetery and I rode on quite a number of them. While riding through this, I stumbled upon two groups of people (pretty large group with many cars and trucks) lighting many candles along the paths and some of the tombstones. It looks like they're having a little reunion with family members who have passed on. The scene was beautiful and heart-warming (to me at least) and I felt it would be intrusive to take a picture...I even felt bad for riding through! I also regretted not bringing along my telephoto lens for the ride because some of the spots were perfect for that compressed telephoto effect. I guess I'll have to come back here again too!

We decided to head into Gelang Patah for some food and to fill up since we were so near the Tuas checkpoint. While I have driven into Malaysia many times through Tuas and Woodlands, I have no idea what to do on a motorcycle. My riding partner knew the procedure well and guided me through. Thankfully, the usual throng of Malaysian bikes were not present at this time of night and the process was a breeze. The rest of the night at Gelang Patah was a delicious meal of satay kambing (tastes as good as the one at Yusoff Jalal Satay at Pasir Panjang Food Centre) and a long conversation around bikes, convoys, expeditions and accidents among others. I was really thankful for the fantastic company and sharing. It made the ride extra special!

I wanted to take some pictures on the second link bridge but the wind gusts were so strong I could not stand still. Furthermore, it was starting to drizzle. So I decided to fore go the pictures and head back to Singapore.

The way back to Singapore was uneventful except for the super strong wind and heavy rain. We had rain gear on and decided to continue riding rather than stopping under one of those shelters along the expressway.

So was it a good ride? Absolutely! Was it a scary ride? Any ghosts? Sure...there were two scary and hungry ghosts...enjoying satay at Gelang Patah...come join the next ride!

1 September 2009 ride report - Explorers

Exploration ride...proclaimed the title of the post I put up in the forum. I remember the day I put it up. I had just returned from a long early morning ride. We met at 5am and rode till close to 10am, we even hiked up a hill in our attempt to catch the all illusive sunrise! I remember feeling really good after that long ride. It was a fantastic way to spend my Sunday morning...and I wanted more!

Singapore is a small island of around 710 square kilometers according to the Statistics Department of the Government. You would think that there would not be many places to ride in a small place like this. I thought so too. However, there are more than 3000 kilometers of paved roads in Singapore excluding expressways. That is A LOT of road for riding!

Thanks to Google Maps, it is very easy to see where the fun roads are. I spent some time scouting out some stretches which might be fun to try for this exploration.

To a road junkie, straight roads are no fun. Not only that, they are deceptively dangerous! Do you remember the last time you drove on a long, straight stretch of road? Did you get distracted more easily? Did you get lulled into a false sense of security? Did you drive or ride faster just to get it over with? Did you nod off because it was so boring?

So, the best roads are often not straight. On top of that, the ones that are most fun to drive or ride on should be relatively deserted. With Google Maps, it is easy to spot these fun roads at least half the time. I can quite easily see where the nice, curvy, small roads are. So I mapped out this 90 kilometer route for the exploration ride, taking us through some tried and true riding gems, and hopefully, some new ones to discover.

We set off at 8pm from the usual Esso station and quickly hit the bends along Old Upper Thomson Road. I always enjoyed riding along this stretch of road. It is a good place to warm up for the long ride ahead, with bends that teased out the nimbler moves that the bikes can offer. It was also a good place to evaluate how everyone in the convoy handled the road. There were four of us riding tonight, each on a different style of bike: a scooter cub, a sports bike, a street bike and a trail bike. If the other two riders who dropped out were with us, there would have been a cruiser and tourer as well!

The initial ride was easy and along familiar roads towards the Kranji Dam. I planned to take a different route to the dam taking Sungei Kadut Avenue. Unfortunately, a wrong U-turn along Woodlands road led me back to the usual route of Kranji Road! I suppose making a wrong turn is part of the spirit of exploration...it helped that we were all wearing helmets so I could not tell if any of the others were annoyed. Hahaha!

If you have not been to Kranji Dam, its time you made a trip. It has one of the best views of the city of Johor Bahru. And on the other side, there is a beautiful lake with serene and beautiful reflections of the night lights. A word of advice - make a stop at a Caltex station before heading into the area because there really isn't a good place to take a leak!

I was eager to get moving as the first stretch of possible new discoveries were just around the corner. The ride along Neo Tiew went by in a flash, fun as the roads were, I couldn't help but to think what Ama Keng would offer! On the map, it was a short stretch leading to what looked like trails...MANY trails that looked very promising. Six kilometers melted away very quickly and I found myself riding into Ama Keng Road. The first few bends were sweet...but alas...the road ended abruptly! There was a gate with a huge sign that said "Restricted Area". What a disappointment! I think its about time I wrote to Google about the usability of their maps!

Still, in the spirit of exploration, the route is a fluid plan that morphs as the journey progresses. So the ride continued along Old Lim Chu Kang and Old Choa Chu Kang, towards the next area for discovery: Lekar! Before I get there, did you ever wonder why there are so many places in Singapore named Chu Kang? There is Lim Chu Kang, Choa Chu Kang and Yio Chu Kang...yes...I know you are all thinking about Phua Chu Kang...but that is not a place! It seems the word Chu in Chinese (厝) actually means "dwelling place", and the word Kang in Chinese (港) means "river bank" or "river branch". So the names Lim Chu Kang, Choa Chu Kang and Yio Chu Kang were given according to the clans that controlled those areas! History lesson complete!

Back to Lekar. Now this was a place that I had wanted to explore for quite awhile now. I was really happy to have the opportunity to ride there tonight. I had a huge shock when I turned into Jalan Lekar because there was a dog that barked really loudly right next to me as I passed. I almost jumped up on my seat! The good thing was that the rest of the area was fantastic (lots of dogs but no barking) and completely made up for the initial shock. This area lived up to all my expectations - quiet roads, nice curves, brightly lit...and I spied a nice trail for my next ride too!

You can probably tell by now that I didn't take any pictures so far on this ride. In fact, I didn't take ANY picture at all! Sorry about that folks. I did lug my camera gear with me (dSLR, 3 lenses and a flash) but didn't actually use them. Its just that the ride was so involving I had forgotten I was carrying all this photography gear in the first place! So read along and imagine the ride...I'll do my best to tell story...you do your best to picture it...OK?

So I took the convoy from Sungei Tengah towards the next area: Lam Sam. This was a road that would lead into a trail that ends at Old Jurong Road. It looked very promising turning into Jalan Lam Sam. A neat row of trucks were parked along the road on my left. There was a huge pool of water near the end of the road and I spotted an opening on the left where the trail would start. It was a trail alright...complete with uneven surfaces and was very dark. It looked inviting and I really wanted to head in. Common sense persuaded me to leave it for another day (remember the collection of bikes?) so I made a U-turn instead. Still, I was happy I found this trail!

Without realizing it, I realized (huh??) that two hours have passed! Wow! More importantly, I realized I was getting hungry. Good thing my riding mates were getting hungry as well so we made a bee line for a spot of supper. It was during supper that we had a nice long chat about bikes, cars, work, bikes, bikes and bikes. Did I mention we talked about bikes? It was a good break...just four chaps having a good time bonding...I loved it! Oh, in case you want to know, we had supper at Fong Seng (the shop just outside NUS). The food quality has gone down the drain...but hey...the company more than made up for it!

It was getting late and it was time to head back as we all had to work in the morning. So we spent a little more time talking about each others' bikes and then headed off. The ride back was exhilarating! Going up South Buona Vista Road, through Leedon, Farrer, Lornie, Upper Thomson and back to the Esso station where we started off almost five hours earlier.

I gotta thank Eddy for suggesting a group picture...because I would hate to have an entry about a ride and have zero pictures to show for it. So here's a picture of our bikes tonight.

There's the street bike (Honda CB400), the scooter cub (Suzuki Hayate), the sports bike (Honda NSR SP), and the trail bike (Yamaha TW200).

My favourite picture tonight has to be this one though. For the very first time, I have a picture of all the folks who went on the ride together: Andrew, Ethan, Eddy and yours truly.

So that was the exploration ride! Four guys and four bikes...having a great time riding. Reminds me a little of the move "Wild Hogs". No, I don't think this motley crew is anything similar to those four in the movie. But it sure proved one very important point: that anyone and everyone can be united with a passion! Its bikes for tonight...who knows what bigger things can come of this?

30 August 2009 ride report - Sunrise surprise

There is something about riding a motorcycle that liberates me. I can't really put my finger on it thought. Maybe its the freedom of being able to go where many cars are not able to go. Or maybe its the feel of the wind blowing through the hair...can't be...cos helmets are compulsory in Singapore. Well...whatever it is, it sure is addictive!

I had just completed a late night 70km ride three nights ago. I wanted to capture some images of industrial lights and was at the south-western part of Singapore. I went on another ride just last night covering the southern part of the island. And this morning, I went on an early morning ride with two biker friends.

My alarm went off faithfully at 4:30am, jolting me from a wonderful dream that I can no longer remember. I have had my share of mornings when I "snoozed" my alarm clock several times over because I need a little more rest...but today I sprang out of bed enthusiastically. You see, I had an ambitious route planned and am very eager to get on with the riding!

The plan was to meet at the stretch of petrol stations along Upper Thomson Road at 5am. The route promised a lot of fun involving many old roads with minimal expressway runs, incorporating a stint of hiking up Bukit Timah for the sunrise, topped off with a hearty breakfast and a nice cuppa. Meeting at a petrol station would give everyone a chance to fill up before this 70km adventure. Have a look at the route in Google Maps for a better idea.

We started on our journey with a nice ride long Old Upper Thomson Road. It was nice to start with this as the road has a good series of bends that were easy to negotiate. While I have enjoyed this stretch of road many times in the pass, riding together with others made the journey more meaningful. Somehow, seeing everyone negotiate a bend successfully made me feel happy. Go figure! Seriously though...I felt really happy seeing everyone complete a bend on my rear-view mirror. Hahaha!

It was going well. In fact, it went well all the way until we hit the Kranji Dam. You see, I had requested for one of my biker friends to let me know when we approached 5:30am. You see, in my route planning, I had forgotten to include the half hour required for the hike up Bukit Timah into my timing calculations...and when did I realize this? Yup...at the Kranji Dam. Why? Because 5:30am crept up on me while we were there.

Thanks to this miscalculation, I rationalized that we had to hightail it to Bukit Timah if we wanted any chance to catch the sunrise, and that we will get back to Kranji Dam after that riding our original planned route in reverse. We took the most direct route possible to Bukit Timah to make up for the time we didn't have, eventually arriving there twenty minutes later.

After parking our bikes and removing our helmets and gloves, we started our hike up the hill. I knew it would be dark as the sun wasn't out yet, but I was completely blinded by how dark it was. While there were quite a number of people walking up and down the path with flash lights, it was still too dark for me to see my own fingers without turning on one of our own flash lights! It dawned on my then that this was, indeed, a nature reserve! The fact that the Parks Authority took this stand made me smile...though I'm sure nobody could see even my teeth!

In a way, the blindness turned out to be a blessing. You see, the hike up Bukit Timah starts off by taking your breath away...literally...with a slope so steep it could make an ant sweat! This would have been a challenge for any hiker, irrespective of fitness level...and here I am...hiking up with my full riding gear (jacket, pants and boots) on and my helmet in my hands! Hahahaha! What in the world was I thinking? The blessing though was that the darkness stopped me from looking ahead and worrying about how long the slope was going to be. I ended up focusing on what was tangible to me at that time - the next step. And so, one step at a time, I conquered that slope...and promptly encountered another! So it was uphill all the way. After lots of heavy breathing...the three of us eventually made it to the summit, and immediately, I could see that we will not be captivated by any sunrise this morning!

If you have been up Bukit Timah, you would know (and probably remember - unlike me) that the summit is completely surrounded by tall trees. It was a wonderful spot in the afternoon to cool off after a sweaty hike. But it was an impossible spot to see a sunrise! I was just glad my two biker friends did not get annoyed with me (at least not visibly since there wasn't much light still) for lugging them all the way up here, to see what they can probably see in the comfort of their bed at home!

As they say: "no point crying over spilt milk". So with the spirit of making the best of what we had, we went about taking pictures. As the sky was taking much longer to brighten up than a snail would take to travel from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, we took our time to scout around the area for interesting photograph opportunities. I walked around and eventually found an angle for this shot.

I wanted to take a picture that makes it clear that I was at the "Summit of Bukit Timah". I did think of that radio tower that is so synonymous with Bukit Timah. But since some people have absolutely no clue what the summit looked like, I decided that this picture would say it better. I had to crawl on the ground to get this angle. I think its nice to see the carving on the rock together with those trees lit by the brightening sky (now you understand why there's just no way we could see the sunrise!)

The clouds happened to be low and thick this morning...this means the colours of the sky is subdued and desaturated. In fact, there isn't any real colour at all! So I decided to focus on things that are less dependent on the colour of the available light.

I've always enjoyed macro-photography. Actually the term is a misnomer since "macro-photography" is the act of photographing small (micro) things. So strange is the English language! But I digress. I walked around and soon found this dried leaf lying on the grass and I thought it looked really pretty. I could not resist capturing this. I have always loved the way a leaf looks. They're so beautifully formed...even to the very end!

I was all over the place, walking around, looking up, looking down, on my knees, on my elbows, on my back...taking pictures...just minding my own photography business. Suddenly, this set of steps grabbed me and refused to let go!

Captivated, I spent some time examining the steps, admiring the stone work. It was really pretty. Surprisingly, it was colourful too! But I thought it would be nice to stick to black and white for today. So you will have to hike up Bukit Timah if you want to see the brilliant colours! Remember to do it in the early morning or the colours will be different...hehehe!

Not wanting to be outdone, everything else started grabbing my attention. I tell you, there's nothing like taking photographs. After awhile, everything wanted my attention. So I gave my attention to everything that called out to me. Unfortunately, all the pictures I took had that faded "old year book" look. So this is the only other picture I felt you should see.

I try to do my best and give justice to everything that I photograph. This was my best effort for this particular subject. I love it though...its so...its so...its so...ahhh!

Well, soon the whole place is bright and starting to fill up with other folks. I decided its time to head off and get some real riding in before the morning is over. The foot of the hill could not have been more different from earlier. It was now bright, of course, and more interestingly, it was PACKED with cars! Who would have thought this place would be packed on a Sunday morning? People obviously love nature! Wow!

I led the way and off we went according to plan...the alternate plan, that is. We went on many interesting roads...beautiful scenery (sorry no pictures)...great curves...no cars...cool weather...and super dark clouds. Silly me checked the weather forecast up till 7am and was so happy it would be a dry and partly cloudy morning, forgetting that the ride will only end around 9am, and that rain was forecasted for that time. Still, I had to take a stop when we got to the end of Lim Chu Kang Road...for this.

This scene was right in front of us and it would be a crime not to let it slip by without sharing it with you. It was like a scene out of an old Bruce Lee movie (I did mention him sometime ago in another article, didn't I? Hmmm....).  I love the way that jetty is so ragged and how the storm clouds look so threathening, and yet the entire scene is just so serene!

We headed off again soon after trying to avoid the inevitable rain that would come. Our target was a breakfast place at the Kranji Industrial Park nearby. So after making a wrong turn and the first signs of a long shower, we ended back at Kranji Dam.

Yeah, there is more light now and I could not resist taking a picture to show you how big that dark cloud cover was! It wasn't long before the rain would start pouring down!

And rain it did soon after. We got pelted with huge, cold raindrops! Good thing the breakfast place was just a few minutes away. Some prata, dosai and noodles quickly filled us up, while our kopi and teh gave us the perfect excuse to stay dry and chat as the rain continued to pour! It was the perfect end to a wonderful morning ride!

Come join me next time!

23 August 2009 ride report

A couple days ago, I thought that going out for a late night ride with a few other bikers was a good idea. After all, the weather has been pretty good. Even though it did rain in the afternoons, by night fall, the roads were usually dry, the air was cool and the traffic was almost non-existent. I polled around and eventually got two others to join me for this ride. I even planned a route on Google Maps!

It was to be a nice ride with nice curves, uphill and downhill, separated by relaxing, straighter stretches, filled with great spots for night photography with scenes of the harbour, the city, the industrial areas, followed by a little spot of supper if we should get hungry by the end of the ride. Perfect!


Before setting off, I checked the 3-hour nowcast that the National Environment Agency publishes. It signaled a cloudy night with no rain. So I packed my camera bag, got into my gear (without the rain liners), and headed out to meet the other rider.


We should all be familiar with Murphy to know that he's a real busy body and loves to meddle around with everybody's business. So quite characteristically, he decided to show up tonight...yup...it rained! Since we already set out, I decided to just stick with my non-rain gear. My riding mate (only one because the other one was put on standby and could not join us) decided to put on his rain jacket quickly and we continued on our way. We did change our route...but hey...it was a night out riding and nothing was gonna stop the fun!


It was a relatively uneventful ride. We hit the curves at Portsdown Road and it was real fun. We then continued on to South Buona Vista Road and rode downhill, following a few cars and a truck. If you are not familiar with this road, let me tell you that it is the road with the most number of bends in Singapore. So its a real fun ride. But it was wet tonight...and no...we did not skid...but the truck in front of me did while negotiating one of the bends. Good thing we were maintaining a healthy following distance!


So eventually we got to where I really wanted to be - the industrial area of Tuas. I wanted to get there to see the lights. There were still some light showers when we got there but the lights made it worth the while. We rode around the area scouting for good angles and stopped at several places to catch the light.


The first place we stopped was a nice cul-de-sac that was deserted. It did smell rather funny, kinda like a sewer. And then I found out that we stopped right next to some big tanks of process water...still...the view was relatively nice and I managed to get close enough for this shot.

I've always loved flames. I love the way they dance in the breeze. I love the quality of the light that radiates from them. I love their shapes, always changing, always morphing, constantly giving light and warmth to the surrounding darkness. So I simply had to photograph this up close. Don't you think the flame looks so animated?


We made another stop around a long, sweeping bend. There we had a good view of the refinery. Unfortunately, there was a fence that made every picture ugly. So I hopped across the drain and went right up to the fence to take this picture.

There is something special about industrial scenes. I love the multi-coloured lights. I love the big drum tanks, the high chimneys. And I especially love the way the sky looks because of all that stuff that is pumped out. Yeah, not good for the environment, but great for this picture, I think!


We did stop in a few other places and it was really fun. But since it was raining, we decided to call it a night and start heading for home. Along the way, I chanced upon this scene and could not resist stopping for another spot of photography.

It took me awhile to setup this shot...what's more, the road was so deserted, it took us awhile before there were enough cars passing by to experiment with the shot. Eventually, we managed to catch a cab passing by.


It was getting late and we started to see lightning in the sky. So we packed up and decided to get back on our way. As we were riding down a particularly dark and lonely road, we saw this scene on our right and simply had to stop again.

I think this picture is really beautiful! It reminds me of a painting rather than a photograph. Much like some of the paintings I saw when I was at the Musee De Louvre. Immediately after I took this picture, the sky was completely lit up by lightning...and we knew we had to hurry. So off we went again!

This is the route that we took tonight. It is very different from the one I originally planned. It is hard to tell from the picture, but this route is almost 70km long and is almost double the distance of the original one. You can click on the and see the route in Google Maps and follow along our journey.


I'm glad I went on this ride tonight. It was relaxing and made for a perfect end to the day. I can't wait to ride again.


Come join us next time!

23 August 2009 ride report

So early this morning shunoski suggest that we should catch the sunrise at Punggol Jetty. Since it was raining heavily when I saw his post slightly past midnight, I thought it made for a good opportunity for photographs...IF it stopped raining by then. So we agreed to meet up at the jetty at 6:45am. Unfortunately, I got hooked watching some documentary about warships (don't ask why) and stayed up till 2:30am. Anyway, I set my alarm (3 alarms actually) for 5:45am and went to bed.

It was still drizzling when I eventually got up at 6am. I could hear the pitter patter of the rain drops outside my bathroom window. The sound was very pleasant and the air was light. I wasn't sure if it was such a great idea to ride early in the morning in such wet conditions...but an agreement is an agreement and I quickly prepared myself. It takes me awhile to get into my gear...especially early in the morning when I'm trying to be quiet and not wake the house :-)

Eventually I set off. I got to the jetty around 6:40am and the light was already out...as usual...my bed was a little too comfortable for me to want to leave it in the early morning. So I quickly made my way to the jetty and started shooting.

I was shooting for a little while and then I noticed this little motorboat coming into shore. I realized it was picking up some passengers, probably for an early spot of fishing. I waited for it to move off and snapped this picture as I wanted something in the foreground.

I walked around to the west-facing side of the jetty and found that the other side of the beach was strewn with rocks and that someone was walking towards the rocks. I thought it looked very idyllic and serene. So I waited till he got into the frame and snapped this picture.

This picture really reminded me of the many times I went diving and went out early to catch the sunrise on the jetty of the islands that we were at. It also reminded me of the times I was at Bali when I spent the entire morning walking around the beach when the tide was still out. It was fantastic!

I decided to get onto the beach for a different perspective. I had forgotten how slippery the steps were on jetties and was reminded in a very painful way when I slipped and fell down five or six steps. I landed heavily on my back and slid down to the sand. Luckily for me, I was wearing my riding jacket/pants combo which had armour on my back and hips! Still, the fall did take the wind out of me.

Around this time, I noticed a series of waves coming in. You see, it was nice and quiet earlier and I think the tide was just making a move to come in. So I went close to the water edge and snapped some shots with the stones.

I don't know about you but I love stones. They just give me a feeling of strength and beauty. These stones were much larger before. They got to be this small due to the erosion that happens after many years of being washed by the waves. I am sure they will turn into beautiful, smooth pebbles one day, much like the one I saw in the movie Departures.

As I was going to move off, I saw a boat coming in again, this time to disembark a passenger. I thought it was fitting (since I started the series with a boat departing) that I end this series with a boat arriving. I quickly got into position and snapped this.

This reminded me of some old pictures, especially an obscure Bruce Lee one where he came from some part of China and landed in Nanyang (Singapore, I suppose). Of course in the movie the jetty was a much smaller one made of wood. Still, you get the idea.

We headed off after this. On our way out, I noticed the sun was peeking through the clouds and was SO BEAUTIFUL! Unfortunately, I have already packed my camera away. So you will have to wait for another day to see that sight.

Until next time, have a great day!

Visit my smugmug gallery for more pictures.

I've got much to learn!

You know how they say that you can learn something everyday? Well, what they didn't tell you was the "how".

I've been driving many years now and have owned several cars along the way, each with its own peculiar characteristics. There was the little Suzuki which liked to get her battery drained when I forgot to switch off the headlamps, or to get hot and thirsty in the middle of the road and let off loads of steam. Then there was the VW that decided that it was winter in Singapore and refused to cool down the cabin. The fantastic Alfa Romeo whose electric windows decides that my index finger needs a little more exercise by refusing to close with a single touch, requiring me to pull that lever once for each inch of travel...you get the idea. I'd like to think that I've experienced enough on-road mechanical, electrical and electronic failures to be able to deal with this easily...with a single phone call to the emergency response service...until today.

You see, today I was out on the roads, happy as a lark, on my way to meet a nice fella who was willing to show me his new bike. It is a Derbi Terra 125. A class 2B bike that had killer looks, off-road credibility AND could handle the highway easily. It sounds like the ultimate class 2B bike to my ears. No, he isn't selling it. I just wanted to see and feel it for myself if it really existed. But I digress...

So anyway, I was on my way to meet this chap...and suddenly my bike decides that he wanted to stop working. The throttle would not respond and the motor simply stopped. Very similar to how the engine would stop when I ran out of petrol. So I looked at the odometer and saw that I travelled less than 80 miles from the last fill up...that was strange...my bike normally gave me 90-100 miles before hitting reserve! So I put him onto the reserve tank and tried to re-start with the electric start. No deal. I tried to kick start. No deal. I shook the bike left and right (so the petrol can move over to the left side of the tank cos that's where the valve is. Tried again. No deal. And then I realized...I have no emergency response service to call!

The good news is that there was a petrol station with a bike repair service about 1.5km away. The bad news is that I needed to push my bike there...and it is uphill for the first kilometer along Yio Chu Kang Road! Another piece of good news...weather was cool (thanks to the rain)...another piece of bad news...I was in my rain gear...which means, t-shirt, shorts, rain liner top, rain liner pants, jacket, riding pants, riding boots. It was HOT and HEAVY!

Anyway, eventually I got the bike to the shop and the nice chap looked it over. Tried the electric start. No deal. Then he tried to kick start...and the bike came to life! Turned out it was a simple battery problem. He told me that I could have called and they would come change the battery for me...too bad I did not have their number! Also, too bad I didn't know how to do a kickstart properly...I thought I did because I did it before...several times too...but obviously...I have much more to learn.

So yeah...its true what they say about how we learn something everyday. I learnt today that no matter how experienced I am, something new can always happen to make things more interesting. What I really learnt was...that there is no escape. someone up there knew I needed to exercise after last night's dinner...and made sure I did it!