a bit about the weather in Singapore !!

This first image is from our balcony looking towards the city area of Singapore ..... yes, it is there somewhere!!!
this image is looking towards Jurong East (west of us) on a fairly clear day......
... and then down came the rain...... !!!

Today the temperature is 32 deg (89 deg F) with scattered clouds.

Tomorrow it is expected to be 31 deg (87 deg F) with 80% chance of precipitation - and definitely Thunderstorms!!!

There are 4 seasons in Singapore but two are really the "main" ones.
They are the Northeast Monsoon and the Southwest Monsoon Season, and in between two short inter-monsoon periods.

1. December to March

North-East Monsoon Season
Northeast winds sometimes reaching 20 km/hr. Cloudy climatic state covers from December and January with frequent afternoon rainfall. Occurrence of widespread moderate to hard rain lasts from 1 to 3 days at the extension. It is relatively drier in February until early March. Also normally windy from January to February.

2. April to May

Pre South-West Monsoon
Light and alterable winds, with afternoon and early evening heavy rains, including frequent thunder.

3. June to September

South-West Monsoon Season
Southeast and Southwest winds. Early morning "Sumatra" Line squalls normally happens in this misty period.

4. October to November

Pre North-East Monsoon
Moderate to alterable winds with sea breezes in the afternoon. Also, thunder and rain in the late afternoon and early evening.

Singapore's climate is typically tropical, humid, and sometimes uncomfortable with the amount of rainfall. But you do get used to the tropics - eventually!

The temperature rarely drops below 25 deg C. (80 deg F) Humidity actually reaches 90% at night and goes down to 60-70% during the day, the average daily humidity is 80-85%.

When I first arrived here I had the normal Australian (maybe Melbourne?) mentality of asking about "the weather", what is the temperature today or whats the weather tomorrow etc etc...

No-one ever talks about the weather here, no-one asks what is the temperature, it is a NON-EVENT ..... never discussed ...... it is going to be HOT or WET or STORMY ..... that's all you need to know!!

On the radio in the mornings, they may mention something like:

Today is going to be fine and dandy, or Today is going to be fair and fine....

that's it folks - no further discussion - so now I am the one to find it strange when visitors ask me "what is the weather going to be today/tomorrow"??

HOT

That's all you need to know!

Ginger Nuts, our weekend and our wonderful collection of caring house sitters

Sitting here organising another house sitter via email and having a coffee with a ginger nut biscuit ..... in fact more than just one ...... went to Bukit Timah Plaza on Tuesday and the supermarket there has ARNOTTS BISCUITS in stock, not only that, but ginger nuts .... wahoooooo!!!

Pig out time.

....... also sitting here 'cos I have just coloured my hair and need to do nothing for the next 30 mins or so ...... oh well any excuse really to get onto the computer!!

We had a lovely weekend back over at Nongsa Village, leaving on the 4.20pm ferry on Friday and not returning till late Monday. Our friends Susan and Johnny came with us this time. They live on the 27th level of our condo and have been in Singapore about 6 mths longer than us.

They have been over to Batam before but have stayed at Turi Beach Resort, so this was their first time at the Fabre Villa. :-) We all had a very relaxing weekend of reading, eating, sleeping and more reading and eating. On Friday when we arrived Dentak had made some very tasty Bee Hoon for us for dinner, then on Saturday we went shopping into Batam Centre and of course bought the perfumes and other 'cheap' labeled goodies. Susan bought her Gucci handbag and we both bought quite a few bottles of the smelly stuff!!

Saturday evening we all had a BBQ down by the poolside ....... and a few other residents wandered over to join in too. Though must admit the lazy lifestyle over there makes one want to sleep a lot, so we left the BBQ at about 9.30 or so and went back to the Villa for an early night...!!!

Sunday Susan and Johnny took the buggy down to the beach and went for a walk around to Nongsa Point Marina and back which was very energetic of them!! Sunday night we had Teppanyaki for dinner on the balcony and a Margarita or two to wash it down. :-)

Monday we lazed around till it was time to get the shuttle bus back to the ferry terminal and home by 5.00pm. John was back at work on Tuesday.

Now we don't go back to Nongsa until after we get back from our trip down to Melbourne ....... boo hoo ...... so we need to start thinking about what we need to pack (or not pack) for Melbourne and what needs to be done while there. John and I leave here on Friday November 14 arriving in Melbourne on Saturday at about 6.00am. We hit the deck running......

While we are in Melbourne we have a lady named Joy to look after "the boys" ! She arrives a few days before we leave so she can get to know them and know their routine before we leave. Joy lives in Melbourne and does a lot of house sitting for people wherever and when ever she can.

We have used house sitters for over 10 years now and find this the ideal solution when we are traveling or on holidays or just away at a weekend. So if anyone wants a house sitter, do contact me as I am sure I can put you in touch with a few!!

We had house sitters last weekend - Ian and Sue - from Sebana Cove in Malaysia, then next we have Joy for November, in December we have Isabella coming over from Vienna (Austria) to care for the boys over Christmas and New Year ...... in January we have Jaclyn spending a weekend here - while we go to Nongsa - she is here in Singapore just for a few days, so that is ideal for her and us. February we have a couple on their way to Australia from the UK, they are staying just on two weeks, so we can go away for two consecutive weekends and they get to see a lot of Singapore!!

In April a lady named Maureen will be here over the Easter period, in May - Tracey and Della for a week or so, In June we have someone just staying for the weekend and so it continues thruout 2009 ...... how fortunate we are to have so many wonderful people to stay and take care of our boys!

..... well time to go take another shower and get ready for an afternoon with "the girls"! We are at Susans today for a HAIR DAY ....... results of same will be posted within a few days!

internal images of our Villa......

Now Monday morning, John is off at work and another week starts here in Singapore. Had a quiet weekend here at home, which is a nice change too.

Friday night we had friends here for dinner for Teppanyaki. We had bought a hot plate (Teppanyaki Plate) to take over to Nongsa, but we wanted to try it out here first. We had a lovely time, very relaxing way to have friends over and to 'cook' dinner. A rare event for us on both counts.

Saturday we took the train to Vivo City for lunch and a wander around the book store, not too long as I have a cold that that just won't go away ....... but we all know what a cold is like, just feels like you have it forever!!

Yesterday - Sunday - was very quiet, did not do anything except a bit of sleep and reading and over to West Mall for something to eat.

In my last post I did say I would post internal images up of our villa at Nongsa.... so here goes!!

First ones are of the balcony area.....


then the kitchen early evening......
.......and during the day....
Bathroom downstairs....
One of the bedrooms that has an ensuite......
Main bedroom, also has a large ensuite and a fabulous view at night where we can see the ships in the Singapore Straits....
lounge area images .....






so there are the photos of our beautiful Villa at Nongsa Village on the Indonesian Island of Batam!!!

The front garden area at Nongsa ......

Oh my ..... the last time I blogged was October 7 !!!!

I thought being "a lady of alternate pursuits" was going to give me more time to do things, 'tis not the case at all.

Well since I last wrote we have been over to Nongsa again...... and for those that have just 'tuned in', Nongsa is a village on the Island of Batam....which is part of Indonesia! Batam is 35 mins by ferry from the east coast of Singapore.

You can take a ferry from Harborfront to Batam Centre or a ferry from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal to Nongsapura, which is what we do. The ferry costs $43.00 return and runs just about every hour.

We have purchased a Villa over at Nongsa Village (as seen in an earlier post) and for the past three months it has gone thru some pretty extensive renovations. An amazing amount of work in a short period of time. But it is all finished now, except for a few small touch up bits and pieces that need to be completed.

This photo shows what the path looked like in June and then the big difference in September:

and our buggy sits on the pathway at the front.....!!!!

The garden at the front looks wonderful as seen in the following images:








next posting will have images of inside.......

:-)

Eden Sanctuary - Singapore

One of the first places we went to for lunch after I arrived back in Singapore was to Eden Sanctuary!!!

We have been there quite a few times now, and really like this peaceful little haven right in the middle of noisy Singapore, well actually it is at Rochester Park!!


The above is Johns Chamomile Tea and My Coffee!!!

www.edensanctuary.com.sg/

love the peacefulness, the ambiance, the garden and yes, the food is pretty good too!!

Opened in May 2008 ....... This place is very well hidden and slightly separate from the main Rochester hustle & bustle and quieter. Some cabs don't even know its here as its beside the HDB carpark... better coz parking cheaper and easier to find. The food is also definitely cheaper here compared to the rest of the restaurants at Rochester too!

They are now open till 10.00pm every night, and often have wine appreciation dinners.

Anyway, after all that, 'tis nice to 'share' places that we find......and this one is a gem, right in Singapore!


Well, I am still way behind with my blog.....taking forever to catch up!!

So many visitors, one leaves, two arrive the next day, they leave and another arrives.......no time for flickr, no time for letters, no time for blogging, no time for emails....... boo hoo. :-(

I am a survivor of Breast Cancer

I am a survivor of Breast Cancer
Originally uploaded by Leone Fabre.

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A reminder to everyone that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month!!
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I am a survivor of Breast Cancer

October is BREAST CANCER awareness month......

Please support the BC group for your area.

I have now past my 5 year remission period.....but being diagnosed with Cancer is one of the worst moments of one's life.

The above photos are of me the day I was diagnosed with Stage 3 Breast Cancer and secondaries in the lymph glands in 2001 and then the other photo is during chemotherapy when I had no hair .... John shaved his head as well.

With the love and support of family and friends and a lot of positiveness....

I survived.