The first and last question that popped into my mind remains the same, despite all the improvements ...

... What About Ventilation????

I don't want to think about the amount of plastic waste in the name of convenience that this will bring... but wine in a carton. That won't do for classy, right?

Biscuit cutter!!!!!!:D

I'm wondering about capital punishment too. How can one receive a death sentence without jeopardising the other?

He's a personal friend -- he lives in Malaysia, where there's a distinct homely, ethnic flavour to his humor. :)

Actually, it's not a little "guy". It's a little girl.

Oh, sorry -- one last point: it's intriguing how videos and exposés like these never make their way to mainstream news.

Hello there -- being Singaporean and having lived in Singapore all my life -- with my own grandparents living in one of those villages described there, I can only describe this way of life as largely forgotten. I don't think it will be missed, too. I feel that the entire social climate is predisposed to getting rid of the old and on with the new, because Singapore, since it was founded, was about eroding away culture and being globalised, modern and progressive. I absolutely agree with Kellog here, that nostalgia is tossed aside for pragmatism, and pragmatism may be the better answer, but it is very sad that being 17 I have never had a chance to see such places in my own country.

Many other places in Singapore, like small enclaves or lone shophouses, have been slated for redevelopment. Even old shophouses have been repainted for some "modern" kitsch appearance, especially in obscure parts of old Singapore like Geylang and Jalan Sultan. Other villages ("kampongs" in Malay) are actually located in the outlying islands which are similarly forgotten.

It's indeed rather ironic that Singapore seems to only rush to piece together a sort of rich "culture" when pragmatic needs, such as income from tourism, dictates it necessary. It's similar to the country's rationnale for the growth of the arts -- that it is important only because it is an indicator for how modern and civilised our nation is, and that Singapore wants to score on the list, even when it is already the most globalised nation in the world (as of 2007 or 2008, I think).

I absolutely love these century eggs! Despite the slight smell of sulphur or ammonia, the yolk tastes slightly nutty, salty, and like some kinds of cheeses and mushrooms, while the white tastes like a milder version. The texture of the white (or black, ha ha) is soft and jelly-ish while the yolk is creamy, slightly solid and liquid -- a little like 4/5 cooked yolks on sunny-side ups.

It's not made in 1000 years -- it's ridiculous to think so, seriously -- how many century eggs could people a millenium ago bury? Anyway, it's merely made from highly alkaline materials including sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide and other naturally occuring alkalis. I made this in high school when I was in 15 with a bunch of chemicals. The whites couldn't solidify though, while the yolk was the right appearance.

Other urban myths include that it was made from horse urine, but it isn't. Horse urine doesn't contain enough alkalis. It's the smell of the chemical reaction between the sulphur in the eggs and the alkaline solution which produces the 'urine' smell.

It is also named Pi Dan (literally "skin egg") or in Cantonese dialect, Pei Dan. Song Hua Dan is another name for it.

the civet cat was the root cause of SARS, wasn't it!!

The last girl, I thought, had really little make-up compared to girls 2, 3, and 4 ... so beautiful, she is.

Is it a chandelier?