Categories
Stamps

Singapore-Philippines Joint Issue

Earlier in the afternoon, I was at the Pod on level 16 of the National Library Building for the Singapore-Philippines Joint Issue stamp launch. Access to the Pod is restricted, requiring wireless access cards to take the lift up. The lift, which could fit up to 40 people, was similar to the size of a cargo lift. The view at the Pod was magnificent! I started going around taking pictures of the scenery.

Panorama

(Click to enlarge)

Lift lobby
Lift lobby

Exhibits

View from The Pod

Road Junction

The event started at 1500 hours with a song in Tagalog which amazed the crowd. Following which, the Ambassador of the Philippines Mrs Minda C. Cruz officially launched the stamps by pulling a lever. The panel rotated slowly to reveal an enlarged image of the stamps. After that, a music school teacher performed another song.

Stamp Frame

Stamp Launch

Guests

The Pod

Guests received a set of commemorative first day cover in a stylish silver folder, as well as a colourful folder containing a personalised stamp sheet: MyStamp.

Bridges (2009) MyStamp

The covers below are autographed by Mrs Minda Cruz.

Autographed Covers

This stamp issue commemorates the 40th anniversary of Diplomatic relations between Singapore and The Philippines, featuring five bridges: Henderson Waves & Alexandra Arch (80c) and Cavenagh Bridge (65c) from Singapore, as well as Bamban Bridge (1st Local) and Marcelo Fernan Bridge ($1.10) from the Philippines.

Henderson Waves and Alexandra Arch opened in May 2008 and are both found along the Southern Ridges. Henderson Waves is Singapore’s highest pedestrian bridge at 36 metres above Henderson Road. Cavenagh Bridge was built in 1868 and was the oldest bridge across the Singapore River. This bridge was built to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the founding of the Crown Colony of the Straits Settlements. Bamban Bridge, completed around 1998, is one of the longest bridges of its type and has an arch span of 174 metres. Marcelo Fernan Bridge is an extra dosed cable-stayed bridge located in Cebu, and has a total length of 1237 metres.

Categories
Stamps

1990 Asian Games

The latest addition to my collection is a set of first day covers issued to commemorate the 11th Asian Games held in Beijing, China. Three series of stamps were released by the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications of the PRC, from 1988 to 1990, one in each year. The 11th Asian Games was held from 22 September 1990 to 7 October 1990, and was the first large-scale international sports event to be held in the People’s Republic of China.

The first series was a set of two stamps issued on 20 July 1988, with a total face value of RMB 0.38. The 8 fen stamp shows the logo for the Games, while the 30 fen stamp shows the mascot of the Games, PanPan the Panda.

1988a

The second series consisted of four stamps with total face value RMB 2.08, and was issued on 15 December 1989. The stamp showcases the four most spectacular competition venues renovated and built for the Games. They are the Beijing Students’ Gymnasium, the Beijing Natatorium of the Northern Suburbs, the Beijing Workers’ Stadium and the Chaoyang Gymnasium, appearing on the 8 fen, 10 fen, 30 fen and 1.60 yuan stamps respectively.

1989a

1989b

The final series of six stamps was released on the opening day of the Games, and included a miniature sheet of the 12 stamps from all three series, with the theme on sports events. They include Track and Field (4 fen), Gymnastics (8 fen), Wushu (10 fen), Volleyball (20 fen), Swimming (30 fen) and Shooting (1.60 yuan).

1990a

1990b

1990c

A last day commemorative cover was issued on 7 October 1990.

1990d

All stamps measure 40 mm by 30 mm and have a perforation of 11 by 11.5.

Categories
Running

Safra Singapore Bay Run & Army Half Marathon 2009

Finish

The annual Safra Singapore Bay Run & Army Half Marathon 2009 was held early this morning. The 21-kilometre run started on the Esplanade Bridge under the night sky, passing by Fullerton Hotel. We then proceeded up the Benjamin Sheares Bridge at 20 metres in height, passing by landmarks such as the Singapore Flyer and the Floating Platform, before entering East Coast Park. A 50-metre stretch along the East Coast Park was shrouded in darkness, with the path lit up by light sticks. After making a right turn to Mountbatten Road, where runners found themselves running alongside the morning traffic, the sky became brighter. The next straight stretch was along Nicoll Highway, but after making a turn into Republic Avenue, we had to run twice below an underpass at the 17-kilometre mark. The last four kilometers was along the F1 track and across Anderson Bridge. The run ended at the Padang, where runners collected their finisher medals and participated in the carnival.

Carnival

This is the second time I have came to the Padang in a week. On Friday evening, I attended the One Year Countdown to the 2010 Singapore Youth Olympic Games as mentioned in this article.

Countdown Clock

The Youth Olympic Games Countdown Clock greets runners as they cross the finishing line.

Categories
Singapore

Countdown to Singapore 2010

The Countdown to the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games has started at the Padang at 1700 hours earlier today.
Information counter
Information counter

As the clock approaches exactly 365 days, the crowd became more excited.

A large crowd at the event
A large crowd at the event

It is now less than a minute away to the moment. The Countdown Clock, sponsored by Omega, was unveiled a while ago by Professor S. Jayakumar, Senior Minister and Co-ordinating Minister for National Security.

It is less than a minute...
It is less than a minute...
Just one second left!
Just one second left!
It is exactly one year to the 2010 Youth Olympic Games!
It is exactly one year to the 2010 Youth Olympic Games!
One second later...
One second later...

At the same time, fireworks shot up from behind City Hall, as everyone whipped out their cameras and mobile phones.

Fireworks display
Fireworks display

There were many performances at the countdown event.

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Performances

Performance

Programme

In addition, there were Singapore 2010 flags available on a first come first served basis.

Singapore 2010 Flag

Other than?the new issue of stamps, limited edition pens bearing the Singapore 2010 print were on sale. Each set of pen is priced at SGD 10, but half of the sale proceeds are donated to charity.

Pilot Booth

Pen Set

Limited edition white Singapore 2010 pen
Limited edition white Singapore 2010 pen
Categories
Stamps

Sculptures

August will be a busy month for stamp collectors in Singapore, as there will be three issues in total. On 9 August, a set of seven stamps featuring sculptures will be released National Day. On 14 August, four vibrant stamps will be issued to celebrate the one-year countdown event for the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games. Finally, there will be a Singapore-Philippines Joint Issue on bridges on 28 August to commemorate the 40th year of Diplomatic relations between the two countries. 

 Sculptures (2009)

The masterpieces of seven sculptors are showcased on the stamps issued on National Day in 2009. The art of sculpture is still very much alive and flourishing in Singapore today. These sculptors have displayed their potential to create monumental pieces that are in tune with the technological age. 

The following works are featured:

  • We’re Happy. Are you Happy? (Mr Teo Eng Seng)
  • Crimson Eagle (Mr Anthony Poon)
  • Art Trees (Ms Han Sai Por)
  • Standing Figure (Mr Wee Beng Chong)
  • Wealth (Dr Ng Eng Teng)
  • Signature (Brother McNally)
  • Nude 2 (Mr Tay Chee Toh)

Happy National Day!

Happy National Day!

Categories
Postcards

Postcards from Singapore

Over the week, the (physical) mailbox at The Restaurant was clogged up by an ever-increasing number of mail items received from different places around the globe, such as Finland, Germany, Italy, Taiwan, Thailand and the United Kingdom, and mainly consisted of postcards (via the Postcrossing Project). In order to prevent further clogging (especially by advertisements which force their way in every now and then), clearing of litters letters are now carried out on a daily basis.

Amidst the haystack of assorted postcards which arrive in my mailbox every day, there were, at times, one or two postcards from Singapore.

A postcard from Singapore
A postcard from Singapore

 This postcard was printed on a 4 inch by 6 inch plain index card on both sides. It was dropped into the postbox on Monday, 20 July 2009, at 1600 hours, and should have arrived at its destination on Tuesday. I waited for a few days, thinking of possible reasons for the non-arrival of the postcard. It could have been eaten up by the machines, either because the cardstock is too thin, or that it had exceeded the maximum allowed postcard length of 148 mm by 4 mm, of which both would be considered non-standard mail.

Surprisingly, the postcard arrived in the mailbox, in the afternoon of Friday, 24 July 2009. More surprisingly, there was no cancellation on the stamp. Even more surprisingly, the postmark dated 23 July was on the reverse side (which featured abstract art which does not resemble a stamp in any way), indicating that the postcard was processed and cleared at the Singapore Post Centre on 23 July (and not on 20 July). I have no clue as to how this unique cancellation originated. Also, the three day delay remains a mystery.

Postcard Back

Unconvinced that index cards cannot be used as postcards, I sent another two postcards on Monday, 27 July 2009. The design used this time was much simpler than the previous one. Both postcards were identical, right down to the postage stamp. The next day, these two postcards swiftly arrived in my mailbox without any delay. Spot the difference!

 Hand Cancellation M10

Machine Cancellation (C1)

One of the postcards could not be cancelled automatically by the machine but had to be cancelled by hand. The other postcard, however, was successful in getting a machine cancellation.

Postcards from Singapore are strangely interesting!