Social Networking

One hears social networking, immediately names such as "Face book, Friendster, My Space, You Tube, Blogs" pop into our minds. But you might have forgotten another one: Erich's WUERSTELSTAND ! Unbelievable? Believe it. It already happened many times that 'strangers' made new friends chatting over a sausage or a beer there. Even forgotten persons or friends somehow connected again through the Wuerstelstand blog.

Now Erich himself had this network experience which made him very happy. He received a letter from Austria. The writer was no one less than his former and first cooking teacher Elisabeth when Erich was an apprentice in her Restaurant, "Gasthaus Fuchs".

Since he left there to discover the world (and that was "ages" ago), he neither heard nor saw her again.

And now this surprise letter. She read an article in a regional newspaper, found his address on our blog and didn't hesitate to writing him. Lauding him for his success and bragging about old times (and how naughty he was as an apprentice! Just kidding)

A message from Erich to Elisabeth: " Thanks for your kind letter. It really surprised me. I want to wish you good health and all the best for the years to come." Of course Erich has replied with a letter as well but since she found him over this blog.......

Singapore’s Christmas Hype

To all you guys out there, away from Singapore, thinking celebrating Xmas is only limited to the “cold” countries, I think we’ve proven you wrong if you had time to see our Xmas light up in my previous post.
But this is not limited to Orchard Road and the Marina Bay area even “heartland” malls nowadays are gearing up for Christmas and of course
Erich’ Wuerstelstand has been celebrating Christmas ever since he opened his sausage kiosk. He’s been decorating the Wuerstelstand for all kind of celebrations throughout the year so Christmas is a must a well.
Anyway how could an Austrian not celebrate Xmas when the world’s probably most famous song- “Stille Nacht” (Silent Night) was composed in 1818 by 2 Austrians in Oberndorf a small town close to wonderful Salzburg? (More about that in our Xmas post)
However things have changed a lot since then. Was it to write a song for the mostly poor skippers that made their living by transporting salt on the ‘Salzach’ river and were unemployed during winter. Nowadays this biggest festival in Christianity has sadly lost its original character to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, but “times they are changing”.
How else can someone explain the hype caused by Xmas in countries where the believers and baptized Christians make only a single digit in percentage of the population?
But………the shopping centres are sometimes overloaded with Xmas decoration and gifts to buy.
I do understand the economics behind Xmas. It’s the time for shops to make probably the most money throughout the whole year and I’m fine with that. However when I listen to friends or other people everyone agrees that this is almost too much. But then (“Die Botschaft hör ich wohl „… allein mir fehlt der Glaube”Goethe- Your messages I hear, but faith has not been given) all are caught in the Xmas hysteria and continue their shopping spree.
I have to admit I also get excited by the bright lights everywhere. One thing that really turns my Xmas feelings immediately off is having to listen to Xmas songs all over the places again and again and again, especially when they start playing in the 1st week of November (!!!!) already even before the “official” light up.
Singapore is not different especially since we are known as the capital of shopping. I went to town to catch a morning movie last Sunday and to my horror at 10am Paragon car park’s “FULL” sign was already flashing! The crossing at Takashimaya (Orchard Rd) and Paragon looked almost like Shibuya crossing in Tokyo. People, people and more people, quite scary actually.
And this hype, dear readers, will continue till end of ‘Chinese New Year’ Celebrations in February 2008. Hallelujah!

AUDI R8 PRESENTATION A BIG DISAPPOINTMENT

.........of course not for the VIP's! They had great spots which is fine with me. But there might have been potential future customers as well.

The good news first: The car is a beauty as most Audis are.

However the location was the worst that could have been choosen for the presentation .
There were just too many pillars, trees and even a bus around the Marriott blocking the view for spectators and quite a few showed up. Another obstacle was the events company's huge elevated box for the mixstation for sound and video which was as big as for some Rock Concerts. The biggest disappointment though was the "RACE" down Orchard Road, which was actually only a rolling along Orchard, guarded by police in midst of the Sunday morning traffic.

They probably should sack their PR guy, because the newspapers created a hype the days before only mentioning Marriott as a starting point and Raffles as Pit stop with a start time at 9am. However no word that most action would actually happen at the Marriott and will last at least 1 hour before they "zoom down" (Straits Time) Orchard Road.
Unfortunately I didn't read the fine print within the Audi advertisement in 'The Sunday Times'! I'm like a lot of my friends and we can't be bothered with advertisements, we just flip pages until we are in the sports section. This is what we're really interested in. But it seemed many more interested people are facing the same problem since they've been waiting with their kids along Orchard Road as well.
So we went to Orchard (in front of Paragon) to get the best spot to catch the Audi spectacle of 3 old and new cars "racing" down Orchard. Time passed by, many cabs and buses as well but no Audi's at all. Dozens of folks with cameras ready had been waiting.
After more than an hour we gave up our perfect spot already quite frustrated and walked towards Marriott and there they were the crowd, drivers and cars.
When the host announced the start of the "race" we rushed back to "our" spot for best views and photos.
My camera was ready for the show, from far I saw blue police lights and suddenly, but see yourself what happened: Can you see the Audis ? No? Just look through the bus window? Well that was how much we saw from the "race"! No more words are needed I guess!

Another big story about Erich's Wuerstelstand in an Austrian Newspaper

Erich's success story has already been featured many times in local TV shows, newspapers and magazines but in other Asian countries and even worldwide. Currently Erich is shown on International flights in the arrival video about Singapore.
Media from his home country Austria also send inquiries for interviews quite frequently because they are proud of his success overseas.

Click photo to see report
They honour not only the big companies but also entrepreneurs like Erich.
This time it was again Austria's most read newspaper featuring his story in conjunction with Xmas in Singapore.
Immediately after the first copies have been sold we could see quite an increase of web page hits from Austria. Thus makes Erich ones again a renown ambassador for both countries, Austria as well as Singapore.

Preparing for Christmas

Night settles in in Chinatown, the last dwellers have left, that's the time when Erich's getting very busy. He has to prepare his kiosk for the arrival of Santa Claus.

Just a few more days and the Wuerstelstand will stand out again among all stalls in Chinatown. Once decoration is completed you are welcome to swing by and have a chat and take some photos with Santa there.

And don't forget to pre order your Xmas cookies, bread or sausages! Just use the 2 order forms on the left hand side of the blog.

By the way: The Salami Sandwich is back on the menu and tastier than ever.

So, SEE YOU SOON

If you are curious what Santa is doing before his arrival in Chinatown. Just click Santa

Christmas in the Tropics

The magical Christmas extravaganza is back and on untill 2 January 2008.

With a host of exciting events including festive performances, entertainment events, shopping specials, concerts and dance parties, as well as the popular brilliant display of lights at Orchard Road and Marina Bay. “Christmas in the Tropics" is a major tourism attraction for Singapore according to the Singapore Tourism Board. This Christmas spectacle comes with a variety of events from shopping to dining and entertainment.

A survey shows that one in five visitors last year have planned their trips to coincide with Singapore’s Christmas celebration and the Tourism Board is hoping that this year would not be any different.

With an amazing Christmas Light-up which by the way has always been the visitors favourite, Singapore wants to create the most memorable Christmas experience for them.

Themed “A Fairytale Christmas” this year it stretches over 3 km from Orchard Road (including Scotts Road), Tanglin Road to Plaza Singapura and the Marina Bay area from Hotel Rendezvous to Raffles Avenue. This area has been transformed into a bewitching Crystal Forest decked with magnificent chandeliers, magic harps, glittering jewels, dazzling lights in red, gold and white, and even a magical carousel. Dick Lee, Singapore's famous composer, who is the Creative Director for the second consecutive year, has conceptualized this fantasy land for the unfolding of a fairytale inspired by the Nutcracker Suite, which tells the story of handsome Prince Noel who goes in search of his missing true love, Princess Ballerina, through the Crystal Forest.
Apart from the Light-Up, another key highlight is the "Celebrate Christmas in Singapore" event, with the theme ‘Christmas – It’s All About Love’. Visitors can look forward to Christmas-themed performances nightly at various locations along Orchard Road as well as a colourful parade of floats from 15 to 24 December.
More information about all events can be found at the Singapore Tourism Board Website.

Since the light up people are storming the City Centre to see the lights and many of them have already started a serious Christmas shopping spree.

"Rudi" and colleagues galloping through Singapore's sky
Paragon Shopping Centre has always been a highlight with their beautiful deco

Paragon Starbucks "Santa's" are ready to round up the Xmas experience for Tourists and Locals
On the walkway in front of Takashimaya a group of "Red Indians" are playing their folks songs. Singapore a melting pot of cultures.
A 3 storey Xmas tree in the lobby of Takashimaya is one of the most photographed tress every year...............Teddy's Christmas Tree and clothes
..............Masses of shopper at Centre Point Shopping Centre.
................ And the Taxi queue
................A festive decoration where ever you go


........Last but not least Raffels City and famous Raffles Hotel
There would be so much more to cover about Singapore's Xmas spectacle but you need time for searching all the locations. For me it was a long nights walk to see all these nicely decorated places. Stop by at our Wuerstelstand Blog for updates and to see more click the picture below.

Christmas Light-up in Singapore

HAPPY THANKSGIVING, HAPPY TURKEY

To all our American Blog readers:

A Very Happy Thanksgiving !

Thanksgiving Day in America is a time to offer thanks, of family gatherings and holiday meals. A time of turkeys, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. A time for Indian corn, holiday parades and giant balloons.
Thanksgiving is celebrated every year on the 4th Thursday of November.

HISTORY;
Throughout history mankind has celebrated the bountiful harvest with thanksgiving ceremonies.
Before the establishment of formal religions many ancient farmers believed that their crops contained spirits which caused the crops to grow and die. Many believed that these spirits would be released when the crops were harvested and they had to be destroyed or they would take revenge on the farmers who harvested them. Some of the harvest festivals celebrated the defeat of these spirits.

Harvest festivals and thanksgiving celebrations were already held by the ancient Greeks, the Romans, the Hebrews, the Chinese, and the Egyptians.

It's Christmas Time! At Least According to Shops

Ho, ho, ho, ho!
This is the sound many of us have been waiting for since 11 month, although for some it might have been to fast because another year went by way too quick .
Anyway we can't help it and from tonight on it is official. The lights are up: It's Xmas Time.
Well not everywhere yet. If you're wondering, Erich's stall (not in Bethlehem, but Chinatown) is not behind this year but he will only have the decoration up probably next Sunday, for him being a real Austrian this is the actual start of the Christmas season over there.
However his Christmas bakery - @ Backstube- is very busy already preparing hampers for the customers. You will find the order form online soon. So please come back and check out Erich's Xmas Promotions.

Deepavali, The Festival of Lights

Deepavali is a colorful festival celebrated by all Hindus worldwide, which is also known as the festival of lights. This festival usually falls around late October and November. One important practice that the Hindus follow during the festival is to light oil lamps in their homes on Deepavali morning. By lighting the oil lamps, the Hindus are thanking the gods for the happiness, knowledge, peace and wealth that they have received. The Hindus consider Deepavali as one of the most important festivals to celebrate.
The Legend -
An interesting legend is behind this festival. Narakasura, a demon, ruled the kingdom of Pradyoshapuram. Under his rule, the villagers suffered a lot of hardship as the demon tortured the people and kidnapped the women to be imprisoned in his palace. Seeing his wickedness, Lord Khrishna set out to destroy the demon and the day Narakasura died was celebrated as Deepavali, the triumph of good over evil!

Preparations -
At least two to three weeks before the festival preparation for Deepavali usually starts. Hindus will be busy cleaning their houses to get ready for the festival. Some would even renovate their houses. Usually the family will shop for new clothes and for accessories to decorate their homes. Indian shops will be selling festive items like Deepavali greeting cards, carpets, Punjabi suits and flowers.
Celebrations -
The Hindus usually awake early in the morning of Deepavali around 3am and the first ritual will be having an oil bath, which is an important feature of this festival. They wear their new clothes. Most of the ladies would be clad in silk saris or Punjabi suits of various bright shades. Hindus particularly dislike dressing in black on that day, as they consider black an inauspicious color for the festival. An important practice would be to pay their respects to the elderly and most families would go to the temple after having breakfast. The houses would be decorated with oil lamps and people stay home to welcome guests who visit them.
Food -
A wide variety of delicious food will be served. Some of the popular sweets are halwa, burfi and laddu. Hindus love eating spicy food and for non-vegetarians they indulge in favorites like chicken tandoori, prawn sambal and fish head curry. Popular vegetarian dishes arw thosais, idlis and naans.
HAPPY DEEPAVALI

THE CHALLENGE IS WON

The ultimate winner of this year's

MediaCorp Radio Subaru Impreza Challenge,
in a new record time of 77 hours and 15 minutes,

is Sandra Yeo.

She won a Subaru Impreza 1.5R (Manual)

Congratulations to you and all other participants.

Male Winner: Kevin Lee

After 76 hours Kevin finally lifted his palm and won the Subaru Impreza 1.5R (MI Rally Team Edition/Manual.
However there are still 2 girls fighting for the second car. Fighting with fatigue, pain, hunger,
thirst and their psyche as well.
The girls keep moving to the rythm of Class 95 music played through the speakers. A lot of suppoerter behind the fences are also cheering for them.
Who will be the ultimate winner?
Is it Sandra

or is it Lee Lian
Kevin giving interviews for the media people.