First taste of F1 in Singapore

We finally got the first real peek what to expect from the F1 race in September and it turned out to be a real magnet to the Singaporeans. Over 10,000 showed up Sunday afternoon to get their guaranteed adrenaline rush when two-time Formula One Champion Mika Häkkinen took to the streets in a Vodafone McLaren Mercedes F1 car to launch Johnnie Walker’s latest responsible drinking campaign.
Hosted by celebrity sports presenter Jaime Yeo, Mika Häkkinen, the Global Responsible Drinking Ambassador, officially launched ‘Join the Pact’ an initiative by Johnnie Walker to remind members of the public to

‘Never Drink and Drive’.
The Finn thrilled the crowds with a series of stunts at the Padang, along St. Andrew Road, demonstrating the clear need to be in complete control when competing in world’s most-watched automotive race. Some of the audience might have already been in Malaysia for the Grand Prix but I’m sure the soon found out that there will be no comparison to the Singapore Grand Prix, since the F1 cars have to negotiate their way between high rise buildings, sharp bends and a very narrow Anderson Bridge which will extremely challenge the drivers.
Reporters and TV teams following every step Mika made.
After some sprints and turns in an AMG tuned Mercedes the McLaren pit crew finally pushed out the F1 car
Waiting for the "GO"
and off he zoomedEveryone had his camera or mobile ready to shoot.......
but sorry....... just missed it, maybe a little tooo fast. He already passed!
Coming back to the pit pushed in by the crew they finally got their shots
Another big difference to race track races will be the noise level when the roaring sound of the engines is reflected echo like by the buildings. This time it was only one car racing a short distance; imagine 20 of them for at least 90 minutes. At full throttle, each car's noise level could go up to 130 decibels (dB) - just shy of the 150 dB produced by a jumbo jet.

But back to the main purpose of this event: Häkkinen and Sponsor Johnny Walker tried to show consumers the importance of staying in control when you’re behind the wheel and to highlight the most important thing not only for yourself but also your family and all the other road users to NOT DRINK AND DRIVE. So be responsible leave your car behind and take public transport.

The aftermath of this spectacular event was another problem we all and especially the responsible government agencies have to be aware of is to fence off everything which should not be touched by the public. Some “ugly” Singaporean displayed the other side of such mass events: No explanation needed I assume...........
When we asked to use the walkways the reply was: “No lah cannot, so jammed, don’t want to wait!! None of your business!
But there were only some thousand and for the race in September about 90,000 are expected!

Volkswagen Radio Ad

I've been a frequent listener of Class 95's morning show with Glenn and FD since ever. I like the fresh humor of these most popular DJ's. However it I cannot always agree with some of Glenn's, let's put it this way, "interesting" comments.

But lately I'm getting irritated by this particular Volkswagen Ad, where a guy with a very Germanized ;-) English accent is complaining that it is impossible to get his favorite German sausage in Singapore but (thank god) his VW!!??
What a nonsense, isn't it?

Have these Volkswagen guys really never heard of Erich? Never watched Channel News Asia or Discovery Travel & Living? Or read Straits Times or Today? Or, if they've got a problem with the English language, the Singapore Japanese Community News? Or, at least the German Magazine "Impulse"??

Even President Nathan knows about Erich and awards him with the Enterprise of the Year Award.

Do I really need to continue how often Erich's Wuerstelstand and his Backstube have been featured in TV, News Papers or Magazines, etc since he opened his ventures?

It is really frustrating that the usually smart Germans don't know about Singapore's most famous Wuerstelstand.

Volkswagen Guys: Give us a call and we will introduce you to the best German-Austrian sausages and bread in town and probably in the region!

I hope you do a better research when developing your cars and don't forget to include Erich as a pit-stop in your car navigation systems.

Oh, and by the way the next edition of Lonely Planet will also recommend Erich's sausages and bread. He had a photo shooting yesterday.

Aiyoh, writing this post, just now, the ad came on air again!

HAPPY EASTER - FROHE OSTERN

Whether you celebrate Easter or not, you can't get away from the fact that the minute the fairy is removed from the Christmas tree and the last baubles packed away in the attic, the supermarket shelves, at least in the Western world, start to fill with fluffy bunnies, chocolate chicks and extravagantly wrapped eggs.
The giving of decorative eggs at Easter as symbols of rebirth and fertility dates back hundreds of years.
However Easter is not only about bunnies and eggs.
It is the most sacred of all the Christian holidays or celebrations: Jesus Christs death and resurrection.
It is also a family festival, a time for love!
We want to wish you all very Happy Easter - Frohe Ostern.

Backstube and Imbiss Menu update

Please check out the latest promotions at Erich's ventures: If you want to have a delicious and inexpensive lunch remember Imbiss & Backstube (the corner shop next to the Thai drink shop) open from 10am to 8pm whereas the Wuerstelstand only starts at about 3pm but is open till midnight or longer.
At the Backstube you will get the best and most inexpensive Austrian bread, Pretzels, Onion Buns and Muffins in town.

Porsche Carrera Cup Asia part of the Formula 1™ Singtel Singapore Grand Prix

The official Carrera Cup Asia 2008 season launch was held at the Porsche Pit Stop Singapore at Singapore Cricket Club. They will participate in the 2008 Formula 1™ Singtel Singapore Grand Prix as a support race. Grand Prix visitors not only will be able to watch the first F1 night race ever but also roaring Porsche Carrera’s around the Marina Bay race track which will be one out of 7 races of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia series.
This annual launch traditionally held at Sepang Int. Circuit was bigger than ever with a convoy of more than 30 Porsche’s including

a Carrera GT,

a 911 GT3 RSR
and the Cayenne S Transsbyeria as well as road and heritage cars driven by Singapore Porsche Club members, through Orchard Road leading the way to the Porsche Pit Stop for public showcase at the Padang. At the same time Porsche Club Singapore was celebrating its 20th anniversary. Hundreds of Porsche owners and interested spectators came by to check out all the beautiful showcases. I was amazed to learn how many Porsche’s actually are registered to negotiate Singapore’s congested roads nowadays.
Porsche now and then

To add to the racing atmosphere there was also music, a giant TV screen with race footage and information videos, information on the 2008 Formula 1™ SingTel Singapore Grand Prix, the Porsche Club Singapore and the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia......

plus (surprise, surprise in Singapore!!!) a food and beverage tent.

Race simulators were also a hit among young and old.

198 days to the F1 Singtel Singapore Grand Prix

This year seams flying by faster than usually and I can't believe its only less than 200 days until the first night race ever will be started.

Wouldn't it be a great idea and opportunity for all overseas friends of Erich's Wuerstelstand and Singapore to combine a visit at Erich's ;-) and be part of the first night race in F1 history and the probably most spectacular Formula One Grand Prix of the year?

Today's Straits Times reports that there are still tickets available. Check out the official F1 webpage for more details.

The map below (+ pix above courtesy of ST) will give you an idea where the viewing areas will be built.

Don't wait to long to make a decision!
Race tickets and hotel rooms are selling fast!

Just First Class Allowed In Singapore?

Last week we proudly announced of getting another award for being ranked 1st. But there are some news lately that make me a bit worried Singapore heading in the right direction long term.

Here are just a few:

• The rising prices for rentals and daily needs is a developmet that not only happens in Singapore but you can find similar reports in European which is a downside of a good economy.

But the following 2 headlines are more of a concern to me:

• Parkway to build hospital with A Class suites only
• SIA to convert all direct non-stop flights to Los Angeles & New York to Business Class only

Is this a healthy direction for Singapore? Does that mean, reading in between the lines, Singapore only want's to attract the rich and famous in future? Some Singaporeans are already feeling the pinch and to calm them down the government is giving out insentives for their citizens.

From a business perspective it's understandable everything "First Class" shows better figures in a P&L than "Coach"and I'm talking in general not about airlines only.

However in long term isn't a "coach class" customer the one who has to be groomed, to be pampered for he might be a faithful future customer and step up to business class once or maybe even to "First Class"??

Isn't it very dangerous for potential Singapore visitors to everywhere read how "First" everything here is, because to many of the average tourists, "first" will always be equaled with "expensive" as well. Reading about how many million visitors Singapore wants (or has) to attract every year "first class" passengers would not be enough to satisfy Singapore's appetite of the travel cake.

Talking about Singapore Airlines decision to convert all direct flights to the US into Business Class only, again I do understand the big profit they will make, however have they forgotten about the not so great times just few years ago when September 11 and SARS hit the economy so bad? When hotels and flights were almost empty and many companies had their staff fly economy or not fly at all?

Non of us hopes these things to happen again however there is always the possibility, just watch the US and oil prices now..........

What about families flying to the US many of then were ready to pay the premium for a nonstop flight for the convenience of shorter flying times but paying business class fees only for a minority. I've seen quite a few split families where either dad or mom fly business (for whatever reason) and the rest of the family coach. Not possible anymore, even the business class dad has to take a longer flight now! Mind families with kids, they are your future customers and you're pissing them off at a young age already! They might consider using other carriers and liking them since all want to catch up with Singapore Airlines standards.

How will the all the "First Class" oriented react to lure back customers if something happens.......?

How everything got started with Erich's Blog!

Here she is: Kathi "The culprit" It was all her fault that we got started with the Wuerstelstand Blog. When she announced leaving Singapore for a "better" life in Dubai (who says? Not even the guys are better there {?} and difficult to officially get a beer- don't know about her priorities though- and how can you even leave a place that sells the best sausages in the world anyway) we finalized this idea to record all the happenings at Erich's Wuerstelstand, Chinatown, Singapore, Johor and some even say Batam and beyond.
Last week Judith went there and met up with Kathi to celebrate the reunion with a couple of drinks. Nur böse Zungen behaupten die leicht geröteten Gesichter stammen nicht von der Hitze!
We do hope she soon makes her promise come true and finally visits us again to celebrate an even greater reunion at the Wuerstelstand!

Singapore: Another #1 Ranking: Best Place To Live In The World

Lately Asian expatriates have ranked Singapore as the best place to live in the world for its safe and clean environment. Sydney was rated second in the survey, with the third spot shared by Melbourne and Kobe in Japan.
ECA International, a human resource consultancy for multinationals, said the island-state, Southeast Asia's most advanced economy, was ranked above the other cities also because it offered Asian expatriates a similar feel to their home countries.It says Singapore's solid infrastructure, low crime rate and clean air made it a favorable place to live.The annual survey is based on categories such as climate, air quality, health services, housing, political tensions and personal safety.

Singapore’s long-running regional competitor Hong Kong as a location for banking and financial services came in at 15th place with the territory's air pollution cited as a drawback.
Shanghai was seen as the best place for top Asian professionals Among Chinese cities while Xian ranked as the worst location which compared living standards in 254 locations worldwide. Beijing, host of the 2008 Olympic Games in August, scored worse than other Chinese cities such as Nanjing and Tianjin as a result of its notorious air pollution.

It’s definitely great news for all responsible institutions in Singapore however they also have to be careful since the ranking is also moving upwards in a category which you definitely don’t want to be ranked as a No.1: Cost of living!! Here the trend is unfortunately also shooting steeply upwards.

Top 10 list for Asian expatriates to live in:
1. Singapore
2. Sydney
3. Melbourne/ Kobe, Japan
5. Copenhagen, Denmark
6. Canberra, Australia
7. Vancouver, Canada
8. Wellington, New Zealand
9. Yokohama, Japan
10. Dublin, Ireland