AUSTRIAN NATIONAL DAY CELEBRATION

Singapore 25th October 2012
This year's National Day of Austria celebration was held one day earlier, because 26. Oct. is a public holiday (Hari Raya Haji) in Singapore.
Nevertheless it was a grand occassion held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel Singapore, a long tradition of the Austrian Embassy and the community at large.
The food has been superb and the preparation has been overlooked by Gotfried Schuetzenberger to ensure the food is prepared according to original Austrian recipes.
The absolute highlight was the Goulasch and the Sachertorte.

A big thank you to all the hands involved to make this celebration such an memorable one.

HAPPY NATIONAL DAY TO ALL AUSTRIANS AROUND THE WORLD

World's biggest Dome in Singapore

Is Singapore's government living the Olympic motto: "Citius, Altius, Fortius", which is Latin for "Faster, Higher, Stronger"?

Appears everything built in Singapore has to bigger and better. Flyer, F1 Night Race, Gardens by the Bay which its gigantic artificial super trees and I'm sure Singapore also holds the world record in the most malls per square meters of land.

And now, building the world's BIGGEST Dome (310m wide) sounds fantastic too. Bragging that it'll be 35m wider than the Dallas Cowboy Stadium is impressive! However the Cowboys Stadium can seat 80,000, with a maximum capacity including standing room of 110.000. What is that compared to the meager 55.000 the Sports Hub (what a horrible name) can hold.  Well, the Dallas Stadium does not have a (of course LARGE) integrated Mall.

Not to forget the he Dallas Dome houses a world class NFL football team!
What makes me very curious now which world class National Singapore team will be home to this  Sports-hub? Well right, if you add a couple of bucks to the 1.33 billion that Stadium costs you can buy the best soccer players, rugby players, cricket players or whatsoever bring them in as foreign talents and make them Citizens.
There you go, that answers our question who's gonna use and fill that stadium not only for the National Day Parade which I assume will move back form the Bay area otherwise the Sports Hub will become a big white elephant with an extraordinary appetite for food (= electricity) and believe me that animal has a very long life expectation!
Guys, if you continue like that you're running out of space soon and yet you want/need to increase the population by a few millions?

Having said that the architecture seems to be very impressive not only with its retractable roof but also with "under seat cooling" where cooled air will be supplied under the seats of the spectators.
The Sports Hub will consist of two indoor arenas, an aquatics centre and a large shopping mall with a completion date end of 2013.

Singapore "The Lion City". A fantastic time lapse short film

Sydney photographer and filmmaker Keith Loutit is known as the pioneer of the tilt-shift / time-lapse technique. He was the first to recognize how time and focus combine to support the powerful illusion of miniaturization in film.
In his scaled down and sped up realities, real world subjects become their miniature counterparts. Boats bob like toys in a bathtub, cars race like slot-cars, and crowds march as toy armies. Loutit's aim is create a sense of wonder in our surroundings by "challenging people's perceptions of scale, and helping the viewer to distance themselves from places they know well".

It all looks so unreal, so Playmobil if you will, but amazing.

Vettel wins the second time

He did it again! Congratulations to the Red Bull Team.

The F1 Circus is back in town!

The Formula One Singapore Grand Prix continues to enthrall spectators with its exciting mix of adrenaline pumping night racing along public roads combined with non-stop live entertainment and unrivaled corporate hospitality services. 

Fernando Alonso comes to Singapore as the World Championship leader  37 points ahead of Lewis Hamilton who is only separated by 1 point from Kimi Raikkonen and 2 from Sebastian Vettel.
These facts promise exciting and tuff races this weekend.

But it's not only about sports in Singapore. A big part of the hype are the accompanying events with a power packed line up of international headliners.

Multiple Grammy Award winners Maroon 5 are to top the musical bill Saturday night. The US Rock band will appear on the Padang stage at the Marina Bay Street Circuit with admission free to all three-day ticket holders.

Pop Icon KATY PERRY will draw to a close the three days of racing and entertainment spectacular with a grand finale concert at the Padang.

After the race champion is crowned at the podium, Katy Perry will bring the heat up a few more notches. 

The Mid- Autumn Festival close.

Don't forget to visit Chinatown to experience Chinese culture, fun events, great food and wonderful photo opportunities during the Mooncake Festival. Check out www.chinatownfestivals.sg for detailed information on all the events.

 

National Day Parade 2012

Happy Birthday Singapore! It's the 47th time Singapore is celebrating its independence. Over 2000 participants will again perform on the Marina Bay floating platform. This year's theme was

                                                LOVING SINGAPORE OUR HOME

it encourages all Singaporeans to reflect on what it means to love their country, what they appreciate about Singapore and how each individual can express their love for the nation.

"The annual crowd pleaser in the pre-parade The Red Lions again fulfilled the spectators expectations

Split into a prologue, three acts themed Identity, Spirit and Love and a finale, the 45-minute Show segment featured larger-than-life props and mass displays that were integrated with multimedia projections.

Highlights of this year's show were : 

- a musical dialogue in Act One between a Tabla (a pair of small hand drums attached together used in Indian music) player, a Gambus (a lute used in Malay folk music) player, a Chinese opera singer and a pianist, 

- a dragon boat procession rowing towards the floating platform in Act Two. Performers on stage will complement the procession by forming a giant lion's head with brightly-lit torches, and
- a stage transformation into a Garden City in act Three with the use of large flower props and multimedia displays

Videos, graphics and animations were displayed on nine LED mesh screens built to complement the Marina Bay skyline. Besides nine center screen in the shape of the Singapore island and eight side screens, there were eight mobile stages and an elevated stage that was reconfigured to form different shapes during the show. 

Spectacular fireworks display ended the 47th National Day Parade.

HAPPY 47th NATIONAL DAY SINGAPORE

Austrian Celebrity Chef meets Austrian Celebrity Chef

Austrian celebrity chef Johann Lafer meets Erich at his Wuerstelstand in Chinatown!

You probably can imagine  how surprised and honored  Erich was when Johann Lafer and his family suddenly appeared at the Wuerstelstand.

Johann Lafer is a well renown chef in Europe. He became famous through his his televised cooking shows and numerous  cookbooks. He also made appliances in Europes biggest prime time TV shows with millions of viewers.

Johann Lafer was born in Graz, Austria, the same town as Arnold Schwarzenegger. Already as a kid he was very clear what he wants to persue in life: 

> Learn how to cook

> Become a famous soccer player

> Live like knights in a fortress and of course

> Become a helicopter pilot

Well, as we know today it didn’t really work out with soccer! However he became a big star among the world’s chefs and his other dreams came true as well.

Additionally he found his personal fortune as a husband and dad.

His professional life has been recognized by many awards from communities, countries, states and international organizations.

After graduating from the chef college in Graz he got hired from Hotels in Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Paris and many more.

In 1994 he and his wife Silvia (since 1994) fulfilled castle dream with the 1000 year old Stromburg and opened the Relais & Châteaux-Hotel “Lafers” Stromburg” including Restaurant “Le Val d’Or” and Gasthaus “Turmstube” (nowadays: Bistro d’Or). 

He later opened a culinary school, started his TV studio for televised cooking, wrote books, etc. etc.
It’s an almost never ending list of achievements.

Click here to explore his world (unfortunately in German only): Johann Lafer

Another famous autograph for Erich’s guestbook.

   

Well, the "battle"and "war" on the KAESEKARAINER has been won!!!
Thanks to the support of all our friends



The Singapore Food Festival is back

Starting with July 13 (to July 22) all the gourmets can satisfy their desire for mouthwatering delicacies doing the annual Singapore Food Festival. This year focused on SEAFOOD!

You can experience this culinary event at the new Singapore Food Festival Village, the Waterfront Promenade@ Marina Bay! 

Up to 50 stalls will be featuring local favorites:

Chili Crab (my personal favorite!!)

and more.        I’m already salivating! :(  anyways...

Let’s look at some of the event highlights

    For details about the various cooking/demonstration workshops or dinners please checkout this website by clicking the logo

And last but not least, if you think you need a brake from Seafood visit Erich’s Wuerstelstand (who is officially part of the festival promotion) and enjoy discounts throughout the festival

The Sausage War is Over!

Austria and Slovenia finally find a solution in the cheese sausage war!

Austria and Slovenia came to a compromise in their quarrel about the name of a very specific sausage: the Kaese Krainer (cheese sausage). Slovenia files the name " Kranjska Klobasa" with the European Patent Office and Austria can continue to use the names : "Krainer resp. Kaese Krainer".

Both parties are very happy with the outcome.

This dispute about the name of "just" a sausage found a media uproar in both countries. Even international media reported in their newspapers.

This sausage is probably the most popular sausage besides Frankfurter in Austria and banning to use the name could have been a financial disaster for the parties concerned such as Sausage Kiosks, Restaurants and butchers.

Slovenia wanted to patent that name because the origin of the sausage is in their country however during the Austrian/ Hungarian Monarchy Slovenia was part of the empire however Vienna and the rest of Austria fell in love with that sausage and adjusted the recipe and made this delicacy world famous.

Well we're glad everything came to an happy ending and Erich is able to continue selling the Kaese Krainer at his Wuerstelstand in Singapore's Chinatown!

If you haven't tried that sausage you're missing out on a very palatable Austrian delicacy.

I recommend: Get there now and enjoy! And get a bun or pretzel as well ;)  Enjoy!

James fom JB visit Erich's Wuerstelstand and enjoy the Kaesekrainer

Singapore’s latest attraction: Bay South Garden

Gardens by the Bay is an integral part of a strategy by the Singapore Government to transform Singapore from a "Garden City" into a “City in a Garden” which aims to raise the quality of life by enhancing greenery and flora to the city.
Gardens by the Bay is intended to become Singapore’s premier urban outdoor recreation space, and a national icon.

After a sneak public preview in November 2011, the Bay South Garden, a section of the waterfront gardens in the new Downtown @ Marina Bay, will open on June 29.
The sprawling 54 hectares Bay South features man-made, tree-like structures known as "supertrees". Visitors with a taste for heights can take to the aerial walkway that links two of the super trees.

There is also the Dragonfly Lake, where visitors can stroll along the promenade or rest in the four heritage gardens which reflect the history and culture of Singapore's main ethnic groups. 

 

Dr Kiat W Tan, CEO of Gardens By The Bay, said: "We have brought (in) two glasshouses that'll give you a touch of perpetual spring. So this is excellent in that here in the tropics, we have a touch of the seasons. It allows us to also look at plants from different continents, brought here from fragile habitats that are disappearing very fast.”

Visitors can also look forward to the Cloud Forest where they will be greeted by a mountain, covered in a layer of luscious plants and complete with a 30-metre waterfall. It has a living skin. Every single plant has to be tied on. And there are over 100,000 plants. There's a wonderful array of ferns, orchids, pitcher plants," said Dr Tan. Most of Bay South will be free to visitors, except for the two conservatories and the aerial walkway on the super trees.

To celebrate the opening of Bay South, there will be a series of events organised over two weekends from June 29 to July 8. These include "live" concerts by Grammy Award winner Jason Mraz and local songbird Corrine May. Six restaurants will also be opened for a unique dining experience in the garden.

Check this out, here’s an amazing impression of the Gardens by the Bay: