MM Lee Kuan Yew: "A for Austria"

Former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, the 'builder' of Singapore's success, renown genius statesman has always been a man with taste and foresight which helped in developing Singapore from a 'kampung' into a first world country.

Despite his 84 years he's still being invited from governments, financial institution, universities, etc. all over the world to seek his views and thoughts on economics and politics in our region.

MM Lee set the foundation for tiny ( 650 km2; 4 Million people) Singapore's thriving economy in a most competitive world of competition for capital, technology and markets.

Singapore recently finished No.2, behind Hong Kong, for the 14th straight year in a ranking of the world's freest economies in business and labour freedom (Published by 'The Wall Street Journal and American conservative think-tank 'The Heritage Foundation').

Speaking at an anniversary dinner of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies last week about how Singapore should develop in the next ten years MM Lee mentioned Austria (especially Vienna with his heritage, culture, arts and nature) and Italy as an example what it should aspire to become.

These remarks make us proud again of being Austrians living in Singapore. Our small country is hardly mentioned from its positive side in this region mostly if some things went wrong, although we have so many things to be proud of and we are famous for. It's not only the Hollywood movie "Sound of Music" or Arnold Schwarzenegger Austria can offer.

We got a good economy, quite a few successful inventions, good education system, culture, art, great homegrown food from our still intact nature and a most beautiful countryside with gorgeous mountain ranges and lakes.

Thank you MM Lee for making the small Austrian colony in Singapore feel proud and remind us of our beautiful country.

Our secret anthem which says it all is: "I am from Austria" by our famous singer/writer Rainhard Fendrich. Go visit Erich's Wuerstelstand and ask for it. He will be more than happy to play it for you.

Feuerzangenbowlenparty in Singapore

Not too long ago in an airy night at Erich's we suddenly were kind of feeling a very cool breeze around the Wuerstelstand. It was so bad that some of us even got goose bumps! Can you imagine, in usually hot Singapore. Well, anyway it was winter time in the northern hemisphere, we saw reports of snowstorms in the US and elsewhere so the right time to feel cold, isn't it. The temperature were really low at about 25 deg at night!

So we came up with the glorious idea that it was about time to organise a Gluehwein- or Feuerzangenbowle-Party (hot wine with sugar, rum, oranges, cinamon and cloves. A polpular drink during cold winter month and freezing temperatures)!!!!!! Astonished? Why? We have regular snow storms during Xmas light up, a snow city with a 60m downhill slope and an ice scating rink. So why not a Gluehwein party?

Uncle Claus our nutty "Professor Bunsenbrenner" claimed to have all the necessary tools (sure you keep such things in Singapore for winter nights??). So Feuerzangenbowle it was. The name translates literally as "Fire Pliers Punch". It is a German alcoholic drink, sometimes part of the Christmas and New Year's tradition. The drink is prepared in a bowl, similar to a fondue set, which usually is suspended over a small fuel burner. The bowl is filled with heated red wine, and occasionally orange juice and/or spices similar to those used in ordinary mulled wine.
The "Feuerzange" is a metal holder for the "Zuckerhut" (sugarloaf), a large conical mass of sugar around seven inches long, which is placed above the bowl. The sugar is soaked in rum and set alight, and rum is continually added with a ladle until all the sugar has melted and mixed with the wine. The rum must have a strength of at least 54% alcohol (per volume), as it would otherwise not burn properly. The resulting drink is then served in mugs, in the same way as Glühwein, and the burner keeps the bowl warm until it is emptied.
Dr. Bunsenbrenner professionally pouring Rum over the sugar
So here we go. See some of the party impressions:Watch the curious crowd in the background! "What are the crazy Ang Moh's doing there? Unbelieveable!"Papparazi hanging hanging around the Wuerstelstand to capture the action and to get the best shots.

The fire is on!Party crowd Claus smiling, Roberto biting his lips? What's going on? There are rumors though.........................
More pics:

Feuerzangenbowle

Gerolsteiner: The Thirst Quencher ; a healthy alternative

You arrive at the Wuerstelstand exhausted from your work, very thirsty and longing for a thirst-quenscher? No problem. Erich's neighbour Stanley (fruit juices) has the perfect solution. He has stocked up his fridge with Germany's No. 1 mineral water: GEROLSTEINER
Stanley offers Gerolsteiner Sprudel (o.5l and 1.5l)

The volcanic origin of the rock is responsible for the high calcium (348 mg/ liter) and magnesium (108 mg/ liter) content in Gerolsteiner Sprudel. A liter of Gerolsteiner Sprudel covers a third of the daily requirements for these two nutrients. At the same time, this fresh thirst quencher is low in sodium.

Or do you prefer a fruity refreshment? In this case you should taste
Gerolsteiner Apfelschorle = Gerolsteiner Apple Spritzer (0.5l) is the ultimate fruity experience for mineral water fans.
The spritzer is immensely fruity – due to a juice content of 60 percent and NO added sugar!

Give it a try next time together with Erich's sausages.

Singapore Yi Zhong Lion Dance Troupe

As you know Chinese New Year is probably the busiest time for all the Lion Dance groups. So a gentle reminder if you want to book the Wuerstelstand lion please contact:

Yi Zhong Lion Dance Troupe

Paul Woo

Mobile:90187275

E-mail: yizhong_liondance@yahoo.com.sg

Chinatown Chinese New Year Celebrations 2008

Year 2008 celebrations are just over, Christmas decorations have been removed all over the island. Now it's Chinatown's turn to move into the spotlight. Besides Erich's Wuerstelstand and the Backstube they are all getting ready for the most important event of the Chinese population.

From 19 Jan to 6 Feb Chinatown will be transformed into a fairyland of light and colour with spectacular overarching decorations lining the streets.
Same time the festive street bazaar will be waiting offering all the traditional Chinese New Year goodies such as waxed duck, barbecued sweet meats, assorted cookies and other new year accessories. This makes it the 'must visit' place for Chinese, locals and tourists to soak in the festive atmosphere.
On eve of Chinese New Year (6 Feb) the countdown to the Year of the Rat gets underway with thousands of revellers partying all night long.

Besides Chinatown the "Singapore River HongBao 2008"(5 Feb – 16 Feb 2008) at the Eplanade Park, which will be transformed into a garden of flowers, is also an event not to be missed out. You can enjoy thrilling performances by local & foreign artistes, and specially choreographed fireworks launched from the Esplanade Drive on February 5, 6, 7 and 16. You can find detailed information on this website: Singapore River HongBao 2008.

The final highlightof the CNY celebrations is again the "Chingay Parade of DreamS" held on 15 – 16 Feb 2008 at the Marina Bay.

Christmas in Beijing - Impressions

Back from a trip to Beijing and the next day I saw this article in "The Straits Times": Beijing meets target of of 245 'blue-sky days' . Well then we just had bad luck I guess, because out of 5 days we had only a half day of blue sky(below).I pity the athletes participating in the Olympics in summer, especially the one in endurance sports. We could barely breath walking around in a holiday pace and not aiming for new records. Eyes hurt, throat was sore and the smell of burnt coals made it an unpleasant stay. One day hit the maximum "5" reading it was so bad that residents were warned to stay indoors and visibility was reduced to a 100 metres. This dense smog is a result of soaring car ownership, industrial emissions, dust storms and a construction boom. Beijing wants to avoid international embarrassment during the Olympic Games over this environmental problem. Erich immediately had a solution:" Close the factories, ban cars and stop all the construction, a month before the games start!" Very easy, isn't it?
Besides that Beijing is always an interesting place to visit. The sport venues they are building now look more gigantic in real than on photos and the changes this country has gone through since Chairman Mao's times are enormous. Most of the city is an unrealistic, virtual world with resort like apartment and villa enclaves surrounded by high walls, security cameras and guards. The city centre has the latest shopping centres with all the famous fashion brands.
But in the outer skirts and of course in the Hinterlands many people still live in very poor conditions and dirt and dust is all over.
A most interesting place to visit is "OLD BEIJING". People say that the real culture of Beijing is the 'Culture of the Hutong' and the 'Culture of the Courtyard'. How true that is. Often, it is Beijing's winding Hutongs that attract tourists from home and abroad rather than the high-rise buildings and large mansions. Here are some impressions of the hutongs which give you fresh insight into Beijing's local life.
One of the blue sky days The latest stroller To see more click here:

HutongTour

A local market with interesting food stalls also caught or attention. The satay they sold were literally creepy-crawly: All kind of beetles, worms, larvae, sea stars, sea horses (aren't these endangered species?) and scorpions. Some of the creatures we were not able to identify.

Satay anyone? Probably new ideas for Erich's menue!!
The scorpions were still alive and the legs moving
More of the market:

Xmas in Beijing

A funny sculpture was that monk out side a shopping centre.

But back to the hazy days and Beijings own (!!) standard for 'blue sky days' which has not been recognized by international scientists - some days were declared "blue" despite obviously hazy conditions.

However the government is trying hard and has taken aggressive steps to clean up its air at a cost of SGD 24 billion! Good luck for them!

A Happy And Prosperous New Year

Wishing you a fulfilling New Year
Excellent Customers service and best product quality will again be our top priority for the New Year.

Thank you for your visits and support of our ventures. Looking forward to seeing you soon.

Erich & Team &

Your Editor

Frank N. Furter

FROHE WEIHNACHTEN

Merry Christmas to all friends and customers of Erich's Wuerstelstand and Backstube.
Erich and his team and Frank N Furter

Silent Night, Holy Night

The Xmas Carol "Silent Night" is the most famous Christmas carol of all time!

The origin of the song is still being investigated. Again and again new historical facts are discovered. The origin of the Christmas carol we know as “Silent Night” was a poem that was written in 1816 by an Austrian priest called Joseph Mohr. On Christmas Eve in 1818 in the small alpine village called Oberndorf it is reputed that the organ at St. Nicholas Church had broken. Joseph Mohr gave the poem of Silent Night (Stille Nacht) to his friend Franz Xavier Gruber, a teacher, and the melody for Silent Night was composed with this in mind. The music to Silent Night was therefore intended for a guitar and the simple score was finished in time for Midnight Mass.