Learning At Home: A Magic Picture!

We hardly have time to do home learning during the school term these days, what with Little Bee's CCAs and school work. So, it was a much welcomed reprieve when we finally managed to squeeze in time to do some fun crafts during the June holidays.

This interesting "magical" craft amused Little Bee for a couple of hours! I tried this with Big Bee when she was younger, and she was amazed at the end product. It was truly gratifying when we saw the same sense of wonderment in Little Bee's eyes too!

This "magical" picture changes from monochrome to colourful with just a pull of your hand - what wizardry indeed!

You will need:
Thin card or paper
Scissors
Markers, colour pencils, felt tip pens
Small plastic folder
Tape

Step 1: Take a sheet of thin paper and fold it carefully into 3 equal sections.

Step 2: On the front flap, mark out a rectangle and the finger grip space. Cut away the finger grip space.

Step 3: Open out the card and cut out the rectangle. This will be the front of the card.

Step 4: Draw a decorative border on the front frame. Cut a separate piece of paper that is the same size as one section of the card, and draw your design, colouring the entire picture.

Step 5: Slip your completed picture into the plastic folder with the top against the fold of the plastic. Trim the plastic folder to the picture, and use the tape to stick the back of the picture to the plastic.

Step 6: Use a marker pen and draw an outline of the picture on the plastic.

Step 7: Fold the bottom flap of your card into the middle section. Slip the plastic-covered picture over the bottom flap. The bottom flap is now between the coloured picture and the outlined picture on the plastic flap. Fold the top flap down over the plastic. Grip the plastic and paper, and then pull the coloured picture out. Voila! The picture will seem to appear magically in colour as you pull it out. Enjoy!

Little Bee was able to work on this herself with minimal help from me. She had loads of fun! Experiment with different pictures like a hillside covered with white, fluffy sheep or a bare table top with a birthday cake appearing on it (I am excited to try this one out!).

{100 Places}: Tiong Bahru

We spent an unhurried, languid afternoon in the old Tiong Bahru precinct, soaking in charming nostalgia and immersing in the laidback culture. Quirky shops and cafes sprung up alongside old, fascinating residential blocks and kopitiams. We ambled along its quiet streets and admired the plethora of bicycles all around. We loved the old walk-up apartments that were wistfully dreaming of an era spanning decades of turbulence in Singapore. We browsed in hole-in-the-wall bookshops and had breakfast and coffee in 2 fancy cafes (that were really pricey, in my humble opinion!). 

It was great for the Bees to see another slower side of Singapore, where crowds were elusive and the pace less hectic. Where one can browse in creatively original shops, without the need to visit large, sterile chain malls.

Early evening was exquisite - with tangerine golden sunrays casting a warm glow on the old gracious buildings. It is little niches like this that make me love the varied landscape of Singapore - and I hope that more quaint areas will be preserved and kept in their original condition, without the need to construct new boring and colourless air-conditioned malls!

{100 Places}: Arab Street

We constantly find it miraculous that so much diversity - be it in society or in nature - exists within this tiny island we call home. We enjoy exploring different corners of Singapore over weekends or during school holidays, and even then, there exists untouched places in Singapore where we had not visited before!

I thought it might be interesting to compile a list of 100 places around Singapore which we had enjoyed visiting - and are continually visiting, especially the free parks and nature reserves! I would love to revisit these places for a long time thereafter, and this would be a wonderful way to constantly remind ourselves of the beauties around us.

I thought Arab Street would be a splendid place to start with - an enclave right in the middle of Singapore which feels like another world, another era.

Brilliantly colourful wall murals grace the facades of quaint, old shophouses. Dusty shops selling mystical and nostalgic knick-knacks from exotic perfume bottles to candies right from the 1970s era. Charming hipster boutiques hidden in long-forgotten corners of the streets. Whimsical, tranquil cafes that ensconce us into another realm of time. More importantly, we love to soak in the vibrancy and buzz of the Muslim community, understanding a different way of life that is so familiar to us through the decades.

It is a perfect escapade for a couple of hours in the afternoon. Early evening is the perfect time to visit, with golden sunrays casting a magical glow on the majestic dome of the Sultan Mosque.

Previous posts about Arab Street:
The Arabian Enigma
Ghoulish Glee

The Magic Of England (Part 1): London

Imagine a city steeped in thousands of years in history, of legendary monuments that everyone reads about in books, royalty and palaces, West End musicals and the magic of Harry Potter and Peter Pan. That is London for you.

Imagine rolling meadows of gold, quaint thatched-roof cottages and sleepy villages right out of a fairy tale. That is the Cotswolds and the quintessential English countryside for you.

Imagine the uncertainties of world wars, of the last frontier in England, of centuries-old majestic cathedrals, Geoffrey Chaucer's old English, and the oldest university in the English-speaking world. That is Kent and Oxford for you.

In June, we went on a whirlwind trip of the above places in under 9 days. It was a little challenging with jet lag settling in both ways, but children are adaptable at this age, so we managed to enjoy ourselves nevertheless!

Having been to London countless times on my own for work and with Hubby, this was the first time that we brought the kids with us. They are both huge Harry Potter fans (both the books and the movies), and we are excited to see how they view London from the eyes of Harry Potter. While I am a little jaded of London and its crowds, the girls loved London and all its buzz.

Summer in London was particularly pleasant, with long sunshine hours (from 4.30am to 10pm!) and lovely, cool weather. These were perfect conditions for long, languid strolls along antiquated landmarks that we had read and seen manifold times on the mass media - the Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Westminster, London Eye, Tower Bridge and more.

We cruised down River Thames, admiring the transformation of London from archaic city to a modern capital. We cheered and applauded audacious and sometimes foolhardy street performers on a bustling Sunday.

We soaked in the atmosphere of the Covent Garden market and the excitement of the crowds near the Big Ben. Being bibliophiles, we immersed ourselves in bookstores and searched for bookshops selling old, old books! We also had fun taking the London Tube and comparing it with the MRT back home.

This little alley is filled with quaint little old bookshops!

This bookshop sells mainly first-edition books! How fascinating!

A chessboard for 3 that we chanced upon in Covent Garden. The Bees and their Papa tried playing, and it was a little more convoluted, but so much more fun with 3 persons playing!

We visited the British History Museum and gawked at the mysteries of evolution, largely inspired by Charles Darwin's work through the years. We spent an entire day in the British History Museum because there was just too much to learn and observe, from the beginnings of life to geology to dinosaurs.

The girls were fascinated yet overwhelmed at the same time. We had fun losing ourselves in the colossal and majestic museum building, while wondering how so many British school children can be on field trips in the museum (and all over London) all at once! We wish for as many field trips in Singapore schools!

The Bees looking at lots of stuffed little birds

Finally, what is a trip to London without a visit to the West End and immersing in their musicals? Big Bee fell deeply in love with the musicals in London, and we ended up watching 3! Les Miserables was Big Bee's absolute favourite, while Little Bee was hugely entertained by Mamma Mia, which totally suited her fun-loving and bubbly personality. Meanwhile, all of us were blown away by Elphaba's awe-inspiring vocals in Wicked. We also loved how different West End theatres had their own idiosyncrasies that were personalised to their respective musicals, and the intricate designs of the sets.

Les Miserables

The beautiful stage set of Wicked

The breathtaking and intricate designs of the theatres

Most of all, we had wonderful meals, sitting, chilling and just bonding together, a little family of 4 lost in a big, crowded city.

When The Moon Disappeared...

The Bees had always been fascinated by space and the universe around us. We started learning about the solar system and outer space since Little Bee was in K1, creating mini fact books, a rocket craft, singing about our planets and sketching the solar system.

We have had numerous conversations about the possibility of life in outer space. Hubby and I are strong believers that life exists in other galaxies, and maybe because of our beliefs, the Bees are starting to acknowledge the possibility of aliens, although the concept is totally creepy to them.

2 months ago, we observed the April total lunar eclipse with our close friends at home. We took out our telescope in a bid to observe the movement of the eclipse but were more successful at observing the red hues of the blood moon and the path of the eclipse with our naked eye. After the eclipse, when the moon was rising and shining bright, we observed its mysterious craters through the telescope. It was intriguing to look at the intricate craters and shadows on the moon through the telescope, and we adults had crazy conversations about potentially observing signs of life on the moon! We also discussed the moon landing conspiracies, and wondered about the state of the universe and the first creation of life.

It is apparent that the adults were more fascinated than the teenagers and big kids, who were holed up in the bedroom, gossiping about books and pop music on their own! These days, it is interesting to observe what teenagers and big kids do when they get together. These 4 kids had been hanging out since they were babies, and it is really heart-warming to see them maturing together from active kids who ran all around playing with toys to sedated teenagers who would rather lounge around the house, chatting about books and music.

As for the adults, we are excited to catch the next lunar eclipse!

Lunar eclipse in action! 

The mysterious surface of the moon

More moon pictures - these were all taken from our mobile phones through the telescope! 

Time Slows Down In Middle Earth (Part 3): Pastoral Living

Our homestead!

We spent 4 days holed up in a little cottage in a pastoral, secluded area of New Zealand. And experienced the most beautiful days of our trip there. The days were luxuriously long and languid, and the weather was capriciously flirtatious - with brilliant sunshine giving way to brooding thunderstorms in 5 minutes. There were plenty of wildlife all around us, as well as highly domesticated sheep, dogs, goats, alpacas and lorikeets! We learned to tune our senses and intuition to the rhythms of nature, and felt truly at one with the world.

Some of the highlights of this short-lived sojourn include:

1) Being ensconced in incredibly enchanting surroundings. Our cottage was just beside an alluring waterfall, whose cascades vary in strength according to the weather patterns, which made us more aware of the repercussions of different natural phenomenon. These cascades were gushing with vigour when we arrived in tempestuous weather, which were reduced to gentle trickles when we left the cottage under brilliant sunshine.

Alfresco dining beside the waterfall

These cascades led to a bubbling brook just outside our cottage, framed by majestic poplar trees which made magical music with their rustling leaves. Together with the waterfall cascades and the brook, we were treated to perpetual symphonic music all day and night!

A beautiful outdoor bath!

2) Sharing life experiences with Devon, our amazing host on the farm. She lives alone on the farm, and used to have a corporate job in London. It was fascinating to listen to tales of how she started getting her hands, feet and legs dirtied (in both the figurative and literal sense!), all alone on the farm!

We befriended all of Devon's pets - Demi the super-friendly labrador, Mri the super-tame lorikeet who loves playing with the girls, and our absolute favourite, Aga the South African sheep who had been raised by Demi, so she is completely friendly like a dog! She loved our company and would always looked for us in the cottage, refusing to go home sometimes!

The Bees with Aga, the sheep-dog!

Once, she even led the entire flock of sheep into our backyard, and then joined us to play and frolic around - almost as if to show off to her flock that she has this bunch of human friends! If sheep could roll their eyes, I am sure the entire flock - which was completely nonchalant to our presence - would do that!

3) Eradicating all technology and social media from our lives for a few days. There were no wifi nor TV, so we played card games, read loads, chatted and bonded with one another incessantly. The magnificent scenes of nature unfolding all around us were our entertainment.

We observed the flirtatious courtship dance of the 2 huge mandarin ducks beside the waterfall, listened to the wild, machine-gun calls of sturdy magpies and watched how aggressive they can be. We had the immense privilege of hobnobbing with the flock of sheep that Aga brought into our backyard, and spent an entire evening chatting and milling with them, sometimes playing catch with some of them! Sheep are certainly delightful creatures.

Simple fun in the absence of modern technology - the girls throwing pebbles into the waterfall pond

Gumboots are the order of the day for us to trek through sludgy mud and thick grasses!

4) Our cottage is akin to a studio apartment, with the kitchen adjoining the bedroom. So, it was always a pleasant surprise to wake up to the smell of eggs and the clanging sounds of kitchen utensils - with hubby (and Big Bee once!) cooking up a breakfast! Most of our meals in the cottage were cooked by him, from eggs and baked beans for breakfast to hearty soups and pastas in the evenings.

He decided to make use of the outdoor firewood pizza oven one evening, and we had an elaborate alfresco dinner which comprised of lots of billowing smoke from the oven and delicious wood-fired pizzas! He started a fire from small logs, twigs and pieces of newspapers and we all cheered when a hearty fire was created.

The girls making the pizzas!

All done! Yummy...

5) Taking long, luxurious walks around the farm and its wild lands. We had picnics for lunch, perching on a hill top with stupendous views of the rolling countryside around us, with not a single human soul, except for lots of sheep and horses! Such inexplicable beauty indeed. We walked for hours, laughed, rolled in the grass, and just immersed ourselves in meandering meadows and fluffy white clouds.

Finding a perfect spot for a picnic lunch

The scenery that greeted us from all around...

6) We drove daily to a little village where we could do our grocery shopping and cafe hopping. It was just a 15-minute drive away from our cottage, and that was where we bought all our Christmas gifts for Devon and our animal friends. We felt like locals, blending into the diverse Kiwi culture and stocking up on fresh, healthy food.

Little Bee had a chance encounter with Santa in a supermarket!

7) The greatest part about living in a rural area is that there is absolute no light after darkness descends. Not a prick of light! Complete, opaque darkness that is so dense that it can get unnerving for city dwellers like us. Yet, when we looked up in the sky at night, magic unfolded. Magic in the form of thousands of twinkling stars and shining planets. Magic in the form of faraway galaxies and shooting stars. An entire blanket of luminescent fairy lights that re-defined beauty for me. Being typical Singaporeans, we had not quite seen stars like that, and the nightly spectacle was indelible in my memories.

Most importantly, that few days on the farm - with no distractions - allowed us to laugh a little louder, love a little more and immerse a little longer in the cleanest of air and most bewitching of natural beauty. What a stay!