My 2011 in pictures

2011 was certainly an eventful year, but I still can’t say for sure if I could call it a good year.

Work-wise, it was by far the toughest year since I started work. Had to deal with the disappointment and anguish of not getting the reports when I went to Japan to cover the March 11 disasters. Tougher though, was coping with the change to local news reporting, which has made work-life a little more colourful but infinitely more stressful. (I’m still debating if it was the right move)

PICTURE OF THE YEAR: The Workers’ Party’s historic capture of a GRC at the May 7 General Election is easily one of the biggest events of the year, and I had the privilege of witnessing and capturing the electrifying atmosphere that night. The real bonus was submitting it to my paper’s photo desk and having it selected for our front-page the following day. It doesn’t get bigger than that for me.

On the other hand, I think little has changed in terms of my personal life. Still dating the same (wonderful) Joanne, still hanging out with the same friends. Went on two holidays – both of which were to places I have visited before (Hong Kong and Tohoku, Japan).

As with the previous couple of years, I guess the bright spots are the good photos I managed to take during the course of the year. The May 7 General Election was arguably the biggest event of the year in Singapore – not just because of the result but also the socio-political changes it brought on, and I was glad I used my time off work to visit the various rallies, as well as the results announcement at Serangoon Stadium.

Other memorable photos include those taken on a train trip to Johor from the now-defunct Tanjong Pagar Railway station, visits to Chinatown, and my vacation shots of the summer festivals in Tohoku.

This was also the year I renewed my interest in film photography. My Nikon F6 has gone out with me a lot more this year, with the manual focus AIS 35mm f1.4 its constant companion. I even used it to shoot the Tohoku night festival events with film, even though my Nikon D7000 would have been a much more practical travel companion given the lighting conditions.

Oh I must add too, that last year was probably the most active blogging year I had.

Here’s a better year ahead!

JANUARY: SHOPPING AND EATING IN HONG KONG

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: Devotees paying respects at the Great Buddha on Hong Kong’s Lantau Island. More pictures and thoughts about the January Hong Kong trip here and here.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: Breakfast of congee at Lau Fu Kee in Hong Kong’s Central area. The fried fritters (you tiao) were bought from a shop at the back alley.

FEBRUARY: BANANAS, AND MY FIRST VALENTINE’S WITH JOANNE

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: My ‘banana watch’, which I’d bought in June 2010 as a birthday present for myself. More about bananas here.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: Valentine’s dinner at Forlino’s. Wanted to have something special for our first valentine’s, and after some searching on the Internet I settled for this one. More on that meal here. (it was one of the most read posts for a while!)

MARCH: REPORTING IN JAPAN, AFTER MAR 11 DISASTERS

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: Talk the March 11 triple disasters to most people, and they would invariably think about those incredible images of the destruction along the east coast – of huge fishing boats washed ashore, cars washed away by the waters, weeping victims searching for their lost kin and friends… But this image, taken at Sendai’s city office made an impression on me because it shows that in the worse of times, the Japanese continue to remain stoic, and diligent in sorting their rubbish. More pictures here, here and here.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: Lunch at Hatched, an egg specialist restaurant at Evans Road. Went for this just three days before the Japan disasters. Reminds me of how fast change can come in life.

APRIL: RECOVERY FROM JAPAN, BY EXPLORING SINGAPORE

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: An old couple taking a morning stroll in Ang Mo Kio Town West Park. More pictures from my jaunt here.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: Remembered not so much for the food, but for a pleasant day out with Joanne. Brunch at PS Cafe on Ann Siang Hill, on a beautiful Sunday.

BONUS PICTURE: Komodo dragon at the Singapore Zoo. I’d brought film of the wrong speed for this outing (Portra 160VC), which made picture taking a real challenge. Very happy to get a good shot of the great lizard, as it moves very slowly.

MAY: ELECTION FEVER, AND THE PINKBERRY

The picture of the month was the picture of the year, at the top of this post. ;) More pictures of the elections here.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: Dinner at Caffe B, at Marina Bay Sands on Joanne’s birthday, before we went for the Lion King musical.

BONUS PICTURE: Joanne’s birthday present, the Pinkberry! See it in all its glory here.

JUNE: TANJONG PAGAR RAILWAY STATION CLOSES

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: The closing of the Tanjong Pagar Railway station was another historic event in Singapore last year. One of the positives, I thought, was that it made many people who would never have taken the train try it out, just for the novelty factor. I was one of the many who did, and it was interesting to see a different side of Singapore from the train tracks. More pictures here and here.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: My birthday dinner of Japanese oden at Sandaime Bunji, Millenia Walk. Great food, great ambience.

 

JULY: A NEW PLACE TO CUT MY HAIR, AND HELLO AGAIN, TOKYO!

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: A boutique at Tokyo’s swanky Daikanyama district. This area is a great place to shop for stylist clothes and accessories – if you are willing to splash the cash.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: A tomato set lunch at specialty restaurant Celeb de TOMATO in Daikanyama district. It comes with a soup/salad, a main like the risotto here, tomato-flavoured bread and tomato-based dessert. Can’t wait to revisit!

BONUS PICTURE: My hairstylist Lily Xu at the official opening of her salon, Icon Shunji Matsuo by Lily Xu. She is just a year younger than me, and yet she’s already her own boss. I’ve been a customer for the past 6 years and I won’t go to anyone else for a cut.

 

AUGUST: TOHOKU SUMMER

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: This little boy was talking excitedly almost non-stop to his parents on the train towards Aomori. More about the city’s Nebuta festival here, here and here.

PICTURE OF THE MONTH (RUNNER-UP): There were so many pictures I liked that I have to slot in a runner-up just for this month. This was taken at Hirosaki’s Neputa festival. More about Hirosaki here, here and here.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: Tea at HIrosaki’s Manchan, the oldest coffee house in the Tohoku region. More about the shop here.

 

SEPTEMBER: A FAMOUS MANGA-KA IN TOWN, AND WANGZ!

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: Renowned Japanese manga artist Yoshihiro Tatsumi helping to clear the table as he prepares to sign autographs at Kinokuniya, Ngee Ann City. He was in town to plug Eric Khoo’s animated biopic on him.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: Dinner at Nectar, Wangz Hotel in Tiong Bahru. Joanne and I were there for a stay-cation. Of the few such stays we had in 2011, Wangz was the best hotel we tried. The downside, however, was the relatively inaccessible location!

 

OCTOBER: A WEDDING RECEPTION, AND A 2012 EUROPE TRIP IS DECIDED UPON

Somewhat surprisingly, I didn’t go out and take any photos for the whole of this month. If I recall correctly, this was quite a difficult month at work, as I was still trying to come to grips with the changes to my work and leisure time due to my transfer in July.

There was a positive outcome from the month, though: Together with Joanne’s good friends, I will be heading to Europe for a trip next spring. The decision was made rather abruptly – over coffee after one of the girls’ wedding receptions.

The setting at Studio M’s Take bar was fantastic. We later had coffee at espressamente illy, where someone brought up the possibility of the Europe trip.

 

NOVEMBER: A TRIP TO THE GARDENS

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: A beautiful stalk (?) of bird of paradise flowers at the Botanic Gardens.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: Brunch at Casa Verde, Botanic Gardens. Their margherita pizza is quite good! But boy do I miss Napoli.

 

DECEMBER: IAN’S WEDDING

PICTURE OF THE MONTH: Ian and Edwina in their new home, on their wedding day.

MEAL OF THE MONTH: I really ended off the year on a high with this Christmas dinner at BBQ Yakiniku Yazawa. The thinly sliced Japanese misuji (in the background) was heavenly.