Beautiful weather for skating

The weather this morning was absolutely perfect for skating!!! It has been raining almost every afternoon for the last week and a half. And unfortunately I usually can't wake up to skate in the morning, and by the time lunch is done, the sky turns dark. I woke up early today, and it was just right, not too hot, and the sky was not threatening either. Neither was it crowded at East Coast Park, cos most people are staying away for fear of the impending rain!

I did the entire trail twice, back and forth. I suppose that brings it to a total of about 20km? Okay to some of you that's no big deal, but its my first time going the distance on skates and it was a pretty darn good workout! And I thoroughly enjoyed my favorite sights on the way: the amazing view at bedok jetty, eucalyptus trees near the yacht club, catching a glimpse of some cable skiing. I used to like skating as a substitute for skiing, which is the one sport I really love. But now I think that skating on its own is fantastic, especially if you have the right scenary and conditions to go along with it. ;)

Living by the sea has its advantages and disadvantages. It takes a long time to get to work, and the commute really sucks as the train station isn't nearby. Most buses take surface streets which takes hella long to get anywhere on the other side of the island. For this reason alone many people dread staying by the east coast. The other big disadvantage is that developers are always eyeing your property! Everybody wants to buy up that plot of land and replace it with a ridiculously expensive condominium (unless u are staying in hdb of course)! And you know that once you move out and sell that land, you will never be able to afford staying in this neighbourhood anymore.....

But of course the greatest thing is that you have 10km of untouched beach at your doorstep! Okay, 10km is not a lot compared to Los Angeles, but if you are staying on an island only 40km across, it sure is paradise! Not to mention that there really hasn't been much development along the beachfront, so it does look a lot more natural than LA (though it isn't!). And with the weather changing all the time towards the northeast monsoon season, it's good to have the park at your doorstep so you can judge when's a good time to go skate. ;) Rain here normally lasts only an hour or two and are unpredictable. So if you lived further away you'd probably not even head to ECP during this season....

Global Cost of Living Index

Here is the ranking from the most accurate and updated cost of living index out there. Once again proving that Singapore is indeed a VERY expensive place to live in, so please stop saying that I'm living like a king in Asia!!!

1. Moscow
2. Seoul
3. Tokyo
4. Hong Kong
5. London
6. Osaka
7. Geneva
8. Copenhagen
9. Zurich
10. Oslo
11. New York City
12. St. Petersberg
13. Milan
14. Beijing
15. Istanbul
15. Paris
17. Singapore
20. Shanghai
28. Taipei
29. Los Angeles
34. San Francisco
38. Chicago
47. Toronto
56. Vancouver
76. Houston
84. Boston
93. Perth
102. Seattle
114. Kuala Lumpur
I think Perth or Seattle would be a nice place to retire.....

Chinese Cars

Chinese cars have become very popular in Asia lately for one reasonly only: they are dirt cheap! But when it comes to quality......

According to the latest China Automobile Customer Satisfaction Index, the number of faults per 100 cars made in China rose from 246 in 2005 to 338 this year. Four out of five cars now experience a problem in the first six months of ownership. But with average retail prices falling by $1,250 a year, producers are racing to cut costs, not improve quality. Intense competition is also forcing them to accelerate development cycles. Carmakers acknowledge that this means they are being forced to use lower quality materials and spend less time on testing. So reliability is likely to deteriorate further. -- The Economist, Nov 25 2006

The statistics are from China itself. As we all know, China is notorious for covering up stuff like inflation rate, economic growth etc, so if the authorities say the situation bad, it must be REALLY bad! The Cherry may be cheap, but it won't be worth the money if it gets out of control and becomes a squashed Cherry!!