Mint Museum of Toys

Back in October, Bryan and I went on a wild-goose chase in Little India, looking for the no-longer-in-existence Museum of Shanghai Toys.  We later found out that the museum had closed several years ago, but had reopened in another location as the Mint Museum of Toys (why "Mint,"  you ask?  Good question.  I have no idea).  We set out to check it out over the weekend, and were happy to find that its new location near City Hall MRT, behind Raffles Hotel, was very easy to find.

The museum is a really narrow building with five stories.  We started at the top floor, with "Outerspace" themed toys.  Artistically lit display cases were lined with all sorts of funky toys, most of them from the 1960's and earlier.  There were loads of robots, astronauts, space ships, ray guns (my personal favorite), and rockets.  A lot of the toys were made of tin and looked very fragile.  More than a few of the robot toys were creepy!

Must...enslave...human...race.

I'm dying to know how a "Space Gun" is different from a "Mars Gun"

"Space Men" Something about their faces behind those masks gives me the willies.

The outerspace section also had Star Wars and Star Trek toys, including the posters from the original Star Wars movies, which were fantastically retro.  The Star Wars toys were really fun to see, because I recognized some of them as toys that my brothers played with, or that my cousin Mike collected.  In fact, some of them might still be lying around my parents' basement!

"Powerful you have become, the dark side I sense in you."

Next we went down to level four, the "Characters" level.  There were tons of Astroboy toys.  I didn't really remember seeing Astroboy much before, but apparently he was huge in Japan in the 1950's and has remained popular ever since- there was even an Astroboy movie just a couple of years ago.

Astroboy tank

My favorite character toys were the Batman ones.  In addition to the usual representation of Batman that I recognize, there were all sorts of strange Batmans- green ones, chubby toddler ones, even a vaguely sexual Batman squirt gun with the trigger sticking directly out of Batman's crotch.  And Robin!  He's awfully shapely, don't you think?

Green Batman

Baby Batman, in the days before the Batmobile

What's wrong with this picture?

Robin, showin' a little leg

The rare unmasked Robin

Pezman

Speed Racer was pretty sweet too!

Go Speed Racer, go Speed Racer, go Speed Racer, go!!!

Level three was "Childhood Favorites" which was a little funny since pretty much the whole museum seemed like childhood favorites to me!  This level had a lot of Popeye and TinTin toys.  I always liked Popeye as a kid, so it was neat to see how long he's been around- long before I was even born!

The Popeye crew

More than a few of the toys were marked with little placards that said things like "Only one known to exist in the world" or "Valued at US $7,000"  I guess collecting antique toys can be pretty lucrative if you known what to look for!  Apparently the toy of Popeye pushing the tank is incredibly rare and valuable.

You might want to pick this up if you ever see it at a garage sale...

I like the Popeye spinach cans in the background

I think Tintin toys might have been before our time, because Bryan and I didn't recognize any of the characters.  The guy did have a really cute dog though!  And nothing says "child's toy" like a whiskey train!

Tintin on the whiskey train

Tintin...riding around in an orca whale?!

By far the weirdest part of the museum was the collection of toys that used racist words and themes from a time when slavery was widely accepted.  Most of these toys were from places like the U.S. and the U.K. and they were really bizarre- they gave you that feeling like you were maybe doing something wrong just by looking at them.  But I think it's a part of history that's necessary to preserve- it's always important to have an accurate picture of how things once were.

Notice the one eating watermelon, a common theme among these toys.

"Darkie toothpaste"

What a strange toy to give a child.

These dolls were called "golliwogs," which is apparently a racist term.

Anyway, to return to the less controversial toys, there were also some classic favorites, like very old Mickey Mouse dolls.  Back in the days when he was just starting out, old Mickey looked much more rodent-like than he does nowadays!

Looking awfully mousy, Mickey

Mickey, atop something called a "Talkie Jecktor", whatever that is.

Awkward Felix the Cat

Awesome Fred Flintstone

Cute little Casper

Old school Donald Duck

The second level was the last one that contained exhibits, since the first level was just the entrance, a little shop, and a sidewalk cafe.  The second level was "collectibles," which, again, I found amusing, since the entire contents of the museum could probably be categorized as collectible.  Anyway, that second level contained a large collection of handmade Chinese dolls.  They were really old and each one was lovely and totally unique.

One-of-a-kind

One of my favorite toys in the museum was this old doll from Singapore.  The doll was from the 1940's- before Singapore was even an independent country!  The chef 's hat said "Sea View Hotel Singapore" and it had a little menu on its apron.  Judging from menu items such as Sauce Yorkshire, English Turkey Nivernaise, and Yuletide Pudding, I'm guessing the Sea View Hotel must have been a colonial hangout!

Hungry?  Chef doll can help!

Also in the room were a number of other familiar figures, including an ancient Barbie doll and some rather adorable representations of the dwarfs from Snow White.

A long way from today's Barbie

Bashful, Sleepy, Happy

Also in this room was display case after display case full of cars- tin trucks, matchbox cars, racecars, and more.  I think my dad could have spent hours ogling all this stuff!  Bryan and I took lots of pictures for him, so I'm only going to put a few on here.  The number of toys with their original boxes was really impressive.

Ford Edsel

Old police patrol car

Super weird delivery truck

Chillin' with the toys

The collectible room also had a bunch of relics from the Beatlemania era, including original Beatles autographs.  Some of the stuff was pretty standard Beatles memorabilia, and others (e.g. stuff done in Yellow Submarine style) were a little more unusual.

Freaky Beatles

Throughout the museum were these things called string holders.  Bryan and I were kind of confused by them- why were there so many different types?  Why exactly did people need string holders back in the day?  Why are they almost all super eerie?

Character string holders

Clark Kent, I think you have something in your teeth

Ummmm....WHAT?!

After a thorough exploration of the museum, Bryan and I headed out to the sidewalk cafe for a break.  As luck would have it, they had one of my favorite beverages on the menu- Wychwood Green Goblin hard cider!  After having spent a few days sick with whatever nasty bug is all over Singapore right now, it was great to sit outside and enjoy the breeze, a cold drink, Bryan's company, and a nice view of Raffles Hotel.

Yum!

Ahhhhh, relaxation

Raffles Hotel from the back

It was a great end to an interesting day.  Who knew the toy museum would be so fascinating?  I recommend checking it out if you're in Singapore- it's a good twist on the typical day at the museum.

Silly Signs Part Seven

With six editions of "Silly Signs," I thought that I was pretty much running out of material around Singapore.  But it seems that there's a never-ending pool of ridiculous stuff to draw from around here.  I give you one of my all-time favorites: the "DO NOT TOUCH ME" elf.  Hilarious!  It looks like an ad to prevent molestation!  I want to turn it into a T-shirt and wear it when I'm having a bad day.  Despite the extreme seriousness, the sign was actually just about not touching the Christmas decorations at Jurong Point.

If you touch me, I will cry a big sad crocodile tear.

I found this next sign at Outram Park MRT station and I have to admit that I'm pretty mystified by it.  I'm guessing it's warning against scammers who are selling stones that they claim have magical powers?  Perhaps these stones hold special appeal for older Singaporeans, who seem to be much more superstitious than the younger generation.  As a middle-aged waiter at Casa Latina told us, "No, I am not superstitious.  Superstition is silly.  But I don't mess around with black magic.  Black magic is REAL.  And it's serious.  I don't mess around."   Bryan and I did our best to nod sympathetically and not burst into giggles as I grumbled something about casting the Avada Kedavra spell.

Hey, you wanna give me a load of cash for this rock I found in that drain over there?  No?  Oh...um....I forgot to tell you!  It's MAGICAL!!!!

In the year 2000, Singapore launched the "Speak Good English Movement" to encourage Singaporeans to use more grammatically correct English and less of the local Singlish patois.  They have a number of campaigns- some of them encourage Singaporeans to send in photos of grammatically incorrect signs so that they can be corrected, and another campaign posts signs of frequent Singlish phrases and how they can be corrected to be proper English.  I guess it's a good idea overall- it's good for Singaporeans, particularly those involved in business, to be able to speak proper English so that they can be understood by non-Singaporeans.  Although I have to say, I find Singlish endearing and expressive, so I hope the government never aims to eradicate it completely.  It's part of the local flavor.  And besides, if you're ever having a real problem understanding, that's what the Coxford Singlish Dictionary is for!

Borrow you $5?!  Wah, why you so cheapo, lah?!  Cannot.

I got the image of this next sign off of the Singapore Stomp site.  I've seen the signs several times but due to the nature of them, they're often in high-traffic areas where it would be awkward to stop to take a photo.  The signs are usually put up after very serious or fatal accidents and the figures at the bottom change depending on who was involved, e.g. if a lorry hit a motorbike, that's what would be on the sign instead of the taxi, van, and pedestrians portrayed in this one.  I've never seen anything like them in the U.S.

Walking can be dangerous business around here

So you see, I haven't yet run out of strange and unusual signs.  Bryan and I have a trip to an exciting destination planned for the first week of February, so we'll see if we run across any gems while we're there.  Stay tuned for more!

Livin' it up in the Gold Class

Bryan's birthday was this week and I wanted to do something fun for him that wasn't too off-the-wall since we were celebrating on a work night and I was still recovering from the meanest case of jet lag I've ever had.  Dinner and a movie sounded about right, but not quite exciting enough for a birthday celebration.  I looked around and found exactly what I was looking for- a movie with a twist.

VivoCity has a "Gold Class" theater, advertised as a posh alternative to the regular theater. I took Bryan there to see Meet the Parents: Little Fockers.  You can relax in their lounge before the movie, and in the movie you kick back in your own big, comfy recliner, complete with your very own cozy blanket.  Waitresses come in to take your order- of course you can get popcorn and soda, or you can order off a menu that includes cocktails and full meals.  We opted for nachos and cocktails (all cutely named after movies- I had a "Devil Wears Prada," which was tasty, but I'm pretty sure it was just a vodka-cranberry).  The movie was pretty good- not as funny as the first two but still enjoyable- but the real treat was relaxing, wrapping up in a blanket, and being more comfortable watching a movie at the theater than we are in our own apartment!  It felt a little silly to have waiters and attendants fussing over us like we were made of money, but it was a good time.  It was a little expensive, so if we did it again it would probably only be for a special occasion.  If only we could fly back and forth to the US in this kind of style!

Birthday Bryan

Gold Class lounge

Coziest movie seats ever

After the movie we got dinner at the Marché in VivoCity, which was a lot like the one at 313@Somerset but smaller and without the hilarious animatronic sheep.  We both are crazy about the restaurant (I have blabbed about my love of  Marché at length in this post), so it was a treat to try it out at a new location.  I think the birthday boy was pretty happy with his day!

Airport Madness

On my recent trip back to the States, I ended up spending a LOT of time in airports.  You see, the trip from Singapore to Canton, Ohio typically takes about 27 hours, which is nothing to scoff at.  And that's how long it took me to get there on this last trip.  Getting back was an entirely different story.  I got mixed up in the huge snowstorm that hit the east coast of the U.S.  My flight was supposed to go through the Newark airport, which was slammed so hard by snow that the airport actually shut down.  My flight was canceled (luckily before I got to the airport) and I was moved to a flight the next day, then two of my three flights were delayed, causing me to miss the third.  My luggage was lost, and so was my vegetarian meal reservation.  It took me about 40 hours to get from Ohio to Singapore, and I ended up missing two days of work that I hadn't intended to miss.

Snow on the runway at Newark...I thought I parked my plane around here somewhere...

During all of that traveling, I got to know some airports pretty well.  Newark was none too exciting, with only yummy Famous Famiglia pizza to redeem itself.  I'm harboring a grudge against the Beijing airport for losing my luggage (yes, I got it back), but the place itself was all right.  It's hard to dislike an airport with a pagoda and zen garden in the middle of it!

The Beijing Airport is so stressful they had to slap a garden smack in the middle of it

Yeah we lost your bags...but look at our pretty pond!

However, the airport that easily nabs the prize for best place to kill time is Singapore's own Changi Airport!  Bryan and I shared a taxi to the airport, but his flight left an hour before mine so I had some time on my hands.  Luckily, Changi is full of fun stuff to do when you're stuck with a wait.  First of all, there are clean, working computer kiosks with free Internet all over the place, which is fantastic.  There's the usual stuff, like shops and restaurants, and much more.  There's a cinema showing a free movie 24 hours a day, a kid's playground, a giant indoor slide, and an arcade.  If you're looking for something more relaxing, there are big comfy chairs set up in front of huge plasma screens with cable TV, or you can visit the koi pond or butterfly garden.  I didn't have a ton of time, so I decided to just swing by the butterfly garden before heading to my gate.  It was pretty neat to be hanging out in all the lush greenery with the colorful butterflies rather than sitting on an awkward metal chair in the stuffy airport!

The butterflies were all over the place but were a little hard to photograph, what with all their excited flitting about.  Luckily there was something almost as exciting to me- pitcher plants!! My favorite!  All different kinds!

Not bad for an airport, eh?  Even though it was neat, I was still eager to be on my way- snow and family awaited on the other side of the planet!

Monkey Walks!

In collaboration with NParks, I'll be leading Monkey Walks at Bukit Timah Nature Reserve the second Saturday of every month, at least from January to May, perhaps longer if we can continue to generate interest.  The walks will begin at 5 PM at the Bukit Timah Visitor Centre with a short talk to introduce everyone to some of the basics about long-tailed macaques.  After the talk, we'll head out to wherever the Hindhede monkeys happen to be, which is typically near the Visitor Centre or carpark at that time of day.  As we all observe the macaques, I'll share some more information about their behavior, how to identify specific individuals, how the hierarchy of this group is organized, and more.  It's a great opportunity for me to get to share some of what I've learned over the past year and a half of working with these monkeys, and a good chance for everyone else to educate themselves about these fascinating creatures.  Overall, the experience should last about an hour.

Monkey walk with Dr. Gumert, who is currently on sabbatical in Thailand

If you're interested in participating in a monkey walk, please email sgmonkeywalk@gmail.com to register.  Please email at least three days in advance of the day of the walk that you would like to participate in, and keep in mind that walks will be limited to the first ten people to sign up.  If it rains up to 45 minutes before the walk, the walk will be canceled.  Walks are currently scheduled for:

January 8th
February 12th
March 12th
April 9th
May 14th
June 11th
July 9th

If you are interested in the walk or if you have further questions, feel free to drop an email!  The monkeys await!

Come see us!

Happy Holidays!

Bryan and I were lucky enough to make it back to the States for Christmas this year.  He's with his family in Montana and I'm with mine in Ohio.  We're both freezing to death, but loving the snow and the time with our families.

I've spent the past couple of days squeezing in all the Christmas-related activities I could think of- seeing "A Christmas Carol" at the Canton Players Guild with my parents, reading 'Twas the Night Before Christmas and about 20 other holiday stories to my niece after baking a huge batch of chocolate chip cookies, drinking a Starbucks peppermint mocha, wrapping presents with my niece and nephew, and seeing this awesome Christmas light display:

The display was really neat- you drive up to the house and they have a sign up in the front yard telling you which station to tune the radio to.  The lights are synced up to a whole bunch of songs- we sat there for about twenty minutes and never saw/heard the same one twice.  If you're in Canton, Ohio, you should check it out- it's on Saratoga Hills Dr, off of Werner Church.  Take a toy with you- the family that set up the display put a box out front, and they're accepting donations for Toys for Tots.  There's a news story here on the light display, and on a couple of other houses doing something similar.  My favorite part of the story is the quote by the owner of the house- "This is how Americans do Christmas."

It's been fun seeing the light displays in Ohio, but on our way out of Singapore, we also got to check out the decorations at Changi Airport, which, I must say, were elaborate but kind of weird.

Christmas ornament/rocking horse pegasus/fish?!

Ah, the traditional Christmas teapot

Bryan, Crystal, and the magical holiday teapot

Happy Holidays from the USA!!

Just When I Thought I Understood...More Miscommunication

Sometimes I fool myself into thinking that I've gotten pretty awesome at understanding Singlish, and at making myself understood.  Clearly I'm delusional.  Recently, one of my American colleagues and I had the following experience:

We walked outside of Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School, where I recently started a new job.  We were walking across to Singapore General Hospital for a smoothie.  Upon walking outside we noticed that the air was thick and acrid, and the smell of smoke was harsh.  It was the first day of a haze that hung over Singapore for several days.  The haze was a result of smoke blowing over from wildfires in Indonesia, but we didn't know that at the time.  Naturally we were curious, which led to this ridiculous conversation with the Singaporean smoothie girl:

American Pal: Hey, so do you know why it's so smoky outside?
Smoothie Girl: Wah?
American Pal:  The smoke?  Outside?  Where is it coming from?
Smoothie Girl: Wah, cannot smoke inside.  Must go outside.
Me: No, no, no.  We don't want to smoke in the hospital.  There's smoke in the air (pointing outside) out there.  Like fog or haze.  But smoke.  Outside.  Have you seen it?
Smoothie Girl: No, lah, cannot smoke inside.  Not allowed.
American Pal: We understand.  We just want to know why the air is so bad outside.  It smells smoky.
Smoothie Girl: (speaks to other smoothie girl in Mandarin, probably saying something to the effect of "What the hell are these chicks saying?  They want to smoke in here or something.  Can you make them shut up?")
Smoothie Girl #2: Cannot buy cigarettes here.  Must go to Seven-Eleven.
Me: No!  Not cigarettes.  Never mind.
American Pal: Noooo...the smoke outside (points vaguely to the window)...OK.  Never mind.  Thank you for our smoothies!

One day not long after that, I realized that my miscommunications aren't exclusive to my interactions with Singaporeans.  Sometimes I even have trouble understanding my fellow Americans.  Take, for example, this exchange between Bryan and me, one evening while we were cooking dinner:

Bryan: (sheepishly) Can you help me find the ring?
Crystal: (prolonged silence as I attempt to digest the enormity of this statement and then handle it without jumping up and down and terrifying Bryan) If you feel like you need help, of course, I'd be glad to.  When do you want to do it?
Bryan: After dinner?  Wait...what are you talking about?
Crystal: What are YOU talking about?!
Bryan: The ring in my video game.  It'll help my character go faster but I can't find it...seriously, what are you talking about?!
Crystal: You're mean.
Bryan: What?!
Crystal: I thought you meant an engagement ring.
Bryan: (laughter)
Crystal: So mean.  So, so mean.

Yeah.  I think Bryan found his video game ring, but my left hand is still naked.  But what's a girl to do?