wanton mee

Occasionally I went to eat wanton mee at Koung's when it was at Lorong 13 (near Geylang Road). I usually went in the mid-afternoon and each time I had to wait for about 20 minutes.

A few months ago Koung moved to Lorong 21A, junction with Sims Avenue. Last week I went to its new location for the first time. It was also mid-afternoon and I also had to wait. However, I only waited for 2 or 3 minutes for the cook to prepare my mee. There was only one other customer at a table eating the wanton mee. When I left there were no more customers.

It was in sharp contrast to its Lorong 13 scene. There were no crowded tables. There was no chattering. I cannot judge just by one visit. But it looks like business has dropped.

One reason could be that many regular customers still do not know its new address. I think another reason has to do with its location. It is less convenient and it is not inside the main food zone in Geylang.

名曲欣賞(7) - 幾度悔情慳 (姚志強, 蘇春梅)

another show

The local cantonese opera scene is quite vibrant. Throughout the year there are performances by various troupes and groups from the community clubs, associations and other organizations. Sometimes there are several shows on one weekend.

These shows also serve a social objective. Opera fans can socialize and gossip on these occasions.

I went to watch another show last week. Here are two of the items:

1. This dan is very tall, taller than her partner by one head. It was ok here because they were acting mother and son.

蓮花身哪吒会母 - 李丽金, 叶宝珠



2. An excerpt about a female ghost appearing in human form before her husband to test whether he still loved her. Her husband had forsaken her and was going to marry the daughter of someone of wealth and influence.

情探 - 龔耀祥, 梁秀芳

some photos

An article I read some time ago about teaching Cantonese opera to school pupils in Hong Kong .....


Photos of some China artistes, how many do you recognize ... I recognize only 8.

flickr

I have accumulated quite a lot of Cantonese opera discs throughout the years. I didn't even realize it - 2 or 3 this month, another 3 or 4 another month and when I go HK or China, another 7 or 8 and they take up space. I have put some in this box. I guess I will need another 3 boxes to keep all of them.



And I completely forgot that I have some photos in flickr until I saw something and it struck me into remembering. Here it is: http://www.flickr.com/photos/frannxis/

I have neglected it for 4 years. Here is one of the photos, recognize the shengs and the dan?



They are 彭庆华, 曾小敏, 文汝清

Lin Chong

This clip is from one of the 50-cent VCDs I mentioned in the previous post - 林冲雪夜上梁山.

This is Lin Chong expressing his anger at corrupt and selfish ministers in the imperial court ...

His wife and the maid lamenting the sufferings and helplessness of the people ...

Buddhist Temple and Opera

Buddhist Temple and Museum 

This is the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum at South Bridge Road, opposite the Maxwell Road Food Centre. If you are a Buddhist, probably you would have visited or will be visiting this Temple. I have passed this place many times, but last Saturday was the first time I stepped inside. It has a big hall which is very impressive.

At basement 1 there is a small theatre called Nagapuspa Theatre (龍華劇坊). Tung Onn will be staging a Cantonese opera show at this Theatre in December. ( By the way there is a film show on 7 November in the afternoon. It is about Da Mo, the Master of Zen. If you are interested you can get a free ticket from the Temple. )

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Opera VCDs

Bought some Cantonese opera vcds. These were selling at S$7 each some time last year. Recently, it was S$5 or buy two get one free. They are genuine stuff, not counterfeits. These VCDs by Koi Meng Fai and other HK stars are expensive in HK, about HK$120.

 

These are old operas but quality is good and got colour too. Last year it was S$1, now only 50 cents. I didn't see them at the shops in HK. There are also some old black and white cantonese movies - also 50 cents. In HK they cost about HK$35.

median age

I think you remember learning in school that  there are three type of averages - mean, mode and median.

It was reported that the median age of the stall-holders in the wet market is 60.

That means if you line up all the stall-holders from the youngest to the oldest, the middle one is 60 years old. It also means there is an equal number of stall-holders above and below him.

My perception of this is that the stall-holders are not all old people waiting to retire. There are also many younger ones in their thirties or forties.

If it says that the mean age is 60, I would think that most of them are older people. (mean = total ages of all the stall-holders divided by the total number of stall-holders)

If the modal age is 60, it tells us that stall-holders with the age of 60 form the largest group. Again I think it would give the impression that stall-holders are mostly old people.

Eye drops

See this bottle of eye-drops, you have to throw it away 1 month after opening. One month has passed and I used it on one occasion only. I was thinking what else I could use it for ... For the past few days I have been using it to clean my spectacle lenses. It does the job quite well. Any other suggestions?

怡情雅聚之夜

怡情雅聚主角 - 余麗明

other lead performers (Joanna Wong is the artistic director) : 

黃安妮, 鍾慧玲, 朱振邦, 余麗明, 胡桂馨, 盧少玲, 謝秀艷, 周汶姿.

A group photo, the lady second from the right is the compere 陳淑樺.

..... 謝幕

Bian's Cafe cum Chinese Opera Museum

For location and details, please see this post:

http://amailovesopera.blogspot.com/2009/10/bians-cafe-cum-chinese-opera-museum.html 

PSLE maths problem

About the PSLE problem in the previous post  - Thanks to the two participants who attempted the problem. And congratulations to Victor. I didn't work out the sum myself, I looked at the solution and I find it logical.

The solution, below, is given in the blog.

Once upon a time you could get zero for your maths tests because some teachers were lazy and just looked at the answers. There were no marking schemes either. Nowadays there are marking schemes with marks given for knowledge, understanding and application. For example, in a problem sum, if you do not know how to do it and you just write down distance = speed x time. If it is relevant in solving the problem, you might get one consolation mark for knowledge.

newish and hard

I came across a blogger using the word newish. I didn't know the meaning. I looked it up. The dictionary says it is an adjective meaning 'rather new' or 'fairly new'.

I'm trying it out, hope I use it correctly ....

There is a newish fruit stall at my market. It was not there a month ago.

Came across a blog on PSLE Maths. Some problems are really hard. I think some parents and many lower secondary pupils can't do them. Here is one example. You need to understand the question and picture it in your mind or draw a diagram for illustration.

Hard, isn't it? Haha, but less difficult than quizzes on old buildings. Anyone cares to exercise your brain cells. If you do, please let us know your answer.

If you are not familiar with our education system, PSLE stands for Primary School Leaving Examinations. After 6 years in primary school, a pupil (about 12 years old) takes this exam. If he passes the exam, he goes to a secondary school.