The Heat is On in (Singapore and) Saigon

It's one of my favorite times of the year in Hong Kong... The city's international film festival started yesterday and will carry on for two weeks. I am so excited to take full advantage, because you may remember that last year, a work trip to Dubai significantly ate into my movie time, cutting it in half. 

As wonderful as that trip was, I made up my mind long ago that come hell or high water, I'd stick around my town this time to soak up as many movies as possible. I plan to stick to my guns!

As a matter of fact, I had wanted to start my movie-going tonight, but when I arrived at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (after picking up my new Hong Kong Identity Card) to buy a ticket to The Sisters Brothers earlier this evening, I was told the screening had already sold out. Don't worry! I made a list of about fifty or so movies from which to make my ultimate selection, and I already have tickets to a fair few of them. So my first screening will instead take place tomorrow night at the restored police station on Hollywood Road, now called Tai Kwun. (And The Sisters Brothers is slated for a regular theatrical run in Hong Kong in the near future anyway, so I'll get another chance to catch it on the big screen.)

Instead, I walked over to a Shanghaiese dumpling joint I've been longing to try for ages and treated myself to some amazing morsels of soupy, porky, truffly goodness. I then popped into my favorite used video store and picked up a cheap HKD 28 copy of David Lynch's Mullholland Drive, which I haven't seen for almost eighteen years. (Funnily enough, it was the first DVD I ever rented... My dad brought home a DVD player one night, and we visited our local Blockbuster shortly thereafter, where I picked it off the shelf. Before then, I had only ever watched VHS tapes! Oh, how times have changed!)

Before I make some popcorn and put it on, I wanted to catch you all up on a little business trip that took me to Singapore and Saigon last week. It was an incredible stretch of days, partly spent in a place I know very well and partly spent in a city I'd never been to before. As I'm sure you can imagine, both portions of the trip were utterly delightful.

I touched down in Singapore last Monday afternoon and made a beeline for my hotel in Fort Canning Park. Before long, Sonia had picked me up and whisked me over to her lovely flat in Holland Village, where I had the chance to spend time with Motez and surprise guests Martin and Mongia who were visiting from Thailand!

Martin treated us to a delicious Indian dinner at a place called the British Indian Curry Hut, a few minutes' walk from the flat, and it was oh-so nice to catch up with them. I was particularly drawn to a poster featuring Winston Churchill and one of his lesser-known notable quotables.

Tuesday was a day or work meetings for me, and not particularly exciting. Still, I enjoyed spending some downtime in my amazing "garden room" at Hotel Fort Canning. See, the upstairs rooms are larger in terms of their indoor space, but I booked a special room on the ground floor. These rooms come complete with French doors that open wide into a private two-hundred square foot garden, with a day bed!

Dutiful Sonia again picked me up after her own work day had finished, and I was soon in Holland Village drinking Tiger with good friends. Sonia and Motez suggested we visit a fairly remote corner of the island that evening, for local dinner and a visit to an amazing, old school bar called the Nelson, which is a particular favorite among sailors whose ships are calling in Singapore.

Literally every inch of the Nelson is complete with ship memorabilia, from wheels and portholes to life buoys and, perhaps most memorably, the signatures of tens of thousands of sailors who've imbibed here.

It could have turned into a whale of a night, but Sonia was driving and responsibly kept Motez and I in line. Still, it was an evening to remember, to be sure.

Wednesday was actually my last full day in town, and came with more meetings I had to attend. But I managed to squeeze in an amazing lunch of Singapore style carrot cake (both the black and white varieties) and laksa at Lau Pa Sat. For the past six years, these have been the things I've missed most about the Lion City, so I was absolutely delighted to indulge!

That afternoon, my feet carried me back to Tom's Palette, possibly the world's greatest ice creamery, and certainly one of the most creative! I had scrumptious parmesan cheese and cracker ice cream mixed with savoury crunch, which combines potato chips and praline. You can see my Singapore priorities were in order for my short stay!

Our friends Marouen, Yeumee and Zied all joined in for an amazing hotpot dinner at Haidilao in Clark Quay, and by the time the evening ended, I was reminded exactly why I loved calling this city home back in 2013. It's a phenomenal place, and I hope I am back again soon.

But on Thursday, after a morning meeting and a quick visit to the Asian Civilizations Museum on Boat Quay, I was Saigon bound! Although I had been to Halong Bay, Danang and Hoi An back in 2012, I hadn't been to Vietnam since, and it was great to explore the historic city, now officially named after Ho Chi Minh but still universally called Saigon by the locals.

In a random, lucky coincidence, my old friend Hayely, who lives in Singapore, was in town! She recently quit her job at a bank to start her own tech company. With her new office based in Saigon, she divides her time between the two cities and just happened to be around for my short trip. 

She met me at my hotel, the wonderful Majestic, and took me straight for a walking tour of the quarter. She also steered us to an amazing al fresco restaurant for dinner, called Rice Field, before capping the night off with a rooftop beer.

Friday was taken up by some meetings and exploration, as I tried to wrap my head around the chaos of this city. Motor bikes zoom in every direction, seemingly disregarding every known rule of the road. A simple act like crossing the street becomes nearly impossible, but it's also a heck of a lot of fun.

I don't think Saigon is capable of standing still. The only quiet, peaceful places are all indoors. Everything outside is in full mayhem mode. But it's endearing and charming and unforgettable, all in a Vietnamese sort of way.

Hayley was out of town over the weekend, running an ultra-marathon in another Vietnamese city. But my friend Roger, who also lives in Singapore, had planned a romantic weekend in Saigon with his fiancee Mabel, and invited me to crash their party when he found out I was around. 

We met at their hotel, only a few hundred meters from my own, and had a delicious local dinner in the town's central market, consisting of pho and fresh spring rolls. And, of course, we continued our night was some cold, refreshing local brews. The heat is on in Saigon, to be sure, but the beer is plentiful and cold to help combat it!

Saturday was a full day before my evening flight, because I really wanted to make the most of my forty eight hours in town. I awoke super early to take a Vespa tour of the city, and met up with Roger and Mabel again afterwards for a few last beers before heading to the airport, tying up an all-too-brief introduction to this frenetic destination. I already miss Saigon.

Sunday was, as you all know, Saint Patrick's Day, one of my favorite days of the year. Although guest count was low, I continued my annual Paddy's Day rooftop bash in Happy Valley, indulging in colored beer, leprechaun hats, the return of Fredric's green bow tie and a screening of The Quiet Man.

So my work trip segued into a full fledged boozy Hong Kong Sunday, which in turn is seguing into two weeks of film. The past week has been a sheer delight and the coming fortnight should be, too! Stay tuned for my reviews from the red carpet!