Tag: singapore flyer

Beerfest Asia 2011

It’s that time of the year to be jolly over beers – Beerfest Asia 2011 from 16th to 19th June 2011!

Same as last year, I purchased the “1-Day OCBC Exclusive Pass” for 19th June 2011, which I paid with OCBC credit card for S$15 each. It seems that the prices went up from S$12 last year. For last year coverage, please go to “Beerfest Asia 2010“. The reason that I chose to come on the last day is because there is less crowd and lots of promotions such as 1-for-1, price slash, bulk pricing, etc. Found out that it’s better from Beerfest Asia 2010 experience.

Performance on stage: All Star Beatles Tribute! This gig got lots of people doing the boogie!

Storm Beer – one of our favorite beer! Brewed in Bali but I didn’t managed to drink it during my trip to Bali in 2010.

Food and snacks are available too! But this time round, we didn’t eat any as we had an early dinner before going to Beerfest Asia 2011.

As each ticket comes with 2 free beers, the first one I went to exchange for Kronenbourg 1664. You can’t exchange any beers you want as there are fixed stations where free beers can be redeem. I rather Beerfest Asia give us the choice to redeem whether we want or just shave off the free beers pricing and introduce entrance tickets only.

We hang out at the open area nearer to Marina Bay most of the time as inside the tent was pretty noisy (loud music) and warm!

You can also admire the scenery while having your beer!

Free beer exchange – Jaz Lychee Beer. It’s a new lychee flavored beer which was recently launched only. Seems to be great for beginners or ladies!

Free beer exchange – Archipelago Summer Ale. Wanted to have Archipelago Belgium Wit but was sold out.

Scouting around to redeem for our next free drink… Magner’s

Harry’s at Beerfest Asia 2011.

Free beer exchange – Magner’s Irish Cider.

Singapore Flyer from Beerfest Asia 2011.

Another area where we hang out most of the time, it’s near to the entrance and also not so crowded. Only standing tables available!

Storm Beer Golden Ale – How can we not have this when we’re here? 😛

Schneider Weisse – I saw that it was a wheat beer and decided to have a try. Verdict – it’s definetly one of better wheat beers!

This year, I didn’t drink as much as I was suffering from serious gastric pain since a week ago from Beerfest Asia 2011. I didn’t want any relapse so took it easy on the beers but my impression is that Beerfest Asia 2011 beer makers are not as much as Beerfest Asia 2010. The selection is much lesser (so are the eye candies :P) – I might be wrong as I wasn’t given a handbook probably due to my late arrival (7pm). Seating area in the tentage was also significantly reduced as a large part was taken up by some Singtel bar or whatever – it was sort of fenced up and seems to be just for their customers (which is not many!). There was also a noticeable stink in the tent area, think many people vomited over the last few days. Haha!

Maybe it’s my form (not good), even photos I took this year is not as good!

Anyway, let’s see forward to how Beerfest Asia 2012 will turn out. My attendance is still confirmed!

Tags archipelago summer ale, asia beer awards, beer, beerfest, beerfest asia 2011, event, harry's, jaz lychee beer, kronenbourg 1664, magner’s irish cider, marina bay, schneider weisse, singapore, singapore flyer, storm beer golden ale

Life in Singapore

Merlion Park

Passing by Esplanade area, so decided to head off to Merlion Park to hang out for a while and take some photos. Merlion Park is located near Marina Bay, Singapore and is a popular tourist attraction. Walking along Esplanade Bridge towards Merlion Park.

Mini-Merlion – great for children to take photos with.

Excerpt from Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merlion):

The Merlion (Malay: Singa-Laut) is an imaginary creature with the head of a lion and the body of a fish, used as a mascot of Singapore. Its name combines “mer” meaning the sea and “lion“. The fish body comes from Singapore’s ancient name back when it was a fishing village — Temasek — meaning “sea town” in Javanese. The lion head represents Singapore’s original name — Singapura — meaning “lion city” or “kota singa”.

Marina Bay Sands – there are still some construction on-going but the main block is already open. You can also visit the Sands SkyPark which is 200m into the sky and see the spectacular views of Singapore.

The Merlion was used as the logo of the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) in use from 26 March 1964 to 1997 and is a well-known icon of Singapore.

From Merlion Park, you can see also see the beautiful views of the Marina Bay.

The tall buildings from the Singapore Central Business District forms the backdrop of Merlion.

One Fullerton – You call find swanky restaurants and bars here, most offering high floor-to-ceiling windows with great views of Marina Bay.

Another angle of the Merlion.

Visitors who wants to take a river cruise can buy tickets at Singapore River Cruise (next to Merlion). For 30 mins ride, the fees per adult is S$15 and children is S$8. There is also the 45 mins option, which is at S$20 for adults and S$10 for children.

I am done with my relaxing and enjoying the breeze so it’s back to the Esplanade. On the far right of the photo, you can catch a glimpse of the Singapore Flyer!

Think I will be back again another time in the evening/night to capture the night view of Marina Bay. Maybe I will hold on for a while until Marina Bay Sands is fully open?

Tags esplanade, esplanade bridge, marina bay, marina bay sands, merlion park, one fullerton, singapore, singapore flyer, singapore river cruise

Events Life in Singapore

Beerfest Asia 2010

20th June 2010 (Sunday) marks the day that I attended Beerfest Asia 2010. I wanted to get tickets for 19th June 2010 (Saturday) so that I can hang around later but it was already sold out. The event was held at Marina Promenade (F1 tracks behind Singapore Flyer).

Beerfest Asia 2010 is starting at 6pm and there was already a queue waiting to go in at around 5.50pm. This is the second year that Beerfest Asia is running and offer the opportunities to sample over 250 kinds of beers!

Collected my “1-Day OCBC Exclusive” tickets which I paid in-advance with OCBC credit card for S$12 each.

The “1-Day OCBC Exclusive” ticket comes with 2 redeemable beer. I had initially thought that we can choose the 2 beers that we wanted but at the entrance, we were given a redeemed beer each and another beer token (black) to redeem the other beer of choice in the event. The redeemed beer didn’t come with any label as it must have peeled off while in the ice bath. I had a peek at other attendees’ bottle and it’s actually “Super Bock“. My partner finds it up to her liking!

Sol beer, imported bottled beer from Mexico.

Jaz Beer and Starker from Malaysia. Starker won the gold at Asia Beer Awards for wheat beer category. Wheat beer is my top favorite and I didn’t managed to try Starker… 🙁

Wheat Beer (Source)
Gold: Starker Aromatic Wheat Beer, Starker Brewery, Napex
Silver: Brewerkz Wheat Beer, Brewerkz, Brewerkz
Bronze: Pump Room Wheat Beer, The Pump Room

Dead Frog Brewery from Cananda and Storm Brewery from Indonesia. Had a chat with the folks at Storm Brewery and he mentioned that the crowd on Saturday night was packed to the brim! Hmmm..I’m glad that I came on a Sunday… self consolation… hahaha

Sabeco from Vietnam which carries Beer 333, Saigon Export and Saigon Special. I had lots of them during my trip to Vietnam!

Brewerkz Restaurant & Microbrewery – winner of “Outstanding South East Asian Microbrewery Award”. (Source)

6 Drunk Men – featuring Fosters, Pure Blonde, Red Rock Lager, Victoria Bitter, Magners Cider, etc.

Singha beer from Thailand.

Since the event was held at the F1 tracks behind Singapore Flyer.. there is a showcase of a few F1 cars as well.

Beerlao from Laos. The banner mentioned “Asia Best Beer” (Voted by Times Magazine). Must find opportunity to try this beer!

B.I.D carries various beers – James Boags (Australia), Konig (Germany), Warsteiner (Germany), Samuel Adams (USA), etc.

Went to change for S$30 worth of Beerfest chips. Paid by OCBC card and got 5% off so I paid only S$28.50.

Food and snacks are available at Beerfest Asia 2010!

Sausage platter at S$14.

Outdoor sitting area for dining while you watch World Cup matches at the screen.

North Taiwan Brewery have some interesting concoction – Honeydew Melon Fruit Beer and Li Chee Fruit Beer.

König Pilsener from Germany.

Storm Beer, brewed in Bali. I would love to try the rest of the range (especially Storm Brewing Iron Stout) when I am in Bali next month. 🙂

Trying our Storm Golden Ale (brewed in Bali). I love it!

Golden Ale (Source)
Gold: Archipelago Summer Ale, Archipelago Brewery, Archipelago Brewery, Singapore
Silver: Storm Golden Ale, Storm Brewing, Storm Brewing
Bronze: Brewerkz Golden Ale, Brewerkz, Brewerkz, Singapore

Sky is getting darker but the crowd is still starting to pour in.

Live entertainment at Beerfest Asia 2010. Enjoy fantastic live music while you drink beers!

Moving out to enjoy the cool breeze…

Redeemed a Brewerk Golden Ale from Singapore.

Carlton Pure Blonde, good for ladies who are more weight conscious as it’s low carbohydrate. The beer ambassador mentioned to me that 6 bottles of Pure Blonde is equivalent to a slice of bread. Wow!

Low Carbohydrate Lager (Source)
Gold: No Winner
Silver: No Winner
Bronze: Carlton Pure Blonde, Carlton & United Breweries Ltd, 6 Drunk Men

I left around 9pm to go for dinner but the event actually goes on till 12 midnight. Look at the amount of people still enjoying themselves!

Anyway, Beerfest Asia 2010 is a really great event for beer lovers to have the opportunity to sample different brew and concoction of beer under one roof. It’s also a good event to arrange for a get-together session with friends and enjoy beer! I will be sure to attend the next year’s Beerfest Asia 2010!

Life in Singapore

Singapore Flyer

Gotten an invitation to experience Singapore Flyer (新加坡摩天观景轮) – the world’s largest observation wheel (for now). It is 42 stories high, with a total height of 165 m (541 ft), and is taller than London Eye. Singapore Flyer is located at Marina Centre and offers breathtaking panoramic view of Singapore‘s Marina Bay and beyond. Here I am, standing at the platform awaiting to board the capsule.

Looking down from the capsule. For info, the wheel will rotate at clockwise direction when viewed from Marina Centre.

On the Singapore Flyer, you can also see the numerous hotels and shopping malls around Marina Bay area – Ritz Carltion Singapore, Pan Pacific Singapore, Suntec City Mall, Millenia Tower, etc.

Singapore Flyer over looking “The Float at Marina Bay” and “Esplanade“.

The illumination outside of the Singapore Flyer will change different colours!

After alighting the capsule, you will pass by a souvenir shop where you can get stuffs for your loved ones. 🙂

Spotted a small model of Singapore Flyer in the souvenir shop too!

Wahahaaha, I returned the next day to take a flight at Singapore Flyer again – this time during the day time. Oh yes, there is a number of impressive selection of food & beverage outlets at Singapore Flyer too!

After showing the tickets, you will have to go through security checks. Very much like taking a flight? 😛

Prior to taking the capsule, I stopped by the washroom as the flight will take around 30mins. Outside of the washroom, there is a tenant called “PictureWorks” where your photos can be taken and then superimposed onto the various available background of Singapore Flyer.

Joining in the queue and waiting to board the capsule at the platform. There are a total of 28 air-conditioned capsules, each one the size of a bus and able to take on up to 28 passengers. So it will not be a long wait.

If you are celebrating any special occasion, you might want to look at the different packages offered by Singapore Flyer at their webby – http://www.singaporeflyer.com/. You can wine, dine and admire fantastic panoramic views of Marina Bay at the same time! Looks really happening!

Here you can see the F1 Track (Singapore Grand Prix), Marina Barrage, Marina Bay Golf Course (extreme left) and the upcoming Gardens By the Bay (extreme right).

F1 Pitstop (Singapore Grand Prix) and Marina Bay Golf Course. The area that is under development and also in-front of the Marina Bay Golf Course is The Garden at Marina East (See Gardens By the Bay) .

Looking down from the capsule. This time during day time. 😛

Day view of Ritz Carltion Singapore, Pan Pacific Singapore, Suntec City Mall, Millenia Tower, etc.

Upcoming integrated resort which is expected to open in 2010 – Marina Bay Sands. Looking forward to it!

Day view of “The Float at Marina Bay” and “Esplanade“. Now I can see clearly that the platform stage is now used as a football field. 😛

I noted there are precautions (netting) taken in case of any accidents occurring. Anyway, the capsules are moving at slow speeds and it can be easily boarded or alighted.

Finally, leaving you with a shot of Singapore Flyer against the clear blue sky. I had a good time experiencing both day and night rides at Singapore Flyer – each have it’s own beautiful as well as captivating points and it’s a matter of individual preferences to choose which to experience. Please do visit http://www.singaporeflyer.com/ for more information and packages available. Have fun!

Photos on this blog post are taken on Panasonic DMC-LX3K 10.1MP Digital Camera.

Tags esplanade, gardens by the bay, marina barrage, marina bay, marina bay golf course, marina bay sands, marina centre, millenia tower, pan pacific, ritz carltion, singapore, singapore flyer, singapore grand prix, suntec city mall, the float at marina bay