Go on a Virtual Tour on the LST RSS Endurance with Me

So RSS Endurance, the Landing Ship Tank (LST), pennant number 207 was berthed outside Vivo City for exhibition in the previous week. If you are curious, the names and pennant numbers of the other LSTs are listed below:

RSS Resolution 208, RSS Persistence 209, RSS Endeavour 210

When you board the ship, this is what you should see. The bow of the ship. The sunset ceremony will commence here where the flag will be lowered. There is also a helipad on the ship for helicopters to land. During missions, the deck is kept clear and free from obstacles and for leisure purposes, the crew run around the deck.

As we proceed down the stairs, we will pass this level, the level where cabins are. As you can see there are double and triple decks if you can call it that. Some say that claustrophobic people will not be able to ta han staying onboard a ship. I beg to differ. It's all about getting used to it. Kids have slept before on double decks, so why can't adults? Having cleaned our cabins before, from the sight of this clean cabin, I can visualise all the hard work that has gone into keeping it spick and span. 

Let's proceed to the tank deck. Why is it called the tank deck? It's the bottom most level of the ship and it gets it names because tanks can be stored and strapped down at this level. Here, there is also the well dock. 

Celebrities Ebi, Patricia and Suhaimi pose for a photograph

The well dock is the further end of the tank deck where there are wooden planks. When there are no Fast Craft Utility (FCU) onboard, the well dock is usually not flooded and is dry. During sailing, it can be used as a platform for playing soccer.

See these navy crew here? They are the ones who help to secure the FCUs when they dock. I was one of those helping out with this role during one of the previous Navy open houses. It is by no means an easy job doing it for half a day.

And we commenced on our trip on the FCU. Off we go!

Us posing for a photo onboard the FCU. I like the feel of the wind blowing at us as the FCU sails.

Latin, me (Samuel), Dawn, Zelene (In sequence)

Now to the other levels of the ship. This is the briefing room where we muster for out daily meetings. Here, there is the safety board amongst other boards.

When you see these plaques, you are on the level where the wardroom, the officers country and the gym are located. The wardroom is where the officers entertain important figures and have their meals etc.

Is there a place for the sailors to keep fit? Of course, there's the gym.

Now, we shall proceed to the upper deck. 

This is the bridge. This corner here is our Comms corner, where the Communicators are stationed to report to the officers with regards to communication with the harbour and other ships.

This is the table for the Nav (Navigators) team to do up their charts. 

The crew of every ship have a strong sense of belonging to their ship.

These machinery are mostly operated by the Nav team and supervised by officers.

This is the chair for the Commanding Officer (CO) of the ship. Only during public occasions are civilians allowed to sit on this.

What's this? It's one of our Comms' equipment, a lantern which we use to flash signals to other ships. Yup, that's where morse code comes into play.

Yes, there's also a 0.5 machine gun installed here. During our training days, we had enough fun learning how to use this, so I am not going to touch this.

Hope you have learned more about the LST and find her more interesting now. 

Movie Review of Dragon Blade 天将雄师

Fancy an action packed movie that have to do with war and has some historical significance to it? Then you should check out Dragon Blade. Here's the trailer:

Cast: Jackie Chan, Adrien Brody, John Cusack and Choi Siwon 

Director: Daniel Lee

Release Date: 19/2/2015

Running Time: 127 minutes

The main cast of Dragon Blade were here in Singapore to attend the gala premiere and for movie promotion activities. The cast included Jackie Chan, John Cusack, Adrien Brody, Choi Siwon, Lin Peng and Wang Ruo Xin. Word has it that they were flown over in Jackie Chan's private planes.

Thanks to Hong Peng, I was able to catch them live in person at the cinema.

Choi Siwon, Wang Ruo Xin, Jackie Chan, John Cusack (In sequence)

One of the cast who everyone can't wait to see, Choi Siwon. As handsome as ever.

 

That's Huo An (Jackie Chan) and his team, the Silk Road Protection Squad

                   

Huo An (Jackie Chan), the Commander of the Silk Road Protection Squad and his trusted subordinate Yin Po (Choi Si-won)

Review:

When Jackie Chan introduced his movie, he explained how there were many challenges faced in the filming, especially that of getting the Caucasian children (cast) to cooperate. I can imagine the language barriers and the difficulty faced as I have been involved in filming before. I asked myself why did he choose such a setting then? 明知道不容易，何必自找麻烦？

As I watched the plot unveil in front of me, I understood why. It had to do with the geographical location of the Silk Road. The storyline was a very heartwarming one that involved the aspiration of Huo An and how he wanted to maintain the peace between 36 warring nations. In some ways he reminded me of a self sacrificial person who placed the importance of his ideology before his life. To him, power, authority and riches were not important but unfortunately for him, others valued all the above highly. 

The movie has the typical traits of a Jackie Chan movie. You can expect all the action, the dodging and funny movements that Jackie Chan is well known for. It will definitely be a good watch, expect nothing but the best, be it the visuals, the music or the action. If there is something more about this one, you can expect yourself to feel involved in the show as it reaches out to your emotions. The beauty of harmony and teamwork is one that is understated and never ceases to amaze. Watch it, you have to! 

Movie Review of 冲上云霄, Triumph in the Skies

Disclaimer: Non-sponsored post

I would begin with the trailer of the movie but apparently the cast of the movie is what will attract us to watch it. Introducing some of the cast...

For all you fans of 张智霖,here is a photograph of him

张智霖 and 佘詩曼 making their appearance on the red carpet

Them addressing their fans and the audience at the red carpet

That's the two of them again addressing their audience in the cinema

With these photos for all you fans out there, let's move on to the movie proper. Here is the trailer:

Review:

Basically, this movie came about from its drama which I fortunately haven't followed. Why? Friends who have followed the drama have let on that this movie was disappointing with their knowledge of the dramas. For me, it was a decent romantic story that is typical of all HK movies, predictable plot and in this case some would even venture to say that there wasn't much of a plot. It tells the stories of three guy pilots falling in love and their individual love stories strung up together. I mean it is so duh that Sam would eventually run into TM whom he offended just a while back in the movie.

In some sense the pilot uniform was there to make the actors look cooler, as the nickname of 张智霖's character, Captain Cool hints, not that he needed the uniform to look good. Right? His die heart fans would certainly still catch this movie despite the pretty monotonous story line.

If there was anything worth highlighting about this movie, it might be the filming techniques and the use of pretty romantic venues. For me, my focus was on how they filmed the scenes rather than what is happening next because it's a love story, make it 3 love stories and we know they will end up living happily ever after no matter what happens. The scenery was pretty stunning for various scenes and it helped in creating the romantic atmosphere for the couples.

So should you watch this movie? It's pretty so-so in my opinion and if you have something else on your list of to-watch, go ahead. You can catch this online or as an alternative, of course unless you really want to see your idol in action. 

The movie will be screening in cinemas on the 19 February 2015.

A Sneak Peek into AXN Asia's Got Talent

What is "Asia's Got Talent"? "Asia's Got Talent" is the biggest talent competition in the world featuring some of the region's most incredible performing artists as they compete to take home the coveted winning title. It is it set to premiere on 12th March 2015, Thursday at 8.05pm and will be screened on AXN, Starhub TV channel 511.

"Asia's Got Talent" is the 63rd adaptation of the Guinness-World-Record-breaking hit "Got Talent" format created by Simon Cowell's Syco Entertainment and is co-produced by FremantleMedia. It is the most successful reality TV format in history and currently airs in 186 countries.

Hosts Marc Nelson and Rovilson Fernandez

The Philippines-based TV personalities Hosts Marc Nelson and Rovilson Fernandez will be the hosts of AXN "Asia's Got Talent". We witnessed their wit and humour firsthand, so you can be certain that their on-screen charisma will captivate you viewers out there. If Rovilson introducing their sponsor Pantene doesn't crack you up, I don't know what will. 

Dance Trilogy, The Candyman

Who says Singapore has no talents? Look at this group of kids from Dance Trilogy dancing it out on stage. A dance so sweet that it tastes like candy.

Benjamin Kheng from the Sam Willows

I am sure you are familiar with our homebred talents, The Sam Willows. This is Benjamin taking it away with Glasshouse. Just sounds so good, go watch it on youtube. 

Leng Rachanikorn Keawdee, Winner of 2nd Season of Thailand's Got Talent

Since we are talking about Asia having talent, this is one of the winners of Thailand's Got Talent, performing aerial acrobatics and it's simply a treat for all the photographers out there. He just looks way too good on the camera.

The time we have all been waiting for, the four judges!

Introducing the 4 Judges

David Foster, Grammy-winning Canadian musician

Known for his blunt and honest comments, David Foster is the truthful guy out of the four judges. If he says you can't make it, you know you can't but if he says you are good, you know you have the talent to make it big.

Anggun, Indonesian rock icon 

The most pleasant sounding judge out of the four, even a rejection from Anggun can sound sweet. She can be a stickler for certain things, especially when it comes to representation of cultural dances and the like.

Van Ness Wu, Taiwanese-American pop idol and actor

Everyone says that he is the nicest of the four judges. Perhaps it is because he knows what it feels like, after all he's been there and done that in his journey to become an actor. 

Melanie C, UK pop sensation and former Spice Girl

If there's one thing Melanie is looking out for, it is the theater aspect of the performance due to her background and experience. Even she agrees that making it big is about doing the right thing at the right time at the right place.

Judges with the golden buzzer

What's the golden buzzer? Judges have the opportunity to use the golden buzzer that will allow contestants to proceed to the semi-finals.

The Judges of Asia's Got Talent

From thousands for applicants across Asia, the four judges must select the most jaw-dropping, mind-blowing performances and those who advance to the semi-finals will face the AXN audience at home who will determine the winner of the first season of "Asia's Got Talent". Prizes worth up to US $100,000 are at stake, along with the opportunity for the winner to return and perform at Asia's leading entertainment destination.

For us viewers at home, this is one show we need to catch. 

Enjoy Music at your Fingertips with SoundTouch Wi-Fi music system

Don't all of us look forward to returning to our own homes after a day's work, to enjoy the comfort and convenience that awaits us?  One of these conveniences that I can imagine adding to my home is that of an easy to use music system. Who wants to go through the hassle of choosing music when we can have preset channels? I can picture myself kicking off my shoes, wearing on my slippers and dragging my feet to the living room where I look for devices to switch on some music.

Lifestyle Series III Home Entertainment System

Playing music is really as simple as ABC with the SoundTouch Wi-Fi music system. Brought to you by Atlas Sound & Vision together with Bose, this new Wi-Fi system allows music to be played wirelessly and effortlessly throughout the home. Unlike other Wi-Fi music systems, SoundTouch systems are simple, friendly and intuitive, letting you stream music in the easiest way available today, all at the touch of a button.

SoundTouch 30 Wi-Fi Music System

There are six preset channels available for instant listening. The alternative is that you can control everything from the gadget of your choice, be it a phone or a tablet. I find that really convenient and simple. No, I don't need countless remotes lying around and cracking my head over which controls work which system.

SoundTouch App

SoundTouch Controller

You can access many Internet radio stations from around the world, music services, and playlists from your personal library all at your fingertips. SoundTouch systems connect directly to the Internet, so there is no issue with searching for songs online.

On a side note, the system actually looks quite classy and if you are looking to decorate your home with an elegant looking piece of equipment, one that plays music, give SoundTouch some thought. After all, we know that the brand Bose is one that you can count on for quality. Sound wise, the quality of the sound produced is pretty impressive.

SoundTouch Portable Wi-Fi Music System

If you are looking for portable wireless music systems, choose your pick out of these two.

SoundLink Color Bluetooth Speaker & SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker (left to right)

I actually find the SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker really good-looking in terms of the design. It looks like an alarm clock. One that is pretty slick and silver. Ok, personal preference but I like it and will probably get one if I am in need of a wireless speaker.

My Take on 'The Taking of Tiger Mountain'

Before I write my review of the movie, I would like my readers to know that this post is not sponsored so anything you hear from me is 100% my opinion.

So here are some things you should know about the movie:

Directed by: TSUI Hark 徐克

Starring : Zhang Hanyu 张涵予, Lin Gengxin林更新, Tong Liya佟丽娅, Tony Leung Ka Fai梁家辉, Yu Nan余 男, Han Geng韩 庚 

Brief Synopsis:

Adapted from the famous Chinese novel "Tracks in the Snowy Forest" set during the civil war era of 1946, when ruthless bandits occupied Northeastern China and threatened the lives of civilians...there. The most powerful bandit of all was Mountain Eagle (Tony LEUNG Ka-fai), with an impenetrable fortress up in Tiger Mountain and armed with strong artillery. Unit 203 of the Liberation Army, led by SHAO (LIN Gengxin), was crossing the Northeastern region when they encountered Eagle's men raiding a village. SHAO decided to stay and fight against Eagle. Headquarters sent a skilled investigator YANG (ZHANG Hanyu), who infiltrated Eagle's gang as an undercover. The duo was soon engaged in a battle of wits with the cold-blooded Eagle, deep inside the snowy forest.

Here is the trailer of the movie:

Ok, let me first start out with my thoughts after seeing the trailer. 

There were some things I didn't really like but of course, there had to be some things which prompted me to want to watch the movie. Well, for me I didn't like the background of the story. The civil war, the setting being China, I will elaborate on why later. I still remember my response to Kenny's question before the movie began, when he asked me what I felt about the trailer. My reply was 'Let's just watch it.'  I am the type of person who doesn't like to watch trailers and read up on movies if I want to watch them because I don't want to know everything about the movie before it even begins.

I like Chinese wuxia flicks and the thing about wuxia flicks is that there is a mix of action, wits and emotions to it and this movie seems to offer that, at least the first two.

When the movie commenced, I found myself lost. For a good reason too. The introduction of the movie began with a modern, present day life scenario and it was kind of like a flashback. When the actual event took place, people were shooting at each other and I didn't know who was from what faction. It was only later that I learned that there were two main factions, the Liberation Army and the Eagle gang. What took me a while to get used to was the accent and the choice of words. Taking place in China, you can imagine their use of Chinese and I had to make sense of the politics going on between the factions.

What really impressed me though was the CG, especially since bullets and explosions aren't very common in Chinese movies. Can you imagine bullets or grenades being thrown and exploding in slow motion? I was told earlier that this was the director's specialty which explains why such scenes were really good.

Shao, the leader of the unit

This is the undercover infiltrating a gang kind of plot, so it is really about Yang's wits and how he survives in the gang. 

Yang, he has the bandit kind of feel

I don't really have anything to comment about the plot, it's quite interesting how events fall in place and I don't want to spoil it for you. The only strange thing I felt was the timing of the attack on the fortress. While Yang was the one who told them when to attack the fortress, during their attack, his identity as an undercover was totally blown and he was unprepared to escape.

The 2nd chief of the bandits, the most devious looking one

The ending of the movie was quite playful I would say. The director suggested another ending for the evil villain which was in my opinion too dramatic. In fact, certain fight scenes were already bordering on exaggeration in some sense. After the attack ended, the audience was taken back to the modern, today setting. I actually think that this flashback technique was poorly used. I guess it was supposed to bring about a comical effect but it is too commonly used in Chinese dramas nowadays and rarely used well.

Overall, the movie is worth the watch if you enjoy wars that involve both action and wits. I certainly enjoyed it. 

Catch it in cinemas on 8th Jan 2015.