EmTech Asia - Conversations With NASA

The fourth edition of EmTech Asia opened today with a series of exciting sessions on enterprise technology, cybersecurity, new materials, virtual reality and augmented life. 

For the first time in Singapore, EmTech Asia also hosted its very first Conversations panel at the ArtScience Museum with Dr Dava Newman, Deputy Administrator, NASA and Dr David Oh, Project Systems Engineer & Former Lead Flight Director, Curiosity Mars Rover, NASA Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL). They shared insights on NASA’s mission to Mars and how the scientific explorations of the JPL missions have changed our understanding of the solar system. Dr Newman and Dr Oh also discussed the impact of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math (STEAMd) education and NASA’s newest Discovery Mission: Psyche, Journey to a Metal World will reach new frontiers.

The talk sparked a lot of interesting questions from many students who attended the talk with their schools. Among some of the curious questions asked were, "Is it possible to send a spacecraft to another galaxy?" and "When can we travel to Venus?".

EmTech Asia is held in Marina Bay Sands, Singapore on 14-15 February 2017. For more details, visit the website at EmTechAsia.com. 

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Kiss The Tiramisu - Soft Serve At Premium Prices

In a nondescript corner of Orchard Central by the prominent taxi stand, sits a small dessert shop that only the adventurous would find and try.

Here's the Original...

Matcha...

Banana...

Of the 3, Merlion Wayfarer and her group finds the Original most tasty with its chocolate powder atop the ice cream. The Matcha latched the bitter fragrance of matcha powder, while the Banana was way too sweet and artificially-scented for our liking.

Unlike its Korean originator, the Singapore outlet does not serve its signature Tiramisu cake and instead relies on the ice cream to pull in sales. Each sundae comes in a dainty tall plastic cup and is priced at $6.90. The flavours to choose from include Original, Banana, Strawberry, Chocolate, and Matcha. Just one short of its Korean counterpart, which includes the Berry flavour.

From its shop name, Kiss The Tiramisu promises to serve "tiramisu". But instead of real tiramisu cake, it was instead chocolate-laced tiramisu softserve ice-cream. It was a real disappointment to be taking syrup, chocolate powder and softserve ice-cream, not even real ice-cream. The female staff seemed to be really bored, and served us with a grumpy look. It was difficult to think well of the sundae when one sees the mess made on the white counter after preparing each sundae.

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Kanshoku Ramen - Fragrant Truffle Ramen With No Cloy

It's known - Merlion Wayfarer is no fan of ramen, but she's game to try anything different. So when her friend wanted to try out a ramen stall in town, she acquiesced. 

Kanshoku Ramen is located in Orchard Central, steps away from Somerset MRT Station on the North-South (Red) line. 

At first sight, the Truffle Ramen (S$17.90) was no different from any other ramen. The toppings included black fungus, an over-generous heaping of cabbage, mushroom and a sprinkle of sesame seeds. For $2 more, you can get a Ramen Egg (egg with some ramen marinade).

However, a closer look revealed the little black heap of black truffle. Instead of synthetic truffle oil at many other outlets, Kanshoku uses authentic black truffle. And that makes all the difference.

Even though the price is higher than a typical ramen, the amount of noodles is more than a typical serving. The soup base is rich with the well-boiled flavour of pork broth, yet without the cloying aftertaste of excessive MSG. The richness is just about right, leaving no strong porcine taste. The truffle adds the needed touch of fragrance yet does not overwhelm the tactile authenticity of ramen. Definitely worth a visit for ramen and truffle fans.

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d'Good Cafe - Quiet Ambience With Good Coffee

d'Good Cafe

Ngee Ann City

Orchard

It was a chillax afternoon after a bout of shopping. There was not much choice around the area as  the nearby cafes were either the run-of-the-mill mass chains or gourmet cafe-bakery outlets full of hotdesking yuppies. It was time to try out some lesser known cafe.

Stepping into d'Good felt like a visit to Terminal 21 in Bangkok. The interior of the cafe had huge London Tube stations signs with a Singapore flavour.The cafe staff were youngish, most looked like students on vacation, and were really hip with trendy tattoos, purple hair and studs.

Flat Whites and Cafe Lattes were priced similarly at an affordable S$5. Unlike the usual Cafe Latte, the Cafe Latte here was served in a coffee cup instead of a glass. The latte art was one of the most beautiful swans Merlion Wayfarer had ever seen. With an artistic "2" for the head and neck, the swan was adorned by delicate swirls for its wings and bold elaborate swishes for its spread of lavish tail feathers.

The coffee was thick and aromatic with low acidity and a mild nutty chocolate aftertaste. The milk used was creamy with the tinge of sweetness heightened by the light foam atop. Added together, it created a smooth finish that's easy on the palate.

A minor brickbat about the misleading pricing - Even though the big print of the cashier screen showed the price of the coffee at S$5, the prices were totalled up with GST and service charge only in the printed receipt.

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Munch with Contiki & CulinaryOn

Contiki, the world’s leading travel brand for 18-35 year olds, has been cooking up a storm with international culinary edutainment centre CulinaryOn. Home to the largest cooking studio in Asia and located in the heart of Singapore’s Central Business District, CulinaryOn is joining Contiki to share Contiki’s unique gastronomy trip—Munch—with Singapore’s millennial travellers.

“By combining our passion for travel and CulinaryOn’s passion for food, we want young Singaporeans to place food at the forefront of any travel experience.” 

--- Sam Morrah, Director of Sales and Marketing Asia ---

Food is an intergral part of global culture. Dedicated to the foodies who need nothing but a fork, a knife and a passport when travelling, Munch provides the ultimate culinary itinerary for millenial food travellers to eat their way across Europe. Each trip is led by a unique duo—a Contiki Trip Manager and a foodie social media influencer—who take travellers on their amazing gastronomic journeys.

Using nitrogen to quick-freeze the berries...

Munch provides travellers the fun of a Contiki trip and the chance to explore like a food expert, focussed on sampling delectable local delicacies and wine across nine days with stops in Barcelona, Arles, Aix-en-Provence, Nice, Genoa, Florence, San Gimignano, Bologna, Lake Como and Milan. Days will be filled with exciting cooking classes, hands-on pasta-making sessions, delectable Tuscan dinners, experential food market outings and elegant wine-making introductions with  nights will be spent relaxing in comfortable hotels.

Moving on to the next dish...

Chef explains what to do for each step of the process...

Through Munch, travellers get the opportunity to gain skills in the realm of food and wine appreciation. Not only do they partake in an enriching learning experience, but they also enjoy a comfortable travel experience: hotel accommodation, luxury coaches and a carefully-curated itinerary of included and optional experiences.

Alongside plenty of opportunities for solo exploration, Munch travellers can expect to enjoy:

• 2 days in Barcelona: Kick off the journey in style with a traditional Tapas feast, then spend some time exploring beautiful Barcelona and take a Spanish cooking class
• 1 day in Aix-en-Provence: Arrive into Aix later afternoon and spend some time exploring this stylish town before being treated to a traditional Provençal bouillabaisse dinner
• 2 days in Florence: Enjoy plenty of time to explore Florence, head out for a traditional Tuscan dinner or get straight on the Gelato. Learn to make pasta in the romantic countryside of a Tuscan villa
• 1 day in Bologna: Get a taste for Bologna while wandering the city’s food markets, then enjoy a traditional dinner of Tortellini Al Ragu 
• 1 day in Milan: Spend an afternoon sipping aperol and watching the action on the bustling plazas before a tasty regional risotto dinner
• Dedicated Foodie Munch Stops: Arles, Nice, Genoa, San Gimignano and Lake Como!

“We’ve replaced postcards with Instagram, and cameras with iPhones, but despite this digitialisation - food is one thing that remains stubbornly analogue Munch capitalises on the incredible food experiences Europe has to offer & provides something truly unique for today’s foodie traveller.”

--- Kelly Jackson, General Manager for Contiki ---

As a part of Contiki’s Limited Edition Summer Series, Munch will run with smaller groups of 25-30 passengers. Two departures of Munch will run in summer 2017, with further departures expected in 2018. For more information on Contiki’s trips throughout Europe, USA, Canada, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and Latin America check out www.contiki.com

Life’s an adventure – make it count with absolutely #NOREGRETS.

About Contiki Holidays

Contiki is the world leader in travel experiences for 18-35’s. We’re about discovery, once-in-a-lifetime moments, human connections, and making every second of being young count. We run over 300 trips in 50 plus countries, each and every one designed to get to the beating heart of a destination, understanding the local way of life and unearthing #NOREGRETS experiences. A member of the family-owned The Travel Corporation (TTC), we are renowned and trusted for our outstanding quality, service, value, reliability and financial stability. Want to know more? Visit www.contiki.com

About CulinaryOn

An international culinary edutainment concept, CulinaryOn is an exciting and modern space designed for corporate events, parties, private events & dining and world-class cooking experiences. Launched in Oct 2015 in the heart of Singapore’s CBD, CulinaryOn is the largest culinary edutainment studio in Singapore and Asia, and is able to cater to a variety of fun cooking events from anywhere between 2-200 participants. Visit culinaryon.sg for more information

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Singapore Motorshow 2017 - Exciting Auto Showcase

Organised by the Motor Traders Association of Singapore (MTA), this year’s Singapore Motorshow saw an exciting showcase of over 20 new car launches and the return of all-time favourite Russ Swift along with his breathtaking stunt-driving performance sponsored by Subaru. The event also featured special virtual reality (VR) experiences for attendees, for the first time.

Waiting with bated breath for him to show up...

The assortment of exciting stunts all executed seamlessly and with a touch of humour...

 A rousing cheer by the incredible driver!

“We’re encouraged to see a good crowd considering that many have said that this will be a challenging year for Singapore’s economy. It’s great to see the brands working together to present an iconic automotive event with new activities and launches that the people of Singapore can look forward to each year.”

--- Glenn Tan, President of the Motor Traders Association of Singapore ---

Visitors to the Singapore Motorshow were treated to hundreds of vehicles on display, as well as the chance to meet Mediacorp artistes and celebrity DJs during multiple live radio shows during the event. Those who made their appearance at the event include The Bro Code from 987FM; Jean Danker and Tim Oh from Class 95FM; Kenneth Kong and Wendy Xiao Ying from Love 97.2FM and Cai Wei Bin and Jeff Goh from Y.E.S. 93.3FM.

Mike Kasem and a very trendy purple-haired Vernetta Lopez tries out a trivia quiz on the visitors...

Major automobile dealers were also there to showcase their latest models...

And of course there were several that employed attractive temp staff and models to up their sales...

Not to mention the provision of a much-needed complimentary caffeine dose...

“Mediacorp is proud to be the Official Media Partner of the Singapore Motorshow for the third year in a row. By working closely together with MTA, we’ve been able to deliver a successful event that caters to the audience’s preferences.”

--- Jessie Sng, Mediacorp’s Head of Women, Men and Parenting ---

Red was a popular display colour - in several different shades...

White too...

Then there is always the unique few who stood out...

Perhaps the most outstanding of all is the pure metallic silver finishing of this Harrier...

Official sponsors for the Singapore Motorshow 2017 are AIG (Official Insurer), HL Bank (Official Bank), MediaCorp (Official Media Partner) and Shell Singapore (Official Automotive Lubricants & Fuels Supplier). The event is also supported by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, Inc (JAMA). For more information on the Singapore Motorshow 2017, visit www.motorshow.com.sg.

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