Bean There Done That ?

By chance, I stumbled onto this awesome website that reviews coffees served up in CAFES worldwide. It comes with an iphone application too! http://www.beanhunter.com/

How convenient! But the page on cafes in Singapore is looking quite dismal with less than a dozen listings on it. I am not so much of a coffee drinker myself so I am hoping to find a site that reviews cafes for their TEAS instead. How about someone out there setting up "leafhunter.com" with the tagline (teas worth waiting for) ? And how about chocoholics who love their cocoa fix? "podhunter.com" with the tagline (chocolate worth melting for) ? since chocolate are made from seeds found in cacao tree pods. Food for thought? :) All this foodtalk has inspired a little poem :-

Coffee for the frenzied too busy chasing after time
Tea for the frazzled and time to burn

Chocolate to comfort the lost, lonely and forgotten...

Interesting facts : Did you know that smelling coffee beans "clears" the nose for the next fragrance when you are shopping for perfume ? I have seen shops in Tokyo place cans of coffee beans in between shelves to aid shoppers in their fragrance purchase. Try it for yourself! And wondering what to do with used coffee grounds after brewing your cuppa? Throw them into your flower pots as fertiliser! They make a great nitrogen supplement to the soil. In fact STARBUCKS (Singapore) donates their used coffee grounds to some schools as fertiliser for their gardens.

Used tea bags are great for deodorising refridgerators as they absorb odours. They also make great fertilizers for your plants too.

For you fashion students out there, both tea and coffee are great for staining linens when you want to achieve an aged Victorian look! Pristine white laces and fabrics made of natural fibres take on an ecru hue that hints of nostalgia.

As for chocolate, one canot deny its role as an age old comfort food or when you need an endorphin boost for that fleeting moment of happiness. Just enjoy it! I am glad that I can afford a bar as and when the craving strikes. God knows how Charlie ( Roald Dahl's - Charlie & The Chocolate Factory) survived the many bitter years of childhood with only one chocolate bar a year for his birthday!

RUBANISATION rocks!

By a stroke of good luck, i caught wind of a rare chance to attend a talk presented by veteran architect - Tan Kheng Soon @ the National Library on monday night as part of Archifest 2010. www.archifest.sg

Though an apparel design student by training, the world of architecture has always been fascinating and I must say the ideas and insights shared in this 2 hour session inspired me in so many different ways. At first, public were refused entry at the door but some persistence and logical reasoning paid off as I sat through 2 golden hours of thought provoking concepts with some of the most talented architects and affiliated professionals in our country. Times flies when you are enjoying yourself. The 2 hour session that was oversubscribed whizzed by like 20 minutes. It seems they will be holding another session sometime soon to address this overwhelming response from both trade visitors and fans from the public. So do check out the archifest link for more updates.

The concept of RUBANISATION (rural urbanisation) is making waves in the world of architecture! To me it signifies a return to simplicity, back to basics and what works best! No complicated algorithms nor angles to figure out. Just harnessing the innate power of shapes and materials to their best effect beats a complicated yet ineffective man-made invention hands down anytime. Applying this concept to preserving dying crafts in the small town of Hue in Vietnam was really inspiring and should be adopted by many more rural communities that are losing the battle to mass production trends in mechanised factories in more developed towns. What a way to make a positive difference in the lives of our community and the world around us!

The use of concentric circles described in this concept is so versatile that I believe it will constantly ripple out gradually into many other disciplines like interior design,etc in due course.

Working in the regional headquarters housing 450 colleagues on different levels in a prime location in town, its quite alarming how cold and alienated we have all become in the name of productivity. Managers housed in rooms on the periphery of the rectangular office buildings and colleagues seated one after another back facing each other for the whole day. No wonder some of my colleagues seated on the same floor don't even know their fellow colleagues on the far end of the office. The current typical office layouts are just not so condusive to human interaction.

Think about office cubicles laid out in concentric circles. housing 4 to a circle sharing the same central resources (eg a printer/fax/stationery/plant/power point/etc). Facing 3 more people fosters easier communication compared to sitting in front or behind your fellow colleagues. At one glance, you can instantly communicate in real time with at least 3 people within your peripheral vision. Compared to having turn front and back to talk to 2people at the same time.

Being involved in the facilities administration at my current company, I am always hearing about lack of space as we expand annually at an alarming rate. What if staff were seated in quadrant cubicles instead of the standard boxed cubicles, will it then open up more space with the centralisation of common shared equipment like printers/photocopiers? Now we have to house 2 machines on one level and almost a dozen or more printers just on one level alone. Wouldn't it be more energy efficient if we housed these equipment dead centre and improving efficiency with less time wasted on walking to the far end of each side just to collect your printout/ make a photocopy?

And what about those mega hall exhibitions? It is both inconvenient and a waste of precious time to have to walk to the other end of the gigantic hall to get to the main stage of events. How about constructing the main stage dead centre and housing all other booths on its periphery, cutting the distance and time for trade visitors or public alike when they have to work through hundreds or even thousands of trade booths in a single day or two.

How about building food stalls dead centre and surrounding them with tables and seats instead? This way we wouldn't have to make our way inside just to get to our favourite noodle/rice stall. Segmenting them up with a cross junction walkway provides quick n easy access for the hungry diner looking for food to fill up their growling tummies. The closest dining concept I have seen so far in Singapore is that found in 313 Somerset's branch of the Marche Movenpick franchise. With its food/drink stations housed mainly in the centre, retrieving food from the self serve stations can be accomplished at faster speed compared to public dining outlets like cofffeshops and hawker centres.

This also brought to mind an episode on Donald Trump's - THE APPRENTICE. Competing teams had to find a best way to house all stationery/files/documents for each employee in a versatile organiser. The winning team came up with a cylindrical design that could be spun 360%, with pockets of different heights and sizes built around the periphery. This way, you can reach your documents and stationery in a flash instead of having to work through trays of drawers/myriad containers and folders all in a big mess. Should you need to move your work station to another place for an extended meeting, you need only grab this one organiser and be on your way to your other mobile workstation. This is a solution for time starved city folks where every second counts.

Compare our long rows of HDB flats all neatly laid out in lines. How many flat/families can each rectangular block contain? How many more families can a HDB flat built in cylinder fashion hold? All the families can share in the benefits of a common solar panels on the roof garden along with flora,fauna and gym facilities housed within the centre of the block. I was never good in physics but will laying out electrical cables in a cylindrical fashion make more economic sense or achieve greater energy savings in the long run?

And what about disaster control? Should a wave / strong winds strike our tiny island with global warming wrecking havoc on weather patterns throughout the globe, will the rectangular rows of HDB flats be more susceptible to topple over with the brutal onslaught of high speed winds hitting them in perpendicular fashion or will cylindrical blocks of flats have better resistance to the unexpected wrath of nature that can conjure up at a moment's notice?

The mention of using bamboo in the building of domes also made me glad! See my other blog entry on GLUBAM. It's about time we look into the treasures we all have in our backyard and discover the benefits of bamboo. It grows really fast with minimal care, absorbs more carbon dioxide and gives out more oxygen than any other plant, even after burning it. In its charcoal state, it takes on properties ranging from air / water filtration, absorbing harmful electromagnetic waves generated by man-made devices, creating a self sustainable environment in a plant terrarium and many more awesome uses!

During the slide presentation, this particular variety of the paulownia plant can grow up to a good size within a short span of 4 years and provides a quick sustainable source of wood for the hungry planet. It might just be the answer to the depletion of precious forest cover decimated at alarming rates, giving rise to soil erosion, sandstorms and harsher weather phennomenon eventually ending up as deserts or barren wastelands.

Pardon my amateur observations and thoughts here, but wasn't the whole point of this talk to inspire and make more individuals think than just accept? I recall my ex-director's comments years back during a brainstorming session. She remarked in jest that many of us were not "braining" enough and wasted too much effort "storming" in our own insecurities and thoughts.

As our planet Earth continues to spiral down the bottomless pit of dire consequences brought about by modern consumerism and greed, when will we finally learn how to live in harmony with nature and better harness the power of nature around us? Rather than wasting unnecessary time and effort wracking our brains out with complicated formulas or solutions for a simple problem?

All I know is that when a drop of water hits the pond, stream or ocean, it will eventually ripple out to ever increasing concentric circles until it becomes at one with the whole ocean. I only hope that we can embrace positive change fast enough before nature's wrath wipes out precious resources on our living planet.

Check out this awesome concept ! I hope we all continue to make "waves" in our various pursuits towards a better quality of life alongside nature and not at its expense. http://www.rubanisation.org/

Tea-mania!!!

How many times have you heard someone say, "let's catch up over coffee", "let me buy you coffee to make up for ...." , "how about a cup of coffee for you sir", etc... and the list goes on. Seldom do we utter these expressions using the word "tea" .

Tea will always remain my favourite beverage due to many reasons. For one, caffeine free versions in herbal or fruit blends outnumber the decaffeinated cousin of the humble coffee bean. Furthermore tea doesn't leave my stomach churning,heart palpitating and my head spinning. Caffeine has long been known to be a stimulant and to think that some of my friends and colleagues can polish off 3-4 cups a day.

I have even started to collect tea tabs for fun, just like you would stamps. Seriously I should get myself a stamp collectors book and fill it up with all the various tea tabs that I have amassed to date.

During my trip to the UK many years back, the cold weather made a hot cup of tea very enticing. The very idea of lounging around in the living room amongst cushy sofas, the fireplace, sweet treats like chocolate cake/scones/cookies and lazy cats make for a very enjoyable way to fritter away the lazy afternoon.

Tokyo and Seoul are filled with cafes of every size and color. Just in Insadong, every other shop is either a traditional tea cafe or an upmarket one serving teas to boggle your mind and tastebuds. Tokyo has no lack of cafes either. I am guilty of enjoying tea in typical British fashion at Jiyugaoka's "St Christopher's Tea Garden" and luxuriating in a pre-dinner snack over matcha @ . Resting my feet over earl grey and the fluffiest of chiffon cakes @ CAFE GRES in front of Shimbashi Station. The cold weather and all that walking around makes cafes the most inviting rest stops for the weary traveller. It's also the perfect excuse to indulge in some of the best cakes/cookies for a midday snack to put the spring back into your step.

Recent years have seen a proliferation of lifestyle TEA brands setting up cafes, staking out shelf territory at supermarkets and duty free stores. The brands listed here are not exhaustive, so do pardon my limited range of names covered here.

Local brand GRYPHON ( http://www.gryphontea.com/ ) offers gourmet teas with lovely boxed packaging and tea leaves packed into silk satchets. Featuring the artwork of local artists in its latest range, it is generating constant interest by keeping fickle minded consumers like me on their toes everyday.

Luxury TWG ( http://www.twgtea.com/ ) pushes the envelope with exotic blends and strong marketing with their signature yellow and deep brown tea canisters and premium cafe decor. Their signature tea canisters now sit proudly inside the windows of the RAFFLES HOTEL cafe, ousting Ronnefeldt from their long reign as the tea of choice served here. Oddly they somewhat remind of a the LOUIS VUITTON label which evokes the same kind of prestige that its trying to present to its elite and high flying clientele. With one of its founders formerly heading the quintessentially french tea label MARIAGE FRERES, TWG has just opened a luxury boutique in Jiyugaoka, one of the hippest Tokyo neighbourhoods right now. Personally MARIAGE FRERES ( http://www.mariagefreres.com/ ) comes across as too overbearing for my tastes.

Karel Capek formerly marketed only in Japan ( http://www.karelcapek.co.jp/ ) also peddles its tea and wares via uber cute illustrations with seasonal updates to keep their appeal fresh and exciting. It has been spotted at recent food fairs in Takashimaya Basement Food Hall and their pastel canisters from last season were quite a hit with the shoppers.

Coming close is french purveyor HEDIARD ( http://www.hediard.com.sg/counters/the-tea-counter.html ) which also carries a good range of tea also but somehow enjoys less presence than its delicious jams, fruit jellies and savoury soups.

LIPTON sadly has been reduced to household/antry/coffeeshop status in the past decade. Even the Japanese versions fail to turn any heads with their new flavours. Whereas FAUCHON ( http://www.fauchon.com/ ) who used to have a flagship store at Isetan Scotts, now has to make do with a tiny counter at Takashimaya Basement Food Hall .

Ronnefeldt ( http://www.ronnefeldttea.ca/personal/aboutus.php ) teas served up at the Ritz Carlton and Marina Mandarin offer simple, frills free teabags differentiated only by distinctly bright hues and all text in black with a hint of gold somewhere. The teas actually taste quite good, but unfortunately they are not available in your supermarkets.

TAZO (served up in STARBUCKS outlets) tries to differentiate itself with New Age packaging. But the muted colors and generic tea boxes stand no chance if you were to place the CLIPPER or KAREL CAPEK range alongisde.

Last but not least, one of my current hot favourite is CLIPPER (not to be confused with 1872 Clipper Tea Co Ltd). Giving other supermarket brands a run for their money with whimsical illustrations and jumping on the FAIRTRADE bandwagon like STARBUCKS with their coffees. Their packaging is done by reputable design firm - BIG FISH http://www.bigfish.co.uk/index.php who is also responsible DORSET's line of wholesome breakfast cereals). If you buy up the whole range of CLIPPER TEAS and line them up sideways, you will see the rainbow of colors which would make the boxes a great statement in your kitchen long after the tea bags are gone. It would look fabulous on my bookshelves as a testament to the different tastes captured in each and every wonderful boz of teabags.

I recall coming across a book at PAGE ONE bookstore in Vivocity that featured upcoming trends in food packaging (the title eludes me for now, but i shall find the book and put it up in my next post). I can see why this trend is striking a chord with the stressed out consumers of today, bludgeoned with impersonal bold logos with no hint of any human touch. Illustrations reminds us of our numerous doodles in our childhood days, it brings out the naivete in you and creates an instant rapport with the child in you. Couple that with copywriting that tugs at your heartstrings and basically half the battle is won already.

Tableware for enjoying a cuppa also employs similar tactics with ever more attractive colors/prints/logos emblazoned on the teacups/teaspoons/tea canisters/tea towels,etc... Look at the popularity of UK labels like CATH KIDSTON, EMMA BRIDGEWATER, WEDGEWOOD, AFTERNOON TEA(japan). Look out for more of these in TATTYMARSH which has just opened an outlet in Singapore to bring a slice of the Union Jack to our tiny island.

While the labels fight it out in the world of tea, I shall retreat into the anonymous comfort of more real fruit teas served up at MARCHE MOVENPICK or TEA BONE ZEN MIND. Meanwhile, I am gonna indulge in some eye candy on the latest mascots that CLIPPER & KAREL CAPEK websites have to offer. You never know what will inspire you or lift your spirits today! Anyone up for a cuppa tea ?

Tea-ficionado in the making