Firefly (FFM/FY)

9M-FYC, ATR 72-500, Singapore - Changi (WSSS/SIN)

9M-FYI, ATR 72-500, Singapore - Changi (WSSS/SIN)

9M-FYJ, ATR 72-500, Singapore - Changi (WSSS/SIN)

9M-FYL, ATR 72-500, Singapore - Changi (WSSS/SIN)

Myeongdong Cathedral (명동대성당)

Myeongdong Cathedral (명동대성당), or otherwise fully known as the Cathedral Church of the Virgin Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Myeongdong, is a cathedral located on top of a small hill within the Myeongdong district. Constructed in the 19th century and of Gothic Revival architecture design, the cathedral is home to the Royal Catholic Archbishop of Seoul, South Korea. It has also historically been a sanctuary for protesters and activists and remains an iconic landmark in the neighbourhood. Despite being situated in the middle of a bustling concrete jungle (not to mention the popular Myeongdong shopping district), there is a calm and peaceful air within the cathedral grounds.

Entrance to the cathedral

Saint Kim Dae Gon Andrew, First Korean Priest and Martyr

The rear of the cathedral

Myeongdong Cathedral as seen from the street

24/04/12

Seodalsan Nature Observation Road (서달산자연관찰로)

Located within the Sangdo-dong area, Seodalsan Nature Observation Road (서달산자연관찰로) is just exactly what it's called - a nature observation road. More like a nature trail on top of Seodal Mountain, the winding trails embedded within the concrete surroundings of high-rise apartments and typical Korean housing, give an interesting experience. While walking on the trails provided, one can catch views of the neighbouring residential and distant metropolis areas of Seoul while amongst the tall pine trees and flowery bushes and shrubs. One can also find exercise corners and even phytochemical pathways littered with ranks and files of trees that give anyone walking through these pathways a healthy dose of fresh air. The trail also links to Dongjak-dong and passes by the Seoul National Cemetery, another park by itself. 

Nearby high-rise apartments

A view of Heukseok-dong (a neighbouring districts) and the rest of Seoul city across the Han River

The 'phytochemical tree trail'

'Wishing Stone' piles, a common sight at many nature and mountain trails in Korea

27/04/12

Gwanghwamun Square (광화문광장)

Gwanghwamun Square (광화문광장) is an open plaza located just before Gwanghwamun and parallel to Sejong-ro. The plaza showcases a statue of Admiral Yi Sun-Shin, a brilliant naval commander who was instrumental in defending Korea against the Japanese invasions during the Imjin War. A model of the Kobukson, or Turtle Ship, designed by the admiral himself and used to defeat the Japanese is also displayed here. Further down the plaza lies a statue of King Sejong the Great, who developed the Korean phonetic alphabet known as Hangeul, which has been used ever since.

Below the plaza is an underpass leading to Gwanghwamun Station (Subway Line 5) as well as a Haechi Seoul Shop, which sells many souvenirs of Haechi, a mythical animal and mascot of Seoul.

Admiral Yi Sun-Shin

Kobukson (Turtle Ship)

Haechi, a mythical animal and mascot of Seoul

King Sejong the Great

Korean Hangeul alphabets

Gwanghwamun Square as seen from the end (towards Gwanghwamun)

23/04/12

The SIA Collection

The SIA Collection

From the Past...

...to the Present.

The Skies of Changi

The 747 Farewell Flight: Foreward

It was foretold and its time was approaching - Singapore Airlines (SIA) would finally be phasing out the B747-400s from its main fleet with its last commercial flight to Melbourne and back on 24 and 25 March respectively. For me, that hit a soft spot because I used to frequently fly on their B747s during my childhood days. The B747 was, and still is my favourite plane. It is a majestic and handsome plane, serving over 40 years with SIA and with a long history and milestones for its time. 'Jumbo' or 'Queen of the Skies' as it was dubbed, were common nicknames for the B747. That was soon going to be a thing of the past (as of now, SIA has no future plans to acquire the B747-8).

SIA B747-400 'Megatop' (9V-SMA), circa 1993

With the Singapore Airshow around, I had heard that SIA would be displaying one of their remaining B747s (9V-SPQ) at the Changi Exhibition Centre, complete with a tour and limited edition boarding passes. I took the chance to acquire some trade passes for a chance to catch sight of the Jumbo in all its glory. I headed down with my colleague on the first trade day of the airshow but alas, the plane was only scheduled to come in on the last trade day and the tours would only commence on the two days it was open to the public. Dang! Nevertheless, I told myself I'd make an effort to come down again and in the meantime, enjoyed whatever was already at the airshow. 

Come Saturday, the first public day, I caught a serious flu and fever and all my plans went down the drain. I was drained from just ending my night shift, and I was in a condition no better than shit. I headed home and knocked myself out for some very needed rest and recuperation. 

Clockwise from top left: 'A Great Way to Fly' car decal, 'Big Top' fan, cute B747 sticker, and a stack of historical B747 postcards

It was a nice touch, giving out all these memorabilia and I soon found myself looking for online posts hoping to catch a glimpse or idea of what the tours were actually like. I noticed the binding strap for the postcards had a link (http://www.siajourneys.com/) which paid tribute to the B747 which I checked out and to my delightful surprise, found something that immediately struck a chord: SIA would be holding two B747 commemorative flights on 06 April as a sort of farewell flight. What went through my head then was almost instantaneous; I soon bought my pair of tickets - SIN-HKG-SIN, Economy. 

Those of you interested, there are still tickets left (at this point of time) on the return leg of the commemorative flight (SQ748, HKG-SIN). Also, the details of the flight and all are in the link I provided above - do check it out, as well as the nice tribute page! As for me, this more than makes up for missing the airshow tours. 06 April will definitely be a day be filled with nostalgia and reminiscing. 

On my way to work one day, I happened to catch sight of this:

SIA B747-400 (9V-SPQ), circa 2012

I took the shot for memory sake, boarded my transport and sighed as we drove off. You will be missed.