Rowena Wendy's posts with tag: singapore
After airing the first version for two weeks (up to the second week of April), the Singapore Tourism Board decided to come up with a new version of our TVC featuring more scenes and more places. This time, all the places have labels. They said this will be the final and official version. I just lifted this video from their website http://www.discoveruniquelysingapore.com
Our 45-second TV commercial for Discovery Channel and Singapore Tourism Board. This is the first version airing since end of March, and that is not my voice narrating. There will be a new version out this week which I was told will become the official version.
This commercial will air for one month in Discovery Channel and Discovery Channel Travel & Living... in twelve countries (Southeast Asian territories including Australia and New Zealand)!
Click on the triangle icon to view. Import.flv (1.9 MB)
|  | Pics taken in Singapore via my Sony Ericsson z610i, well except for the last two pics with Kenshin and Keirra posing with some of their souvenirs... (stuff from the Singapore Tourism Board and the Powerpuff Girls plushies from Singapore Airlines).
The picture of the jar of Bengawan Solo's Kaya (3bengawan.jpg) is all I have for myself. I bought a jar but I didn't know you can't handcarry it because it's considered as a gel so the Singapore customs officer THREW IT AWAY in front of me as I was going through inspections for our flight home. *Sigh* I was really looking forward to Kaya toast for breakfast, and the jar I bought was the Bengawan Solo's owner's homemade recipe. I wanted to get hysterical just then.
MOF (My Izakaya) is the first restaurant we ate at, just after checking in the hotel. The kiddie meal is just yummy, Kei and I shared one while Ken had his own. I also snapped some pics of the Bob the Builder ride in Marina Square and the Bengawan Solo stall in Carrefour.
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Sometime last year rumors had been circulating about Disneysea opening in Singapore soon. I took the opportunity to ask the Singapore Tourism Board folks about it and they said that's all it is... a rumor. BUT... Universal Studios IS constructing there and will be open to visitors approximately two years from now. There is also what they call the IR (Integrated Resort) which is under construction right now... the IR will have all sorts of tourist attractions including casinos. Now we not only have Disneyland in HK, we'll also have Universal Studios in Singapore!
| | After two whole days of shooting which involved waking up at 6am and getting picked up at the hotel at 7:30am, we had the whole of Sunday and up to 3pm of Monday to go out on our own.
We took the kids to Sentosa's Underwater World Sunday morning. We wanted to go to Jurong Birdpark but it was raining and Jurong was a mostly outdoor attraction. We were also not able to go to Underwater World's Doplhin Cove to watch the show due to the rains. After Underwater World we walked around Takashimaya Mall and took the kids back to the hotel for some rest since we were going to Night Safari in the evening. We were only able to take one picture at Night Safari since it was quite dark there and flash photography was not allowed (they said it could damage the animals' eyes). Our digicam was running low on batteries to boot. The kids really loved the Night Safari tram ride, but the Creatures of the Night show was rather boring.
During our last day in Singapore, hubby went to meet a supplier and then proceeded to visit car accessories shops. In the meantime the kids and I walked around Marina Square and checked out the sale at Carrefour. We were picked up from the hotel at 3pm and we boarded the 5:10pm flight for Manila. |
| | We started the day by going to Robinsons to shoot some shopping scenes. It was still closed as we arrived there 8am sharp, and it opens 10am. The kids were in awe of all the candies and toys in the kiddie section. After Robinsons we went to Vivo City, a new shopping complex. We shot some food tripping scenes at Food Republic there, and then had our lunch. We were in a rush so we had very little time to go around Vivo City.
We went to Suntec City next and boarded the Hippo Bus. It's a double-decker bus which tourists get on for a nice city tour. They rented the whole bus just for us! It was raining when we started shooting at the Hippo Bus but luckily the weather cleared and the kids had a great time. We weren't able to get any pics as it was quite difficult to move around the open air top deck. Even our cameraman had a hard time standing and balancing the huge camera since the bus was constantly moving. Our commercial video is my only hope for the documentation of our Hippo Bus ride!
After the Hippo Bus ride we headed for Sentosa and shot some scenes at the beach. Our things became separated as we rode different cars, so again we were not able to take any pics! Ken and Peter had some really nice scenes there though so I'm pretty sure they'll show it in the commercial.
After the beach we headed for Jumbo Seafood Restaurant at Riverside Point. We had a great view of the riverside and we had the yummiest dinner with all the popular Singapore dishes like Chili Crabs! Kei was acting up again because we had been shooting since 8am (it was past 8pm then) so most of the scenes featured Ken instead. Clarence of the Singapore Tourism Board wanted to take us on a river cruise after dinner but the kids were so tired that much as we all wanted to we had to pass.
The kids will surely never forget their Auntie Cyndi, Auntie Dorothy, Uncle Clarence, Auntie Amy, Auntie Jasmine, Uncle Daniel (our jolly cameraman), our director (I didn't get his name!), Uncle Ken, Uncle Surash, and the rest of the crew. They felt a bit sad when we told them their aunties and uncles won't be with us in the following days... they're such good people, the kids had so much fun with them in the two days we were all together. |
| | We were transported to Singapore Zoo by 8am the next day. We were told to get in costume and we had our hair and make-up done by Jasmine. We had "Breakfast with the Orangutans", an attraction of the Singapore Zoo. Keirra threw a tantrum which left me very stressed as I could not calm her down. Good thing she eventually settled and the crew was able to take some much-needed shots for the commercial. After that we rode a buggy and a stagecoach around the zoo, and then watched an animal show. When we wrapped up the shoot at the Singapore Zoo, the Singapore Tourism Board people treated the whole group to ice cream at Ben & Jerry's.
We scuttled over to Little Studios after the zoo, we had Hainanese Chicken Rice for lunch there and then proceeded to shoot some family photos for one of the scenes. I also recorded the voiceover narration for the commercial there.
We went to have dimsum at The Cathay Restaurant after Little Studios, but we neglected to take our own photos. The Cathay Restaurant is reputed to be one of Singapore's finest Chinese restaurants. We went to Sentosa right after to watch the evening show "Songs of the Sea". It was really good but flash photography was not allowed. The kids loved the mix of water fountain effects, laser lights, music, and pyrotechnics. We were seated in the center front row and the cameras were shooting the whole time we were watching. I hope we can see some of the show in the commercial...
We got back to the hotel at around 10pm and the kids were knocked out.
You can check out Songs of the Sea on youtube - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMsFPieUWLk |
| | We boarded the 8:20am flight of Singapore Airlines, it was Keirra's first ever airplane ride. The kids were very happy because their seats came with their own monitors and consoles so they could watch videos and play games while in the air. They were also given Cartoon Network kiddie packs, and they were able to amass quite a collection. Keirra got all three Powerpuff Girls plushies, a coloring book, a box of crayons, a picture frame... Ken got some of the same stuff plus a Ben 10 50-pc puzzle set and a Ben 10 wallet. The flight attendants were very nice and the kiddie meal was very good!
We arrived at the Changi Airport after 3 hours where a Mercedes Benz picked us up! We were rather shocked by the limousine service as I was expecting just an ordinary taxi. We got checked in the Mandarin Oriental Marina Bay at around 1:30pm.
That same day at around 5:30pm, we had a briefing with the Discovery Channel Asia folks at our hotel. Cyndi (the producer) and Amy (the wardrobe stylist) brought suitcases full of clothes for us to try, so they could set aside the clothes we would be using for the 2-day shoot. Ken and Kei warmed up to them immediately and were clowning around with them by the end of the day. |
Sometime late last January, I saw a TV ad on the Discovery Channel which was plugging the chance to win a free trip to Singapore. It said log on to http://www.discoveruniquelysingapore.com/ to find out how. It also said that the deadline was on February 17, 2008. I didn't think much of it. One slow Saturday during the first week of February, I was at the office with nothing much to do. I remembered that commercial and logged on the site out of curiosity. There were three categories for the contest: Family Funseeker (family of four consisting of 2 adults and 2 children aged under 12), Jetsetter (2 adults), and ASEAN Explorer (2 adults). Each category winner would get an all-expense paid trip to Singapore for 5 days and 4 nights, 5-star hotel accomodations, a vacation itinerary custom-made by the Singapore Tourism Board, and US$150 allowance daily for each adult. The winners would also spend 2 days shooting a commercial for the Singapore Tourism Board. The contest was open to the whole of Southeast Asia including Australia and New Zealand. I thought wow, no chance in hell but I was so bored that day I took a look at the contest. I went for the Family Funseeker category. Step 1: Upload a photo or video of your family doing what you love to do best.
I thought hmm... for sure all the other interested parties would be uploading videos and stuff but since we don't even have a handycam all I had to upload were photos. I chose our most recent family picture taken at the Sabangan Beach Resort and thought bahala na.
Step 2: Write why you would like to go to Singapore in not more than 50 words.
Okay... I wrote this one in like five minutes, I simply said that we are Chinese living in the Philippines and I just want my kids to experience the Chinese culture first-hand. I also said that I want them to see for themselves the clean and green environment of Singapore so they will learn to appreciate nature and take care of what we have in the Philippines.
The next steps were the obligatory form-filling stuff. Our family members' names, birthdays, contact numbers, etc. After which I clicked "finish". They promised a Singapore history DVD set for those who will join, so that was really all I was after since I felt it was such a big contest and malabo naman na we'll win.
Anyhow, around a week after I submitted our entry, my husband received an overseas call from the Discovery Channel on his cellphone. He was shell-shocked and immediately asked me what it was about. I explained as quickly and briefly as I could and he got "interviewed". He was told that our family was short-listed for the Family Funseeker category and he was asked all sorts of questions about what we like to do, eat, etc. Then he was told we were going to be informed next week if we win, and that we would need to send three more family pictures before Friday. That was last week. Yesterday I received a call from Singapore, from Discovery Channel again. I was interviewed like my hubby was, and informed that if selected, we would be flown in SIngapore on Feb. 28 and flown back to Manila on Mar. 3. I was told they were down to three families for the Family Funseeker category, and we were one of them. Only one family would be chosen and after our conversation they said everything would be submitted to the Singapore Tourism Board for the final selection. If we are chosen I would know by later today. I don't want to get my hopes up, in fact I didn't even want to blog about it for fear of jinxing it but the excitement is too much for me to keep bottled up and hubby is in Hong Kong at the moment for a short trip... I wonder what will happen next. I guess I'll know by today... rather I hope I am informed even if we don't win.
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