Today I went to the marzipan and cake decorating demonstration, and was amazed with the speed with which the chefs can decorate a cake. After this I listened to the historian, Andrew Stuart, speak on Stamford Raffles. He was from the lower middle class in England and had very little formal education but he taught himself the Malay language during his two-month voyage from England to Malaya. When he arrived he knew the language so well that he was made the chief interpreter for the governor. He is the only person to have created a country, but the powers that be in England did not appreciate what he had done in naming this strategic island with the best harbour in the world for England, so they taxed his widow 20,000 pounds for the money he used in establishing this country. In three years Singapore grew from 200 people to 20,000 people, with well established roads.
The dance that we learnt today was the foxtrot. We should be ready for dancing with the stars by the time we finish. This afternoon, I watched the old movie of Mutiny on the Bounty, with Charles Laughton and Clark Gable. What a classic! Tonight Bill and I went to a show to see Elizabeth Lord who is a singer who sang the songs of Patsy Kline, Dusty Springfield and Karen Carpenter. She had a great voice and was a talented performer. (Barbara) I spent time this morning sending my part of Mum’s eulogy to Rosemary, John and Tim. I received from Tim the order of service for Monday morning. Great to see so many people participating in this send off to Mum. Had a very active afternoon with dancing, basketball, gym and swimming. The blues and greys of the Indonesian sunset reminded me of Mum’s poem about Renoir. (Bill)
Some views inside the Dawn Princess.
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