Friday 30 October 2015

Cirque Du Soleil's TOTEM: A review

A good feeling of familiarity at the Cirque du Soleil performance Totem:

The Big Tent



The beautiful stage


The excited audience.


And of course the acrobatics and the staging.  The giant turtle shell was lifted and the acrobats delivered a precision performance.



One of the crowd favourites were the 5 acrobats on one wheel cycle,


...and the trapeze artists.



While we had the usual comic moments, it tended to drag on a bit.  So it was a weak link for me.  But one could not forget the good musicianship of the show.  Always a pleasure from a Cirque du Soleil production.



It was a good production.  I would prefer the performance to be without the intermission to make it more tight.  But perhaps the organiser need to make some extra revenue from the intermission drinks and the sale of souvenir items.  Recommended.

Saturday 24 October 2015

Seeing Canadian Rockies on VIA Rail Canada


I managed to get some sleep on the train, despite it swaying at times in the night.  Woke up early for breakfast at 6:30 am, and there were already passengers earlier than me.  The breakfast selection was good and I was seated with other passengers.




One reason for waking up early was to grab a seat at the viewing gallery.  While it was an ideal space to viewing the scenery, the curved glass panels did not allow for good photographs.


It was misty on that morning and the view was restricted.  For that day, the scenery got better from 10 am onward.



So, meantime..........  SHOWER!!!


Friday 23 October 2015

On board the VIA Rail Canada for the Rockies



In early October, I took a 2-day Canadian Rockies train journey from Vancouver, British Columbia to Jasper.  Pacific Central Station was the boarding point.  This trip was made possible by VIA Rail Canada.



Checking in was fast and efficient.  There was a left luggage service at the counter if you decided to leave your bags a day earlier, for a fee.   Due to space in the cabin /train, an overnight bag would be recommended.


And one more A&W root beer float at the station for the road.  A very Singaporean obsession.



For certain categories of passengers, you could wait at the lounge, where you could grab a free coffee and chat with fellow travelers.



Time for boarding,,,,