The donnas spend the night

Recently, Labyrinth hosted a table of local vegetable farmers, giving them the full weight of its Michelin-starred experience. The urban farmers, who tend crops at Edible Garden City, weren’t very much accustomed to fine dining. But they were pretty much the VIPs that night and, in fact, every night at Labyrinth – as they are the people who supply the restaurant with its herbs, flowers and vegetables. When a chef puts food on a plate, it’s the final step in a journey that begins at the source. Many chefs start their day at the market or placing orders online – but for Labyrinth’s chef-owner LG Han, his market consists of farms all over Singapore. From seafood kelongs to a quail farm, a goat’s milk dairy and more, the 34-year-old makes it a point to visit the network of local farmers he works with on a regular basis. That was why it was important to him to have Edible Garden City’s farmers over for dinner – in the spirit of exchange and understanding. Labyrinth is the only … [Read more...] about Why this Michelin star chef spends so much time on Singapore farms

WASHINGTON: It was supposed to be a scene of celebration. Instead, the Trump campaign's election night watch party in the White House East Room has become another symbol of President Donald Trump's cavalier attitude toward a virus that is ripping across the nation and infecting more than 100,000 people a day. Polls suggest that attitude was a serious drag on the president's reelection bid as voters chose to deny Trump a second term in favour of his Democratic rival, now President-Elect Joe Biden. And the party - with few masks and no social distancing - is now under additional scrutiny after the president's chief of staff, Mark Meadows, became the latest top White House official to contract the virus, which has now killed more than 237,000 people in the US alone. The White House has repeatedly refused to say who else has tested positive, even as the virus continues to spread. The latest White House cluster, coming just a month after Trump's own diagnosis and hospitalisation, … [Read more...] about Trump’s election night party adds to COVID-19 scrutiny

SINGAPORE: After her third visit to the clinic for chest pains, which led her to be referred to a hospital’s accident and emergency department, Adriana (not her real name) decided that she had had enough. She quit her job. Her first two visits were for headaches from a lack of sleep and stress, and for gastric pains from skipping meals and taking painkillers. “My GP (general practitioner) said to me ‘nowadays, people either get COVID-19 and suffer, or they don’t and suffer while working’. “I even had to take a work call before going to the A&E because we were just really short-handed,” said Adriana, in her mid-20s, who declined to reveal her real name. Adriana, who works in the communications industry, was told after a series of tests that her chest pains were a symptom of anxiety and she had experienced a panic attack. Then, there’s 25-year-old Stella (not her real name) who also made the difficult decision to resign from her job in the food and beverage industry … [Read more...] about The Big Read: Working from home becomes a nightmare when lines are blurred and boundaries trampled

If staying in a hotel room for a staycation is starting to feel a little conventional, you can change things up by spending a night in a tent. And not a run-of-the-mill tent, mind you, but one all decked out for a glamping experience. Plus, you don’t even have to pitch it yourself. Changi Airport announced on its Facebook page on Tuesday (Nov 17) a slew of new experiences and activities that are taking place this year-end, including the chance to have a “glampcation” at Jewel Changi Airport. You can choose between two locations for this unique stay-cay: At the Cloud9 Piazza or Shiseido Forest Valley. Depending on where you choose to spend the night, you’ll get different bed set-ups, check-in and check-out timings, as well as shower access locations. For example, the Glamping in the Clouds experience, where you'll get to wake up to views of the Rain Vortex, comes with one queen-sized bed and one single bed, with the option to add another bed if there are more than two … [Read more...] about Pack your bags: You can now enjoy a glamping holiday at Jewel Changi Airport

Even though you’re not leaving the country this year-end, there’s still plenty of reasons for you and your family to head to Changi Airport to soak in some festive cheer. The airport unveiled a slew of activities and attractions for its annual Changi Festive Village event that kicked off on Thursday (Nov 19) and runs until Jan 3. You can walk alongside dinosaurs and take a photo or two with them, or put on your winter gear and play with snow at a winter holiday house. READ: Pack your bags: You can now enjoy a glamping holiday at Jewel Changi Airport There’s also the unique “glampcation” holiday experience, announced on Tuesday, where guests can spend the night in a glamping tent at Jewel Changi Airport. Here’s a look at some of the attractions you can expect at the festival. CHRISTMAS MAGIC It wouldn’t be Christmas without a Christmas tree and over at Jewel’s Shiseido Forest Valley, there’ll be a 16m-tall tree to ring in the festive joy. Hourly snow falls in … [Read more...] about Enjoy snow, walk with dinosaurs at Changi Airport’s year-end festive event