Googaspace - September 2015

GOOGASPACE trends

events

people

ISSUE #3 -september 2015-

PLUS+ 5 THINGS TO DO : ARCHIFEST 2015 // ON THE GROUND :

// WATG INNOVATION CHALLENGE // INSTAGOO : THOMAS HEATHERWICK’S NTU LEARNING HUB // TM CLUB : WHY WE SPEAK//

BISHAN PARK FIELD TRIP

a WATG Singapore publication

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#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

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EDITORIAL

editorial team

Ahnanchana Srichamara Herbert Montivergen Reena Bapat Umar Abdul Aziz

editorial’s note: Googaspace dedicates this issue to those who wander and found themselves discovering something special. Every exploration has a story - whether ancient or contemporary - and invites wanderers like yourself to experience them.

So, set off.. and let yourself be inspired by our stories.

contributors

Nora Kaichung Pui Sherlin Roshni Sindhuja Mahapatra

special thanks Ali Suryoprabowo Pan Pacific Singapore

Discover one’s journey through the lens, go behind the scenes, learn a thing or two through innovation and workshops, find your inner voice and meet our talents.

We want to hear from you. If you wish to contribute an article or have any enquiries or comments, do contact our editorial team.

Have a good trip. xoxo #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

WAT.UP.G

GOOGASPACE

CABANONS WHEN WHERE WEBSITE

2-6 SEPTEMBER 2015 FIELD BESIDE BAYFRONT MRT (Exit A), Singapore International Festival of Arts 2015

This experimental installation by French conceptual artist invites audiences into a series of small tents to witness aerialists, tightrope walkers and acrobats overcome the vulnerable situations that they are in. The tents, or “cabanons” are designed and erected by spectacular French installation artist Daniel Buren, Presented at the Singapore International Festival of Arts 2015.

WAT .up. g

It can be a fast and furious September in Singapore with the F1 Grand Prix 2015 bringing in big names from F1 drivers, celebrities, and music festivals. So we made sure you to keep you occupied with these events, if you’re not into fast cars.

new shop: retro colony

WHERE WEBSITE

47 Nemesu Ave, S576279 retrocolony.com

If you like the Scandinavian look but can’t do the mass-produced IKEA stuff, and seeking great alternatives to the generic pieces, look no more! Retro Colony has been around for six months, we’re still pretty excited about the simple, retro, Scandivian-inspired furnishings they stock, sourced from Sweden and Japan. It can be a little pricey, but who doesn’t love a little bit of fun and quirky pieces and knick-knacks to go home to?

FIFTY YEARS OF SINGAPORE DESIGN

MID-AUTUMN FESTIVAL 2015

WHEN 13-19 SEPT WHERE NATIONAL DESIGN CENTRE WEBSITE FIFTY YEARS

WHEN

SEPT 27

Whenever it’s Mid-Autumn festival, everyone in Singapore goes on a Mooncake frenzy! If you’re not, time to catch the wave and go loco over these sinful ‘cakes’ - from classic flavors to adventurous and wacky recipes like chocolate truffle, lychee martini and the list goes on. For exquisite grades, get them from Grand Hyatt, Intercontinental and Goodwood Park. If you’re tight on budget, Starbucks on it too - if you’re brand conscious. We don’t judge ;)

Explore the evolution of Singapore’s design from the early 1960s to present day. The exhibition is divided into four categories: visual communications, product & industrial design, fashion & accessories and environmental design, and aims to showcase all that is new and innovative in the local landscape.

#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

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WAT.UP.G

Start your engine, cause this year’s Formula One Singapore Grand Prix edition will not only feature thrills from the racetracks. International acts like Maroon 5, Bon Jovi and Pharrell Williams are also set to perform at the Padang! Fangirls and erm, ‘fanboys’, here are the dates to look out for. It’s a race to the tickets!

Pharrell Williams, 18 Sept

Maroon 5, 19 Sept

Bon Jovi, 20 Sept #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

ARCHIFEST.2015

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ARCHIFILMS: OLD PLACES

FUTURE OF FOOD, SG100

We isted our 5 highlights of this year’s event which we think worth checking out!

Through a collection of the public’s memories of various locations around Singapore, this film takes on a journey through personal experiences that made these spaces... places. Each of us has probably a sense of attachment to some place that has already been, or will soon be razed to the ground and redeveloped. In this “future” that we are here today to imagine, what place do these “old places” have in our city?

Attend a talk on the future of food look like in Singapore, in 50 years time, in land - scarce Singapore. Also join the Farmers Market after the talk, showcasing local and fresh produce, handcrafted products - and your local farmers next door. And have a field time lawn bowling and ping pong all - day.

ELASTIC SPACES: HOW A SPACE MORPHS TO THE NEEDS OF USERS

THE LIGHT PAINTING WORKSHOP

ARCHITOURS

Focusing on the modern workspace which needs to be agile and adapt to the needs of the community that lives and breathes in it.

The Beautiful Strangers will introduce workshop participants to light-painting and use light emitting tools to explore creative ways of making colour patterns while ‘interacting’ with buildings and spaces. Workshop participants will learn light painting techniques such as mailing light trails, highlighting parts of their image, design crazy spiral effects, and enjoy the fun process of lighting painting!

In its 9th iteration, this year’s festival is themed “What Future?” and seeks to encourage Singaporeans to look ahead and imagine the possibilities and opportunities they collectively face, as Singaporeans celebrates the nation’s 50th year of independence.

WHEN

Sat, 3 Oct

Hosted by a panel of internationally renown local artists and architects, experience an interactive art installation and participate in an engaging panel that looks at the visual and audio interplay and how it affects and inspires each other.

WHEN Sun, 27 Sept

WHEN

WHEN

Sat,26Sept;3Oct WHEN

#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

Sat, 26 Sept

Sun, 27 Sept

So many tours, which one to choose?

We looked through all the tours and we marked the Sunday, 27 September morning tour as the dealbreaker! Tour around the eclectic, loud Indian Heritage Centre; followed by Singapore’s new and first loft typology public housing for 3 generations; and finally closer to our hearts, the tour ends with a tour in Ong&Ong’s design semi-detached and bungalow residential development. t to eat it.

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ON.THE.GOO

on.the.goo by reena bapat

BAGAN:

MYANMAR’S SACRED CITY

A self taught amature photographer,

with a passion for street and abstract photography.

Inspired by the legendary photographers like Steve MCurry and Rehahn. Her love affair with photography began in 2010 where she dabbled with abstract and sepia toned photography. Reena’s passion is to one day contribute to national geographic by writing up a photo documentary on the portrait of the world. Follow Reena Bapat on her journey to the ancient city of Bagan. #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

ON.THE.GOO

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There are few places where one experience a feeling of having been transported to a whole different era of simpler times where earthy rusticness is endearing and culture is bountiful.

When you do discover such a place, it remains etched in your mind. Allow me to take you on a visual journey of the ancient city of Bagan – an estimated area of 16 square miles located in the Mandalay region of Myanmar.

Marco polo rightly described Bagan as “ a gilded city alive with tinkling bells and swishing of monk robes”, I could see why as I slowly immersed myself into the sights and sounds of Bagan.

I arrived in the wee hours of the evening where in the shadows of the setting sun, silhouettes of structures shaped like giant ant hills engulfed the landscape. Monks in ocher and maroon robes walked along the dusty muddy path, a lone cow wandered around the dusty path the tinkling of it bell the only sound in the still evening. I noticed under each of shaded trees an array of terratta pots, which I would later discover were water stops for guests and vistors to quench their thirst. I was eager to peal the multiple layers and discover this mysterious ancient city. But night falls too soon, and I shall await for the breaking dawn to be immersed into the sights and sounds of Bagan. #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

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ON.THE.GOO

In the wee hours of the morning I woke up to the hum of soothing Buddhist chanting. Not being an early morning person, this instantly energized me! So the first day of de-mystefying Bagan began, and I set out on my mission to scour the landscape to unveil the city’s mystery. Bagan’s landscape is dotted with temples - hundered of them, beautiful brick sillhouttes which were built between 1057 and 1287. Approximately 2027 of the 4000 temples still survive today and thankfully, they are all protected by the UNESCO. I was overwhelmed at first by the scale of the temples and the vastness of the the landscape. But as you walk around and slowly absorb everything around you the calmness in the air slowly makes you comfortable amongst the ruins.

The spiritual essence and elements in Buddhism are clearly expressed in the temple’s architecture from the form to its intricate details and beautiful brick construction. Each architectural element of the temples were constructed from wood or stone.

The wooden structures have long since perished and many of the stone buildings now lie in ruins.

Brick I observed is still used widely and brick is still made made in tiny kilns around the roadway. The remaining stone are brick works in the temple are testament of the ancient Burmese craft and design which demonstrates the perfection in their brick construction skills. Along with the magnificent temples, stupas of various size and shapes stood in the picturesque landscape. Similar to the temples, each stupa has a name and a unique spiritual story to it. And that is what make Bagan mysterious to me.

Its spiritualism, its history, its ancient craft skills and the numerous stories that lies in the land. #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

ON.THE.GOO

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With so much packed into such a compact area, walking in the city is bewildering. But a view from the top on an air balloon, you get a sense of Bagan and its daily life by looking down on the sea of brick temples rising from the green landscape, smoke bellowing from the fired up kilns to a lone farmer toiling his tiny field. You could only hope that Bagan never loses its simple lifestyle.

And its in the simple life of Bagan’s people which is a beautiful complimentary juxtaposition against the spirited and vivid temples that the city is known for.

Untouched by the ripple effects of globalization and commodification, you are greeted and dare I say, surprised by the unfamiliarity of genuine innocence and simplicity from the locals.

It is said that you get a true impression of the place if you have a local guide, I was lucky to have run into a tiny 10 year old girl by the name of Ma kin san. She became my unofficial guide for the duration of my stay . I wanted to give her a gift as a token of my appreciation, but she insisted that I join her family for a meal. I was humbled by their living conditions, a tiny house on stilts occupied by 2 families. In the cramped conditions, Ma kin san and her mother served up hot burmanese food, which they insisted that I eat first as they fanned me. I was humbled by their unconditional generosity and was slightly uncomfortable to be treated as royalty!

#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

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ON.THE.GOO

Through my little 10 years old guide I got to interact with a few of the locals and being the amature street photographer that I am, I had the best time capturing the beautiful faces of Bagan.

Even as the commericial and tourisim industry rises in Bagan, the optimist in me hopes that Bagan retains it silent vibrant beauty. Years from now if you happen to visit Bagan, and you see a lone photographer sitting up on the steeple of the temple, stop by and say hello – your journey has just begun.

All photos courtesy of Reena Bapat

#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

INSTAGOO

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instaGOO

Instagoo recently launched the WATG Instagram Photowalks. The photowalks are a means of discovering not only our surroundings, may it be build or natural surroundings but also one’s eye for details.

by Reena Bapat & Herbert Montevirgen

““Architecture / Design is not simply a job. It is a lifestyle. It is the way of looking at the world. It is a constant exploration where one looks for and finds inspirations in the world and then applies that inspiration to create something completely new. That thing we create is beautiful and makes a difference in the world!”

The first project chosen for the first edition of the photowalk - was the Thomas Heatherwick “Learning Hub” at Nanyang Technological University campus.

The first thing that catches your eye when you enter the learning hub are the DETAILS! The architecture is no doubt interesting with its intimate spaces yet still able to be open and breezy. We were most impressed by how simple yet striking some details were. Textures, patterns, lighting and signage were the highlight of our visit to the learning hub. Of course, we also had a litle fun along the way as well ;) So, join us! Let your camera phone be the passport to new discoveries and places - be it old or new places and hashtag us at

#watgphotowalk

#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

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ON.THE.GROUND

on.the.ground

by Sherlin Roshni

BEFORE

the field :

AFTER

BISHAN PARK

Last month, our leaders from the sustainability think tank group - The Field, and with special arrangement from our landscape designer Herbert Montivergen, organized a tour around Singapore’s renowned transformed park - Bishan Park as part of continuous learning and talent development within the office. Sherlin Roshni has more.

On one bright and scorching sunny Saturday morning, a group of young and enthusiastic people were out to explore the Tropical Pulse Park in Bishan, Singapore and the reason for its accolades. The park is designed by Atelier Dreiseitl and team, Singapore. The Bishan – Ang Mo Kio Park is a flagship project under Singapore’s Active, Beautiful and Clean (ABC) Waters Programme and a joint venture

by PUB and NParks Singapore. We were piloted by one of the key designers in the core team, Melisa from the Atelier Dreiseitl office, through the park.

Project Detail Lead Designer : Atelier Dreisetl Engineering: CH2M Bioengineering: Geitz and Partner Design: 2008-2010 Construction: 2009-2012 Awards: Landscape Design, WFA 2012

#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

ON.THE.GROUND

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Journey through the park

Initially, the Bishan park had a concrete canal which was later converted to a natural, meandering river seamlessly integrated into the park. The primary intention was to serve a dual agenda of offering cleansing as well as a recreational component to the river. The proposed design was not only to improve the condition of the river but also to alter its course through cut and fill. This decision was voluntary, with the purpose being to make the river more engaging by bringing people in contact with water and nature. Instead of a physical boundary (in the form of a canal in the past), the revitalization of the river allows for recreation and community bonding amidst the water conveyance system.

The Park is about 3km long and the width of the river varies from 18m to 110m, engaging visitors in a dynamic experience. The redesign of the river unifies the park with its neighbouring housing estates, where residents feel a sense of ownership and belonging.

Sculpture : An Enclosure for a Swing which represents the fusion of nature and design

The waterscape creates multiple land use in the park. When the water level is low, visitors can get close to the waters and enjoy recreational activities along the river banks.

During heavy rain, it doubles up as a conveyance channel carrying the flow downstream. The concrete slabs from the previous canal are used to make a signature sculpture in the park. Taking safety into careful consideration, the lighting strategy was designed with the distance from the river in mind. The lights are dimmer at distances closer to the river. As it is difficult for visitors to spot the river in the dark, a warning alarm is sounded automatically in the case of a rise in water level. Lifebuoys can also be found suspended in the landscape for use in the event of a flood or rise in water level. Interesting! #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

Life buoy, it ain’t no stream, it’s a river

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ON.THE GROUND

Cleansing Biotope Cleansing biotopes play a central role in the project, addressing the water quality through a natural water treatment process and significantly reducing the potable water usage as cleansed water is used in the park’s water playground. The cleansing biotope has about 15 cells on 4 terraces which are switched on and off alternatingly. It takes approximately three days to get 648,000 litres of river water and 8,640,000 litres of pond water cleansed daily as it passes through a reed bed system. The filtered water is stored and pumped back for use within the park, while the excess is sent to Kallang Reservoir. Through detailed research of expected water quality, circulation, native and adaptive plant species, a unified set of elements now successfully functions as a whole system.

The Cleansing biotope is a artificially constructed wetland that improves the water quality by naturally filtering pollutants using selected wetland plants

Soil - Bioengineering The park utilises other useful techniques of bio-engineering, storm water management and watershed programs as well. The soil along the edges is used to slow down the current. Bio-engineering techniques, such as reed rolls, geo-textile wrapped with soil-lifts and the brush mattress technique, were employed on the edges of the river and plants were grown so as to stabilize the soil and prevent erosion. Naturally carved bioswales can be found along the length of the river while native plants, such as the Hibiscus Tiliaceus, Scaveola Taccada and Erythrina Fusca, are used in successful re-naturalisation of the river. The river is not manicured, allowing for a rich variety of birds, fish, flora and fauna to thrive. This creates an ecological restoration landscape rich in biodiversity.

Brush mattress is a combination of live stakes, live fascines, and branch cuttings installed to cover and stabilize riverbanks

Interactive Playscape There is a dedicated zone in the park for kids to play. It is designed to allow children to explore the nature of water as an element, with its meandering and rippling effects. The water used in the kid’s zone is cleansed by self-cleaning biotope cells and UV-cleansing biotopes in the far end of the park.

Urban Biodiversity Revitalization of the river in the park has led to habitat regeneration and an increase in biodiversity. The river now teems with life with a 30% increase in biodiversity - 66 species of wildflowers, 59 species of birds and 23 species of dragonflies and a family of wild otters have been spotted at the park.

Providing a haptic, immersive and stimulating experience with water in the play area

#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

SGOOP

SGOOP JUST THE GOOD JUICY BITS

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LEAVE THE DIRTY JOB TO US FOR SNOOPING AROUND TO GET THE LATEST HAPPENINGS IN THE OFFICE. HERE’S THE ‘SGOOP’ WE’VE GOT, SO YOU WON’T MISS A THING!’ SHARING IS CARING~

SPLASH! This is WATG’s style of beating the heat!

Chilling out on the pool deck at the Owl Bar on the 15th of August was the ‘coolest’ Summer Picnic hands down! The whole pool deck was crowded with families and kids. And if you were not in your swimming suites, one way or another you will be pulled into the water by our hunky WATG pool hunk and babes! There were dancing at the bar, lots of eating and drinking, laughters and exchanges and for the budding singers - KARAOKE! Big thanks to the commitee team - Krystal, Lipeng, Mandy, Suhada, and Endin. This was definitely one of the coolest event of the year!

DESIGN JOURNEY: talk.shop More innovative activities coming in next month. Design Journey Forum led by Reena, will be organising a talk given by our vey own Dave Moore. He will be sharing about his experience working on project in the Maldives.

This would definitely be the talk that everyone would want to hear especially with his morethan-two-decade experience dealing with hotel operators and developers!

Also, we have a talk from The Field Think tank coming up too. Multiple architects will be invited to share their experience on how the process working on sustainable project is like.

Keep your ears open for the confirmed dates and timing! #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

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SGOOP

WATG Singapoe Innovation Challenge: Celebrating 70 Years of Design Destinations

WATG 70TH ANNIVERSARY PARTY

NATIONAL DESIGN CENTRE

Still sounds great at 70 years old!

25 NOVEMBER 2015

70 years old may not share the sentiment with us, but here in WATG, we are going to be more and more innovative!

Besides all the great and inspiring activities lined up from the beginning of this year, we will be ending it with the WATG Innovation challenge to celebrate the 70 years of designing destinations and the year of innovation. Launched on 24th August, the challenge will take span nearly a month to complete!

The challenge will kick off with previous WATG projects, reinterprating them and creating something that breaks away from our conventional design methods. It’s all about thinking of new experiences for the guests but not about redesigning the old projects.

The office are broken into 6 teams including a team of the senior leaders. Seven iconic projects were chosen : Bora Bora, Atlantis, Venetian, Pago Pago, Lost City, Waikikian, and Shangri-la Singapore. A few teams already had their touch base meetings, with some having it more serious than it seems!

We can’t wait to see the final result! Judging and voting day will happen in early November prior to our WATG 70th Anniversary Party on 25th November!

CELEBRATE 70 YEARS OF

DESIGNING DESTINATIONS

AND

THE YEAR OF

INNOVATION #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

WORK.SHOP

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work.shop

by Nora Pui

“Beautiful buildings don’t create memorable guest experiences. Wynn’s success and globally respected reputation is driven by the happiness and deep satisfaction of its people. People make people happy. And people make Wynn special.” - Steve Wynn

B.O.H. LECTURE SERIES:

Heart of the House The months of May through July played hosts to a series of BOH Design Lecture Series organized by Kevin La & Evelyn Ang. As part of the Talent Development Team’s initiatives for the Year of Talent, the 4 part series BOH Design lecture was specially tailored for intemediate designers through to young interns to reinforce our knowledge on BOH flows, planning requirements and understanding what goes on behind the scene.

The series was divided into 4 parts: 1.

2.

3.

4.

Heart of the House Lecture by Kevin La Capella Singapore BOH Tour (covered in August Googaspace) MEP 101 Lecture by Marriott’s Mr Hendrick Lo & Ms Weng Hou BOH Hands-on Workshop #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

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WORK.SHOP

HEART OF HOUSE Prior to our Capella Singapore BOH tour, we were given a comprehensive lecture about the Heart of the House by Kevin La. We were immersed into an almost autobiographical account of how a cut of meat went from the loading docks through the stages of preparations and ended up on our plate, nicely broiled to perfection, accompanied with succulent greens, plump cherry tomatoes and a glass of Malbec. Later, we were given a glimpse into the day-in-day-out of a housekeeping employee from clocking-in to going through routines of reinstating checked out guestrooms to impeccability, and ceasing the day’s work. All these are then applied to our Capella BOH Tour.

M.E.P 101 Spinning off from Heart of the House Lecture and the Capella BOH Tour, the Talent Development Team had invited the Marriott Techinical Services Team to deliver a lecture on MEP 101 for hotel designs. Our guest speakers Mr Hendrick Lo and Ms Weng Hou brough us through the principles of planning major MEP elements, sharing sample layouts with numerous cases of good and bad MEP installations.

GETTING HANDS-ON As “The Finale” of the lecture series, a BOH Hands-on Workshop for us to put our learning to the test! Almost like a boardgame of Catan, carefully labelled, coloured chips were distributed to each team to diagrammatically plan BOH sequences & layouts based on several case study projects as backgrounds. It was a fun-filled session which undoubtedly flushed out some of our ugly, competitive sides, surely the winner gets bragging rights, but in the overall scheme, everyone was a winner from the experience gained.

Special thanks to Kevin and Evelyn for organizing these series of training for the designers. #GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

TALK.SHOP

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talk.shop by sindhuja mahapatra

WATG TOASTMASTERS:

THE FREE SPEAKER Communication is an integral part of our of communication. They may not seem so but with

lives and we do it in different ways and for different purposes. When we communicate, we do so to convey an idea, a thought, an opinion or a question. We also use it to show love, kindness, anger, disagreement, joy, resentment, sorrow and humility. Communication is not only through words but our eyes, our hands, our breath and our soul.

Speech is the most common form of communication, which is why being able to speak well often gives us confidence and adds to our ability to impress. I feel that when it comes to communicating, people generally fall into three categories;

The hesitant: Though it may seem simple,

communicating through words is an effort for many.

People struggle due to barriers of language or thought.

Some fear opening up, some fear the criticism while some feel they run out of words.

The enthusiast: These are the people who are at ease with communicating via speaking and a positive body language. They could give a speech on the spot, talk comfortably at a party and shine in conferences. They either love to communicate or have learnt to love it.

time they learn the subtle intricacies of speech and art of captivating the audience.

No matter which category we fall into, it is important that each one of us learns from the other in order to nurture ourselves. Any platform aiming to help us rise and conquer the power of speaking will need the hesitant, the enthusiast and the artist to create a wholesome atmosphere in which we can nurture our skills. So if you are afraid, stand up and speak. It will help chase your fear away. If you are confident, share your words, it will help you shine and help others learn from the skills you have. If you have the eye to learn, practice what you have observed, we need more people like you to lead the way.

The Toastmasters Club is just a means to a greater goal, the goal to make free speakers of the thinkers we are. It is a name for a group of optimistic individuals from amongst us who want to master the skills of communication and also help others succeed by sharing their stories and accomplishments. The best way to be good at something is do it often.

And an even better way is to do it with your peers, encouraging each other along the way.

Welcome to WATG Toastmasters Club, we want to

The artist: I feel there are many of us who do or make a difference, one step at a time.

can fall in this category. These people master the ‘art’

#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

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GOOGLE.ME

goo.gle me Celebrating birthdays this month is our landscape designer Ali Suryoprabowo who’s in the Irvine Office right now. We got in touch with him on his long flight from Singapore and sneaked in our favorite 10 questions!

What are the three things you bought when you first arrived in the States?

If you could meet the 16 year old you, what advice would you give him?

Cheese burger from In n Out, I would tell him to study harder thanks to Krystal’s suggestion! and get a place in the pilot school Hair wax from Walmart. A cup of instead! cafe latte from Nestle Toll House, not great but I can’t blame anyone. If you could switch life with anyone for a day, who would it be?

What’s the coolest thing in the Irvine Office you’d like to bring back to Singapore’s office?

Long flight to the US. Window or Aisle seat?

Aisle! I need to make sure that I dont need to wake anyone up just to allow myself to go to the toilet for the 19 hours flight. But window seat, anytime!

Which famous figure - celebrity, actor, actress, designer, architect etc. would you like to be seated next to and what question will you ask him/her?

Henry Cavill. And I’ll ask him what is he doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be outside my window?

I can’t decide. The lobby? It looks like a resort lobby. And the pantry since it has a fantastic view with coffee from Starbucks. Oh and, the plotter room together with Tung, he is the guy in charge of this room! (So we don’t need to do printing ourselves.)

What are the three things you’ve craved back home since you’ve been in the states?

Not picky about food. But I’ll love Siew Mai right now, Yoshinoya’s beef bowl and Cinammon roll from Tiong Bahru Bakery.

It’s your birthday month, and you’ll be celebrating it in the States! What’s the biggest surprise you’ve ever had?

Tim Cook. I think he is cool. CEO of the coolest company on earth and he get all of the fun of creating one of the coolest things on earth.

If your life was a song, what would it be?

Mirrors by Justing Timberlake.

Last question, which ‘California’ song would you play while driving in California (and why)? Katy Perry’s California Gurls, Eagle’s Hotel California, Rihanna’s California Dreaming or Red Hot Chilli Pepper’s Californiacation.

I guess California Gurls would be tonnes of fun listening to when we drive here. It would perfectly complement california’s weather. Just make sure you have your shade on.

It’s super-duper bright here!

I think for a guy getting a flower bouquet in the office on your birthday is quite unusual. I hope I can get a better surprise next month HAHA!

#GOOGASPACE | SEPTEMBER 2015

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#GOOGASPACE | AUGUST 2015