07 October 2008

Legends and mobile bars, way to go

by Yeoh Siew Hoon

Out of curiosity one weekend I checked out the Singapore River Festival and caught an original production presented by Singapore River Cruises & Leisure of Legenda Singapura.

It was the debut performance of the production which recounts the history of Singapore, going back in time to the period of the royal court of Sang Nila Utama, his journey to Singapore and his landing at the mouth of the river.

Produced by Splash Entertainment, it was a colourful mixture of Malay, Indian and Chinese influences. The costumes were glorious and exotic, the dances unlike any cultural dance I had seen.

The staging which was in front of a shopping mall could have been better. But the lion dance in the end was the best such performance I had seen Ã¢â¬' this lion had personality, both mischievous and skillful.

I then popped over to a bar located outside The Central for drinks and got talking to the manager. Orgo is a Japanese-styled modular mobile bar created by Japanese mixologist Tomoyuki Kitazoe, who is famous for his cocktails.

It will stay in Singapore till October 19 when it moves to Tokyo.
This is one of two mobile bars in Singapore Ã¢â¬' the other is AQUA located at Merchant Loop opposite Clarke Quay.

I canÃ¢â¬â¢t wait for mobile hotels to pop up. I once mentioned this to a hotelier after I had interviewed entrepreneur, Alexander Hasche (the man behind AQUA).

He had just created the first mobile shops in Singapore, using shipping containers.

But the hotelier said itÃ¢â¬â¢d be difficult in the hospitality concept given you needed bed, bathroom and toilet and all that plumbing and stuff Ã¢â¬~¦

I am not giving up on the idea though Ã¢â¬' I think the world is going mobile and so should hospitality. Assets that move from prime site to prime site, from demand spot to demand spot.

Yes, I know, they tried it with floating hotels but a hotel that floats in the middle of an ocean or by a riverside is nothing compared to one that can sit in prime locations in the heart of the grandest cities in the world.

What that weekend showed me Ã¢â¬' legends are here to stay and so is the idea of mobility.