December 2008 / January 2009 - Association of Dutch Businessmen

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Singapore Ard: do you have to be an excellent and outstanding football player to join your team? “No, you do not have to be an excellent player. We try and maintain a good balance between a competitive spirit and being a social club where people can drink a beer and have a laugh or two. That being said, our ambition is definitely to populate the “linkerrijtje”, so excellent players may get a slightly preferential treatment over those who seemingly play with their shoe boxes still on”. Attendees of last Hollandse Club golf event at the golf course “Legends” in Johor (Malaysia). Rutger: short question for your. Which one is better, your forehand or backhand? “I am known to most of my foreign team mates as Roger instead of Rutger. Not only is it easier to pronounce but it also relates to my forehand which does show some distant similarities with the one of Roger Federer. He is just a bit more consistent in hitting them I suppose!” Please describe the composition of your hockey team Olaf? Are all team members Dutch? “The Hollandse Club hockey section plays with 2 men’s and 2 women’s teams in the competition of the Singapore Hockey Federation. The Hollandse Club B-team, which is the team I am part of, plays in the second division of this tournament. This team consist of 23 players, all Dutch. Every Wednesday we have a training session, together with the A-team. From the approximately 45 players that join each week, 5 players are non- Dutch”. How do you promote golf in Singapore Rob? Furthermore this might be an inappropriate question, but what exactly happens at the 19 th hole? “Being member of the golfing committee of the Hollandse Club we promote the golf sport among the Dutch community by organizing at least 5 golf events annually. Last month we played on the prestigious Sentosa golf course and early February next year we will play on the Palm Springs Golf & Beach resort at Batam. An important part of the event is to evaluate each performance on the 19 th hole. Regardless whether you have played well or bad, everyone is enjoying some nice food and cold beers. In fact, after 4, to 4,5 hours “working and sweating”, the 19 th hole always takes the longest time”. Geertje and Olaf; does this mild criterion also apply to hockey? And who and why is your favorite player at the moment? “In principle everyone is welcome, Dutch and non-Dutch, Hollandse Club members and nonmembers. The number of players is actually steadily growing: new enthousiastic players arrive almost on a weekly basis. The team-spirit is very good; play (fanatically) to win when on the pitch, and enjoy each others company while having some drinks after the matches and training sessions”. “Geertje: It is hard to keep up with all the new people in the Dutch teams while living abroad, so I’ll go for a golden oldie, Teun de Nooijer. When I started to play hockey he was already one of the best players in the world and he still is. It takes a lot of commitment, and love for the game to stay at the top for so long!” “Olaf: Although maybe not so famous outside Singapore, I would like to nominate Michiel Bouwman for this. He is a teacher at the Dutch school in Singapore who plays very attractive hockey. His hockey skills and general shape are very well in order, but the most important reasons for me to like his play is that he never plays selfish, never complains to the referees and actually makes other people in his team play better”. Two last questions for you Rob. Is golf in Singapore financially a big investment and what is the ultimate golf course in the region? “During weekdays it is quite affordable, but in the weekend it is really expensive and in most cases the golf course is fully booked. A good alternative is to go to one of the 11 golf courses just across the Malaysian border. For half the price (including lunch) you can play golf. Personally I prefer the golf course Legends in Johor. Best golf courses are definitely in Korea. The service and the caddies are beyond ordinary. The top three golf courses in Singapore are Sentosa, Singapore Island country club and Tana Merah, but to play there you can only be invited through a member”. Ard, Rob, Olaf, Geertje, Marianne en Rutger, thank you very much for this pleasant interview and keep up the good sportswork! 14 Vol.18 • No. 10 • December 2008 / January 2009
Singapore Christmas and Christmas trees in Singapore By Anouk Binkhuysen I’m currently sitting at home looking out of the window, watching the December rain soak the city. Not so unusual for December time you might think, until I remember that I’m in Singapore. However the rain makes it feel like home, there’s something wrong with Christmas in Singapore. Hearing Christmas carols wearing shorts and flip-flops is like drinking expensive wine in a plastic cup. Despite the amount of Christmas trees that have gone up in the last couple of weeks and Singapore’s effort to decorate the city into a shiny Christmas atmosphere, I lack the pre-Christmas-feeling that makes me feel like pimping up my home with a big Christmas tree and to shop-till-I-drop for Christmas gifts. Normally at this time in The Netherlands, I gather with friends in dark cosy bars to warm up for the December family gatherings, talking about our planned ski-holidays, going through our shopping list and I will show my friends my best-buys at ‘De Bijenkorf’. In Singapore, I could go to ‘Tangs’ and Harry’s, but it will still not be the same. More surprising actually is on questioning the local Singaporeans about their ‘Christmas feeling’, it turns out they just don’t celebrate Christmas at all. Apart from in the normal way that Singaporeans celebrate… by hitting the shops. Well, apparently I am not the only one that feels awkward shopping with “Jingle Bells” on the background and facing human-snowmen in the streets of Singapore. Maybe it is just a matter of time, because the more Christmas trees that are rising in the streets and malls, the more familiar I become with ‘I am dreaming of a white Christmas’. So although a little biased, I did my best to collect one of the best Christmas impressions in Singapore together with the Christmas highlights 2008. I wish you all a tropical and a Merry Christmas! Big tree at Orchard Road Christmas Highlights 2008 From 15 Nov 08 to 2 Jan 09 • 5km of fairy lights from Orchard Road to Marina Bay • 19-25 Dec 08: caroling, shows, Christmas floats, Christmas charity. • Grand Concert on 25 Dec 08 Big tree at Ngee Ann City Shopping Mall Street decoration at Orchard Road One of the four trees near Suntec City 15 Vol.18 • No. 10 • December 2008 / January 2009
Page 1: December 2008 / January 2009 MITA 3
Page 4 and 5: A monthly publication of the Associ
Page 6: November Review Pareto is different
Page 9 and 10: December Review Madelon van Tol, Ma
Page 11 and 12: Business OCTOBER 2008: DutchCham Lu
Page 13 and 14: Singapore with a Dutch touch. Nowad
Page 15: Singapore Taken after the victory o
Page 19 and 20: Singapore 31 October Official Openi
Page 21 and 22: Business The workspace of… By Sha
Page 23 and 24: SPECIAL Magazine 2008 By Frank Kuij
Page 25 and 26: SPECIAL Pump Room, Brix, the Screen
Page 27 and 28: Lifestyle dried plums. And what was
Page 29 and 30: plantation and we ate a traditional
Page 31 and 32: Lifestyle in SingaporeBy Dennis van
Page 33 and 34: Column By… Yet another weekend Ri
Page 35 and 36: Embassy Info Public holidays 2008/2
Page 37 and 38: Association Info Job Seekers / Inte
Page 39: Indian colonial antiques - Past Per

December 2008 / January 2009 - Association of Dutch Businessmen

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