Newdiver's Blog

New Property in Singapore

newdiver — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 16:13:20 +0000

After diving for a year, it is time for this activity to take a back seat as I start to plan what I can do with my extra money. Besides spending on diving holidays, it will be wise to use the extra money for investments. I am staying in Singapore and in this country, property seems to be the best bet for long term investment. As land is scarce and the population is growing with more foreigners, there will always be competition for housing.

It is especially prevalent in the past 5 years that more developers are building condominiums for sale either to Singaporeans or to foreigners from China and Indonesia.

To invest in Singapore property, much research is required because you have to consider every factors from the resale to rental value. Properties in certain areas are known for higher resale whereas others make good rental yields. Therefore, it is wise for foreigners to consult local property agents to state their requirements and make the right purchase.

In fact, recently, there have been quite a lot of condos in Punggol Singapore that are being put up for sale. Punggol is located in the northeast of Singapore and it a piece of land that will certain increase in value. After the launch of the river park where families can play water sports and also row boats, more and more buyers, investors or home buyers, are flocking to the area to view the latest properties on sale. The prices here are still affordable as it is further away from the town center. Per square feet costs around SGD$700 to $800 and it is largely affordable for most people.

However, if budget is your concern, you can bypass Punggol to go to the neighboring estate Hougang where there are also some properties for sale. The latest has to be Parc Vera Hougang Condo which has just started selling this month. This condo is located along Hougang Avenue 7 and it faces the Serangoon river which is a park connector to Sengkang and Punggol.

Be it in Punggol or Hougang, it is definitely time to invest in a Singapore property to keep your money intact in the long run. With just a cash of over SGD$100,000, it should get you a unit in this part of Singapore easily.

No Diving

newdiver — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 08:01:05 +0000

Despite all my hype about diving, I did not do it in Phuket. Guess I was too tired from all the drinking and long nights. I was too tired. Maybe I will go diving in my next trip there. I do however, have a close encounter with a new type of fish…I ate bbq catfish and it tastes very good. Even the fried chicken tastes excellent!

2 more days

newdiver — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 01:47:23 +0000

2 more days before my phuket. I am feeling very excited about the new things to be done over there…I mean diving. I have found my accommodation too, hopefully it is not too far from the beach and the happening street, Soi Bangla.

On day 1 we will be renting a jeep and drive round the island to visit temple and apparently, an abalone farm. On day 2 will be the Songkran, happy new year! Prepare for a wet and wild day of splashing water and blessings to others. I will probably plan for my dive on day 3 or 4. I want this to be a relaxing trip so I will try not to rush anything. Holidays are for you to slow down, reorganize and recharge.

Phuket

newdiver — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 06:37:33 +0000

I will be visiting phuket in the middle of April. I am looking forward to the diving for the first time after my Open water course. This is getting so exciting. I hope I can spot the leopard sharks around the Phuket waters. I want to go diving around phi phi island too.

After snorkeling in Phuket for the last few trips, I finally get to dive under and up close with the rich marine life there. Pray that I will have a safe and fun trip.

Phuket, here I come! Sa Wa Dee Kup!

Second and Third Dive in afternoon

newdiver — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:19:55 +0000

After the morning dive, I am suddenly awake and filled with energy and enthusiasm as I look forward to the next dive. We took a break for lunch, the food actually taste good, the resort even prepared fried tapioca which we ate as snacks. After lunch, the instructor briefed us for the next dive before we set off to other part of the island. We reached our dive spot and geared up. I am finally out in the open! There were few fishes to spot, we spent the time tracking our instructor. I dived close to the sea bed and felt the sand…so special.

We came up after 15 mins and went to another dive spot. This time, we down to almost 18m and stayed longer. I started to feel nauseous, probably because of the nitrogen intake. When we surfaced, I puked a few times and shared my lunch with the fishes. As we were paddling back, I saw a big jellyfish we avoided as its stings are poisonous. That’s it for the day! I made 3 dives in my first day and that is a big achievement. Another milestone in my life! Now for the next day and I hope to see more life underwater.

First dive in the sea

newdiver — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:32:10 +0000

After only 2 hours of sleep, we have to get up and running. Breakfast was served in a small open hut between two resorts. The food is actually quite tasty considering the dilapidated state of the infrastructure.
After breakfast, we were introduced to our dive instruction, he is actually a part time certified dive instructor. He will be the one who will sign off our course cert. He is a actually a very experienced diver with more than 20 years of experience. In this first meeting, he recapped the basics with us, going through all safety details.
After the short lecture, we are off to our first training dive in the seas! We dived near the beach.

I was excited and full of anticipation of my first trip down to the sea bed. Every fish, no matter how boring, looks so beautiful to me. We saw very few fishes though and mostly sand and no corals. We spent 30 mins underwater to review all the safety procedures underwater.

Unpacking items from my bag

newdiver — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 08:10:10 +0000

It was 5 am the time I reached Dayang island. It was a long and tiring trip. Amidst the commotion of so many people checking into their room. I managed to get into my allocated room fast enough and quickly unpacked my stuffs.
Besides the essential sun block lotion, I also brought the evening primrose oil acne to cure some acne problems I have recently.
Phew, as I finally unpacked my items, I can take a much needed rest on a proper bed. I laid on the bed started snoring into my deep sleep.

Reached Dayang!

newdiver — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 02:24:55 +0000

The trip lasted very long and I barely slept as I usually do. We reached Dayang island around 5am and it was pitch dark. I just want to get to my bed.
The “resort” is rustic and 4 of us stayed in a room. We checked in and I realised they only provided a pillow and no blanket! It was so cold after an hour that I have to use my towel for showering as a blanket. I did not sleep well at all and I only have 3 hours till the first dive. All the way new diver!

The long traveling

newdiver — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:22:21 +0000

It is a long long journey from Singapore to Dayang. The bus ride from Sg to Mersing jetty took 6 hours. We reached the jetty around 2am. I did not catch a wink during the bus ride as I usually cannot and also there was a bunch of young kids at the back chatting about army life…for god’s sake. When we reached the jetty, we have to carry all the equipments from the bus to the jetty.

I was in the first 4 to take a transfer to the ferry out in the sea. The ferry is very dark when I board with only the captain onboard. I took a piss out to the sea, feels so good. I reserved a bed for my 3 friends. The main group took 30 mins to reach the ferry. This is another long ferry ride, almost 4 hours and it was very cold. I got myself cosy and tried to sleep.

Starting the TRIP!!!

newdiver — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 15:22:50 +0000

Alas, after 3 weeks from the time of signing up for the course, we are finally embarking on the dive trip for our open water course! Feeling excited as well as adventurous cause you feel that you are going to another world and exploring. I finished my work earlier on the friday and had to meet at dive school by 7pm. Fearing the traffic, I got my dad to fetch me there. I had packed my bag the night before and I left after a bath.
As this is a short trip, bag is quite light as you will be half naked half the time A simple singlet and board shorts will suffice. And of course the most important, sun block, better get those with high spf, such as 30.

I reached the meeting point on time and my 2 female mates were on the bus already. I placed my bag in the luggage compartment of the bus and up the bus I go. This will be a long travel journey to Dayang island in Malaysia.