Holes in the ground in Singapore

Well, I'm here in Singapore for the inaugural Business Events Awards ceremony. I'm at the very nice Ritz Carlton Millenia along with, it would seem from the motorcade in the driveway, a North Korean delegation. No sign of the Dear Leader mind you....too far for his train to come and I gather he doesn't fly. Look after themselves nicely mind you, those comrades from Pyongyang.

There's a large hole in the ground festooned with cranes just across the way which shows that work on the Marina Bay Sands project is well under way. I had no doubt that it would be. But, it's interesting to see the building already taking shape even if that shape is currently largely underground.

I gave a talk to various people from the business events industry this afternoon. There's even more interest here than elsewhere in the region with how the Venetian does in Macau. Obviously, they're 'sister' properties and people (a) would like to see both succeed but (b) wonder how they differentiate themselves from each other. We shall see.