Saturday, February 15, 2014

MIH Annual Calendar - Complication for Less

The Musée International d'Horlogerie or The International Watchmaking Museum, as one can imagine houses all things associated with horology. And to their credit, developed the MIH Watch - proceeds from the sale of the watches are then channelled to the museum to fund their activities. This is my Feature of the Month.

The watch is created jointly by the curator of the museum Ludwig Oechslin, master watchmaker Paul Gerber, industrial designer Christian Gafner and Lucerne watch specialist EMBASSY. Probably the most affordable Annual Calendar watch and possibly the most minimalist in design, the MIH watch is great for one's collection.
MIH Watch photo MIH05_zpsaf329f06.jpg

On top of an annual calendar, the watch also comes with a mono-pusher chronograph. But that is hardly used as the chrono display is at the back of the watch. The watch comes encased in titanium.
MIH Watch photo MIH03_zps8374e490.jpg

Originally, the watch comes with a rubber strap but I had Jason of JnS customize a black calf with red stitching to match the chrono sweeping hand tip.
Black Calf with Red Stitching on MIH photo BlackCalfwithRedStitchonMIH.jpg

A perfect match - watch and strap!
MIH Watch photo MIH07_zps6d19866a.jpg

For those not in the know, the MIH looks like a normal watch. But a closer examination of the display at the 3 O'Clock position reveals a little more. You will observe the presence of the Date, Month, Day and a am/pm indicator.
MIH Watch photo MIH04_zpsfe6634fb.jpg

The two red dots represent the am/pm - one dot indicates morning (am) and two dots indicates afternoon (pm). The base movement for the watch is the ETA-Valjoux 7750 complemented by the annual calendar module developed by Paul Gerber. Other than the month of February, the watch does not need to be adjusted for the right date regardless whether the month has 30 or 31 days.
MIH Watch photo MIH07_zps6d19866a.jpg

A close up shot of the black dial. Hands and markers are luminous.
MIH Watch photo MIH06_zps114c2233.jpg

My only peeve about this watch is the sweeping chrono seconds hand. After some usage, it does not reset to 12. I know it can be easily fixed if you bring it to a watch repairman but I rather keep it the way it is - unique I guess.

For more information about the watch, please visit MIH http://www.mih-watch.ch/index.php?langId=2

Saturday, February 1, 2014

Traveling with my Grand Seiko

My Grand Seiko SBGM003 is my trusted traveling companion especially when I am traveling to a different time zone and in need of Two Time Zone timepiece.

A discrete timepiece to travel with as not many know the value of a Grand Seiko and it really is a pretty looker! So every time I travel to the US, it is my timepiece of choice. Here taken on a flight to San Francisco. First off, pre-dinner snack - posing with the satay.
GS with Satay photo GSSBGM003Satay02.jpg
GS with Satay & Wine photo GSSBGM003Satay01.jpg

Then the starter - a nice salad.
GS with Salad in Flight photo GSSBGM003Salad02.jpg

Followed by the main - a grilled red snapper.
GS with Pan Fried Snapper photo GSSBGM003PanFriedSnapper01.jpg

And to round it off, mango mousse!
GS with Mango Mousse photo GSSBGM003MangoMousse01.jpg

And whenever I am in San Francisco or on the West Coast, my favorite breakfast is always at iHop.
GS at iHop photo GSSBGM003iHop01.jpg

And what is America without Pizza? Here with my pizza at SFO Airport.
GS with Pizza in NYC photo GSSBGM003Pizza01.jpg

And on this trip, I also got me some nice US peaches.
GS on Peaches in NYC photo GSSBGM003Peach01.jpg

And my GS will continue to travel with me for awhile to come. Stay tuned for more.