Singapore in only 24 hours
June 20, 2008
Hi there
I’ve been stuck in a barren, Internet-free space for most of my stay at Lollypopcorn, because my new Eee PC has a problem connecting through wireless. That’s extremely annoying, as I only got it for 3 reasons. 1 – Portability (check), 2 – Backup (check), 3 – Wireless hot spots (uncheck). Meat Loaf was NOT right unless you repace “ain’t” with “sure is”.
So a high level summary of my Singapore follows. Don’t be too freaked out when you see what’s missing. What I don’t know won’t hurt me, right?
The day started at 8am with my first public transport experiences as I made my way from bus to MRT (train system) to Orchard Rd (shopping & lunch with an ex-girlfriend from my ancient history. Apart from the locals not having a clue, and the fact that English is Singapore’s official language being ridiculously incorrect when you take away the official position and look at reality, public transport in Singapore simply couldn’t be any easier. A bus driver even waved me to my seat and smiled when I forgot to bring coins for my final trip to the airport.
Singaporeans are supposed to be the rudest people in the world (at least according to a number of recent surveys). For some reason I found that everyone was very happy to help me with a smile, even volunteering to help at times. This surprised a few people I talked to. I did find that most of them seem to think that being the first on and off everything is very important.
I can tell you that nothing in Singapore is spectacular, but it is all remarkably clean and well-managed. Being affronted by hawkers in a modern shopping centre felt strange. After spending two hours walking around a flock of giant shopping centres I can tell you that there are some strange shops
and stranger products
street buskers
and umbrellas for sale.
After lunch I wished I had invested SGD8 at this vending machine.
Once Sanja bid me farewell (and thank you for taking care of the food choices, they were great!) I made my way to the Botanical Gardens. I was promptly drenched in a very heavy downpour, complete with scary thunder, but the unusually friendly attendant gave me a poncho to keep. This didn’t help as much as I thought, and my camera gear still managed to take a shower. I also helped a group of schoolgirls amuse themselves as they were running around in the rain, no umbrellas, white shirts on, and wondering what all the fuss was about. When they saw me, they cracked up. Glad I am helping the country be happy. Highlights of the Bot were an endless supply of red-faced turtles (not their real name, I’m protecting the innocent), confused swans that struggled with reality
(kind of like people who get lost in Facebook or Second Life), gargantuan flying things that wouldn’t stay still long enough for a photo opportunity, and secret squirrels taking advantage of my point-and-shoot’s inability to focus fast enough to catch them at it.
I could write so much more, but I want to get out into Bangkok and eat something. Couple of quick observations before I go. There is an unbelievable amount of container ships in Singapore harbour – you have to see them to believe it. There are an unbelievable number of planes flying past you at very close distances when you fly over Asia. I had to rub my eyes to check I wasn’t seeing things when this large jet streaked past us at no more than a km away – seemed a lot closer, but couldn’t have been.
Until later…
QANTAS to Lollypopcorn
June 18, 2008
After a very long period of time (read, my entire life) where I honestly didn’t expect to travel overseas on a significant trip, here I am in Singapore, beginning a 53-day solo adventure. I have mixed feelings still, leaving Donna home, but it’s something I really need to do myself.
The flight itself was a lot better than I expected. I thought I was in business class for a while. The food and drink was excellent, service perfect, leg-room not an issue, no kids anywhere, and my own personal swivelling TV with countless programs on-demand. I watched The Spiderwick Chronicles, The Bucket List (excellent), and a bunch of documentaries about how the internet is changing life for the younger generation.
When I stepped into the Changi air at around 9:30pm local time I immediately realised that I have a lot of adjusting to do, starting with the weather. It is very,VERY humid. It’s still 29 degrees at nearly 2am and won’t change for the time I am here.
My cab driver wouldn’t shut up, wanting to tell me all about Singapore, what to avoid, what to look for, and what his family is up to. He even sat at a green light for 30 seconds whilst finding a family portrait on his mobile phone. Nice guy, and he took me directly to the nondescript apartment block that will be my lodging until Thursday, the unit in question happily called “Lollypopcorn”.
Apologies for the cheap flash – it’s all I have.
New Asus Eee PC
June 14, 2008
OK, three and a bit days to go then I jump on my first plane.
Until today I was bringing my Powerbook along to save photos and update my blog. I’ve just arrived back from the Post Office with a 4Gb Asus Eee PC.
Yes, it’s tiny. And yes there are a few little challenges when updating my blog from it, not the least is getting used to the mini keyboard. Firefox doesn’t like to let me see the entire screen at times, meaning some important buttons are hard to click. But as you can see by this post, I got there in the end. Looks like I might bring this with me to Asia, and free up some valuable space in my backpack.
