Tuesday, April 7, 2009

A Year in Singapore

Yes, it’s been a whole year since we made the move to Singapore, and it’s gone so quickly!! I only realized yesterday that it’s Easter this week end and February since I last updated our blog! I wouldn’t say we’ve “flat out” exactly, but the days have just merged into weeks, and, to be honest there hasn’t been that much to report. Everyone continues to work through the crisis with new government initiatives proving to be a success and assistance gratefully received. It’s by no means “doom gloom” and, if anything, people seem to be very optimistic and are taking things in their stride.

So, a good time to reflect on our lives and opinions of Singapore. Well, we would have to say that on the whole it’s been a good year for us. Gareth has enjoyed the opportunity to travel and work in many parts of Asia, and I’ve loved “strutting my stuff” on the training stage again (I always was a performer wasn’t I Mum!!)

Many people think of Singapore as Westernised, rather than Asianised, and if you go into the City where the sky is filled with 60 floor office blocks and every MRT station has Shopping Mall above it then, yes, it is. However, you can still find reflections of the “old days” when wandering down some of the side streets. Some of the original “shop houses” are now 2 storey boutique offices or lovely bars and restaurants. You can walk under the long canopies of these attached terraced buildings to shade from the sun and admire the colourful way these buildings with their terracotta tiled roofs have been restored.
A short MRT ride or walk will take you away from the pristine, modern buildings and into Little India, Chinatown, Joo Chat or the “heartland” areas where the “less off” locals and migrants live in high rise flats built by the government and sold at an affordable price. You can buy your fresh, cheap produce and spices at the Malaysian wet markets, and the Hawker Centers are the best place to enjoy a “cheap as chips” meal and just people watch. On a Sunday afternoon a common site in these food halls is the old Chinese/Singaporean men enjoying a few bottles of Tiger or Heineken and chatting away like the old friends they obviously are, or an entire family sitting round a large table enjoying plates of food from different stalls selling everything from chicken and rice to (yes, that old favourite is still on the menu in many places) pig organ soup. No, we STILL haven’t tried it!! So there’s plenty here to remind you that you are in Asia and the mix of cultures and religions is everywhere you care to look.

There is another fallacy that the only entertainment is shopping, and again, yes, you can certainly do that! But you can also windsurf (you may have noticed I don’t mentioned it anymore. We gave it up – too hard!!), rollerblade, cycle, mountain bike or hop on a bum boat to a small island 5 minutes away. And, with most privately owned apartment complexes having swimming pools, tennis courts and gyms you can keep fit too. We’re not fit, but we could be if we wanted!!!

In the past year we’ve tried to take advantage of the geographical location with week end trips to many different parts of Malaysia. Gareth has loved his diving and I fell in love with every single orangutan I saw in Kutching. I want to adopt them all, even big, old Ritchie! Gareth has also dived in Indonesia and we hope to go to Phnom Penh in Cambodia for a week end in June.

The Singaporeans are a funny lot though. Whilst the residence of our block are friendly and always say hello, I think if you asked to borrow a cup of sugar they’d probably lock the door and call the police!! They keep you at arms length and don’t do much to encourage to you to learn about their culture or family life. You never get the feeling that this is “home” or that you are part of the community. You are a pinky, a visitor – not a friend. Having said that, we do have many new (and old) pinky friends to share our lives with, which is great!

It hasn’t always been plain sailing – we’ve had our frustrations. Everything here has to be done by the book, all relevant forms have to be filled in to get anything done, and as Gareth’s boss said “in Singapore you can’t go from A to C without passing B”, and that is very true! Also, using public transport at peak times is becoming a mission. With less people using cars the buses and MRT carriages are chocker, and because locals have continual colds they sniff and snort their way to the City every morning just millimeters from your ear! The youf continues to cause anxiety amongst, well everyone really! They will push and shove their way through crowds with little regard and even the smallest of kids would rather text a message than acknowledge you.
But on the whole, yeah, it’s been a good year and we continue to count our blessings that we’re here. Are we here for the long haul? Probably not. It’s not our home and other opportunities will no doubt come our way.

What’s Hot:
Cheap flights. Tourism has taken a hit and the budget airless are out in force promoting cheap getaways to everywhere from India to Vietnam – hence our proposed week end getaways.

What’s Not:
Arranged dating. The proposed “dating game” whereby parents meet up with photos of their darling Spotty to arrange blind dates with someone else’s darling Spotty failed after only 2 such meetings. Whilst parents were successful in arranging dates, it was discovered that their square eyed children either refused to go and lock themselves in their computer shrouded rooms, or pretended to go, but went to the internet cafĂ© instead! So no more activity of this kind – well, not until they come up with something else. And they will!

And Finally:
It only seems like yesterday we were wishing you all a Happy Christmas, and it’s already time to wish everyone a Happy Easter and enjoy a bit of family time during the break. We hope the bunnies are happily hopping around your gardens and the chicks are laying lots chocolate eggs!

Cheers then
J and G.