Singapore

Howdy all!

Two weeks ago my peaceful stay in Singapore was interrupted by the arrival of Michelle! She stayed here for one week - from the 24th Jan to the 28th. For most of the week Michie managed to be tired, sleep ridiculously small amounts, and read! We still managed to do a fair amount however, visiting the Night Safari, Orchard Rd, Chinatown, the Asian Civilisations Museum and the Botanic Gardens. Oh, and of course Raffles!

The problem lay with jetlag. Michelle woke up around 3am most mornings, after only a few hours sleep, whereas I woke up at 9 or 10. This meant that by the time Uni was over for me for the day, Michelle was dead tired, and very little could be done.

Despite all that, I forced Michie out to Chinatown for satays at Smith St on her first night. I think that a visit to Singapore so close to Chinese New Year without seeing Chinatown is criminal, so it just had to be done. That and I hadn't had satays in a few weeks and was beginning to feel cravings

Mmm.....satays.....mmmm....peanut sauce. Ok, stop!

We ended Monday night at Orchard Rd, walking along almost all of it (from Dhoby Ghaut to beyond Somerset MRTs) just as all the shops were closing. It was strange, seeing so many people still out and about at 10pm on a Monday night. Just one of the many subtle differences between Sydney and Singapore. Also, had a really nice mixed fruit juice...almost as nice as at the awful restaurant in Langkawi.

Tuesday daytime I had class (that's right, I'm at uni here - a fact that seems so easy to forget!), and so I left Michie to her own devices. This turned out to be a great idea, and Michie spent most of the morning at the Botanic Gardens (kudos to Michelle for making her own way there on public transport!!), which I have yet to visit. I've heard its amazing though, and I'm particularly looking forward to the new Orchid Garden, with all the 'VIP' orchids.

Tuesday night brought the Night Safari with John and a friend of his from the States. Having done the NS before, I found it quite predictable, but still awesome. It's a completely seperate part of the Singapore Zoo, and houses all the nocturnal animals. There is a road-train (like Darling Harbour) that takes you around the complex, complete with amazingly cheesy commentary ("I wonder what creatures will be staring back at us"). Unfortunately we missed the recycling show. Damn, I really wanted to see that. Not. Being a night safari, none of my photos came out (again), so I can't really show you anything special from it, suffice to say that it is pretty much a must-do in Singapore now as far as the tourist trail goes.

Wednesday Michelle came to visit me (again using public transport! yay!) at Uni, and got to see a bit of NUS and PGP where I live. I will leave it to her to describe it, as you've heard enough from me already.

Thursday saw us visit the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) at Empress Place - known as ACM2. Of all the museums I have been to (aside from those in the UK, its unfair to compare with those - they have far more money and time to build up impressive collections), this takes the cake. The building, once government offices, was gutted and rebuilt during the 1990s to make room for a new musuem. It was decided a new ACM would be created, to supplement the one already existing in Armenian Place. Whilst that ACM deals with Peranakan culture and history (native Singaporeans/Malays), ACM2 has a much broader focus, encompassing all SE and South Asian cultures and races - incl. the many religions, races, histories, and arts the region includes. As I said to Michelle, it is pretty much my Migration and Diaspora in SE Asia class in a museum. I love it there - so peaceful, and there is so much information. It's quite easy to lose track of time, as we did!

We finished the week on Friday afternoon with a spot of tiffin at Raffles Hotel with Sharmila, one of Michelle's online friends from Singapore, currently studying at UNSW. This is the life! We arrived slightly late, so we had our entrée (so to speak) at the Long Bar - Singapore Slings and peanuts under those fans! Raffles is very old-school, and embellishes it. It knows it, and flaunts it no end. Even the shops in the Raffles Arcade are exclusive - Tiffany, Hermes, Louis Vitton.

Raffles Hotel in Singapore is an institution. It has been around since the Colonial period, and remains one of the few 'old' hotels in the world. In a city dominated by skyscrapers and fast-paced living, Raffles stands alone as a low-rise hotel, with afternoon tea, and greenery. It is like stepping into a totally different city. It is another of the 'must-do's in Singapore - have a Singapore Sling at Raffles.

After the Sling, which by all accounts was very nice, we headed downstairs to the Tiffin Room for some High Tea. This is no ordinary afternoon tea - full hot, cold, Asian and Western crudetes and desert are available. It's very nice, and very refreshing after 4 weeks of noodles and rice. Don't get me wrong, I love cheap Asian food - I wish Sydney had more of it - but every so often you just crave a 5-star meal. One where waiters refill your water, hand you your napkin, and hold out your chair. It's worth the price just for that! I miss being on holiday with my family!!! Hehehe!

To end the week, we rushed back to Michie's hostel in Outram Park, and then on to the airport. We made it - just!

January 2005

Instead of doing a day-by-day approach for the rest of my six months here (which even I would find boring), I will let my photos tell a story, and supplement it with a week-by-week thing...hopefully posted every Wednesday morning [I am most likely to be away for all or part of the weekends]

So...where to begin...

Wednesday 12th January
Had my cluster welcome tonight [a cluster is the corridor in which I live - there are 15 rooms in each cluster]. Met about 5 of the 10 occupants of my cluster, and they all seem quite nice. None of them I expect to be best-buddies with, but it is finally refreshing to feel like I am not living in a vacuum. As I have mentioned on here before, it does feel at times that there are no other people in my corridor - only shadows that disappear when I open my door. From now on, that should not happen

Also enjoyed a free beer at Munchie Monkey's (the only place licensed on campus, and even then it isn't anything like Manning). This place only opened this year, and it is only allowed to sell beer and pre-mixed drinks, and even then, only in glasses, so that they can't be taken away. How stingy is that?!?!? Aussies would go crazy if they got rid of our Uni bars - they are such an important social venue...Singaporeans: take note. Get a bar on campus.

Ended the night at Insomia, a bar in CHIJMES, a converted Church compound. It was fantastic until they started playing Lu & I's songs, and I got very home-sick.... I also had the misfortune of missing the last cab from PGP there, so I got to take public transport on my own...really cheap night though.

Thursday 13th January
Had an interesting experience tonight at the 'Cross Cultural Exchange' session, with various staff members and students attempting to explain and define Singapore over the course of two hours. To their credit, I think they managed it quite well - all the basics were covered - the four official languages and cultures, the pluses and minuses of Singapore, the food etc... and of course, Singlish. We had a lesson in Singlish which was really fantastic. A Singaporean Chinese representative from PROSE (Promotion of Standard English) stood up and spoke in perfect Queen's English (i.e. nothing like Aussie slang) for 10 minutes about Singapore, and then read us the first poem written in Singlish. Immediately, her accent changed and she became a natural Singaporean, complete with emphasising 'lah's at the end of every sentence. It was surreal.

Also ate durian again....ugh! Whilst I feel I *should* like it, as I know I looove the ice-cream, I just can't take it....it tastes a lot like it smells in my mind. The ice-cream though, is still one of the nicest things in the world. mmmm....

Friday 14th January
Went shopping for a large part of today, and visited Suntec City with Shirl & Lauren (US). Suntec was quite cool, and the laser-water show at the World's Largest Fountain was pure kistch. Great touristy fun.

Saturday 15th January
Tonight I was meant to go out and see the hall play 'Romeo Loves Juliet'. No that isn't a typo, the play is a comedic adaptation of Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet. Yes, yes, I know that alone should have sent my running, but when in Rome....

There were also strong rumours that it was going to be done in Singlish, so this I could not miss.

However, it was not meant to be - the person who was meant to get me tickets didn't get them in time, so we ended up not going. I heard later that it was laughable and supremely stupid (unintentionally it seems), and was so bad that just before the interval they announced the English Premier League score. And to top it off, there was no Singlish!

Instead, I went to Chinatown for the light-up ceremony, marking the start of the Chinese New Year festivities with some new friends. Mark, Andy, Caroline, Mercury, Erik, Thilo & I met in Chinatown and managed to watch the fireworks from obscure angles, as we expected the fireworks to be later than they were. It turns out this was the first time in over 20 years that Singapore has had firecrackers for the CNY light-up. From there we walked from Chinatown to Robinson and Clarke Quays, and then over to Boat Quay. Singapore River at night looks amazing, but still has nothing on Sydney. Only one view matches it, and I have yet to take photos from there. It's on the ECP (East Coast Parkway), and it offers a panoramic view of the Singapore CBD & Esplanade.

Sunday 16th January
This was the day we had all been looking forward to....the Grand Final of the ASEAN Tiger Cup. The Tiger Cup represents ASEAN's intra-regional football competition, and each country fields a team. The 4 finalists were Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. The final, between Indonesia and Singapore, was nowhere near as interesting and dangerous as the semi between Singapore and Myanmar, but the turnout was unbelievable.

For starters, it was the first non-European football (soccer) match that had sold out in Singapore for over 20 years, and 95% of the stands were filled with supporters wearing red - Singapore's national colour. All 50,000 tickets sold out in under 2 days. It was also great to see so many Singaporeans of different nationalities as one was great, as I have heard many state the inter-racial harmony may not be as deep as it seems.

The match itself was rather uneventful, with Singapore winning 2-1, and thus winning both final matches 5-2. This was to be expected, especially with such a vocal home crowd.

What was more interesting, however, was the complete lack of local support after the game. Once it was over, everyone spilled out towards the MRT and home. Given that it was a Sunday night, I would have maybe expected street parties until say midnight, but there wasn't even that. No ticker-tape parade either... it's so different to Australia, where we go crazy after small victories. Nothing is too small for a parade!

09-01-2005
Bukit Timah National Reserve
Today wasn't intentionally as active as it became, but it was definitely an insight into a side of Singapore I didn't really anticipate.

Six of us (Andy, Mark, Bianca, John, Sandra and myself) left PGP around 11am headed for Bukit Timah NR, in the centre of Singapore. We got there around 12ish, and made our way straight up to Bukit Timah Summit (163m). The summit is something only a country with a warped (from my perspective at least) view of the importance of nature could create. It was completely devoid of a view, as all the trees had grown over the surrounding hill, yet it had a small picnic area and an electricity substation.

Huh?!?!

Yes, that is correct, at the top of this forest (which is really all it can be called - it rains soo much here that a patch of unkept nature just thrives), there is this totally incongruent electricity tower and substation. It doesnt really destroy the atmosphere, but it does a pretty good job of it! The other anomoly here is the graffiti. Schoolkids have been practicing their english swear words on the back of signs. I guess its the only place where they can guarantee there will be no security cameras

But aside from all this, BT is awesome. It really is a wild national reserve in the middle of a highly organised and regimented society. In more ways than one it was a breath of fresh air. We were one of only a few people who explored the extra tracks (non-bitumened), and that was also amazing. The vegetation is quite similar to that found in Thailand, but nothing like Aus.

10-01-2005
The first day of Uni for 2005!!
I really had no idea what to expect from the first day at NUS, but I guess it didn't surprise me. Really NUS is just another Sydney Uni, when it all comes down to it - students worldwide seem to act, talk, and dress the same. Loads of tshirts and jeans, people running around and looking stressed, market stalls, student advertising everywhere, and just general organised mayhem. The bureaucracy here is frustrating, as I've mentioned before, but today I didn't really experience any of it.

I had my first lecture entitled History of Colonial Indochina. It was my first 3rd year subject, and was fantastic. The lecturer is American, so I really didn't have to strain to understand what was being said, which I've heard can be quite hard if your Professor is Singaporean. The subject itself deals with quite a large slice of Southeast Asia's history in seemingly an interesting way. The workload might be a little high though - we shall see "

I also met my Professor for another subject, whom I will remain nameless to protect his privacy, who is a very nice guy, and shares my incomprehension at how inept some departments are here. There are quite a few surprises at NUS, and a few sacrificies that need to be made to teach here. I think the fact that I can't really say any more gives it away

11-01-2005
Uni: Day II; Return to ICA; Host Family Dinner
Day 2 of Uni began earlier than Day 1, but the benefits of living so close to campus made themselves apparent almost immediately! I was meant to wake up at 6:45am (hah!) to have brekkie with Mark, but instead, I woke at 7:30, and still made class at 8am. Back home I could never do that - if I am not up by 6am, I have little hope of making class at 8am! This just makes me more lazy - and really, what is wrong with that

After a fascinating 2 hr lecture (given by the Professor mentioned in yesterday's post), in which I realised just how much you have to force a response from a lecture theatre here (although to be honest, Sydney Uni isn't much better - we are all quiet in large groups initially), I decided to make my way into the city to revisit the ICA. Interesting choice.

My Student's Pass was due to be ready between 2pm and 5pm, and to the ICA's credit, it was. The process by which you get your SP is quite strange, however.

To begin with, the queues to get a ticket to begin queuing for the collection of your SP (if that makes sense!) were far longer than anything I'd seen in Singapore for a while. This queue, however, was nothing on that inside, with the line of about 40 people processed in less than 5minutes. Good omen?? Hahah!

Once we had a ticket, we waited inside (as you would at a deli, or really any government office back home), however at the ICA, the numbering system is really there just for show. The numbers change randomly, and Tim & I think we have it figured out. When you get your queue number, it is added to one of the six booths you can go to, instead of a central line, with the next number going to the fastest booth. That would just make too much sense. Because of this, you can quite easily (and very regularly) have numbers 100 or 200 apart being called at the same time. I'm sure you can understand this makes waiting frustrating, as you never really know when you will be called. It stops you from going out and doing something productive, as you may just be called next.

Despite all this, we were called within 90 minutes of arriving - which is quite short by ICA standards (Maud claimed to have waited 150 minutes for her SP), and made it back to PGP in time for a quick email check, and a bus ride to Yusof Ishak House for the Host Family Dinner.

This meet-and-greet session was set-up for all those exchange students who had applied for the Host Family program to meet their respective Hosts. The program involves local families (usually staff members it appears) being assigned exchange students as a way of cultural exchange, and enabling us to see the real Singapore, as opposed to Sentosa, Orchard Rd and the Night Safari! From what it seems, its a fantastic idea, and one which is growing so big, there are now way more applicants than hosts...so if any Singaporean families are reading this (why they would be I have no idea!), please apply!!

My host, Associate Professor Albert Teo from the School of Business, is fantastic. He has been involved in the program for the past 5 intakes (since the program began), and really seems to understand why we are participating - to see a side of Singapore we wouldn't otherwise know. To this end, he is taking us to the seedier side of Little India! I share this host with two other students, Faruuk from Bosnia (studying in Holland) and Marton from Hungary (studying in Holland as well, but at a different Uni).

If I haven't already demostrated through examples, exchange has to rate up there with backpacking for meeting people from all around the world. It's amazing what you learn about other countries, and how quickly stereotypes are broken down. A lot of the exchange students here are from Europe, and they all have different ideas on the EU, and how Europe is and should be, and for a student from Sydney, it is giving me exposure that I could never have got elsewhere. I still have yet to really meet a Singaporean (aside from Samantha, but she doesn't count as I knew her before!), but there's still plenty of time!

05-01-2005
Woke up quite late today, and after a phone call to Grandad (who, along with my Grandma, are heading south to Helensburgh to visit relatives), generally did very little (just the way I like it), until the afternoon, when Tim & I made the trip to Malaysia!!! That is not as extreme as it sounds, with Johor Bahru (JB - the border town) being little over an hour away from NUS. How crazy is that!!! The only problem was the first time I got to Clementi, I forgot my passport!! Stupid Tristan!!! An hour round-trip later, we were back on our way...

The MRT ride to Kranji (where you change for a bus to take you over the border) incorporates much of Northern Singapore, with the landscape gradually becoming less urban and more suburban and even some that may be defined as forest! In Singapore of all places as well!! Hehehe...don't let it's size fool you - there is so much diversity here.

Back to the trip - the Singapore side of Immigration (you are leaving the country after all - and Singapore and Malaysia are hardly best buddies) is a fortress (literally). A big, imposing, granite structure obviously designed to deter illegal immigrants. Conversely, the Malaysian side is quite unimposing - little more than a standard building with attached bus terminal. It seems to be quite clear though, from pretty much the moment you cross into Malaysia (and yes, I did get another stamp in my passport) why people are there. Do a search on Google for the reasons, and they will make themselves apparent. Pretty much, everything involves money, and surprisingly little of it.

That night we returned from our afternoon in Malaysia (almost without incident, except for missing the bus at the Malaysian side - I later found out that is of little importance though - yay!), and met Shirley (the third Sydney Uni student here at NUS), who arrived sans luggage. So, whilst Tim took Shirley out for her first outing to Clementi, I met with a group of about 30 exchange students and found out we were all going clubbing! What an introduction to Singapore for Shirley!!! We went to a seemingly expat-based club on Scots Rd (off Orchard Rd) called ChinaBlack. Very nice! Wednesday here is Ladies Night, with all females getting in for free, and at most bars, the drinks are free for them as well. Back in Sydney that would be considered sexist!

06-01-2005
Woke at 10am, and did laundry which seemed to take ages. It's amazing how often I have missed being able to just do half a job around the house. For example, at home I just place my dirty clothes in the laundry bin, and they miraculously appear cleaned and ironed the next night! Here everything that I forget to do is still waiting for me in the morning!!! So, I would just like to take this opportunity, on behalf of all those on exchange to say thanks Mum & Dad...we recognise how much you do for us...it's all those little things that make life so easy!

Later today I had lunch at 2 with Bianca and Shirl, and went to IKEA (which has recently opened a store near NUS), and bought map and photos and a plant etc... (I think this is the real end of all the 'to-buy' outings! Yay! ... oh, except a camera bag from Carrefour) for my room, which every day is becoming more of a home. I can remember when I arrived, it was so bare, but now it has life and an identity...i'm so proud

From IKEA I came home, went out again to Clementi for dinner and had great BBQ Pork and a Peach ice-blended pearl tea. Returned home by 10, spent 2 hrs going through everything for orientation tomorrow.

07-01-2005
We had our orientation today, which really was just a chance to meet more exchange students, and sign up for the planned trips overseas. The actual 'orientation' was pretty much a waste of time, with most of us already knowing the majority of what they explained. I mean, if you have been here a week, chances are you already know how to leave campus and where to go.

Most of the people I met today seemingly came from Canada. I have no idea why really, it just seems this is the way things have turned out - not that there is any problem with that Oh, and no, they are not from McGill or UBC (the Uni's I want to go on exchange to next).

From orientation, Tim & I took Shirley to 7-11 to get a Cashcard (what we use to pay for photocopying, and at vending machines and for a whole bunch of things actually!), and a prepaid card. From there, as I thought I was running late for the Business orientation, I sneaked through a back entrance to Temasek Hall...apparently there is a far easier one but I still managed to get to orientation before many others.

The Business introduction was far more informative than the generic one, with decent information about adding/dropping units (which as with every University, is done differently in the Business faculty), a tour of the faculty, an introduction to the libraries, and a chance to meet other Biz students (many it seems from UC - the Uni of California). Not to mention the really delicious afternoon tea...mmmm...

On my return to PGP from the Biz introduction, I found my bathroom cleaned!!! Whilst this did not totally surprise me considering the communal ones are checked ridiculously often (like once an hour or something!), I was told from the day arrive to the moment I leave, it is my responsibility. Nonetheless, it was a very pleasant surprise, and I hope it is kept up...one less thing to worry about! haha, it's getting more and more like a hotel every day!

For dinner, we all went to a BBQ at West Coast Park (near Cheese Prata, 'out the back'), organised by Leong, who is also organising the trip to Langkawi Island. He is an Alumni from NUS (known as, wait for it, Alumnus!!), and has been organsing trips as a way of ensuring exchange students get to see SE Asia and meet new people. When more than quadruple the expected number of people turned up (80 or so rather than 20), food was delayed in the hope many would go (which they did), and more alcohol was brought in. All in all, it was a really relaxing and inexpensive way to meet people, and certainly should be organised again.

08-01-2005
Today I was expected to wake up really early to go to the ICA (Immigration and Checkpoints Authority - Singapore's Passport Control I guess), which is where we go to get our Student's Pass (Visa) to stay in Singapore. Over the past few days people have been telling horror stories about how long it takes to be served, ranging from 45mins to 2hrs. So we prepared for the worst, with Tim & I brining books and iPods etc... However, it was all in vain, as we were in and out within 15minutes, including me getting my photo done!

Singaporean efficiency 1, Horror story 0.

From Lavender, we went with a group of exchange students (Jelle, Alexia, DJ, Joerg, John, & Tim) to Little India for lunch and a general walk around. No matter how many times I go there, I am always astounded by how real it is...its definitely not designed for tourists, although the temples and sights are beautiful. The smells, and the food and the people are fantastic.

We also went to the Mustafa centre, a four floor extravaganza of almost everything you could possibly imagine buying. However, it is all laid out sporadically, with the supermarket section next to CDs, next to Hardware, next to stationary. Now this may sound like just another KMart store to you, it's not. There are no specified sections, nor any markers to tell you where you are. You just walk and find things you never knew you needed. It has recently been expanded and extended its opening hours to 24/7. Apparently its packed for about 20 of those hours!

Dinner was at PGP again (still haven't found the killer dish to stop me eating elsewhere), and we went to a very flash bar at the top of the Swissotel in Raffles City (New Asia Bar) after dinner. It was free entry and half-price drinks before 9 and I arrived at 8:55, so I just made it. After 9 though, there is no reason to go there aside from the view. Beers are s$16 and cocktails s$25. It's just ridiculous really! The view though is astonishing, and it gave me a chance to meet some veteren exchange students from Britain who have been here since July.

From New Asia Bar, we migrated to Boat Quay and Tiki Bar, where you can have all-you-can-drink spirits for 3 hours for S$20. It's still not Hornsby RSL prices, but nothing is here. You can pay S$3 for one of the best, most filling meals you have ever had, but you will never get a can of beer for less than S$4. Silly! Australians would never accept it...hehehe

Till next we meet, bon voyage!