Wrapping up Singapore

October 11, 2010

Singapore is a city of shopping and eating and I’ve been partaking heavily in the eating part. You can see some of the foods I’ve had, including an ice cream sandwich (very authentic and delicious!). I haven’t tried raw sushi yet, but am enjoying the cooked (although I avoided the head of the prawn!). I have avoided the spiky fruit you see here. It is called Durian and smells like nothing you can imagine. Only one grocery store we went to sells it because it makes the entire store smell. It is illegal to eat in taxis. I can't figure why anyone would choose to eat it and smell so strongly. I did try the smaller fruit you see here and it has a hint of a pear taste to it. It is surprisingly translucent under the skin. I also tried bubble tea, which is apparently getting big in the US. The bubbles are like gummy beads. I'm not a big fan, but it is a different experience. I also had drinks with a friend who lives here and the happy hour cost was $10! The regular price was $20!! Needless to say I only had one. I have been doing some shopping here as well, but not the typical couture shopping. I got a dry bag, a new watch band and extra camera battery. All very exciting, right?! We were shopping along a 2 mile strip of malls – yes, 2 miles!

I loved how concerned the Singapore metro is concerned about safety. In their ad to warn you against running into a metro with the doors closing they aren't worried about your legs or arms (both of which I have had smashed in trains before), but your lips! LOL

One thing that is interesting and upsetting here is the way some of the laborers are treated. You can see the maid or nanny's room in the apartment of my friends. They use it as storage, but for those who have a live in this is where they sleep. They sleep in a tiny room outside of the air conditioned unit and their bathroom is teeny. The pay is low and the papers frequently report on abusive treatment of "the help." At the botanical gardens the men mowing were using weed-wackers instead of actual mowers. Many of these workers are immigrants or migrants who commute from Malaysia each day. The pay for these folks is quite low, which to me seems inexcusable considering how much money is obviously in Singapore.

I baked some chocolate chip cookies and a cake at my friends so the baker side of me is satisfied. Unfortunately, the ingredients are much more here than even in NYC. I’ve been eating so much you wouldn’t think that I am heading to the beach tomorrow!

I’ve also been watching “Frasier” and “The Big Bang Theory” so I really am spoiled here. Now I’m trying to get back into the mindset of roughing it - not having the luxury of clean water (and it is unfortunately a luxury), a dryer, yummy food, everyone speaking English, a comfy bed, and close friends.

I head to Bali, Indonesia on Tuesday night so I booked a hotel for my first couple of nights. I also bought my return ticket so that I wouldn’t have a problem with immigration. My flight from Jakarta to Singapore cost $17US!!! I still can’t believe it. So now I know what a rip off my $100 flight to Bali was. The trick is to book far in advance, but it’s hard to do that with the kind of trip I’m doing. Indonesia seems to offer great beaches, food, mountains, rivers, history and culture. A man was recently sentenced to two years in jail for publishing an Indonesia Playboy magazine – one that had no nudity. It seems a lot of Indonesians are upset by the sentencing and an anti-pornography law, but extremists pushed through both. We’ll see if there’s much talk about it when I arrive. Sadly, there have also been deadly floods in Papua.