Singapore, Singapore

Note: I brilliantly packed my camera cord into one of my storage boxes so until I decide to go hunt for one, or until Ashley gets here, you're stuck with the few pictures I decided to take with my archaic iphone3.

I spent a day in a half in Singapore and I was mostly walking around in a jet lagged, over heated, sweaty daze. It is hot as balls in SE Asia. The air is thick with humidity and within 5 minutes of walking outside you are covered in a nice layer of sticky sweat. The MRT (subway) and air conditioned bars are your best friends when first arriving in SE Asia from chilly Seattle. But I knew the only way to acclimate was to put on my big girl panties, walk outside and get them all sweaty.

In addition to my first food adventure, the highlights of Singapore were walking around Chinatown, Little India and the Arab district. All are full of vibrant colors, delicious smells and music that makes you want to dance. I spent a couple hours during the hottest part of the day sipping iced chai in a tiny Indian restaurant, watching a movie that had quite suggestive dancing in it. I kept sneaking glances at the male employees to see if they were as shocked as I was by the gyrating that I haven't seen in any of the other Bollywood movies I've watched.

The most distinguishing feature of the city is how clean it is. There is garbage nowhere. Chewing gum is not allowed, they don't even sell it here. Littering will get you a heavy fine yet despite this, i couldn't find a single garbage can in any of the subway stations. There is also no eating or drinking on the subway unless you want to pay a 500SD fine. As I was heading underground sipping my water, a smiley old man stopped me and kindly informed me that I shouldn't be drinking because if I spilled I could short circuit the escalator. I immediately apologized and mentally thanked him for saving me 500SD.

 

-Kim