Next stop on my global tour: Singapore. I stayed with my dear friend R. whom I met at Wake Forest. After earning way too many degrees at prestigous institutions, R. is now a scientist working in Singapore. His boss is the guy who cloned that sheep, Dolly. As far as I know, he hasn’t cloned anything but does see double after one to many of my special martinis. Bottoms up to Singapore! The cleanest inhabited corner of our melting Earth.
Yes, it really is that clean. The whole city-state has been sanitized to within an inch of its life. I even had to smuggle in a freight containor of chewing gum. And thank heavens I had traded in my mohawk for a more conservative hairstyle. At the immigration desk at the airport the official looked at my passport photo, then up at me and said: “good. much better now. much neater.” So, does that mean i’m not getting caned?
Sir Raffles himself, eternally watchful of his creation on this little swampy island. And believe me, someone usually is watching or listening all the time to be sure you aren’t rocking the boat.
A river runs through it. That’s the Fullerton hotel on the right and that giant durian looking thing in the distance is a performing arts center.
R’s lovely apartment, right in the heart of town. Very nice view of some old chinese shop houses across the street.
The city is a real mash-up of cultures, religions, races, history and modernity.
Singapore is also known for its great food. And I did partake in many delicious meals. There are wonderful “hawker centers” all around where you can get food from different booths and then sit in a usually open-air environment with a Tiger beer. The locals love these places. I did too – although my stomach was upset about 1/2 of my stay there!
A friend of R.’s has a family restaurant with the most amazing food.
And this hole-in-the-wall but oh-so-good Indian joint, Sammy’s.
Usually I would greet a visit to a botanical garden with a yawn. But the park in Singapore was lovely. So lush, so green. Makes sense, given that the entire country is basically a greenhouse. It’s just one degree from the equator afterall.
