Sleepless in Singapore: Life is Beautiful

When I was in Taman Negara, Malaysia, which is apparently the oldest rainforest in the world, I saw and "interacted" with a lot of bugs and such in the place where we were staying. We were pretty much on the touristy part of the jungle where they had a lot of restaurants and stores and such. But it was in the jungle nonetheless.. and there were a lot of these very loud bugs called Cicada. They only come out at night and they make a helluva lot of noise. They are flying creatures and there were a LOT of them. I naturally got freaked out and since we were staying there for 3 nights, I was pretty much counting down the nights. As soon as the sun goes down, you here these disgusting creatures flying around tube lights and things. During the last day, after avoiding and dreading them for 3 days, a Cicada came and sat on my shoulder. I didn't notice.. After a while, for some reason I put my hand near my chest and accidentally touched it. It started making that loud noise and flying around my face.. I tried to get rid of it and wound up falling over my chair, down a platform of a couple of inches. Fortunately, no injuries occurred and the event is now nothing more than an extremely hilarious memory. It was great, now that I think about it.

It was pretty ironic that I was afraid of such small creatures because just a day before, we went to an insect museum and I held a poisonous scorpion about 10 inches! Off course, I didn't know it was poisonous and the insect handler wanted a volunteer to hold the thing. I held it.. It didn't do much, except tickle me as it has these very pointy legs (as you may know). The dude tells me it was poisonous only after I give it back.. It was a freaky experience nonetheless..

Anyway, I think a lot of our fear/disgust comes from within. All of my friends had no problem with the Cicada and they could walk right through it. They were more freaked out about the scorpion than I was, and this was only because I knew nothing would happen (somehow).. and decided to try it. An incident which inspired me to write this was in Teman Negara, when I went to take a shower. I saw this HUGE butterfly.. the biggest I've ever seen in my life in the shower. I got freaked out and came out running. I tried to make it go away by waving at it and trying to hit it. It didn't work, so I ran out of the shower! My friends also saw the butterfly and they wouldn't go into the shower. After a few minutes, I make my way back to the butterfly and I see this older Caucasian man with his $2000 camera trying to take a picture of it. He loved that he was fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of such a creature! He couldn't resist from telling me how beautiful it was and how fortunate we are to witness such a thing. Then I started thinking how freaked out I was due to this "magnificent" creature. I was still wondering what makes this so beautiful, and was still slightly freaked out but I couldn't help but wonder what must be going on in this man's mind. There was no trace of disgust or fear for this creature, only appreciation and a feeling of satisfaction. How could the same object that is subject to the exact same conditions create two opposite emotions in us? Clearly, it is US who are different and we feel what we are.

I am trying very hard not to make the inference that "If we want to be happy, we will be happy no matter what" because although this may seem true, to what degree can you control your feelings? I think it also depends on the type of person you have and the type of outlook you have towards things around you. This outlook, while can be influenced by free will, it is largely out of our control and influenced by our upbringing, status in society, the currently structure of society and the circumstances at that particular instance in time. Nonetheless, I suppose we can try to have a positive outlook in life always and this will have a positive effect on our feelings. The only variable is the degree of effect.

I saw the move La Vita a bella (Life is Beautiful), which is a movie about a father who is forced to live in a concentration camp with his son and he pretends that all is well to keep his son happy. Till the end of his life, the son thinks that the concentration camp is some sort of competition, which they are here to win. No matter what the circumstance or condition, the father always saw things with a different perspective and he passed this on to his son. Clearly, the Jewish concentration camps during WWII was the worst thing that anyone could go through in the history of the world. Yet, the father was able to shield his son from it all and make it seem like a fun contest... Great movie.. a must see!

Anyway, the moral of the story is that we are not affected by the external circumstances as much as we think we are. Most of it depends on the perspective within, which can be controlled to a certain degree. Theoretically, one may even gain enough perspective to go through the worst times of their life with a smile on their face and a song in their heart.. It is only a matter of controlling the direction of the mind.

Sleepless in Singapore: IITians - Secrets revealed

Among the many exchange students here in NUS, there are several people from the famous Indian Institute of Technology (IIT). From what I've heard about them, they are the smartest people in India and they are the few who have achieved the Indian dream. It is incredibly competitive to get into the institution as every single Indian student strives to do the same. They have to go through a standardized test called the JEE (Joint Entrance Exam). To prepare for this test, many people give up years of their lives studying. In the last two years of their high school, they start focusing less and less on school work and more and more on the preparation for JEE. Less than one percent of the applicants get selected into the Institution and most of the time, they do not get their primary choice of subject. The top choices are Computer Science, Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering. However, many choose to sacrifice the subject of their choice for the reputation of the institution and they are happy with the subject that they are given.

At the University of Toronto, there are several international students from India among which are some rejects from the Institution. They are incredibly smart people and are among the top 5% of the class. Looking at them, I assumed that the people who got accepted to the insitution must be exceptionally great. One of the rejects who is in my university is incredibly bitter towards UofT and life in general. He cannot stand it when someone scores a higher mark than him in a test. He is ranked 2nd in Computer Engineering and it drives him crazy that he is not ranked 1st! After interacting with this person, I came to Singapore where I met several students from different IITs. They were not as I assumed at all. They were here to party and have a great time and they say that they do the same in IIT. Surely they study a lot and are very intelligent people. However, the assumptions about them is not true at all. Apparently the studying stops at JEE for most people and after they get into the Institution, they want to have a good time like anyone else. They drink, smoke, go to clubs, and generally do things as regular college students should. They are after all participating in the exchange program and clearly they want to travel and see the world..

However, one thing that must be mentioned is that this may be merely one type of IITians who are this way. Surely there are many others back home who may study all the time and are not interested in worldly travels. However, there is this one very conservative guy who doesn't want to go anywhere and simply stays at home and studies or whatever. He is a conservative guy who looks down upon meat eaters, drinkers and clubbers.. But anyway, the rest seem to be fairly active.

It was only after interacting with so many IITians that I realized what goes on behind the admission process of the institution. Apparently there is this place called Kota in Rajasthan which is a place where people go to train for the JEE. Many students dont go to school at all and they simply spend all their time studying for the JEE. In India, it is fairly easy to get a high school degree without attending (If you have the money and contacts..), so they do that. Then there are others who attempt it in their final year of high school and if they don't get in, they take a year off and intensly study that entire year for the JEE. I've heard there are people who attempted the JEE 3 times and they finally go into the Institution. This goes to show how badly they want to get into IIT and it seems that they will have no future if they don't get in. This is the compteitive world of India where they absolutely have to do something regardless of capabilities or aptitude or even passion.

Once you get into the institution, they cannot send you out for failing a course. Apparently there are people who have been in the institution for 7 years or more because they've been failing... Also, this is probably why there is atleast one suicide every year in the institution. The students simply cannot take the pressure of being number one and they finally give in..

Granted the education and opportunities available in IIT is nowhere comparable to any other government institution in India. People go on several internships around the world and get to experience things that Indians can only dream about. However, is it really worth giving up your life for? Apparently it is..

This makes me appreciate what I have in Canada, the country where there are very few engineers and anyone can become anything or do anything with a little bit of hardwork.. Due to the lack of people, anyone that is willing to work can get a decent job and live a comfortable life. It is only after coming to Singapore have I realized how different things are in Asia. To even live a middle class life, you have to fight like no tomorrow and only the fittest wins. This is Asia.. the continent with a hellava lot of people who all want to become something great in life and are willing to give up everything to achieve it..

Sleepless in Singapore: Where are you from?

The very next question followed by "What is your name" is "Where are you from" in the exchange world of NUS. There were many times when I was sort of stunned for a while before giving an answer. This is because if the same question was asked in Canada, I would say that I'm from India without any resistance. However here, I am torn between being an Indian and a Canadian. Most of the time, though, I say that I am from Canada. This is mainly because my home university is in Canada and thats where I come from. Also, I AM a Canadian citizen, so that is also a politically correct statement. However, after that response, many people are surprised because they expected me to say that I'm Indian, I suppose. So some people ask If I am "ethnically" Indian to which, I respond by saying that I was born in India, but moved to Canada when I was 12, followed by the whole story of immigrating with my family and such.

Also, since there are many south Indians in Singapore, I am sometimes mistaken for a local, which is great but they immediately see that I am not from here through my language. One of the locals said that she would've though I was Tamil if I hadn't told her otherwise. One of the people in my hall even asked me if I was mixed. He supposedly thought I was half Indian and half white.. I think another guy asked me the same question and each time, I took it as a compliment because mixed children are usually pretty good looking ;) However, all these queries come from the fact that people have trouble accepting that a person of my colour and cultural background can be Canadian. Clearly, country of originality is not determined by the politically correct citizenship, but by the colour and ethnic background of the person. It is the same case in Canada. It is a very common question to ask a person where s/he is from. Even if they have been in the country for most of their life, or even born there, they do not accept themselves as Canadian and neither do the others. They are either Italian or Slavic or Irish or whatever, but never Canadian. I even know Italians who are 2nd or 3rd generation in Canada, yet they think of themselves as Italian. I suppose this is a good thing when compared to the "melting pot" that is the United States. However, there is this sense of segregation and no one seems to belong to the place in which they are living. This is something that is fairly disturbing.

Taking my national confusion to my advantage, I respond to the question as I see appropriate. If I am talking to an Indian and that person is a mere acquaintance, then I would tell him that I am from Bangalore, India. They instantly seem to see me as someone who is close to them and there is this instant repore. To a local Singaporean or other exchange students in Singapore, I respond by saying that I am from Canada. The Singaporeans especially are fascinated by the western culture so they instantly become more interested in you once you tell them that you are from that part of the world. When I visited Bangkok and Malaysia, I told them that I was from Singapore! Since it is a country very close to them, we didn't seem that foreign to them, so that was great. I told a taxi driver in Bangkok that I was from Singapore and he wouldn't believe me. Then I had to make up the story that I am from India, but studying in Singapore and such. (I didn't want to go into that whole exchange student story because it would just be too long and the language barrier was very frustrating).

Nonetheless, no matter what nationality I say that I am, they always associate me by my ethnicity, and I don't mind this at all simply because I don't mind being and Indian. As a Canadian citizen, I can conveniently say that I'm from either nationality (as appropriate). After all, in the current flat world, it doesn't really matter much because virtually anyone can emigrate to any place and be part of that country (political details excluded). So I think it is fine as long as you have patriotism and love for the country that you say you are from. I think that is the factor that should determine your nationality. Since I have it for both India and Canada, there is nothing wrong with me considering myself as belonging to both nationalities. In a month, I will go to India and I don't think anyone would ask me that question mainly because that doubt (that I am not from India) would probably never arise in my mind.

So, in conclusion, where am I from? I am from Canada, but originally from India, currently on an exchange program in Singapore..

Sleepless in Singapore: Kiasu

Kiasu is Singlish for someone who is being keen. It can also be the act of being "extra hard-working" or keen. In as sentence, it can be something like "If you're Kiasu, you would read the material for the course during the summed and come prepared". Singaporeans are known for their Kiasu. Every task is performed extraordinarily with several extra features and surprises. They try to go that extra mile to really reflect their hardworking nature. I knew Asians were hardworking in general (And by Asian, I mean the oriental (Chinese, Japanese, Korean, etc)) because I've experienced their 'Kiasu' at UofT. Now, as I am living in the land of Kiasu, it is only more apparent. I suppose the reason for all this Kiasu is mainly due to the competition that people face here. Everyone wants to succeed and be the best they can be. They are willing to give up everything they have (i.e. their true passions, desires, etc) to pursue this stereotypical success in which everyone is an engineer or a doctor.

I think it is driven mainly from the culture which forces them to become something more than what they are. Asia was always a developing continent. The only difference in the current world is that the Asians have seen what they could potentially have. Through globalization, they've had a taste of life in a developed country and they want more. Another difference is that they now have more opportunities to become something more due to globalization and things like outsourcing and offshoring. So they have this incredible drive to surpass North America and if the west doesn't realize this soon enough, they would definitely go beyond North America's reach. Unfortunately, North America would never realize this because they have no reason to. They are living a great life in all their 'developedness' and are too engrossed in their own problems. I personally don't understand why there are soo many psychologically stressed people in North America. Their family life and relationships in general are fairly stressful and people are very confused about their life. The focus on individuality has been taken to extremes and it will become North America's downfall..

Back to Asia: It seems that everyone that I talk to is an engineer. This is the same case in India. ALL of my friends from middle school are in engineering and they hope to get into Computers or something technology related when they graduate. This is rightfully so because technology is a very lucrative market and thats what everyone strives for. That is what "success" is to Asians and they can do anything to attain it.

I think it was Thomas Friedman who said this following quote: "When I was a little boy, my mother used to tell me to finish my dinner because people in India and China are starving.. but today, I tell you this.. Finish all your homework because people in India and China are starving.. for your jobs!" If you tell someone in North America that youre an engineer, that person is viewed as somewhat of an intellectual and academically above average. In general, the view towards an engineer is completely different in North America and people are impressed by them (I hope). They are a new breed of people and this is the reason for all the engineer pride and weird activities in Universities for engineers.. (I am referring to making fun of artsies, catchy engineer songs, ERTW, dying yourself purple, getting an iron ring upon graduation, etc).. In Asia however, an Engineer is somewhat of a norm. Almost every second person you talk to is an engineer. If you're not an engineer, you are regarded as someone who is below average.. which is very interesting when compared to their status in North America.

So what will the future look like. In as short as 5 years (or perhaps even now), there are 10 engineers in Asia for every engineer in North America. It is the Engineer who designs, innovates, creates useful products for society and in general, makes life simpler. So does this mean that Asia will become the land of innovation and design? Clearly, it is already a land of extremely smart and analytical people when compared to North America (based on the assumption that engineers are smart and analytical, which is a fair assumption..). So I suppose North America is on the verge of its downfall. The North American kids are just too preoccupied with their self-inflicted problems. Compared to the Asians, they are not at all focused in anything and most are clueless about life. Surely, I am not as focused as the Asians either and it is something to consider.

However, the life of an Asian also has several flaws, in my opinion. Many of them give up their passions and real aspirations to pursue something that is seen as success in the society. Many people here love art. Nearly everyone in my hall plays the guitar and sing. They are phenomenal artists and they are incredibly athletic. However, these things are seen as mere extracurriculars and anyone who pursues these fields seriously are seen as potential failures. Off course there are exceptions where the true artsies defy all stereotypical values and pursue what they are truly passionate about, but it is not the case for most Asians.

They are always studying or doing something that is of a matter of consequence. This has rendered them somewhat emotionless and with a very low sense of humour. Many of them are unable to express themselves emotionally and are unable to interact socially. They lack in communication skills and tend to be alone and very work driven. In my opinion, even if this means success in the stereotypical world, it is not a good way to live because life is so much more than studies, academics and getting a well paying job. So in conclusion, I would say Kiasu is good until a point where you need to draw the line and apply the Kiasu to becoming a more well rounded individual. More than becoming something, it must be applied to actually living life instead of pursuing it.

Sleepless in Singpaore: On the road to Malaysia

I am leaving for Kuala Lumpur in 30 minutes and I will be away for 1 week. I will be going to Bangkok as well and it should be an interesting experience. The whole planning process has been pretty tedious because our initial plan was to go to Cambodia and Vietnam. However, due to lack of interest and time, we scrapped the idea and went with this one instead. It is, however, fun to plan out all the different things that one could do in a new country. At the same time, it can be frustrating if we repeatedly change it.

So, our plan is to got to Kuala Lumpur, then Batu Caves and some famous mosque, then go to Cameron Highlands, which is apparently a beautiful place with strawberry and tea plantations. Then we will go to Teman Negara, which is a very big and beautiful tropical rainforest. It will be pretty adventurous and we plan to stay there for 3 days and 2 nights! I hear there are treehouses there and you can stay up there for the night! Sometimes, you can see tigers walking by and such! However, I dont know if they do that anymore and if WE are doing it. But the jungle trip should be a good experience.

Then we come back to KL and fly to Bangkok,where we will stay for 3 days. After that, we come back to Johor Bahru, Malaysia and take a bus to Singapore. It should be a good trip and we seem to have enough time to see the places properly. There is a bit of excitement and a bit of nervousness.. Excitement, for obvious reasons, and nervousness mainly because this is the first time I have planned a trip to ANOTHER COUNTRY on my own and am traveling alone. So, it should be a good experience and it will give me a lot to write about.

I am soo behind on my blog though.. There is still soo much to write about Singapore. I was working on writing about the Chinese New Year, but I got interrupted and never got back to it. I also intend to write about Singaporeans and Kiasu.. So many more things to come.. so stay tuned!

Anyway, I will get going now.. Cheerag up, up and away!!!

Sleepless in Singapore: Chinese New Year

On February 7th and 8th, there was the Chinese New Year which is a very big deal in Singapore. It is perhaps the equivalent of Christmas and Thanksgiving combined. The celebrations start 15 days prior to the new year and go on for 15 days after. It comes every year around February and it is derived from the Chinese calendar, which is based on the moon. This is the year of the Rat, which is known for its patience and adaptability. I suppose it symbolizes what this year is going to be like for most of us. At least for me, the prediction has been fairly accurate because I have been adapting to this new atmosphere, people, culture and traditions. It has been great so far, but I think my initial euphoric state has plateaued off nicely.

We were planning to go to Bintan, which is an island in Indonesia very close to Singapore. However, due to the CNY, everything was booked and we couldn't go anywhere. Perhaps it was for the best because we got to experience the New Year in Singapore. We went to Chinatown and it was probably just like China! There were people everywhere and the shopkeepers were screaming one thing or another to attract potential customers. It was good because it was my first experience here in Singapore (I've seen plenty of these 'markets' in India), but after a while, it got exhausting because things were very chaotic in general. However, at the same time, people were pretty understanding and walked around in an orderly manner; Just the sheer number of people made it extremely bustling.

We couldn't get the tickets so we went to a beach called East Coast park. All the sand was apparently imported from Indonesia and it was completely man made. It was filled with Malays and other coloured/non-chinese asians and it was good.. I've never really been to a beach before (except Chennai once when I was very young), and this was my first experience with salt water. It was a weird experience because I could walk for about 100 meters into the water and the water was still shallow; there were no currents as such or waves. But overall, it was a different experience.

We were going to go to Sentosa Island in Singapore, but that was extremely crowded. The line stretched about 200 meteres for everything (buying the ticket, then getting on the cable car/bus/ferry), so we decided not to go and went to Mt. Faber instead. It was ok; just a hill with trees all around. Granted that kind of thing is hard to come across where I live, but it was just another nature hike and we were in no mood to spend all that energy walking.. so we walked for a bit and then just rested..

Back to Chinese New Year: On the new year's eve, a whole troupe of exchange students went to Chinatown and we ate dinner. I had something called a carrot cake. I presumed it was going to be sweet but it was like radish, gelatin and egg all mixed together. It was really good- probably one of the best things I've had here in Singapore. Then we went to see the CNY parade. It was crowded with a HUGE mass of tourists and the like. We couldn't see much of the parade/show, so decided to go eat some more! We got some snacks and then a couple of us headed to 'The Esplanade', which is the arts and culture centre of Singapore, for CNY fireworks. It was a mission getting there with all the confusion and the splitting and rejoining of various groups. We were 7 at one point, then 4, then 11, then 5.. But eventually we all ended up at the same point and we saw the Chinese New Year Fireworks at midnight. It was over the water and we could see the Singapore Skyline in the background. It was awesome.

Since Chinese New Year celebrations go on for 15 days after the day, I also did many other CNY related things. I have this host family, which is a family that has volunteered to show a couple exchange students around Singapore and let them experience what it is like the be a local Singaporean. My host family decided to take us to a street market which was going on for the Chinese New Year. The family, like most Asian families, was extremely nice and accommodating. It was the husband and wife, and two sons. The husband works in the NUS mechanical engineering department and he has been involved with this program for over 10 years. He says he would be involved in it until his kids reach our age. The family was like any Asian family: very together, caring and supportive of one another. When one goes to these exhibition, it is always the case (atleast in an Indian family), that the kids get attracted to soo many things around and they want to get it. The father, usually being very sensible with his money refuses. This was precisely what happened in this family, and it was great to see it in another culture. That's when I realized that Singapore is not a Utopia. The middle class families are dissatisfied with their financial situation and are unable to buy all the things that they want. This is also when I realized the great difference between Asia and North America. The parents are in general much more restrictive with their kids and usually keep them in control. The kids are also very understanding and they know the reasons why they were refused the clay action figure that they wanted to get. In North America, with the whole 'independence and free' movement and such, kids are allowed to do anything they want and they learn through the consequences of their own actions. In a general sense, there is very less 'inherited knowledge' or 'passed down wisdom' among generations. Every generation is on its own and the people learn from their own experience. Asia is different in that sense.

The family showed us around and told us about Chinese New Year and the different traditions. Since I was born in the year of the dragon, they were telling me all the great things about me! Apparently the Dragon is the best animal to be especially if you are a guy. Therefore, during the year of the dragon, the birth rate in Asia increases by a lot! Anyway, they had things written for what this year is going to be like for me and it was not very optimistic. Financial burden, etc etc. But this was also a liberal family in many respects in that they did not believe in all these traditions. They believed in hard work as most Singaporeans do. Another thing I found surprising about them was that they were pure vegetarians! There is a popular expressions that the Chinese eat everything, but this family did not believe in killing and therefore chose to be vegetarian. I, for one, would love to eat Chinese vegetarian meals. I tried it at a Buddhist temple tour and it was indeed delicious. The meat was substituted with tofu. The family gave me a cup, which was indeed very nice of them and the visit gave us a very warm feeling.

There is this one CNY tradition that is very interesting. Before dinner, there is this dish that is made of raw vegetables, fish, sauces, etc (as you can see in the picture). Everyone gets chopsticks and all together, they start grabbing it and holding it very high. All along, they are all screaming their heads off as to what they aspire for the coming year. It is a very fun tradtion and I loved doing it. Infact, I think I did it about 3 or 4 times. First time was in a CNY dinner organized in NUS for students. Second was in my hall, where the supper was organized. So hopefully, I should get a couple of my wishes satisfied! I heard things like "I want to be in honours", or "I want to get a 90", etc. which indicates how ambitious and focused the people here are..

I was also invited to a house for Chinese new year dinner and this was on my birthday. I will write about it in my next post, which will be on my Birthday! Overall, Chinese New Year is a time of family, togetherness and tradition. They do not have a new years countdown, but it is a week long celebration of what they have and what they aspire to have in the coming year.

Sleepless in Singapore: Singlish

When I came to Singapore, I thought everyone would talk in the typical North American-Asian accent that Russel Peters always parodies. Since most people are chinese, I thought their way of speaking english is universal in all countries. This is not true at all.. Singaporeans speak in this really cool accent that it great to hear. I would describe it as English with a combination Chinese-Malay-Indian dialects. The accent at first sounded Jamaican, but now it seems like the Singaporeans have their own unique way of speaking. It is called Singlish and it is very interesting.

There is this particular tone in which the people speak, which is hard to describe but its very lyrical. Singaporean government, among other things, wants to get rid of this accent so the media is completely censored with typical American English. However, if you hear the locals talk, it is nothing like it. The vocabulary is also really good. The choice of words is very sophisticated and diverse. I think they use better words than the Americans, but there are several grammatical errors. It seems like they stick to the crux of the argument and don't really care about the grammatical correctness. Things like "Me, not going", "You, not there?" etc.. just enough words to get the point across. They speak very fast, so it is hard to understand if you are a tourist. It has been a month now, and I still have trouble understanding their accent. There are also several Malay, Chinese, Hokkien, etc.. mixed into their speech.

The most common you would hear is "lah". It is a superfluous word that they insert at the end of sentences like "It's ok, lah" or "No lah". It is equivalent to the Canadian "Eh" in some respects, but used in many more contexts. It may also mean like "Dude", but only inserted at the end of the sentence. It can also replace the word "right" sometimes, as in "There are no taxis anymore lah?" etc. This is probably the first word you would notice because it is used so often. It sounds good when someone says that to you though, like "Don't worry lah". It gives you a sense of closeness or shows that the other person has empathy.

They use the phrase "is it?" a lot. When I ask for direction, they would say something like "You wanna go to Sentosa is it?", its not that different from North America, but the way they say it is different and you get a different feeling.

Another word that my professor uses all the time, which I still don't understand is "Corena". When he is explaining something, after the end of it, he says it. For example "When you do the Fourier transform you get this.. (pauses) Corena". I think it means "correct or not?", but I am still not sure. It is a funny word though.

A word I heard once was the word cheem.. like "Ahhh lah, thats so cheem".. It means, its heard to understand or complicated. I think it comes from Malay or Hokkien.

Finally, a word that describes the Singaporeans is Kiasu, which means "Afraid to lose" in Hokkien. The Singaporeans, like most Asians are extremely competitive, hard-working and ambitious. They are deathly afraid of failure, so they give it their all to succeed. A guy next to my room is taking 8 courses (usually people take 4 or 5 and that is deemed to be the max). But this guy is taking courses from outside of the university and I see him studying all the time. I know I simply cannot do that. I think Kiasu deserves a separate blog entry of its own.

Also, some similarities to Indian are words like "Eii" (when they yell, or call somebody), and "Ahh?" when they want you to repeat what you said, and I've even heard the patented Tamilian "Aiyoo" exclaimed by local Singaporeans. Another exclamation is "Aiyah", but I've heard that before while playing badminton with the Chinese in Canada.

A word that my hall badminton taught me was "Huat", which is Hokkien thatmeans "Win!". Ever since, I said that word before I played badminton, haha..

Singlish is a great dialect that describes the population, the ethnicities and the nature of Singaporeans. The way they talk makes it seem like they are in a hurry to finish getting their point across because they have better things to do. The various mixture of words from different languages shows how the population is an intertwined mix of cultures that are living harmoniously in this Capitalist country.

Sleepless in Singapore: Peeping Tom

In our hall, we have five blocks with four floors each. In each of the blocks, the guys stay in the first floor. The reason for this is something they call "peeping toms", who are people that sneak around windows to catch a peek of the girls! To avoid this from happening, they have all the girls staying on the 2nd and 3rd floors. Apparently it is a big problem here so they are always telling people to be careful. I am on the 4th floor so I have nothing to worry about (apparently there are girl peeping toms too!). I find this phenomenon extremely weird. How desperate do you have to be to risk soo much just to catch a glimpse?! I mean there's the internet where you can catch as much "glimpses" as you want and there is no stopping you.

I've noticed this sense of desperation in all asians in general. Even the Indian students that are here are the same way, and as I recall, the Indian students in Toronto are also the same. They are always on the internet checking out what it has to "offer" and downloading all kinds of videos. I have a friend who has about 40 GB of videos. It is truly mindboggling how people can be that desperate. As far as I know, North Americans are not like this (I may be wrong..). Perhaps since I've spent my teen years there, I find this pretty surprising.

Whats the reason for this? I think it is one of the disadvantages of having "rules" and a sense of "culture" in general. With all these restrictions and obligations, people become suffocated in a sense and try to exit through these means. In Toronto, I thought this was only the Indian students that were there and they only do it because they are so far away from home and they are lonely or something. But this seems to be much bigger. I didnt know the south-east asians were this desperate. I would definately conclude that this is simply because of the restrictions placed on the people by their culture.

In North America, everyone is free to do what they want and there are no 'judges'. Perhaps this is why it loses its appeal. It becomes something like eating junk food or something. You like to do it once in a while (for biological reasons), but not all the time... Anyway, I feel awkward even writing about this so I will stop now.

Sleepless in Singapore: Steamboat Party

Jan 23, 2008

The other day, I got an SMS about and it read as follows: "Are you free tmr? Wanna come steamboat party?". I was pretty confused by this message, so I chose to ignore it. I assumed this has to do with some sort of clubbing party or a drinking party. Apparently the life of an exchange students involved partying it up and getting drunk atleast once a week. They have these "ladies nights" on wednesdays where the ladies get in for free and get complimentary drinks. So, wednesday night is the night to go out here in Exchange land. This "steamboat" party was also on wednesday night, so I assumed it was something similar.

The next day, Yosuke calls and asks me if I'm coming.. Still confused, I said I would come next time.. He seemed fairly offended and Yosuke is not the party type. So after a few minutes, I called back and told him I would come. I met up and it was about 10 exchange students there. Apparently steamboat parties are an Asian tradition where you have a huge pot or "steamboat" and you would constantly add things to it such as noodles, various types of meat, vegetables, spices, etc. We went to a local Singaporean's house and she was very nice. She invited all of us strangers and foreigners to her home and cooked us a grand feast. She had everything ready. When we went there, the girls started preparing or whatever and the guys (there were only 3 of us at this point) went to receive some more people who were waiting somewhere. When we came back, the table looked really grand. There were foods I had never seen in my life.. This was a korean themed party so they had Kemchi, which is a common korean dish and one of the people had brought korean alcohol.. there was only like half a bottle.. and it kind of tasted like ethanol or rubbing alcohol.

The food was amazing.. I think this was my first experience with chopsticks and really took to it. We each had rice in a bowl and we constantly add stuff to the steamboat and take stuff from it. Each time you reach into the steamboat, you get something different, something exotic, something I've never had before! It was an amazing social activity because essentially we are all eating from the same pot. There was this sense of personal bonding because it was like we were cooking together, sitting in a circle, and eating together. There was no separate ladle or a spoon to take the food. We simply take it with our chopsticks. The food was delicious and quite spicy. Most of the people were asian so they knew what this was all about. There was one other french guy who also seemed to know what was going on, since he is used to fondues and he's been here for a semester already. I was completely clueless, and this was something I chose to do extremely randomly. I got a call from Yosuke and I blindly accepted it looking for an adventure. I am glad I did because this was an unforgettable experience.

The house was also really good. Most of the people in Singapore live in government housing called HDB (Housing and Development Board) and they are mostly apartments. She is a Chinese Singaporean and her house was quite traditional. They had some Buddhist articles on top of a fridge to which they pray. It reminded me of my apartment in Toronto, where I used to live during the first couple of years after moving there. It was at this point that I realized the similarities within the Asian culture. There is a certain culture and some restrictions/obligations that Asians are faced with. I personally think it is a good thing because it gives you a sense of belonging. Also, certain things in the culture are there for a reason, such as having respect for elders, the expectation for a child to study and do their best in studies, etc. They have evolved over time and they have stuck around for a reason. The lack of culture in North America may be a good thing if you look at it in an individual perspective, but for the society, I think it is harmful. Anyway, I may be biased because I too am Asian and I have been brought up with the Asian culture. I had not realized these similarities in Toronto even though there are many Asian people there and I interact with them on a day to day basis. Anyway, one thing is for sure, Indians really need to pick up the culture of Steamboat parties! They are phenomenal!

Sleepless in Singapore: Temasek Hall and "Fooled"

Sorry folks (whoever is reading), I'm a little behind on the blogging.. So, now, I'm playing catchup. Last week, I went to a theatre production by my hall called "Fooled". Theatre is one of the many things that Singaporeans do around here.. Infact, they have to. For each extracurricular activity that they do, they accumulate points. If they have enough points, they can opt for a better room. On the other side, if they don't have enough, they get kicked out of the hall and they cannot come back for the next year! So it is a "Do something, or lose everything" attitude that gets everyone in the hall involved and super spirited.

My hall is a sporty hall. We have won the Inter-Hall Games like 15 times in the last 18 years or something like that and everyone is really into sports and supporting their athletes. All the halls go to support their teams and they each have their own cheers. They are really loud and cheery. Infact, they are cheery about everything they do. Always laughing at the simplest of jokes and always just looking happy. It is an amazing culture because they know what they like and they are not afraid to show it/express it. In some ways, they are completely the opposite (Will talk about it more in "Kiasu"), but in terms of hall spirit, cheering on their friends and simply joking around, they are very enthusiastic. I played in the hall badminton team and it was an amazing experience. Everyone was cheering and encouraging for every point and it was great playing for an audience. In Canada, you barely have anyone watching you play. Even in tournaments, it is only the finals and sometimes semi-final matches that are watched with some interest. Even then, all you can hope for are a few claps and some "whoo"s. But playing badminton in Singapore was a whole different experience. I loved it. The people have like bottles, which they bang together to make the sound. This one hall brought drums and they had a super cool cheer that is still playing in my head! It went like "K.. K.. K.. K.. Arrrr" (For Kent Ridge Hall).



So, I went to the theatre production and it was really formal. Everyone were dressed in nice dress pants and shirt, and this was probably the first time that I saw students dressed in anything other than short shorts and a t-shirt. I was unaware of the dress-code and showed up in jeans shorts and a shirt I've been wearing the whole day and sandals. I arrived there and was too embarrassed to cross the street. Finally, I collected some courage to go over and all my hall mates were like "its OK". I quietly went it. The only reconciliation I had was that my other exchange friends were also dressed similarly, so I was not the only one!

I found my seat and got ready to see something I had never seen before. I didn't know what to expect because I still don't know what kind of humour these people have, or what kind of music they listen to, or what kind of plays they would like. The play started with a speech from our Hall Master. The play started with a hilarious scene of a bunch of coolies (workers in a port.. I was aware of the word coolie because it is the same in India). I knew some people and it was pretty hilarious. Most of the jokes were local, but I was able to understand some of them. The rest, I was able to figure out from listening to when the people would laugh (like "ohh.. that is supposed to be funny" or "maybe he meant this"..) The story was pretty unique and didnt follow any cookie cutter theatre format. It was like a play within a play where we constantly go back and forth from the actual play to scenes where the actors are talking about the play and their acting in it. So, there were two simultaneous plots where there are love stories in the lives of the real actors and at the same time, in the play within it!

The story revolved around Hua/Huat, who comes to Singapore and doesn't know much about it. As her brother gets arrested, she is forced to find her way in this dog-eat-dog world. So, she dresses up like her brother and takes up a job as a servant in some rich person's house. Now this rich person, Han, is courting a girl, Lady Sylvie, and takes help from his servants to pass on the letters and so forth. He takes the help from Huat and takes suggestions from her/him regarding his love affairs. Huat is the one being sent to deliver the letters to Lady Sylvie and after a few encounters, Lady Sylvie starts getting infatuated with Huat. In "real" life, the actress playing Huat/Hua has a crush on the actor playing Han. And Han and Lady Sylvie are in a commited relationship in real life.. If you are still following the story, I am confused because it is indeed pretty confusing. The ending is also pretty unconventional, because the play was resolved, but the "real life" plot ended ubruptly with the actress (Hua) being heartbroken.

In the midst of all this, there were scenes of the coolies talking in the "play" and "real life" and were very funny. Overall, it was a very good play. Apparently the people have been working on this for a few months and everything (from script to the sets to the music) was original. It was very impressive.

Overall, the Singaporeans are very hardworking and I suppose they have to be to survive in this country. It is extremely competitive and they have to stay at the top of their game if they want to be successful. Temasek Hall is a great place where they are learning about/being shaped into the ideal men and women for the country..

Sleepless In Singapore: Pulau Ubin

Jan 27, 2008

On Jan 20, we went to this island near Singapore called Pulau Ubin. The word "Pulau" in malay apparently means Island and "Ubin" is Granite. It was organized by a group of students/alumni for exchange students. They announce and promote all their events through facebook and I guess it is working fairly well.. It forced everyone who doesn't have facebook to cave in and get an account; great advertising for facebook! They created an event for this and only 25 ppl were allowed.. But the interesting part was that those who said would show up on fb didnt show up and random ppl who never said anything in fb did. There were about 35 ppl and only about 2 group leaders.. They couldn't keep track of the people and overall, it was poorly organized. Nonetheless everyone saw all that there is to see in the island.

We had to rent a bike and the whole island is basically a trail and some dilapidated houses (there was a village there, but I suppose only a few live there now). But it is a place to see for nature lovers and adventurers. You get to see all kinds of random animals and plants. Like very little crabs running around everywhere, a durian like fruit growing at the bottom of a tree, tadpoles, etc. We took the bike and went around the island until we got to this point where there is a beach, but we were not allowed to go there because people were doing some biological exploration there. It was more like a swamp with stagnant water with plants growing everywhere. But, it was sight for sore eyes.. fresh clean water everywhere and the other side was Malaysia! Some people even got a "Welcome to Malaysia" SMS on their phone.

I got lost on my way for a while and took this opportunity to just enjoy the view while trying to find my way back to the group. Luckily I had a map and I was able to do that easily. But I went to this restaurant and they had some Mango dish. I bought it thinking it will be one of those things that you experience once in a lifetime and you only get it in that specific place or whatever. I was fairly disappointed because it was simply tofu and a salad. It was pretty bad actually and it was the worst $8 I've spent so far in Singapore. I finally found my way back to the group, and then headed back. We came back to mainland and went to a hawker centre for dinner (Hawker centres are everywhere in singapore. Its like a food court with all kinds of south-east asian food: Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, Malay, Indian, etc. but not as posh or clean as a food court). You get nice big meals for as little as $2 and they are very good. So I ate even though I was full from the bad mango salad.. I was physically exhausted, i don't know why... People were pretty OK, I was fatigued for some reason. Thats when I realized that I'm pretty soft compared to most people. I couldn't take the heat, the humidity and biking for like 5 hours. Anyway, I was glad it was over and we came back home. There was nothing special about Pulau Ubin. Just a place to see if you're in Singapore for more than 2 weeks.

Sleepless in Singapore: A Series of Fortunate events (Waning: Long!)

Jan 24, 2008

Singapore is pretty famous for its Hindu Temples.. It has some very old (around 150 years old) hindu temples. Sri Mariamman Temple is apparently the oldest temple built in Singapore. So, a trip to three Hindu Temples was organized by the Hindu Society of NUS and I had signed up. It was last saturday at about 9 am. I arrived at the meeting point at 9:35, which was a bit late I suppose :P. The entire bus was held up and I got some intimidating looks from people as I entered it. They were waiting for me cuz some my friends had told them I'm coming.. So, we finally left at about 9:40 am and headed towards Sri Mariamman Temple. It is located in Chinatown and is quite big.. It has the look of a typical South Indian temple with the mantap like architecture in front and the like. You have to wash your hands and feet as you enter any South Indian temple.. I was surprised to see that many North Indians were not familiar with this custom. They don't do it in North Indian temple, but it is mind boggling to see them soo ignorant of the South Indian culture.. I've witnessed their ignorance in many things like this, including the pronunciation of our names, where some of the places are located (a couple of people I've met in Canada think Bangalore is a state.. so when I say I'm from Bangalore, they ask me, "from what part".. and when I tell them Bangalore is a city.. they start arguing!) Anyway, I will rant about the ignorance of North Indians later.

The temples are pretty traditional with the ganesha mantap on the left side, the main diety in the centre and the other dieties surrounding it.. The people conducting the tour took us in some random counter-clockwise order around the temple.. But, it was pretty well organized overall and a lot of the information they gave was new to me as well.. It is a tamil temple catering to the tamil population (which comprises the majority of the Indian population here). There was a mixed wedding going on there.. The guy was Indian and the girl looked Chinese. It was nice to see the Chinese dressed in sarees and traditional Indian jewellery.. The wedding was being done very traditionally with the nadaswaram and the drum playing in the background.. Reminded me of the weddings I used to attend in Bangalore almost every other week. I still havent tried the banana leaf food though, but I saw some people posted up pics of them eating dinner on a banana leaf. It is hilarious.. All these white people trying to eat with their hands (I'm no better.. I was told by a 4 year old that I should practice eating with my hands!).

The most interesting part is that we have all these cultures back in Toronto. There is a little India, Chinatown, etc and people never make an attempt to visit all these exotic places in their own backyard. Me included, we had to travel across to world to become open minded and gain the willingness to try different cultures. Another thing that is important to point out is all these mixed marriages that are happening here. The society here is much more accepting of other cultures than any other society I've been in. In Canada, there is a wide variety of ethnicities and each have their own specialties.. But I guess people have gotten used to the segregation and don't seem to get out of their comfort zones. The thing about Canada is that people are too new to the country and they do not feel very welcome in the Canadian Culture.. so they seek refuge in their own culture and their own "kind", which I guess sticks with them.. Maybe in about 3 or 4 generations, people in Canada would become more accepting.. But so far, even in Singapore I have seen some inward hate for a particular ethnicity [my hall mate was telling me that he hates this particular ethnicity and whenever he has to referee a fencing match (he is a fencing expert) in which a person from that ethnicity is playing, he always makes sure that the person loses!].. but the overall society has been generally more mixed and accepting than Canada.

After Sri Mariamman temple, we went to Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple, which is a very similar temple. The South Indian Architecture, the washing of feet, the various temples starting with lord Ganesha were all the same as Sri Mariamman Temple. This temple also had a wedding going on and it was also mixed. The boy seemed to be a mix of Tamil and maybe Malay and the girl seemed Chinese. It was nice to see them following the traditional marriage customs in a temple. Overall, the Hindu temple trip was well organized by the Hindu Society of NUS and I got to see and learn a lot of things. After the temple, we branched off and about 10 of us went to a proper North Indian restaurant to have lunch. We had nice naan, various types of gravy and lassi. It was very filling and satisfying.

My initial plan for the day was to visit the temples, have lunch, then go to VivoCity Mall for a "Muscle Wars" bodybuilding show. However, what ended up happening was completely different and unexpected. After the lunch, we walked around Little India for a while looking and shops and such, then made our way to Chinatown where there were a lot of decorations for the Chinese New Year. So we saw that, then just walked around till we got back to Sri Mariamman temple. There was this very interesting store I saw in Chinatown. It looked like a Chinese guy sitting in the fancy store selling all kinds of bangles, t-shirts, etc.. but the music he was playing was Sri Ganesha Pancharatnam! It was very funny to see him sitting there.. There was this girl who was one of the organizers of the trip and she sort of looked chinese or malay.. I guess she was mixed or something, but her name was Vigneshwari and she went by 'Vicki'!

After Chinatown, we dispersed and became a group of 5. Looking for an MRT, we walked around Chinatown, into random malls and markets. It was very interesting. Finally around 5 or so, we found the MRT and left for VivoCity, the biggest shopping mall in Singapore. We went there.. it was indeed HUGE.. The Muscle wars was like in the terrace, but it was over by the time we got there.. but no worries, the scenery from the terrace was excellent and the mall was pretty amazing. There was some show for Chinese new year or whatever and there were martial arts performances, dances, music.. It was pretty amazing. It is great how we found such great things by just aimlessly walking around the city. Singapore is a place where you can do that and there is always a story to tell (as you can see from the length of this post).. But wait, I'm not done yet. If you have read this far, I congratulate you! Enjoy the video of VivoCity Mall as a reward!



After VivoCity, we became 4 from 5 and proceeded towards The Merlion (Symbol of Singapore) and Suntec City (The largest fountain in the World!).. but we went to the center of the city first and walked around Singapore downtown. It was prolly the best thing I've done so far in Singapore! The buildings are absolutely AMAZING! The architecture is incredibly artistic and unique. There was this building that had such sharp edges that one can get cut in half if they ever happen to lean next to the edge! Then there was this other building (If you can make out from the picture in left) it had like a curved edge.. simply amazing. Then, we got to the place with the famous Merlion. Merlion is a statue of a creature that is half lion and half fish. It is the symbol of Singapore. When we got there, my friend Ernesto described it most appropriately: "This, right here, is Singapore".. The picture of the Merlion with the skyline in the background would alone draw tourists from around the world. I've been to many similar downtown areas with equally famous skylines: Toronto, New York City, Montreal, etc.. But I must say, that Singapore skyline would have to be my favourite. It is absolutely amazing, what with the ocean next to it and all. You have to excuse the pictures.. they are taken from my cell phone and they definitely don't do justice to the beauty that is Singapore. After Merlion, we made our way towards The Durian, which is a theatre where all the famous shows in Singapore happen. It is designed in the shape of the Durian, which is deemed to be the king of fruits. We walked around there, then made our way to this harbourfront where we were treated to a free concert from a local Singaporean Rock Band called "Early in the Morning".. They were actually very good. I wouldn't mind checking out their album. We watched the band for a while, then made our way to Suntec City! (The night was still young.. it was about 9 pm at this point, and we had done SOO MUCH!!!)

It was a mission getting to Suntec City. We could see the building, but didn't know how to get there.. We walked around for an hour or so through random hotels, saw another wedding haha (We saw a total of 3 weddings that day).. This one was in a big Hotel and it was very formal. We were trying to get to Suntec City by walking through all the buildings and tried not to go outside.. But ultimately, we were forced to walk outside, and we entered a mall where we ate dinner at McDonalds. The mall was pretty nice. Finally after about an hour or so, we made it to Suntec City, but the fountain was closed.. but it was HUGE!! not tall, but the area covered by it was pretty big and it is indeed the biggest fountain in the world!

Finally, fearing we would miss the last bus, we started making our way back to NUS. We caught the MRT and came back to Clementi station, but the last bus had departed. It was not 3 of us and we are contemplating walking some more! But we ended up taking a cab and came back home around 12 or so... This was the best day I've had here in Singapore and one of the best days of my life! If you have read my entire post, I wholeheartedly Thank You! and even if you haven't, thank you for trying.. The intents of these posts are many fold: To record my travels in Unique Singapore, to Entertain and tell a story, and finally in some cases, make you think.. So, I hope I have accomplished my goals. Stay tuned for more to come.. This was only one day in Singapore.. I am here for 4 months!!!

Sleepless in Singapore: Arab Street

Last thursday, I went to a street called Arab Street here in Singapore and it was quite exotic.. I suppose it is an ethnic place for the muslim Malay population of Singapore. I went on an organized tour from the exchange office of NUS and they organized it pretty well. We first went to this shop called "Grandfather's collection" where this whitty Malay man gave us a glimpse of the different objects in his shop and their history. The objects i liked most were this paste thing which you put on a straw, and if you blow in it, it becomes a nice bubble; and a hacky sack like game, but you play it using a thingamagic made of feathers. It is also interesting to see that many of the games played by the Malays are pretty universal. They play marbles, which, as an Indian, I am all too familiar with. I remember playing in the street with them and I was horrible at it. I usually lost all my marbles (no pun intended!) in the first game itself and I would be forced to borrow them from my friends.. The Malays also play with a top, which they spin using a thread, again similar to those in India. The object of the game is to spin the top on top of an opponent's top and break it. And again, my top spinning skills were disgusting and I usually got mine broken in a day or two...anyway, back to Singapore!

The best part of the Arab street trip was this restaurant, in which they had organized a HUGE table upstairs just for the exchange students and it was filled with exotic Malay dishes.. There was this deepfried banana that was very tasty, some sort of jelly fruit thing (It has some, difficult to pronounce, Malay name), some gravy and something similiar to a rice pappad (Its like a crispy deepfried chip).. Fruits galore!: there were exotic fruits that I've never eaten or even heard about in my life.. There was this fruit called "SnakeSkin", which has a skin, that looks like scales.. but if you peel it, there is this very tasty fruit that resembles a guava and a peach, but a little harder (but nothing like the two).. Absolutely amazing.. Another fruit called DragonFruit.. I guess I had heard about it somewhere.. I think it was in one of those picturebooks for little kids.. The one that has pictures of all the fruits.. I think I read it in that book at some point.. (my memory is not that good.. i might've seen it when some random kid was reading it in the subway or something..) anyway, it was also pretty excellent. It was sort of like custard, but looked like one of those white chocolate hershey bars with the cookie crumbles.. The taste was pretty unique as well.. There was also guava, which was pretty good; and Jackfruit.. ahh, my grandma's house in India had a jackfruit tree and I used to eat it all the time come jackfruit season.. Then, after going to Canada, I was deprived of all these amazing and exotic fruits :(.. The other exchange students weren't as impressed as I was with the jackfruit though.. They said it tastes like bubblegum. I suppose deprived of chewing gum in Singapore (It is illegal here, with a fine of $1000 for importing it!), they are prolly having withdrawal symptoms and it is going to their head! Haha.. jackfruit is amazing.

You will notice that a lot of the time, I will talk about food.. It is indeed what Singapore is famous for. The favourite past-times of people here are shopping and eating. You can find any type of food here for very cheap prices.. One can survive for about $5/day if they want.

There is another fruit that I am yet to try, which they call, the "King of Fruits". I always thought that was the Mango, but apparenly its the Durian. It sort of looks like a jackfruit with all the spikes and all, but I dont know how it tastes like.. Most people dont like it.. Apparently its an acquired tastes, but people who do can't get enough of it! I will try and then you can expect a blog entry dedicated to it alone!

Sleepless in Singapore: Long Overdue

Jan 13, 2008

This entry has been overdue for a long time. I've been procrastinating this for a while now, and I have to write or else, I will be far behind on my travel documentations;) I'm currently on an exchange to the National University of Singapore and I plan to tour most of South-East Asia before I get back to Toronto.. Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and beautiful Bali. But that is in the future.. I've been here for exactly a week now and this city made a very good first impression on me. The rumours are true, Singapore is the cleanest city I've ever seen and you are fined for practically everything you do.. Jay-walking, Spitting, littering, and even chewing gum are punishable offenses and you are fined a heck of a lot of money if you get caught the first couple of times. The third time or so, you are possibly caned or imprisoned for a while.. And the caning isnt like a slap on the wrist with a ruler, like in Catholic or Indian schools.. Apparently they strip you down and get a big heavy guy to whip you until your flesh peels! The intention is to leave a permanent mark so you would never even think of repeating your offense.

The result: An almost ideal society where the Crime rate is practically nil, and everyone is incredibly law abiding. I would think due to all the rules and restrictions, there would be people trying to rebel against it, giving rise to a lot of underground things.. but in my first week here (which is definitely too early to judge), I haven't seen any traces of such things.. Sure, my dorm mates smoke and drink from time to time, but thats as far as they go.. People are pretty honest with money too.. There were often times when I paid too much at a restaurant or a store and people have been honest enough to return the extra money.. there is no tipping anywhere.. Restaurants, taxis.. because it is already included in the bill. I suppose it is a good system where there is no discrepancy in the amount of tip a customer may give and no obligations or formalities.

The system in place is not less than ideal. Public transport connects the entire city to incredible depths.. Sure, the country is only about 40 kms wide, but the entire city can be reached through the Mass rapid transit and buses. The system is such that you buy a prepaid public transport card and you tap at a transponder when you get in (either Bus or MRT) and tap once you get out and it automatically calculates the distance traveled and deducts the appropriate amount. The transponders are soo sensitive that you don't even have to take it out of your wallet or bag. You simply place your bag near it and it reads your card.. It is incredibly quick.. none of that fumbling with change and tickets or fighting with the bus driver about the amount of change put in or whatever. And the pricing is based on distance, which is another thing that the Toronto Transit should consider. I should perhaps elaborate on each of things a bit more later, but for now, the first impressions will do :P

The customs are also pretty interesting.. Apparently you cant point with your fingers.. the right way to do it is make a fist with your thumb on top, then point your thumb in the appropriate direction.. I found this pretty weird because it looks like youre shaking your fist at someone! However, I guess pointing is considered rude in a lot of cultures and Singaporean is no exception.
When giving or receiving money, especially notes, it is best to hand it to people with both hands. Same goes with business cards or any other documents of importance. This is an interesting custom that shows the people's respect towards documents of importance.
The custom of addressing random peoples as Uncles and Aunties is also here in Singapore.. But, I simply cannot make out who is old enough to be an uncle or aunty.. People in their 30s and even 40s look incredibly young and could pass as teenagers.. Its an amazing gift that the asians have and I for one am envious.. I am already getting wrinkles around my eyes for gods sake! Yea, the asians are pretty small and still have some childish features... kinda cutsey.. It's pretty great in my opinion.

Food is available in soo much abundance that I cant believe how no one here is fat. Every single building you go to, there is a Food court or as the locals call it, Hawker Centers where you get all kinds of variety including Chinese, Vegetarian, Muslim and Indian.. It is amazing how cheap the food is and the quantity that you get.. One can survive eating luxurious food in great abundance with about $10 a day! The only thing expensive is the drinks.. any sort of soft drink, juices, etc cost almost as much as the food.. I dont know why, but all kinds of exotic drinks are available.. I've been living on Watermelon Milkshakes, Jackfruit Juices and other juices made of random fruits.. There is a drink called Milo which is really popular. It is available in every vending machine, cold and sometimes even hot.. It is a milk based drink that is supposed to be really nutritious.. It is a great alternative to coke.. and pretty cheap too.. you can get it in vending machines for 80 Singaporean cents... Last night, I drank this drink called a Horlicks dinosaur (Horlicks is another drink that is milk based). Get this.. it was warm milk.. then loads of ice.. (I dont know why they use warm milk).. Then Horlicks powder sprinkled on top like a mountain... Horlicks powder is AMAZING to eat.. and the drink is really good too.. so this dinosaur thing is some sort of evolved hybrid combination of the two and it was pretty excellent, I must say.

I cannot talk about food enough.. Yesterday, I ate cheese, potato and egg parata, which was pretty amazing.. I've been eating all kinds of things.. sometimes not knowing what it is, but its all been good.. The dorm food is horrible though... who eats oily noodles at 8 in the morning??

All the guys here have to do compulsory service in the army right after high school so they are all mostly pretty fit and have strong adaptability and immunity to eating random things.. They seem pretty nice, but apparently they are pretty self conscious and shy.. they didnt really approach me the first couple of days after moving in.. then a few of them said hello and talked for a bit, and slowly they are being friendly.. They seem like a lively bunch.. I think I will really enjoy the next couple of months living with the Singaporeans..

The girls.. OH my GOD!.. they're really pretty.. I may be getting biased due to the growth of my overall likeness for the country, but Singapore has really pretty girls.. but they are also really self conscious and shy and dont talk to strangers at all.. At this cultural seminar which was organized for all exchange students, they said they are very well protected here... any advances and if they cry for molest, it is straight imprisonment! So, I better watch myself.. This is a place to see and to be seen, but nothing more than that.. but I wouldnt mind befriending a few of them if they dont mind ;).. then again, its only my first week here and I suppose they will come about soon..

The first week has been pretty amazing so far and I cant wait to see whats next.. Coming up in my next entries: NUS, Places Visited, Other exchange students and IITians, Singapore: The strongest resource.