Up in the air !

It's been quite a while since my last post and I now really appreciate everyone who tells that writer's block can last quite a while. Agreed.
It's been quite trying times on both personal and professional fronts. Personal - will keep personal :) Professional, Yes. 3 years & 4 countries. United States, Australia, India and now Singapore. Life has been mostly lived out of serviced apartments and suitcases. But yes, life has moved on and how.

Sydney was nice and welcoming. The 'mate culture' was a definite change from the more 'professional' American way. In between 2 visits that were well spaced out, I discovered one of the most beautiful and inspiring jogging tracks in the world (Domain park-Mrs Macquaries chair-along the Sydney harbour - Opera house ) I'll write for sure about the Sydney I loved one of these days.

But today, it's the Country that has hit me quite hard :) The island of Singapore.Call it a Country, a state or a City - choose anything you want and you'll still be right.

It's been a month now since I reached Singapore on a short assignment for my company. All the people I spoke to told me it's much like India and so you need not worry about anything. I normally read up a lot about any new place I visit, but the ease that most claimed with adjusting to Singapore made me a bit care free I guess. So I packed whatever I could grab into my bags, went speed shopping along with a loving but anxious gf and flew out of Chennai the following night.

I have flown via Changi (Singapore's world class Airport) before and was always appreciative of the systems in place. This time around a bit different ... I was flying 'into' Singapore. The airline announcements can be a bit scary for the uninitiated but I was taken for a surprise when I walked out of the airport with the ease of walking out of a shopping mall. Trust me,in my last 4 years of traveling cross country, I've never got out of an Airport so soon. The whole affair at immigration might have lasted less than 20 secs. Efficient systems all around.

The drive home was nice & very western-ly. Beautiful sidewalks , Traffic signs and rules strictly followed.Of course coming from India, the high speed commuting was a welcome add-on. It was also surprising that Taxis were quite cheap compared to the west. Singapore had indeed made it to the first world ! A real achievement for an Asian country .Others (India included) aspire,you did it.

The first thing that strikes you when you walk in Singapore (Yes, walking is perhaps the best way to explore this Country) is the fact that no one bothers anybody ever ! (You definitely have to discount the survey taking youngsters & the over enthusiastic pamphlet distributors :) But yes, there is a definitive need for Singaporeans to be more social. You can complete an entire journey in their world class (again!) MRT system without even a single soul looking into your eyes. I do know that it's not a much appreciated thing to do in the Chinese culture, but then it can sometimes make a newcomer feel lonely.
The other aspect that you won't miss is the 'Kiasu' attitude. Loosely translated it's the 'me first' way of thinking. So if you think Singaporeans would be polite to you and help you out to get something faster than him, ah well...think again !