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Published: October 7th 2007
Singapore by night
...from the roof of my hostel.Arriving in Singapore was a pleasant change, although I do admit I somewhat miss the chaos. Unlike its Asian counter parts, Singapore is very strict to enforce its laws and has proven in the past to go a little to the extreme in doing so. As many of you probably remember the case of the 18 year old boy from St Louis, Missouri, who was sentenced to receive 6 strokes by a cane after pleading guilty in a Singapore court to vandalism (spray painting and throwing eggs at cars) and possession of stolen property. Yeah, that's not your normal pattling. That's more like your skin filleting, permanent scarring, I'm never traveling to a third-world country again type of punishment. That’s one reason why the crime rate is so low here (If your caught trafficking drugs you're sentenced to death - no lie). I made sure before stepping off the plane that I'd looked over some of the do's and don'ts of this place. To name a few: Stiff fines are given (usually around Sing$1000 = roughly $700) for spitting on the ground (the Chinese would be broke in a day), jay walking (Vietnamese are gone), littering (Adios, Latin America), biking on
certain sidewalks, roads or overpasses (Bobby is out), and chewing gum and smoking are outlawed in the city. Man, this place is on the other side of the spectrum from its fellow Asian countries. Although, I do admit it is squeaky clean and very peaceful around town plus you don’t have to worry about someone snatching your belongings. I’m more concerned about making a simple mistake and costing myself a chunk of change or catching a cane to the backside - that would be no bueno.
Along with strict laws and steep fines, the costs here are very expensive as well, which means my stay will be very short. Singapore is not a big city, so I could see most of the surroundings on foot. The question was where could I find a low priced hostel close enough to see the highlights of the city. The two choices I narrowed it down to were China Town and Little India. Since I've already had a little taste of China, I went with the Indian section of town. The hostel I selected was one of the cheapest I could find and had free Wi-Fi and laundry machines (always a bonus!).
Everything seemed quite clean and there were even security lockers, but one thing I noticed was there weren't many backpackers. It was mainly Indians (that's not the head dress wearing, bow and arrow shooting Native Americans, it's the people that are actually from India). That was no big deal to me. I just wandered if I'd be able to communicate with anyone and also somewhat curious of how they would act towards an American. I was sharing a room with seven other guys and it was pretty close quarters. At the time of my arrival, there was only one guy in the room and he took interest in me from the start. He stared at me from across the bunks and I could tell he wanted to ask me something. So, I said "Hello," and he answered in very broken English. "Hi, are you from England?" I replied, "No, I am from America." And he quickly responded, "Are you a Christian?" Oh brother, here we go, I thought to myself, but at the same time I was kind of excited to express my beliefs, since it's always a dodgy topic in the backpacker atmosphere. "Yes I sure am!" I replied
"and how about you?" A glowing smile grew across the man's face and he answered, “I too am a Christian. We are from different countries, but serve the same God, the only God - Jesus Christ. That is nice.” The man was so excited (I thought he was going to hug me) and he was so proud to stand up and profess his Christian beliefs. I was overwhelmed with surprise and excitement. Since I've been on the road, I've been around so many people that are Buddhist or Hindu that it was nice to stop and talk with someone who shared my love for Jesus. I've had a few religious discussions so far, but I was really longing to just talk about God and not debate (it can get really frustrating). There was a problem though, my new friend (Gladwin Joseph) only spoke a few words of English and he'd pretty much used them all. So, for the next little bit, Gladwin showed me pictures of his family and pictures of himself in Seminary school receiving his diploma - that's right, he is an Indian pastor. He was so proud of this new path he was taking in his life.
Carlos and Yerco
"No es mas rico el que mas tiene, sino el que menos necesita." He explained to me (mostly with hand gestures) that he once drank, smoked and lived a very sinful life, but he was saved in 1998 and has turned his life around. He now leads a small congregation in northern India and is dedicating his life to spreading the Word. It was so nice to hear and share our stories. I explained to him that I too have realized what is truly important, have turned my life around and now see everything through different eyes. We then pulled our Bibles from our bags and sat, him with his Hindi version and me with my English version, and we exchanged our favorite verses. We counted the books and verses of the Bible to make sure we were at the same place and then he read his in Hindi and I read mine in English. This was really special, because the Bible allowed us to understand each others language. It was so neat to listen to his native tongue and read along in mine. It was another one of those brief moments in life that I'll never forget.
By the time Gladwin and I had finished sharing, it was 2pm and
I hadn't touched a piece of food the entire day. I'd left Saigon early to get to the airport, missed breakfast (my flight didn't give me a single peanut) and I got so caught up with my Indian friend that I skipped lunch as well. I asked Gladwin if he wanted to grab a meal and he informed me that he was fasting. I was quite impressed. That's one thing I've never attempted. Simply skipping one meal turns me into a monster; I'd hate to see myself after one day (maybe I'll try it one time during this trip - I'll keep you posted). I bid him farewell and found myself a cheap Indian market. After stuffing myself, I returned to my room to surf the internet for a bit. When I returned, there were two new guys (not Indian) in the room who were carrying on in Spanish. I got to working on my computer, but also keep a listening ear on their conversation to see if I could understand. Just as they were leaving the room, one of the guys said hello and I responded to him in Spanish. Surprised, he smiled and continued the conversation in his
Buckets of fruit
The large funny looking fruit is a Jack fruit (very tasty) and the other are pineapples (that shows you the size of the Jack fruit) native tongue. Then, his friend jumped in and this is the point when I had to explain that I wasn't anywhere near fluent and that they had lost me at "Hello" - kidding. I hung in there for a bit. I just had to slow them down considerably. I proceeded to tell them that I recently traveled through Latin America and that I like to practice my Spanish whenever possible. The two of them (Carlos and Yerco) met while traveling through Russia and have been together ever since. Carlos is from Barcelona, Spain and Yerco is from Chile. They were both very friendly and our conversation soon turned from talking to us comparing travel journals and photos. Carlos really liked my travel site and his photos were unbelievable (they made mine look like a kindergartner’s in comparison). Come to find out, Carlos knew a lot about photography and was kind enough to spend some time teaching me a few tricks. Two hours later, we found ourselves standing on the hostel roof, looking out over the night skyline of the city, discussing different techniques to improve the quality of a shot. There is no possible way I could compare with his
That's me biting into a Yellow Watermelon
It tastes exactly like our watermelon except it's yellow of course. pictures, because he is using a $1,500 professional camera and I have a $150 one with 3 megapixels, but it still helped out a ton. I now know how to take better night photos and learned a few other tricks to give a crisper look (adjustments in speed, sensibility and aperture). It was a blessing to have crossed paths with such nice people. This is one of the things that makes traveling such a learning experience.
The following day, Carlos, Yerco and I walked all over the city. We left at 10am and did not return to our hostel until around 8 o'clock that night. We walked through China town, Little India, downtown, the coast and the bay. One can only take so many pictures of a city, but we filled our time with good conversation as well. We discussed all sorts of topics and each learned from one another. They helped me with my Spanish and I talked to them about my faith. They both had very different views and neither of them shared my beliefs, but at least I planted a seed that may one day grow. I honestly believe at one point I made Yerco (who
claimed he believed in nothing) give it a second thought and that made me feel good. They are both really good guys and I'll keep them in my prayers.
Now I'm going to educate you a little and stop with my rambling. Singapore is an island located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. At 272 square miles, it is one of the few remaining city-states in the world and is the smallest country in Southeast Asia. It is one of the Four Asian Tigers, along with Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan. Singapore is the 18th wealthiest country in the world and has one of the highest per capita gross domestic products (GDP). The Port of Singapore is the busiest in the world, surpassing Hong Kong and Shanghai. This country has got it all together. Maybe the U.S. should institute caning and stricter laws that only allow a person to pretty much work, work, work.
One thing the guys and I noticed about Singapore is that it is really like one big amusement park. There is a little bit of everything wrapped up in a neat little package. There is a giant Ferris wheel, various rides,
different themes for different areas, touristy boat rides, shopping centers at every turn and it all costs a pretty penny. It's obvious that tourism is one of its largest industries. That's why I've gotta get out of this Disneyland and get back to the chaos.
Well, I know it's only been a few days since my last post, but I knew you guys couldn't wait to hear from me. I promise I'll wait a little longer on the next one. I'm headed to Malaysia and I have no clue where or what I'm going to do. Carlos told me that he loved it there, but I don't know if I can spend too long. I have a lot of places that I want to see and this just the beginning of Southeast Asia. One nice thing though; I don't have to catch a flight (from Bangkok to Nepal) for a month and a half (November 21st). I was contemplating visiting Myanmar (Burma), but there's quite a bit of conflict going on at the moment (maybe it will cool down by the time I get up north). As for now, I'm headed to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in the morning (actually,
I'm already there, but I'm behind on my writing). So, I'm going to bed now and I guess you're all just waking up (enjoy my past). I'll write you soon; I'm out!
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zac
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Field trip to Singapore
I think Savannah should take all of its wonderful citizens to Singapore for a giant field trip; they'd run out of canes. Glad you're continuing to have a great trip. Have fun and until next time.