Dear All

Righty, I’m in Singapore. And if this isn’t the most mashed up republic of cultures and races then I dont know what is. So far I’ve got here, pansied about the airport and checked into a YMCA. I did fly here tho, on Singapore Airlines – my god they are superb. Own personal TV – with gameboy games, on request TV, Movies, and audio. A seat which not only reclines but has another buttom for doing something i couldnt quite figure out. Bags of leg room, nice food, attentive service, just generally proper bo. I managed to see Cold Mountain, Pay Check and the Butterfly Effect – not bad for a days work – and to think i was going to go to the cinema in Cairns.

Anyways. Its absaloutely sweltering here, i mean i flew in at 4pm, it was 31 degrees and it was cloudy – u normally get that type of temperature in britain only if theres been sun all day! It reminds me of Bali when I was younger, the air has this heavy [muggy] quality, and unlike tobago the air almost tastes sweet – slighly fruity. Singapore itself is just one big fat city – a mass or urban sprawl. There are high rised flats and office buildings everywhere – even when u step out of the airport ure already crowded. The cultures here are facinating – there are malays, koreans, thai, other south east asian nations as well as indians [really dark skinned indian people not like indian people back home] and philipinos. But then all around there is dashes of western faces, whether they be workers from abroad, back packers like myself, or the tell tale remenants of Singapores colonial past – western features shyly showing themselves on an eastern face.

The other thing is teh construction, every where there is scafolding, cranes, cement mixers, workers in dirty jeans. Its as if the place is building itself closer to the heavens. I went into a mall and it was dead weird because it wasnt like a western mall, although it was filled with western shops. The shops were all furniture and furnsihings shops, a sign that leisure really cant take an outdoors aspect partly because all there is is urban and not rural. this was exentuated when i went into a maccy ds just to ponder over the price of a milk shake – but of course they dont sell them – i mean where is the milk gonna come from eh?

Other little things i’ve noticed. Dirty old western men with young malay women. The sweat patched which will almost definetly appear on teh backs of shirts no matter what ure ethnicity. The pollution. The fact that every one speaks english – or should need to because all the signs and stuff are in english – weird eh.

Catchas

Andre