Expat Family Paradise

So bear with me a sentence. Disregarding the “evil empire building” thing of the 18th and 19th Centuries and be thankful that English is spoken the world over, and no where better than in former colonies. Because the sun never set on the British Empire, places like Singapore speak English. Much to my great delight. I can see why Expats love it here. It gives the term “going bamboo” a whole new meaning. It’s Western, but it’s not. I think I could live here. Probably my favorite Asian country so far—though I still have a lot of places on my list to visit in Asia. But, given it’s size, and the fact that it is in Asia, I’ve never seen so many Americans and English walking around an Asian country in my life. We went to this “mall” today—really it’s a street called Orchard with lots of these inside “malls” lining it—and the whole thing was dedicated to expectant moms and kids. They even had a nursing mom’s room, which I used, and loved! What a great idea. I think American malls and stores could learn a thing about catering to nursing moms! There were kids everywhere. And I’ve noticed in all the visitor and Expat literature these indoor play centers for kids. I think at last count there were 8 of them. These huge warehouse places full of toys and games and activities and play structures. And one of them even has a restaurant, coffee bar and a nail salon attached to it, so mom’s can drop off the little ones and have some catch up time with friends. Ingenious really. Why hasn’t anyone thought of this in the US? What about adding a wine bar to it? Mom and Dad can sip on wine while little ones thrash about. I’m liking the sound of this already.

So Dave says that when he came to Singapore in the early 90s that the airport felt more militarized than it does now. He said they took all the arrivals straight from the plane to get their bags, then took them to a big room, wouldn’t let them go potty, while machine gun toteing guards and sniffing dogs checked all their stuff. I mean, technically Singapore is a bit of a police state—no spitting on the sidewalks or chewing gum—a draw back, but they really do have CLEAN sidewalks. Actually the whole place is clean. The airport was spotless, the cab was spotless, the apartment we are staying in was very tidy and spotless. I’m impressed. But no more machine gun toteing guards at the airport. I think they decided to change their image a bit in the late 90s when they spruced up the airport, to make themselves a little more inviting to travelers. I mean, who wants to visit a place where your welcome sign is an AK-47?

Anyway, as per the suggestion of Anthony Bourdain, whose show I am absolutely hooked on (No Reservations—I love this guy!), we are set on trying some really great local food at the local food pavilions. They are like the food courts we find it malls. Except cleaner than ours. No kidding. Singapore is supposed to be a foodies heaven. This is a crossroads of cultures, so the food is reflective of this. And I’m SO excited. I really love to eat.

The rest of today is going to be hanging out by the pool. A little R&R. And then it’s Family Night tonight. We found ice cream and root beer (for root beer floats) at the grocery store, so we’ll be eating pizza and the floats and watching a movie tonight. So more tomorrow.

And this is a side note for my new friend, Darcey: You’d love Singapore, too. Cost wise, probably a slight more expensive on the grocery side than the US. Eating out comparable to the US. Beautiful, with weather probably most similar to Houston.