Friday, March 16, 2007
India
I'm at the airport in Singapore getting ready to fly to Delhi with my friend Satya. It's going to be good to get out of Singapore for a week and see a new place. Satya's made a lot of arrangements for cars and hotels already since he has a lot of family in Delhi and Agra. Once I get back to Singapore I'll give a report of the trip.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Beer & Wakeboarding
Went to Ski 360 this weekend which was a lot of fun. It’s set up for ether water skiing or wakeboarding with out the boat. Instead you’re pulled by a cable from a thing like a ski lift around a lagoon. It’s fun
Also went to a beer tasting event which hardly no one was at. The brewer of Archipelago Brewery here in Singapore was running tasting it at the NUS campus. I met some other home brewers and I’ve decided to start brewing some beer again here. I think it makes a lot of sense since otherwise beer is very expensive and nothing special… mostly Tiger Beer, different Tahi beers, Carlsberg or Heineken. There’s a brewing club meeting once a month I found out about and I’ll start going to that
Also went to a beer tasting event which hardly no one was at. The brewer of Archipelago Brewery here in Singapore was running tasting it at the NUS campus. I met some other home brewers and I’ve decided to start brewing some beer again here. I think it makes a lot of sense since otherwise beer is very expensive and nothing special… mostly Tiger Beer, different Tahi beers, Carlsberg or Heineken. There’s a brewing club meeting once a month I found out about and I’ll start going to that
Friday, March 9, 2007
Official Business
Today I went to the U.S. Embassy in Singapore which was the first time I’ve ever been to any U.S. Embassy ever. It felt strange getting into a cab and saying “U.S. Embassy” like I was on some type of official business… that feeling what shattered when the driver grunted ‘hhuh!?’
“The United States’ Embassy.”
“Oh, American!”
“Yes… American”
“Can.” … and we were off to the American Embassy.
The embassy here in Singapore is basically designed to look like a fort, very square, crenellation on the walls, built out of big cement blocks, guys out in front with machine guns. It’s a good thing we built such a terrifying structure in a dangerous country like Singapore. The thing was definitely built to intimidate and if I weren’t a citizen I think I would definitely dread going in. Instead I guess I had some idea that I could just walk in as a U.S. citizen, feel comfortable, get my extra visa pages then leave. This was not the case… I was really shocked by the amount of security they had at the building. There were two sets of locking doors I had to pass through while having my belongings sent through x-ray and detained before I could walk through a metal detector and up a hallway to a second metal detector. Finally I got to the lobby where a guard who had been radioed ahead knew exactly the purpose of my visit and directed me to the correct waiting room. I can’t imagine what it would be like if I were a foreign citizen…. Though I did see that were made to wait outside under a tent before being called up to the first security house to start the same process I went though (at least as a citizen you can skip the line and move right to the front).
Anyway, the actual process of getting the extra pages in my passport was pretty fast once I got though security. The short wait while they did the processing was interesting though. Living in Singapore as a white person is strange especially when you see another white person walking down the street. It seems that you should have some connection…like maybe you should talk and maybe you could be friends even though it’s just a random person and you assume they speak English (because everyone in Singapore does) and maybe they’re from your same town... Instead I just continue to walk and feel relieved once we’ve passed each other. Sitting in the waiting room at the embassy is even worse because you know all those people are from the U.S. you feel like you should talk with them. Instead I had no interest in talking with any of them or fining out what they were doing in Singapore. Some of the side chatter was pretty shocking…about how Dick Cheney‘s gotten such a bad rapp with the press for shooting his friend in the face., and how Rove and Cheney allegedly leaking the identity of a CIA operative wasn’t worth investigating. I just wanted to get out of there which I was able to do after only about a 15minute wait.
“The United States’ Embassy.”
“Oh, American!”
“Yes… American”
“Can.” … and we were off to the American Embassy.
The embassy here in Singapore is basically designed to look like a fort, very square, crenellation on the walls, built out of big cement blocks, guys out in front with machine guns. It’s a good thing we built such a terrifying structure in a dangerous country like Singapore. The thing was definitely built to intimidate and if I weren’t a citizen I think I would definitely dread going in. Instead I guess I had some idea that I could just walk in as a U.S. citizen, feel comfortable, get my extra visa pages then leave. This was not the case… I was really shocked by the amount of security they had at the building. There were two sets of locking doors I had to pass through while having my belongings sent through x-ray and detained before I could walk through a metal detector and up a hallway to a second metal detector. Finally I got to the lobby where a guard who had been radioed ahead knew exactly the purpose of my visit and directed me to the correct waiting room. I can’t imagine what it would be like if I were a foreign citizen…. Though I did see that were made to wait outside under a tent before being called up to the first security house to start the same process I went though (at least as a citizen you can skip the line and move right to the front).
Anyway, the actual process of getting the extra pages in my passport was pretty fast once I got though security. The short wait while they did the processing was interesting though. Living in Singapore as a white person is strange especially when you see another white person walking down the street. It seems that you should have some connection…like maybe you should talk and maybe you could be friends even though it’s just a random person and you assume they speak English (because everyone in Singapore does) and maybe they’re from your same town... Instead I just continue to walk and feel relieved once we’ve passed each other. Sitting in the waiting room at the embassy is even worse because you know all those people are from the U.S. you feel like you should talk with them. Instead I had no interest in talking with any of them or fining out what they were doing in Singapore. Some of the side chatter was pretty shocking…about how Dick Cheney‘s gotten such a bad rapp with the press for shooting his friend in the face., and how Rove and Cheney allegedly leaking the identity of a CIA operative wasn’t worth investigating. I just wanted to get out of there which I was able to do after only about a 15minute wait.
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
High Commission of India
Today I spent two hours at the High Commission of India in Singapore, waiting in line to file paperwork for a tourist Visa. First of all, I was surprised that it would take 5 working days for the paperwork to go though and I have a flight booked to fly to Delhi next Saturday…10 days away. After realizing that late this morning I headed straight down there to file my paperwork because my coworker mentioned sometimes it even takes longer than that. I realize that I’ve really been spoiled by being a US citizen. All of the places I’ve traveled before have granted Visas on Arrival but this is not the case for many citizens of other countries. A lot of people here in Singapore have told me how lucky I am that I can travel so easily. I never really understood what they meant… I probably still don’t fully.
So I arrived at the embassy, took a number (number 105), and realized there were over 40 people ahead of me. I arrived just before 11:30am and they stopped giving numbers 11:30am which meant I was going to be one of the very last people served for the day. The time went quicker than I thought would.
Towards the end of the wait I got a lesson in what it means to be White over here: I was about 10 numbers from being called up the window when some blond haired white guy comes in, sits down next to me and asks to borrow my pen. I say ‘no problem,’ so he takes it and then fills in his paper work just then. He finishes then realizes what’s going on with the tickets so he tries to get a number but can’t because the machine stopped issuing numbers at 11:30am and it’s almost 12:30pm. So he sits down, waits for a few minutes until the next window opens up and before they have a chance to change the number he rushed up and says with a smile “I lost my ticket. I was number 23. I’ve been here since 9am this morning. Will you take my application?” as he slides the paperwork though the window. I couldn’t believe it. The Indian girl working kind of smiled and shook her head but then she took it and processed the paperwork. It wasn’t even 10 minutes that the guy was there. A few minutes after he left I got called up and was out the door… just under 2 hours, total time I was there. I’ve heard a lot about this stuff and being able to get away with more but this was really ridiculous…. And I let him use my pen! I’m sure it happens all the time.
Anyway. I don’t care because I’m going to India next Saturday for 9 days. I’m going to Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. I don’t have a plan exactly yet but I’ll be traveling with a coworker from San Diego. I’m really lucky how this worked out since he’ll be able to act like my guide and arrange everything and he has family in both Delhi and Agra. I think India would be very overwhelming the first time otherwise.
So I arrived at the embassy, took a number (number 105), and realized there were over 40 people ahead of me. I arrived just before 11:30am and they stopped giving numbers 11:30am which meant I was going to be one of the very last people served for the day. The time went quicker than I thought would.
Towards the end of the wait I got a lesson in what it means to be White over here: I was about 10 numbers from being called up the window when some blond haired white guy comes in, sits down next to me and asks to borrow my pen. I say ‘no problem,’ so he takes it and then fills in his paper work just then. He finishes then realizes what’s going on with the tickets so he tries to get a number but can’t because the machine stopped issuing numbers at 11:30am and it’s almost 12:30pm. So he sits down, waits for a few minutes until the next window opens up and before they have a chance to change the number he rushed up and says with a smile “I lost my ticket. I was number 23. I’ve been here since 9am this morning. Will you take my application?” as he slides the paperwork though the window. I couldn’t believe it. The Indian girl working kind of smiled and shook her head but then she took it and processed the paperwork. It wasn’t even 10 minutes that the guy was there. A few minutes after he left I got called up and was out the door… just under 2 hours, total time I was there. I’ve heard a lot about this stuff and being able to get away with more but this was really ridiculous…. And I let him use my pen! I’m sure it happens all the time.
Anyway. I don’t care because I’m going to India next Saturday for 9 days. I’m going to Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. I don’t have a plan exactly yet but I’ll be traveling with a coworker from San Diego. I’m really lucky how this worked out since he’ll be able to act like my guide and arrange everything and he has family in both Delhi and Agra. I think India would be very overwhelming the first time otherwise.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Bintan, Indo
On Saturday I went to Bintan, Indonesia w/ some friends I've met here in Singapore: Beth, Jane and James. James has been living in Singapore for 14 years and is fluent in Bahasa which made it really easy for us to get around and have a really good time. (I had mistakenly though we were going to Batam. Both are islands just SE of Singapore and it takes only about an hour ferry ride to get to them). We went to the very far eastern side of the island near Trikora Beach and found some shacks right on the beach that James had been going to for years. James used to stay at this place run by Mr Lobo. If you want to reserve it, "just send an SMS"...Lobo says it's easier than calling him. We actually stayed at a place next door since Mr. Lobo's place was all full... probably because he started a website a few years ago. James was really floored that there was a website and you could make reservations since he had been going to this same place for like 10 years...long before they were on the net. The room out at the end over the water was were I stayed.
It was such a relaxing trip and we just laid around the beach most of the time and got tan. It was funny to think that just one week before I was snowboarding in a blizzard in Tahoe, California. Then at this beach, the water was almost too warm to cool you off after being in the sun! It really is such a small world now.
This is the beach with our shacks
Some beach huts on Trikora Beach
For 'dinner' the host went out with a few others to catch some crab and fish right off the beach when the tide was low. We didn't actually eat these ones but I think he did for dinner that night
Some dog hanging out at the beach with us 
Some wild school kids. Some of these kids really go wild when you talk a picture of them then show it to them on the LCD display. They really like it since I guess no one every bothers to take a picture of them.We ended up staying an extra day since all the ferries were filled w/ people returning to Singapore after Chinese New Year and we hadn't reserved seats. The last night we stayed in Tanjung Pinang which turned out to be pretty good thing. We had a lot of good Indonesian food, took a tour of the harbor by boat, and a tour of the city by motor scooter. For not really knowing what I was getting in to when this vacation started, it turned out to be one of the best trips I've been on. It was nice to really relax and forget about everything for a few days and it also made me want to go back to other parts of Indonesia. I'll have to actually do some reserach and plan another trip. Once I get my other pictures from the trip in order I'll post a link to them as well.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Return to Singapore
I got in to Singapore this morning after a very long trip. In all the total time from leaving San Diego to arriving in Singapore was over 24 hours and the way the time zones and international dates lines worked this week really did fly by since I missed all of Wednesday and Thursday. Back in the States I was in Oregon at work for most of the trip. I did get to have some fun though. I made a quick stop at the Edgefield Distillery which is something I'd wanted to do for a while. Last summer my friend Dave had taken a road trip w/ his family north into Oregon and Washington and they brought some of the whiskey back. It was really good... being that it was from a micro-still and all. I found out that they have also been making a gin, different brandies, now a coffee-liquor, and at one point they made a grappa but discontinued it since it didn't do much for the discerning Oregonian tastes... In addition to the micro still, the McMenamin brothers have a winery, a brewery, a hotel, concert venue and golf course on the Edgefield site. They have different bars, restaurants and theaters throughout the Northwest.
Then last Friday I flew down to Sacramento to stay w/ my brother and his wife. My other little brother was there as well since he’s now studying law at UC Davis and my cousin w/ her boyfriend flew in from Vegas to join us. Tahoe had been having a very bad year for snow but I had faith a big storm would blow in to give some fresh snow. And that’s exactly what happened. For whatever reason it seems every time I go to Tahoe a big storm comes in and it usually makes for bad snowboarding conditions. There were some conflicting reports about how much snow there was but it was at least a couple feet and it was a lot of fun.. On Sunday we went to Amador County for wine tasting which is always an adventure… especially since I had to fly to San Diego that night. I’ve found that wine tasting then flying usually makes for seemingly short flight times and this was no exception.
The time in San Diego went fast. Surprisingly I didn’t have any Mexican food which is strange because I’ve really wanted a carne asada or California burrito since I arrived here in Singapore.
Now that I’m back, Lunar New Year celebrations are just starting. This will start the year of the boar. I won't celebrate it here in Singapore though since I'm planning on leaving tomorrow morning for Batam, Indonesia. After all the cold rain and snow I had in Oregon and California I'm going to relax on a nice warm beach.
Then last Friday I flew down to Sacramento to stay w/ my brother and his wife. My other little brother was there as well since he’s now studying law at UC Davis and my cousin w/ her boyfriend flew in from Vegas to join us. Tahoe had been having a very bad year for snow but I had faith a big storm would blow in to give some fresh snow. And that’s exactly what happened. For whatever reason it seems every time I go to Tahoe a big storm comes in and it usually makes for bad snowboarding conditions. There were some conflicting reports about how much snow there was but it was at least a couple feet and it was a lot of fun.. On Sunday we went to Amador County for wine tasting which is always an adventure… especially since I had to fly to San Diego that night. I’ve found that wine tasting then flying usually makes for seemingly short flight times and this was no exception.
The time in San Diego went fast. Surprisingly I didn’t have any Mexican food which is strange because I’ve really wanted a carne asada or California burrito since I arrived here in Singapore.
Now that I’m back, Lunar New Year celebrations are just starting. This will start the year of the boar. I won't celebrate it here in Singapore though since I'm planning on leaving tomorrow morning for Batam, Indonesia. After all the cold rain and snow I had in Oregon and California I'm going to relax on a nice warm beach.
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
Back in the US
I'm back in the states now for almost 2 weeks. I'm in Oregon and it's freezing here. Everyone's has been going on about the warm weather since it's been in the high 40's this week! Yeah, I know it's pretty ridiculous but it's so easy to get used to the warm tropical weather in Singapore. I really miss the warm rain vs the cold, windy rain here in Oregon.
Over the weekend I stayed at my friend Kirvan's house and the plan was to go snowboarding on Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday, I found out the snow was pretty bad and I was very jet-lagged so we skipped on boarding for Sunday. Instead I took a nap and watched the Super Bowl which I think was the first game I saw all season.
On Friday I'm flying down to Sacramento to Nathan's house and the plan is to try Tahoe for snowboarding on Saturday and then some wine tasting on Sunday. It's really a rough life.
Since I've been back, I've really taken the opportunity to have as much pizza as possible. It's almost impossible to get good western food, especially pizza, in Singapore. Actually I've been eating western junk food almost exclusively since I've been here....a lot of burgers and pizza. mmmmmm!
Over the weekend I stayed at my friend Kirvan's house and the plan was to go snowboarding on Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday, I found out the snow was pretty bad and I was very jet-lagged so we skipped on boarding for Sunday. Instead I took a nap and watched the Super Bowl which I think was the first game I saw all season.
On Friday I'm flying down to Sacramento to Nathan's house and the plan is to try Tahoe for snowboarding on Saturday and then some wine tasting on Sunday. It's really a rough life.
Since I've been back, I've really taken the opportunity to have as much pizza as possible. It's almost impossible to get good western food, especially pizza, in Singapore. Actually I've been eating western junk food almost exclusively since I've been here....a lot of burgers and pizza. mmmmmm!
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