I'M A MERLION! MER-LION!!

When a Brazilian athlete reaches some particular level of fame it becomes socially acceptable, if not required, for that athlete to drop a portion of his name and, henceforth, be referred to by a single moniker. Such athletes include Pele, Ronaldo, Nene, and P-Diddy. Well, Singapore is the Brazilian athlete of Southeast Asia. It was born into poverty, worked hard under the guidance of a hard-ass coach, went solo, and is now reaping the benefits in the form of high-speed escalators, 24-hour McDonald's, and giant Merlion statues in the harbour. Singapore; it is a tremendous story of beating the odds, really.

So now that I have officially been here a week and the jet-lag induced diatribes that filled my last entry have somewhat subsided, I believe I am ready to give a "so these are my feelings towards Singapore after a week" entry.

I like it. I do. Sure, it is a clean and a bit sterile, but those are just the malls. And yes, while it is physically impossible to go ANYWHERE without having to walk through at least one mall, having to do so is worth it, as the city that lies adjacent to the Body Shop, to the left of Sony store, and just past the Gap, is a flavorful, colorful, and fascinating one that rivals anywhere I have ever been.

The most notable aspect of Singapore, one that will rarely be debated by anyone who visits our little island, is the quality of food. Amazing. I have found myself stuffing my face full of dumplings, curry, fried rice, more dumplings, chili crab, ramen (the real kind), and dishes that I just point to and hope for the best. From fancy restaurants to hawker stands with picnic tables, there is something, something damn good, for everybody.


Neighborhoods. I have walked miles and miles this weekend. From Little India and the Arab Quarter, to Chinatown and the Central Business District, I hit them all, and I like them all as well. The cultural diversity of Singapore is incredible. It is a true crossroads, not only of business, but of culture as well.

One of my favorites was Little India. It is a little frenetic and smells of incense and curry, which is what attracted me in the first place. Another was Chinatown, which is a mix of being artistically and architecturally significant, and being corny. The first time I went, last week, I only saw the latter. Today I was introduced to the former, and loved it. I plan on being back there a lot this summer. Overall, I can't wait to get to know what the city as a whole has to offer.

The weather. It is hot and humid...and do you want to know something? I am ok with it. I really thought it was going to bother me more than it has. Will it get old? Yes. Will I welcome the weather in Berkeley when I return? More than anything. But until then, I am ok being gross and sweaty all the time. Weird, I know.


Activities. I went out on Friday night, on my own, looking for trouble. Well, trouble is hard to find in Singapore unless you are chewing gum or spitting. What I did find was Clarke Quay and some really nice people to chat with and have a beer. That was the start of my weekend.


I ended it by attending Bornfire, a fire spinning show that was part of the Singapore Arts Festival. Absolutely fascinating. And, as you can see by the pictures, bright and somewhat dangerous. Slowly but surely I am starting to get to know the city. I am excited that as the summer progresses I will me more people and attend more unique events. And, hopefully, find some trouble.

Finally, my job; it is why I am here, after all. One word: lucky. I don't know how I was able to land such a great opportunity. Essentially, on a high level, I am working to reorganize the way the human resource services are provided and managed for the entire Asia Pacific region. My charge for the summer is to create shared service centers so that the HR services that the company provides can be as efficient and effective as possible. What is great is that I am kind of running on my own here; basically I am acting like a consultant. My boss, who is an absolutely wonderful Irishwoman, gave me a short intro on Monday and now I am off and running. Am I scared? Kind of. Am I a little lost? Yes. Am I excited? Very. There is a lot to say about my job and the opportunity, but I will probably have plenty of time to detail the happenings as my summer progresses.


So what's next? Things. I am going to spend next weekend in Hong Kong. For you Deloitters out there, think way back. Waaaayyyyy back. Now, think plaid. Are you there? Are you thinking of Janke? Yep, Janke, D-Nice (who is in Beijing), and myself are all meeting in Hong Kong as a sort of Deloitte reunion, HK style. Some of you out there, and you know who you are, should turn your cell phones off for the weekend. Then it looks like I will be heading to Seoul, Korea, for work the week after. Depending on how work goes, and what type of travel budget my boss thinks I should have, I could be visiting a lot of places for work this summer. We'll see.

Oh, and for you Berkeleyans, six words: Aneesh arrives tomorrow for the summer. Yep. Singapore will never be the same.

Alright. Many of you are just waking up to start your Sunday. I just yawned and am about to prepare myself for bed so that I can be fresh for my Monday. With that said, I hope everyone is doing well. Shoot me an e-mail or call me (I have a cell phone now: +65 97580967), as I would love to talk to each of you and share more of Singapore with you. Until next time...