Me at the Singapore Art Museum (June 25, 2007)
Warm greetings from the Fine, er, Lion City!
I arrived here close to midnight of Sunday, June 23, after a long, long week of preparations for the 83rd NCAA and my Aunt's 50th birthday celebration. My first cousin, Josephine, met me at Changi's new Budget Terminal. Yes, this is a trip on a super tight budget. I have only USD 210, SD 200+, and a handful of Malaysian ringgit which Mom set aside from me from her Penang trip last year. Of course I bring with me memories of my Mother in this trip as this would have been something she would have wanted me to do for the longest time claiming that Manila has made me too, uhm, provincial and that I should see more of the world.
Well, fortuitously enough, I have a cousin I can stay with here. She's married to an Austrian geologist and they're leaving Singapore for Austria for good so this trip is necessary because it'd be my last chance to come and enjoy the city with her. I thank Mom - and my cousin - for making this trip possible.
For now, I am writing to you all from my cousin's place at The Trevose. We just did a river tour of the city earlier (I am happy to finally see the bridge Filipino artist Pacita Abad painted while she was here!) and it was fantastic! Too bad we did it with the skies overcast so the photos all came out dark and gloomy. Very British weather out here and I don't think I like it. I miss the sun because it brings out the color in old buildings which Singapore has a lot of. Sayang.
And the city is SO GREEN! I love it. There are trees and shrubs and flowers everywhere. If only Manila were this green - and orderly -, we'd all be prouder residents for it.
Sigh.
Anyway, tonight we visit the Marina for some chili crabs. Wish me luck. So much for my 1st day here. I hope you are all well.
