We got out of the city and took a short ferry ride over to Pulau Ubin, a small island just off the coast of Singapore. The highlight was riding rental bikes on the roads and trails of the island. In the video above, Nadia and I are on a tandem bike and a long-tailed macaque hops on our bike to retrieve a bag of food in the front basket. I didn’t capture it on film, but Nadia’s reaction is funny. The monkey was unsuccessful in getting the bag and all parties were unharmed.
It was nice to get back to nature a bit and we all enjoyed the day. We had a nice dinner and the kids went for a swim at the Changi Sailing Club beach upon return to the main island of Singapore. Pulau Ubin is a nice day trip, although on the island there are no swimming beaches. It is nice to tour the island on bikes. There were numerous monkeys and the platform path through the mangroves and tidal flats on the east end of the island allows you to see a habitat that difficult to move through.
The sign of the day is one of the mascots the Singapore government uses to get people to behave politely on the trains. My favorite is “Bag Down Benny – A bag on the floor, means space for more” is his tagline. The nanny state of Singapore does a thorough job of communicating to its citizens and residents how to be civil to each other.
We spent Christmas day in the financial district of Singapore, among the imposing skyscrapers and impressively developed waterfront. In trying to find a connection to Christmas, the economic growth of Singapore from 1965 to the present day is like a miracle. To go from a third world, mosquito and mud laden trading post to the glitzy world first world city of today, is amazing. It was the autocratic capitalism and strict rule of Lee Kuan Yew that did ti. The Chinese are similarly using this model with limiting citizen’s individual freedoms, but promoting the economy is a capitalistic style. In the photo above, I am using a new panoramic technique with my iPhone to capture tall structures.
Family members pose from the Marina Bay Sands waterfront
The skyline reminded me of lower Manhattan, although without the rest of New York behind it. The huge banking and finance companies’ buildings demonstrate that Singapore is an financial services hub and truly a global city like London, Dubai or New York They also did a great job of becoming a transportation hub in the Asia Pacific region, with the second busiest port per volume in the world (behind Shanghai) and the 16th busiest airport in the world.
We had an overly-priced lunch on the bay and took some photos at the famous, Merlion, the symbol/mascot of Singapore. “Mer” represents its origins as a fishing village and “lion” comes from the original name, Singapura, meaning lion city. There were never lions here, but probably stems from the Malaysian tiger. The statue is in front Fullerton Hotel and all the area in Marina Bay is reclaimed land.
We plan on heading back at night to get another view of area. I would like to go for a run downtown sometime before I leave as well. There is a nice running path alongside the Singapore river which runs through the central business district.
Yesterday we went for a long hike in the MacRitchie Reservoir trail system. The Mac Ritchie reservoir is the one of four nearby large reservoirs that provide fresh water for the city. The forests surrounding the reservoirs are protected as a catchment area and the government has many walking trails winding through it. The highlight was finally seeing the long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) as we were leaving the reserve. In the video above, on the Country Club Road, a troop were wrestling with each other and they take a bottle from the group of kids behind us. They are omnivores and have a long relationship alongside humans. They are numerous in the central catchment area of Singapore.
Walking the MacRitchie Reservoir Trail System
In typical rules dominated Singapore, the goal of our hike, the tree-top walk, closed at 4:45 PM and we arrived at 4:51 PM so we couldn’t finish the final loop. I was tempted to hop the chain crossing the entrance to the walkway, but Oliver reminded us of the possibility of caning, a common form of punishment, besides jail and high fines, for breaking rules here. The videos I showed of the case of Michael Fay and an actual caning earlier in the day, was a good reminder for us to obey the rules while we are here.
I am happy they preserved this forest, on an island that was once all mature forest. The early settlers of Singpore would not recognize fully developed island today. With over 5 million people, here, I see what the island needed to be developed. There were some impressive mature trees and it was nice to walk in the silky humidity of the forest and away from development for the afternoon. We walked about 7 kilometers in total. Outside of the country club, we called my first Uber, and a nice young man who just got off his main work, came and picked us up.
We had a nice meal in the Little India section of the city. Nadia joked that this is the closest she will be getting to India. Although I’ve never been to India, with all of the colors, odors and sounds, it probably was an approximation of India. There are over a quarter million Indians living in Singapore. Most came through contact with the British empire as workers in the 19th century. Today there is immigration from India and the community is noted for its economic and cultural diversity.
Ocean sporting an Indian floral garland
We were chased out of the market by an oncoming storm. There has been some spectacular lightning and storm clouds and loud thunder. There are thunderstorms on 40% of the days in Singapore. December and January are in the “wet phase” of the 4-month north east monsoon season, and there are usually storms or heavy clouds every afternoon and early evening. I am loving the 1 degree north tropical heat, the sounds of the birds and the lush gardens. It reminds me much of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, except much cleaner and better maintained.
Storm clouds behind the traditional shop houses of Little India
Finally to wrap up this Singapore journal entry, I have to leave with “the sign” of the blog post. We are loving the ubiquitous signage, educating and informing Singaporeans and tourists how to live an orderly life. The sign below was outside of the restrooms at the Mac Ritchie Reservoir visitor’s center.
I rarely watch movies let alone go to the cinema. On long flights and during the Christmas holidays are about the only times I see them.
Last night we took the kids to the latest installment in the Star Wars franchise, Rouge One. It was an enjoyable, action-packed war movie, but nothing life-changing and similar to the many Star Wars films in the series. It reminded me of World War II films. The raid on the kyber refinery reminded me of the Norwegian resistance assault on the Nazi heavy water refinery. The scenes of rebel soldiers running across beaches and under palm trees on the tropical planet that held the Empire’s data archive, was reminiscent of the War of the Pacific.
On the plane I watched The Hollars. A synopsis from Rotten Tomatoes below:
John Hollar, a struggling NYC artist is forced to navigate the small middle-American town he left behind when news of his mother’s illness brings him home. Back in the house he grew up in, John is immediately swept up in the problems of his dysfunctional family, high school rival, and an over-eager ex-girlfriend as he faces impending fatherhood with his girlfriend in New York. From a script by Jim Strouse that is at turns hilarious and heartbreaking, John Krasinski’s second feature is a poignant look at the bonds of family and friendship.
There are some good characters, especially John’s brother. It reminded me a bit too much of my mother’s death and the impact on my father. It kept my attention but I wouldn’t go out of my way to see it.
I also watched Captain Fantastic, a story about a father raising his children in the redwood forests of California. The mother dies and he brings the family to civilization to attend the funeral. It has some uplifting moments, but the a bit thin on the portrayal of the pros and cons of such a radical parenting style versus the traditional suburban America lifestyle. I would recommend seeing it and there are some good performances.
I’ve enjoyed getting to know Singapore in the first few days of our stay on the island. Orchard Road is the retail and entertainment center of an island, I feel, that is devoted to shopping. It is amazing that every train station we disembarked is basically a shopping mall. These are not small or run down malls, but comparable to the best Japan malls. Stations are a natural place for businesses because of the high pedestrian traffic, but Singapore has taken it to a new level. Besides shopping malls, the other big impression are the numerous apartment buildings. There is a lot of people here!
Enjoying a Bank Promotion in the Kovan Mall
We are staying in the suburb of Kovan, in the north east part of the island. It is known for the high number of Teochew, 19th century immigrants from southern China. 77% of Singaporeans are Chinese, but I noticed lots of Indians, more so than in Kuala Lumpur. I have not seen as many Malays.
We went to Chinatown the other night (photo above). The traditional shop houses, which are buildings with a store on the first floor and the family residence on the second and third floor, have all been restored. We ate at a nice Thai restaurant, which was once an opium den in the 1800s when it was a popular recreational drug with the Chinese.
It is funny to see the graphic public service announcement signs in the train stations. Lee Kwan Yew’s strict rules are apparent everywhere, with $500 – $1,000 fines for smoking, eating/drinking on the trains, etc. After seeing other south east Asian cities, I see why he needed to be so Draconian to have a neat and orderly city. It is pleasant to walk and move around the city. The wide sidewalks are well-maintained, lots of palms and other trees planted for shade and beauty, and many little “national parks” interspersed throughout. It looks like Florida, but probably a little nicer because the lack of income inequality one sees in Miami.
Cargo Ship Going Through the Johor Strait While the Kids Swim
We escaped the city a bit yesterday afternoon and went for a swim on the far north eastern part of the island near the airport. Changi Beach park was quite pleasant. The amount of planes landing in Singapore from everywhere was impressive. There were several big ships coming through the Johor Straits, the body of water separating Singapore from Malaysia. I imagine between the heavy ship traffic and land reclamation projects, the environment is quite degraded. It made for a nice afternoon. Changi village reminded me a bit of Ada Ciganlija, the inland “sea” of Belgrade.
In anticipation of our 19-day stay in Singapore, I did some reading and thinking about the island.
Singapore will be a new country for all of us. It is more of a city-state than a nation-state. It is a small island, much of it reclaimed land (23%), off the coast of Malaysia. Due to its location in the Malacca Straits, a narrow sea passage connecting south Asia (India) with east Asia (China/Japan), it is one of the biggest trading ports in the world. For over 700 years, Malays have been trading in Singapore, but the island never reached a population over 1000. The British recognized this strategic position within its colonies. Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles arrived in 1819 and developed the with the British East India Company. The island’s population swelled to 80,000, over half being Chinese workers for the rubber plantations. The British controlled Singapore for 141 years total. That started its path to becoming an independent city-state of today. I am looking forward to seeing the Raffles’s legacy and have a Singapore Sling in the eponymous hotel from that era.
After WWI, the British built a naval base, which was taken over by Japanese in Battle of Singapore on February 15, 1942 The British military surrendered to invading Japanese forces in World War II. The Japanese controlled Singapore for 3 years, but not before killing between 5 -25 million Chinese, before losing the war and ceding the island back to Britain.I want to learn more about the battle for Singapore and the Japanese occupation, so will look it up during the holiday.
In 1959 it became self-governing within the Commonwealth. Four years later the British left and Singapore joined Malaysia, but was expelled shortly thereafter. Singapore leaders felt that it would always be at a disadvantage because of its Chinese-majority (77% Chinese), in a Malay dominated country. On August 9, 1965, Singapore became independent from Malaysia, and has stayed that way for the last 51 years.
No writing about Singapore would be worthwhile without a mention of the founding father of modern Singapore, Lee Kwan Yew. He was an autocrat who engineered the amazing growth of Singapore. He limited individual freedom greatly and quashed dissent, but because of his vision and a lack of corruption, he inspired others to work hard raise the standard of living for all citizens. He set an environment conducive to international investment and trade, and it is one of the great global cities of finance and business. My sister-in-law works at one of the many international schools on the island, thanks to this foreign investment.
This autumn I visited the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur and thought that this is what Singapore would be like if it wasn’t for Lee Kwan Yew. It was nice, but with its infrastructure, it felt more like Latin America than developed Japan. The stifling of individual liberties was justified if it meant long-term prosperity for the majority of citizens. As Lee Kwan Yew said of Singapore before he straightened it out, “people could make tapioca, make children and drink.” No one from that era would recognize a Singapore with a GDP of $82,000 US, good traffic flow, little self-generated pollution and no litter. I loved his maxim, “poetry is a luxury we cannot afford,” and his rule was ruthlessly pragmatic, enabling him to rule almost as a (mostly) benevolent dictator.
With the economic and military rise of China, I could see Singapore moving closer to China. Not like Hong Kong or Macao because it is far away from mainland China. However, there are 1 million mainland Chinese recent immigrants here. It is inevitable that they will have closer ties to China in the future.
I will be experiencing Singapore for a couple of weeks and hope to get a good feel for the place. I am curious to see if it feels crowded, as the 5.6 million people live on an island a little bigger than Guam, which makes it the third most densely populated country in the world. It is also nice to be 1 degree north of the equator in the middle of a Japan winter. I read were it is dull and authoritarian
I try to make a point of acknowledging those small moments in life that are meaningful, but happen so quickly or you think they are insignificant. Last night was a great example.
We were packing our bags our winter holiday in Singapore. It had been a super busy day at school and then a rush home and 2+ hours of cleaning packing. We were debating whether to take Christmas presents for the kids with us, leave them under the tree for when we get back in January or let them have them last night.
Oliver has been begging for a 3DS game system and the Pokemon Sun & Moon games for months. He eagerly anticipated the release of the new games on November 19. He was relentless, but we held firm. We don’t buy game systems for our kids because we feel they get addicted to them and do not do other things in their life. Since Oliver is absolutely obsessed with the Pokemon video series and cards, we broke down and got the 3DS and games. We were planning to take it with us and give it to him at Christmas. We gave Oliver and Ocean the books they wanted, for Ocean 3 books in the Dork Diary series and for Oliver, 2 books in the Magnus Chase series. When Oliver got the books, he was bitterly disappointed because he was expecting the 3DS. He was crying and saying that we didn’t love him. He wasn’t like a brat, but I felt, genuinely sad, thinking that we would never get him a video game. Yes, I am from the 1980s and still call them “video” games. He was on our bed inconsolable when I took it out of the suitcase and walked in the room. He sat up and I presented the game console, and the DVDs and he was in a state I never saw him like. I would describe it has half shock / half ecstasy. The look on his face and his reaction made all of the tears and months of hearing him moan and negotiate worth it. He was so happy, hugging us both! It was so cool to experience his total happiness!
So it was a Christmas miracle that “santa” came early and brought Oliver exactly what he wanted, and something he thought he would never get.
I wanted to learn more about the American president-elect, Donald Trump. Our school library had a copy of Michael D’Antonio’s Never Enough: Donald Trump and the Pursuit of Success. The Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author did some long interviews with Trump and people close to him before losing access because he interviewed an enemy of Trump. He supplemented the interviews with research and the book is a very good and even-handed biography. The New York Times reviewed the book in September 2015 when it was published. I also recommend listening to the two podcasts the NY Times did with the author on the podcast, The Run Up.
Trump is so different from people I know. He has devoted his life to making money and more importantly, being a celebrity. In this pursuit of, which the book title and Trump calls “success”, he has lied, exaggerated, cheated, insulted, bullied, and hurt thousands of people. I wouldn’t call this success, but I have much different values than Donald Trump.
Trump’s father Fred, was similar to him, getting his big break in real estate by exploiting loop holes in a government housing project, enriching himself to the detriment of American taxpayers and residents of the housing projects. From there, he continued to develop real estate. As a conservationist and lover of wilderness, I have a dislike of “developers” to start with. Fred Trump’s fathering style is also much different than mine. He bullied his son, sent him to a harsh military academy for grades 8-12 but reached his goal of instilling in Donald, an intense greed and ambition. Donald set his sights on building on his father’s developments by purchasing property in Manhattan. His father’s properties were mostly in Brooklyn. Donald is a third generation German immigrant, and Trump’s grandfather, Friedrich Drumpf, was also into real estate, getting his start by running a hotel in Alaska for gold miners in the late 19th century.
Trump has lived an incredibly full life. As you list his accomplishments, I am amazed that one person could do all that he did. From building huge towers in one of the most expensive cities in the world, to owning casinos in Atlantic City, developing golf courses, owning an USFL football team (New Jersey Generals), starring in a highly rated reality television show, owning an airlines, being a motivational speaker and “educator”, three marriages, father to 5 children, to now being president of the United States. Any of these in isolation would be considered a full life. However, all of these endeavors were marked with harming and destroying others, legal battles, bankruptcy, cheating, all because he wanted to “win”.
Despite appearances of fame, fortune and luxury, I think he is a sad figure. I don’t know how he can live with himself knowing the harm he has done to others. His lack of reflection I think is a defense against this. Some may argue that this is the kind of ruthless person we need as president, but I disagree. He is a man with no inner life, he is crass, rude and childish with his insults, I can’t believe that enough people voted for him to win. I do hope he goes crazy and shakes up our political structure which is needed, I just hoped that it would be a better person doing it. I also fear an over reaction to world events that might harm the country. I keep faith in our democratic institutions
D’antonio’s book does well in explaining such an unusual person and some insight into the way he operates. It will be a fascinating four years of his presidency.
I wanted to put down for posterity, my experience of the elections this year. I was totally caught by surprise by Donald Trump’s win. All of the “experts” were giving him such a small chance to win that I thought it was a sure thing for Hillary Clinton.
We follow politics very closely in the Kralovec house due to my wife’s interest in US politics. She loves the primaries, the debates, the SNL parodies, the punditry, etc. Her favorite channel is CNN. Because of this, the kids and I knew of all the events of the long campaign in good detail. We also experienced the campaign for ourselves. Nadia, Oliver and Ocean participated in a rally for Bernie Sanders in the main city of Guam, Hagatna, while we there for spring break in March. We also soaked up the atmosphere of the democratic national convention in Philadelphia this past summer. We stayed in the same hotel at the democratic delegates from Connecticut and Georgia and walked around downtown.
My preferred candidate was Bernie Sanders. I liked that he was focused on the expense of higher education (the only candidate talking about education), universal health care and income inequality. He also voted against going to war in Iraq. Finally, he was the only non-millionaire in the race. Hillary Clinton has used her political connections to earn $23 million dollars last year. Sander’s wife filed their taxes for $200,000 in income. Hillary Clinton has lost touch with the daily lives of most Americans.
Every election is about demographics in my opinion. Trump won because rural, white, generally blue collar people could identify with him. The split between the entertainment centers of Hollywood and New York, the multinational corporations and business world of Wall Street and Delaware and the university educated with rural and middle class America has grown. White, non-college educated saw Clinton as part of that world, not part of their world. I want to talk about my personal demographic. I am from what the media calls the “rust belt”. My parents were democrats. They both believed in unions, being educators, and living in a state where the auto industry had powerful unions. You do not hear much about unions these days and the wages and benefits of most American workers has declined since my parents’ time. You need to have two people working to have a decent life, whereas before, only one person needed to work. I grew up in rural Upper Michigan so I totally understand the lifestyle and view of Trump supporters. I am far removed from that today, with advanced degrees and living an expatriate cosmopolitan lifestyle. I am not rich however, being a teacher, so still have a foot on both sides. University of Wisconsin professor Kathy Cramer describes this divide brilliantly in this Washington Post interview.
I lodged a protest vote in Michigan for Bernie Sanders. I did so because I couldn’t get myself to vote for Clinton. I do feel that president Obama did a lot of good things, but not strongly enough. I feel Washington DC has lost touch with the middle class and both the republicans and democrats are too much influenced by special interest groups, lobbyists backed by rich interests, rich people, etc. Besides, I thought, according to everything I read, Trump could never win. In retrospect, I don’t think my one vote mattered anyway and even with Bernie Sanders, it would have been close. My Bernie Sanders t-shirt did and still does, generates lots of positive reactions in people. The structure of the electoral college favors rural voters and it takes an inspirational candidate from the democrats to overcome this. Clinton will win the popular vote but lose resoundingly in the electoral college. Is that right? It sounded to me that the Democratic National Committee rigged the system so Clinton would be the candidate. Bernie came from nowhere and just didn’t have enough time to overcome Clinton in the primaries. Would Bernie Sanders have been that candidate? In any case, I agree with Dan Carlin and believe that the dominance of the two main parties and the way they choose candidates needs to be changed! I want more of a choice and I want better candidates!
It is fascinating that the US elected such a crass, uncultured, shady businessman like Trump to run the country when we have so many hardworking, brilliant, caring people. I kind of hope through his craziness Trump blows up both parties and we have some other voices and interests being able to lead our government. It will be an interesting 4 years, although early signs indicate that he is appointing Republican dinosaurs and others like Newt Gingrich and his boys Giuliani and Christie. Not promising for progressives like myself.
Friday night Oliver and Ocean had the unique opportunity to perform with the Yamamoto Noh theatre group. Noh is an ancient (800+ years) form of theatre in Japan. The culture here is resistant to change and so many parts of their culture are preserved to the present day (e.g. see Sumo). It is awesome, in the original sense of the word, to participate in the cutting edge form of entertainment from the year 1200. It is like seeing the YouTube videos of today, 800 years from now!
The Yamamoto theatre of Osaka received a grant from the government to encourage exposure of Japanese culture to international people in anticipation of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Choreographers and directors came to our school and trained the students in the art of Noh. The performance took place in the Grand Front Osaka mall in front of several hundred people as well as shoppers and commuters passing by.
Ocean backstage
It is fascinating to watch a noh performance. There is a band of percussionists that make strange vocalizations and strike their drums at odd times. There is a kneeling chorus singing in a low tone. The actors move about in tight movements, every gesture having meaning. Actors wearing masks can’t see through them, so they memorize their steps. They all use a deep, strained voice. You have to see it as it is hard to describe. It is a long way from Broadway. Yamamoto is a professional organization so the performance was top quality with great sound, costumes, lighting, etc. .
They used the students in a nice way to lighten the performance. The play was composed in 2009 and it is about conservation of water in Osaka. A traveller to Osaka (then known as Naniwa) is saddened by the polluted rivers and ocean of Osaka bay. Foreign birds (played by OIS students) come and with the help of the water goddess, clean the Osakan waters and everyone lives happily in a clean, healthy environment. Oliver said in Spanish about a waterfall in Sucre, Bolivia that we hiked to a couple of summers ago.
It was such an amazing experience and thanks to everyone who made it possible.
I try to make a point of acknowledging those small moments in life that are meaningful, but happen so quickly or you think they are insignificant. Last night was a great example.
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