The Lion City

Everybody knows that Singapore is a very competitive place. One can feel its vibrancy and energy just by looking at how Singaporean walk. As I mentioned in my previous posting that rush hour over here is really rushing! People actually run as fast as they can as if being chased by Tai Ee Long. I realize that its competitiveness has reached its limit when I saw a commercial on TV which proclaimed one Singaporean by the name of……I can’t remember his name…..Anyway this fellow was awarded the champion blood donor! I was like…..WHAT?! People actually compete to donate blood over here?! It is madness and hilarious at the same time.

Years ago, one of my Singaporean friend visited me in Penang. I brought him to eat one of the famous Curry Mee in town. He got diarrhea right after that. It is easily understood why he couldn’t get used to our unhygienic Penang food as Singaporeans are very particular about cleanliness. Believe it or not, I actually got diarrhea 3 times on my first day of work in Singapore. I must be the first person to ever get stomach ache from clean food. I think I am allergic to cleanliness.

My new office has a good mix of people from different countries. There are 1 Vietnamese, 1 Thai, 3 Filipinos, 1 from Malacca, 2 from Penang (me and one of the boss), 1 more boss from Malaysia (don’t know which part yet) and the rest are Singaporeans. The big boss is a Singaporean. So far, all of them are very friendly and great! I feel comfortable in the office. One of them even invited me to join them for lunch. My first project is to refine the design of a residential project in Nigeria done by the Penang boss. I started quite slow because it has been a while since the last time I designed an apartment.

It is funny that the AA of the company asked me why I come to Singapore so late? She said most people come in their 20s. Yeah right, thanks for reminding me that I’m way beyond 30. I’m sure she didn’t mean anything, just plain curiosity. I actually thought about her question for a while: Why did I stay in Penang all this while?............After ponder about it for a while, I don’t see anything wrong with it. Everything happens for a reason, I always wanted to do something for my hometown Penang as an architect. Although I didn’t design the tallest building or the most luxurious hotel in Penang, I’m satisfied with some of the work that I’ve done in the duration of the past 10 years. I’m particularly proud of the work I’ve done for KDU College as well.

That was the past. Now I’m venturing into new territory. To be honest, I’m not quite sure what it will lead me into (especially when I put Australia into the equation). I just realize that I still have a long journey ahead of me………………….