Since I came back to Singapore in April, I have played host to my tango friends from around the world.
First there was my dear Silvi, who came all the way from Buenos Aires with me to help teach some tango classes together. Then when she left, Mapi from Italy came to visit me and also attend Javier and Andrea's workshops. Finally of course, Javier Rodriguez and Andrea Misse came to Singapore for a week to hold workshops.
All of them loved Singapore, soaking up the sun and the warmth. Every single one of them loved Sentosa and her beaches. The sunny and constant weather of Singapore could be a dream for these people who are afraid of the cold; although it takes away a lot of nice fashion varieties; nice Prada overcoat? forget about it!
They were also impressed by the security, cleaniness and order of Singapore. Even I was impressed! After 8 months in Buenos Aires, I had to visually get use to the cars driving in one straight line and following their lanes. Silvi would always joke everytime she spots on stray piece of trash along the street; 'something is not functioning in this country!' she would exclaim.
They were all amazed by the existence of zebra crossings, where the cars would slow down from 500 meters away, without traffic lights and allow the pedastrains to take as much time as they like to cross.
I also became acutely aware of how materially rich this country is, the cars on the street are all spanking new, latest models. All the kids sitting next to me on the buses have their ipods, funky Nokias and handheld PSPs. Whenever I wanted to take Silvi, Mapi, Javier or Andrea out, I had to think very hard to think of something else other than a shopping complex or a foodcourt.
One of their only complain was the food. I could not believe it at first because I found Argentine food pretty lacking in variety after awhile. Singapore food is just about as varied as you can get. But their problem was that they could not take spicy food. I bought Silvi to eat our famed Hainan Chicken Rice; she put two drops of the famed Hainan Chicken Rice chilli and she almost choked to death.
Mapi just smelled the spiciness of the Indian Roti Prata and her face turned green. Javier could not even stand the smell of soya sauce. Only Andrea had a more adventurous palate, but even she had to down loads of water when she ate anything hot. Her face will turn as red as the chilli she is eating. So we had to eat italian food most of the time. But as international as our culinary selection is, affordable italian food is still pretty hard to find after 12 midnight.
Barring 'shopping and foodcourt' there are actually a lot of hidden treasures in Singapore, Mapi and Andrea absolutely loved the fashion styles of indian sari in Little India and nonya kebaya in Arab street. Javier got his newest Nokia E61i at Sim Lim square, showed Andrea that it could connect to the internet and also use internet telephony; in the end Andrea got hers too. Silvi and I went through loads of antique shops in Chinatown, visited lots of museums, catedrals and other culturally rich places.
I feel the mainstream Singaporeans are very caught up in consumerism, then there are a substantially large group who wants to break out; these people visit art shows, indulge in some off tangent hobbies, but yet their understanding of their respective hobbies are still very shallow; for example, dancing, many Singaporeans take up dancing lessons as a hobby, hip hop, jazz, salsa... etc, only few really loved what they are doing or be really passionate. I almost get the sense that people take up some kind of after work activities just to pass their time.
Then there are a few unique Singaporeans who really become passionate in an art form, something which caught their attention and they are willing to sacrifice their time from work, and study their art deeply. These are the people who break away from the daily grind and live more freely with more passion.
Like her people, Singapore appears generally without much character. Big modern shopping malls, with the same shops, same layout, food courts that looks the same everywhere. Then there are some places who at first glance, look special and different, but they actually lack originality and creativity; mostly faux fads, they look different just because they are trying to be.
But if you really dig very carefully, there are places in Singapore where you can really find unique places with lots of character. Javier, whose hotel was just next to the 'Temple of Goddess of Mercy' (Si Ma Lu Guan Yin Miao), told me he could smell the character of this neighbourhood. The burning incense, the praying crowds, the colourful fortune tellers. He told me that was probably his favourite neighbourhood because he could really feel the soul of local Singaporeans there; not just shopping and food court.
Having lived as a minority in Argentina, I was also more aware of our other races in Singapore. Socially, all the races appear to be integrated, but I do not feel this is happening at a very deep level yet. How many times have you, as a chinese, been invited to a malay wedding, indian religious ceremony; our connections with other races come mostly from work, and they seldom span beyond the workplace. I notice a lot more immigrants, from China, from India, etc. The government would have to work to integrate them into a harmonious society.
Having said that, my international friends are all impressed by the racial harmony they see. A muslim mosque standing beside chinese temple, opposite a catholic church; different races mixing and joking around. As a singaporean I feel that although each race still identify very strongly to their own community; a national identity is brewing, it is growing, it is certainly stronger and more obvious as the time goes by. Maybe in another generation to come there might finally be a national identity.
No country or political system is perfect. But my little country is actually doing quite well, with an excellent education system, rich material comfort, culturally combining best of the east and the west. She just needs a touch of genuineness, a dash of passion and adventurous spirit and top it up with a little experience of suffering to put the steel in her and to let us know how lucky we actually are.
