wah lao eh... singaporian-culture shock!

I'm in Singapore now. Despite the infamous kiasu-nature of the entire nation, this trip allowed me to see Singapore from a student/ citizen point of view. Because I stay in the nation's uni's campus marh....

Singapore: IT'S SO SAFE HERE!! I know dad and mom will say that there are still bad hats everywhere.... But let's so a direct comparison here... If crime rates in Malaysia is 10/10; the UK is 5/10; then Singapore will be that of 2/10! First when I arrived, I was a little bit paranoid especially after being taught well by dad about what to be watchful of. But I started to see the campus girls LEAVING their bags on the seats of the canteen just for the sake of convenience. When a girl eats lunch at the stools, she'll leave the bag lying on the stool NEXT to her. When a guy wants to get another drinks from the stalls, he'll leave his laptop on the table while he casually leaves his belonging behind.

Malaysia: I won't even DARE to bring out my laptop in the canteen larh! Not to mention my bags will be the next closest fabric to me after my clothes.

Singapore: Apparently, jogging in the middle of the night is a norm here. So, me and WM jogged at 11pm. Haha... yepp! And then, we even went for supper at the PGP's snacks bar at 12.30am. That brought me back to the days in IMU, only more accessible and convenient.

Malaysia: I won't even DARE to drive so lately, quit dreaming about walking/jogging (jogging???!!!) at night! So we can cut the crap and comfortably justify my laziness when the daylight goes off (shit larh.. that's since 7pm!)

That's in the campus.. a little bit too idealistic larh. But yesterday night we had a night out with Kah Yat, WM's childhood buddy and Grace, Kah Yat's girlfriend, who are students at the NUS. They brought us out to Holland Village, the Bangsar-equivalent in Singapore. After some alcohol, we went to their "mamak" to have supper. He offered me to put my bag in a stool standing in the way of the passer-bys.

Malaysia: BYE BYE bag!!

I'm starting to get used to the culture here. But in the beginning, we (me and WM) kept exclaiming that we feel soooo darn cheated by, similarly by IMU, then me by University of Strathclyde, him by Univeristy of Dundee. I'm not surprised that the campus is so huge, as it's the best of the nation. But the good thing is that the university actually provided students with free shuttle services. Not sure about in UM in Malaysia though....

Another thing is the nation's English proficiency loh.... Yes larh it's very Singlish/Manglish larh, but even the aunty selling Katong Laksa can speak English to us. Similarly if I were to speak Manglish to the aunty selling char kuey teow in Taman Midah, I guess she'll decide not to sell me the noodles. Right Ming?

Still, I think i'm more "high-class" in Malaysia due to the ability to drive. I also appreciate the fact that the nation's complexity is directly proportional to the size. Ok loh.. (forcefully nodding) different rulers have different styles loh..... I can't say much for now because I'm counting on a good posting by the government. Malaysia, truly Asia!! I love you Malaysia!!