Tears in Singapore

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

MY SECOND trip to the Lion City was odder than the first.

The concept of “to visit” is considerably different from “to dwell”: to pack my whole life in a suitcase and in the process, learn how to drop the consonant “r” from my vocabulary and adopt a British twang. Or grasp the meaning of the word “queue,” when in the end, it’s only another term for the word “line.” Or digest the familiar question at McDonald’s, “dine in or take out?” Which, here, is vaguely transposed into “having here or take away?”

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It’s a concoction of cultures. While neighboring countries—Philippines and Thailand—can make a decent living out of Botox, Singapore is pretty much secure with how others find her beauty. It may not be a definite equation as “Paris is to romance,” but you may say, it’s for anyone seeking every imaginable ideal.

For example, getting around the city is easy: a swipe of an EZ Link card (SGD 15) will get you passage on a bus and train, while you can pay electronically for taxi cab rides. If lost, you can rely on the locals, or better yet, the online tour guide, www.gothere.sg.

It’s not like Singapore has diminished her appetite for cosmetic tucks; others just find the procedure overly expensive, says my entertainer friend who has made several trips back home to Cebu for nasal injections, a face lift, and breast augmentation.

In fact, the presence of Prada, Michael Kors, Valentino, and Diane von Furstenberg is enough to qualify Singapore as one of the world’s most fashionable. Then there’s Hollywood—a year ago, Beyonce performed in Fort Canning; July of this year, Lady Gaga staged her Born This Way album, preceded by the premiere night graced by Tom Hanks. Some Filipino entertainers—Billy Crawford, K. Brosas in Ngee Ann City in Orchard Road—on the other hand, jam packed the streets on a Sunday.

No Jollibee in any part of the city, but there’s McDonald’s everywhere for 24 whole hours. During the day, hawker stalls, also in every place, are good options for those who prefer a budget meal; hence, all the delicacies and exotic preparations are easily available. You can dine in Chinatown (for noodles, spices, gelatins), in Bugis (best burgers and fries), or in Lavender (frogs, anyone?).

Since it’s a three-hour flight from either Cebu or Manila, Singapore shelters many Filipinos, who are employed in the highest-paid of industries: information technology, customer relations, and hospitality.

The Marina Bay Sands hotel and casino has been the new icon of Singapore, sitting across the bay area’s “Mer-lion,” the carved, half fish, half lion icon that symbolizes the most popular myth in Singaporean literature. From afar, the structure appears to be a ship supported by two bejeweled pillars.

A fifteen-minute sky train ride atop Vivo City (the largest shopping area) will take you to Universal Studios in Sentosa Island where a gigantic statue of the creature is also found in a theme park with a viewing tower of the entire land area, cable rides, and storytelling tents.

The Universal Studios is a franchise of the flagship in Miami, Florida. Its concept is inspired by the company’s films released worldwide. To scintillate or to horrify, the rides offer one a wide variety. The Castle of Shrek and the Madagascar boat ride are for children’s delight while the Mummy Returns, an indoor rollercoaster in the dark, is for anyone seeking thrill.

Of course, there are the all-time attractions on the mainland: the Flyer, the night safari, Jurong Bird Park, the durian-inspired twin domes of The Esplanade (durian is their national fruit), the British architectural exterior of the Fullerton, and the night clubs (formerly opium dens) in Clark Quay in pastel shades.

Or else, one can opt for the esoteric. In Bugis, the temple of Kwan Im (goddess of mercy) draws tourists through divination. A devotee presents himself by kneeling before the sacred icon, stating his name, age, place of origin, and the purpose of his visit. He then shakes a can of sticks with Chinese inscriptions until one of them drops to the floor. The scribes in the temple then give their interpretation and advice. Followers say the deity sends her message through this ritual.

Another way of “peeking into the future” is in Little India, right next to Bugis. Astrologers consult birds for predictions. While Manny is the most famous fortune-telling bird (it once predicted the World Cup victor), one can also find many others along the sidewalk.

I tried a lady psychic for SGD 10 (P318). Since she barely spoke English, her interpreter moderated our conversation. On her mobile stall, she carried with her a small table, a notebook, 27 cards based on the Indian cosmic system, and most importantly, a parrot. She began her ritual by asking for my first name, then she opened the wooden cage and requested the bird to pick a card by its beak to represent my current cosmic state in domestic, financial, career, and romantic matters.

“Many turned to parrot astrologers to have their fortunes told, particularly in times of uncertainty,” explained Naidu Ratnala Thulaja, writer at the National Library of Singapore. “(But) many Indians have lost faith in parrot astrology with time as people began to believe that it was a maverick system of fortune telling. This resulted in the dwindling number of astrologers in Little India.”

I cried in Singapore because Singapore’s flashy buildings often conceal lonely stories of migration and its near-home resemblance, which could make homecoming the best part of every departure. Even the most seasoned of Overseas Filipino Workers cry too.